The Famous Grouse whisky is a blended Scotch whisky brand, first produced by Matthew Gloag & Son. Owned and produced by The Edrington Group, this famous blend is made up of various well-known distilleries. Most notably whisky from The Macallan, The Glenrothes and Highland Park.
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Edrington, formerly known as The Edrington Group, is a privately owned international spirits company based in Scotland. Brands in their portfolio include: The Macallan Whisky, Highland Park Whisky, The Glenrothes Whisky, The Famous Grouse blended Whisky and
Naked Grouse blended malt Whisky
Today I look at a comparison of 15 year old whiskies; two classic brands. These two brands go head to head all over the world. The Macallan 15 vs Glenfiddich 15 year old single malt Scotch whisky.
A lot has been written about the Macallan distillery and brand. Some people love it; some people hate it. Many stories about it exist; some true, some not quite. It often makes the ‘Most Expensive whisky’ lists.
In addition to my regular single malt favourites, I add a blended whisky to my tasting schedule to spice things up now and again. Last year, this led me to the Black Grouse whisky, which I loved and I paired with some spicy Indian food. On reading up about the Grouse brand, I noted that they made a Naked Grouse blended Scotch whisky.
And with a name like that, I had to have it. So, on the way back from London, I grabbed this award-winning Grouse. I see that it is available in SA as well. The Famous Grouse is a brand of blended Scotch whisky, first produced by Matthew Gloag & Son.
The Edrington Group owns the Famous Grouse brand as well as The Macallan, Cutty Sark and Highland Park. This Naked Grouse has a high proportion of spirit from Macallan & Highland Park. The Macallan bringing the sweet sherry influence, and Highland Park bringing a slightly malty, smoky sharpness.
This is the previous blended Scotch whisky release. The new release was relaunched as a blended malt. Other releases in the range include the Famous Grouse Smoky Black whisky.
The Naked Grouse whisky has been matured in sun-dried sherry oak casks. I have also managed to add two more bottles to my Famous collection: the Famous Grouse Port Wood Cask and the Black Grouse Alpha edition.
In keeping with the Naked theme, the labelling is limited with only a Grouse embossed in the glass. So let get Naked…
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Naked Grouse Whisky Review
ABV: 40%
COLOUR: A very dark colour. It is a rather unusual dark mahogany red colour.
NOSE: Sherry sweet. It made me think of a glass of Old Brown Sherry in front of a log fire. That sticky sweet, warming smell after spending the afternoon hiking in the cold mountains. There are notes of toffee, caramel and vanilla.
Hints of cherry and ripe red fruits float around. The nose promises a rich, delicious experience.
PALATE: An interesting flavour development. The first sip is just spicy notes. Sweetness develops a bit more by the second sip. The second sip has remnants of bubblegum, plump cherries and bits of butterscotch.
But not the rich sweetness promised by the nose. There are notes of oak, cinnamon, cardamom and grape. Water softens the spices a bit but does not release any additional sweetness.
FINISH: Medium length and end in notes of dried fruit, toffee and faint hints of chocolate.
RATING: VERY GOOD
After all the positive reviews I read about this Naked Grouse whisky, as well as the rich sweet nose, I was expecting a more complex and richer dram. It did not quite live up to my expectations. What did you think of this Naked Grouse?
I have also managed to taste the Famous Grouse Bourbon Cask blended whisky and captured my tasting notes for this affordable release as well.
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Today I try the Highland Park 1997 Vintage single malt Scotch whisky. Highland Park distillery is a Scotch whisky distillery founded in Kirkwall, Orkney. Sweeping plains of barley fields and rocky outcrops dot the landscape around Highland Park.
It is the most northerly whisky distillery in Scotland, about a kilometre further north-east than that Scapa distillery. Highland Park was founded in 1798 and officially licensed in 1826.
The name Highland Park does not refer to ‘The Highland’ area of Scotland. It refers to the point that the distillery was founded on an area called ‘High Park’ distinguished from a lower area nearby.
The distillery draws its water from the mineral-rich springs to the east of the distillery and the Crantit Spring. Highland Park is one of the few distilleries to malt its own barley, using locally cut peat from the Hobbister Moor.
The peat is then mixed with heather before used as fuel. Highland Park is also one of the ingredients of The Famous Grouse blend. The Highland Park distillery is part of the Edrington portfolio.
The Highland Park 1997 Vintage whisky expression was bottled exclusively for the duty-free market and is released in 1-litre bottles. Distilled in 1997 and bottled in 2009, makes this a 12 year old but the bottling does not have a specific age statement.
Based on some research, this 1997 Highland Park single malt spent some time in both American oak and Sherry casks as well as some bourbon casks.
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Highland Park 1997 Vintage Whisky Review
REGION: Islands
ABV: 40%
COLOUR: Amber or dark gold. It is very dark in the bottle but redder in the glass. It is quite an oily whisky.
NOSE: Offers sweetness mixed with spices. There are hints of citrus, cloves and cinnamon. Some butter and toffee float around. This Highland Park 1997 whisky has a great nose, and it promises a creamy mouthful.
PALATE: A bit of let down after the promise of the nose. We looked at each other and wondered where the flavour disappeared to? It has a medium body with hints of oak, marmalade, and citrus peel. In the background, there are bits of smoke and peat mixed with custard.
FINISH: Short and ends quite abruptly in notes of wet leather and oranges.
RATING: VERY GOOD
It is a smooth whisky that promises much, but doesn’t quite deliver what I expected. I keep on hoping to find a Highland Park that I would love. So many people love this distillery. For some reason, every time I try it, I am disappointed.
I tried the Highland Park 18 year old single malt Scotch whisky but was not blown away. What Highland Park release do you recommend I try next?
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