Welcome to World Whisky time again, where we’re diving into the world of Pike Creek 10 year old whisky. Crafted by Corby Spirit and Wine Limited, this Canadian dram boasts an exciting twist—it’s finished in rum barrels, adding a distinctive flair to its character.
Tag: Pernod Ricard Page 1 of 7
Pernod Ricard is a French company that produces alcoholic beverages. The brands include:
Aberlour whisky
Ballantine’s blended whisky
Chivas Regal whisky
Glenlivet whisky
Jameson Irish Whiskey
Longmorn whisky
Powers Irish whiskey
Redbreast whiskey
Royal Salute whisky
Scapa whisky
Absolut vodka
JP Wiser Canadian whisky
One of the bottles that made it to the island with me is the Ballantine’s Limited Edition blended Scotch whisky. It is no secret that we are huge Ballantine’s whisky fans. This is the second bottle from the Ballantine’s range I am writing about this year. The first one was the Ballantine’s 7 year old Bourbon finish whisky.
I have several Ballantine’s releases in my collection and have written about some of the flavoursome releases I have tasted. The Ballantine’s Limited Edition whisky is a blend of Ballantine’s most exclusive Scotch whiskies. It has no age statement, and little information is available on the this Limited Edition.
John picked up this bottle in one of the whisky auctions, and we have had it in our collection for at least 5 years.
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The bottle comes in a beautiful blue box with wood insides, and the bottle is a striking blue colour. When the bottle is empty, I am keeping the empty bottle just because it is pretty. My Ballantine’s Limited Edition is release no: G25095.
The inside of the box states that “it carries the name Limited because only the best whiskies are used in its making, including the company’s own aged single malts from Miltonduff and Glenburgie.”
One of the reasons we enjoy Ballantine’s so much is the bold, memorable flavours from their releases. The Ballantine’s 17 year old and 17 year old Scapa Edition is on my list of best drams ever. The Limited Edition was quite expensive, and I have seen prices in excess of $150 online.
Ballantine’s Limited Edition Whisky Review
ABV: 43%
COLOUR: Golden Amber
NOSE: Subtle and elegant with rich red fruits, bits of oak, vanilla, and notes of honey sweetness. Dried cherries with soft spices and soft green notes. Really lovely.
PALATE: Smooth and rich with toffee notes and overripe pears and hints of black pepper and cinnamon. All notes are put together very elegantly. Bits of drying oak and vanilla with hints of lemon. Adding water releases notes of dark chocolate and leather and softens the pepper.
FINISH: Long and lingering with notes of drying oak, soft honey sweetness, and light pepper.
RATING: VERY GOOD
It’s a lovely dram. Easy drinking and well-balanced. The bottle will not last very long. However, it is not the bold and complex dram I expected from Ballantine’s. At the price point, I was hoping for something more memorable. Something special that holds our attention. However, at this price point there are more impressive blends and single malts out there.
For the serious Ballantine’s collector, it’s an interesting bottle to have to complete the collection. But rather buy the Ballantine’s 17 year old if you want to spoil yourself with something spectacular.
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Wandering around the supermarket in Tamarin Mauritius I spotted a Ballantine’s whisky I have not tried before; the Ballantine’s 7 yo Bourbon Finish blended Scotch whisky. I love Ballantine’s whisky. I have many bottles in my collection and have written about them extensively. So this bottle landed in my trolley pretty quickly.
Ballantine’s blended whisky is one of the largest Scotch whisky brands and is available in over 160 countries. Ballantine’s is currently owned by Chivas Brothers, part of the larger Pernod Ricard group.
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The Ballantine’s Bourbon Finish is a permanent addition to the core range and was released in September 2020. It is a blend of single malts and single grain whiskies for a traditional Ballantine’s expression that was aged for a minimum age of seven years, before being finished in ex-bourbon casks, sourced from Kentucky.
The new whisky is inspired by founder George Ballantine, who started selling his own 7 years old aged whisky in the 1870s. It was also a time when Ballantine’s was one of the first companies to be importing ex-bourbon casks from America.
Ballantine’s 7 yo Bourbon Finish Whisky Review
ABV: 40%
COLOUR: Deep Gold
NOSE: Elegant and soft with oak and tropical coconut notes. Caramel sweetness and light vanilla with fruity notes. The nose is quite sweet and not very complex.
PALATE: Creamy oak with hints of black pepper and fresh apples. On the palate, the 7 yo whisky is bolder and less sweet as suggested by the nose. Hints of fruity sweetness, caramel, and vanilla with something biscuity in the background.
The Bourbon Finish has a medium body and is easy to drink. It is not the most complex dram and quite sweet on the palate.
FINISH: Medium length with oak and hints of sweetness that moves to black pepper.
RATING: VERY GOOD
Probably the least favourite of the Ballantine’s that I have tried. It is far more delicate than even the standard Ballantine’s Finest whisky. It lacks a bit of the Ballantine’s complexity that I enjoy. Having said that, my bottle is nearly finished, so it is not a bad whisky at all. Just not as complex and sassy as some of the other releases.
In South Africa, the standard ABV is 43%, so it takes a bit to get used to the lower ABV. I need to concentrate on not adding water too quickly. I have not seen it in SA yet, but online it retails for around € 23. It is available in Mauritius for around RS1700 and I have seen it around the bigger supermarkets.
Also Read:Ardbeg Supernova Whisky
Green, Yellow, Red, Blue; you can be forgiven if you thought today was another edition of the Johnnie Walker range. But today, I am looking at an Irish whiskey. Yellow Spot 12 year old Irish whiskey is the second addition to the ‘Spot’ range of Irish whiskies.
Mitchell devised a simple colour-coding scheme for identifying casks, using spots of coloured paint on each cask in the warehouse to track the age of the whiskey in each barrel. Blue Spot was 7 years old, Green Spot was 10 years old, Yellow Spot was 12 years old, and Red Spot whiskey was 15 years old.
The name stuck, and today the ‘Spot’ range is produced specifically for Mitchell & Son of Dublin by Irish Distillers at the Midleton Distillery in Cork, Ireland. Yellow Spot whiskey is part of the Pernod Ricard brand portfolio.
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Green Spot was first released in 1933, followed by a few more Spot colours. However, the bonder’s style category whiskies disappeared when distillery bottled releases took over the market. Green Spot was the last to be discontinued in the 1950s.
Fortunately, Green Spot was reintroduced to the market in the early 2000s, and Yellow Spot whiskey followed in 2012
Yellow Spot is a single pot still Irish whiskey, matured in three types of cask: American Bourbon cask, Spanish Sherry butts and Spanish Malaga casks (a sweet fortified wine) for a sweeter flavour. It has been aged for at least 12 years.
Yellow Spot 12 year old Irish Whiskey Review
COUNTRY: Ireland
ABV: 46%
COLOUR: Light caramel.
NOSE: Fresh nectarines, dried fruit, wood, and barley heaps of fruity sweetness. Pepper and vanilla with caramel sweetness.
PALATE: Yummy! Fruit drizzled stone fruit with vanilla and anise mixed with red apples, wood and sherry notes. Hints of dark roast coffee and barley. Medium-bodied and inviting. Bits of fresh toast with melted butter. Lovely balance between the fruity sweetness, wood and spices.
Very drinkable and velvety smooth. Bits of citrus zest and black pepper. A few drops of water releases more wood and sweetness, but it does not need extra water. It is delicious just like that.
FINISH: Long, sweet, warming and wonderfully balanced. Fruity, sweetness and wood.
RATING: EXCELLENT
Every aspect of this Yellow Spot whiskey is just yummy. It is not the most complex whiskey, but very drinkable and delicious. When I tasted it, the words that came to mind were “accessible and inviting”.
The Yellow Spot 12 year old Irish whiskey is probably my favourite “Spot” so far. (I tried Green Spot at a whisky festival). It is available in SA and retail for around R930. Which is your favourite “Spot”?
Also Read: Bushmills 16 yo Whiskey
At the end of 2021, we were invited for drinks by some friends just up the road. Sats received a bottle of the Jameson Select Reserve Irish whiskey from a colleague, and knowing our whisky love, he saved his bottle for our visit. I have to say; there was not much left by the time we walked home.
I am not the biggest fan of the standard Jameson Irish whiskey, and I was not expecting much. But we all loved the Select Reserve, and I went to buy us a bottle. So, before anything else, thank you, Sats, for sharing your bottle with us.
The Jameson Select Reserve is a triple distilled blend of rich pot still and grain whiskey. The whiskey is matured in a mixture of sherry casks and flame charred bourbon barrels. It has no age statement, but it is believed to be around 10 to 12 years old.
The Select Reserve is part of the Pernod Ricard stable together with Redbreast, Green Spot and Yellow Spot whiskey. Other Jameson Irish whiskey releases include the Jameson 18 year old and the Jameson Black Barrel whiskey.
Also Read: Willett Pot Still Reserve Bourbon
Jameson Select Reserve Irish Whiskey Review
COUNTRY: Ireland
ABV: 43%
COLOUR: Pale Gold
NOSE: Bold with butterscotch sweetness, toasted malt and peaches. Something that reminds me of freshly baked palmier cookies. Cinnamon and faint bits of tropical fruit and oak. Hints of cream and milk chocolate and red berries.
PALATE: Buttery pastry with vanilla, toasted oak and stone fruit. Something green in the background. Tropical fruit and oak come through, especially after a few drops of water. In terms of spices, it is warming and lovely with cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg notes. Rich and complex and just very, very smooth. A lovely dram.
FINISH: Long and lingering with toasted wood and vanilla. Bits at light pepper and fruity sweetness.
RATING: EXCELLENT
What a lovely drinkable whiskey. Smooth and wonderfully balanced. Someone called it a “breakfast whiskey”, and I think that is a perfect description. It is bold and fruity, and a few drops into a steaming bowl of oats will make your day start with a big smile.
Between the 4 of us, we made a significant dent in Sats’ bottle. If nothing else, that is a testament to how drinkable this Jameson is. I was also impressed with the affordability of the Select Reserve.
In South Africa, it retails for about R 420. Compared to the standard Jameson at R 330, this is outstanding value. Undoubtedly the nicest Jameson whiskey I have tasted thus far. Worth adding to your collection.
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