Christmas is a time for... well,
drinking whisky. But more than that, it is a time for buying whisky, with many
shops and supermarkets discounting core range offerings.
And we aren’t going to complain
with that. In fact, as much as there have been some premium purchases at
Caskstrength Towers this year, there are always bargains to be had.
In a week where Chelsea footballer and Egland captain John Terry, on something mental like £150,000 per week, is spotted shopping in PoundLand, we know all too well, coming from a music business
background, that a ‘bargain’ is too often associated with, erm, stock that doesn’t
sell. The bargain bin is the last place you want an album or a DVD to end up.
However, when it comes to whisky, we’ll always take a bargain.
This week, as the Christmas
shopping began to get into full swing, I found myself in my local Waitrose.
Having developed a partnership
with uber-chef Heston Blumenthal over the past few years, which included
sell-out items such as a Christmas Pudding with a hidden candied orange in the
middle, so popular that in their first year they ended up on eBay for up to
£200, the supermarket doesn’t shirk away from playing in the premium arena.
However, despite it’s ‘#middleclass’
appeal, Waitrose is not afraid of a bargain. Both of us have picked up some
excellent items over the years in Waitrose, with a Port Ellen 3rd
release at a shade over £100 and a Laphroaig 30 Years Old at around £150 as two examples of great whisky-steals!
The first bottle is a stalwart of
the whisky fraternity; one which people hail often as turning point for them in
their journey to discovering peat and, once in, will graduate up to their
sublime 18 year old offering. The whisky in question is Highland Park 12 Years Old, which
Waitrose has on sale for just £24.68 for 70cl. I'll repeat that: £24.68p.
Highland Park – 12 Years Old –
Single Malt Whisky – 70cl – 40% abv
Nose: a delicate waft of peat
comes out of the glass, but this is not turned up to 11, but sitting
comfortably at about a 6 or a 7. This allows complimentary aromas of sweet
honey, crunchie bar (honey comb and milk chocolate), freshly cut grass and some
menthol to sit on a bed of light peat; the opposite way around to most smoky malts.
Palate: vanilla peat is the first
flavour to come through with light orange cream, dark chocolate this time and
some elements of parma violets. A good slug of malted milk / maltesers and that delicate peat again at the death.
Finish: sweet with a peaty
roundness.
Overall: probably the
introduction to smoky whisky which doesn’t drag you down a dark alleyway and
mug your taste buds, but takes it out for dinner for an eloquent chat.
Now, if you choose to fork out
twenty five of you hear earned pounds on the HP12, you’ll have one of the
trinity of great Scotch expressions that you need for the foundations of a good
whisky cabinet. The third and final piece of the jigsaw is a cracking blend,
but we’ll come to that in another post in a few days time, with the
missing link being, of course, a great non-peated whisky, from the Lowlands, Highlands or
Speyside region of Scotland.
And again, Waitrose is the place
to turn for a true bargain here.
It’s no secret that we have a
love for The Balvenie 12 Year Old Doublewood and I don’t know many people who don’t love,
love, love this easy drinking dram. But at the moment, forget the 12 year old as The Balvenie Caribbean
Cask 14 Year Old is on sale for £33 at Waitrose.
£33.
Considering the 12 year old
Doublewood is £32 and this older expression is over £10 more at other
whisky-specific outlets, this really is an absolute steal.
The Balvenie – 14 Years Old –
Caribbean Cask – 43% abv
Nose: So, this whisky has been ‘finished’
in rum casks, hence the name... and this fact is immediately obvious as a huge
sweetness rises from the glass; but not an ordinary saccharine sweet. This is
very much a darker, molasses-based sweetness that you’d find in a Navy Rum.
Rich and enticing, this is about as sweet as whisky gets without being sickly
or false.
Palate: the flavour delivers
exactly what the nose promises: strong, malty, sweet tones that saddle strong
Navy rums with a mix of the more elderly Armagnacs I’ve tried. Very bold, yet
balanced, this really is a step up from the 12 Year Old Doublewood, but be warned,
if you like a full-on American oak influenced heavy vanilla palate, this isn’t
for you. The vanilla is there, but this is old, rich, real Madagascan vanilla
sweetened with heavy brown sugar.
Finish: a wonderfully rich,
smooth finish which, again, leans towards an old French brandy than a teenage
Scotch.
Overall: For under £35? Are you
having a laugh? Do what I did and buy, buy, buy.
So there you have it; great
Scotch does not have to be expensive and if you’re one of those muttering about
age statements disappearing and the price of Scotch rising, here are two great
examples of single malts which will quite rightly prove you wrong!
Of course, you could always go for the best December bargain of all, and order one of the few bottles of 3D Whisky left...