Weekend Brief: Blended Whiskies with Compass Box and Douglas Laing
A quick round-up of recent reviews, this time with a focus on blends!
Two of the blends below are blended malts, and two are blended Scotch. These are the two most common types of Scotch blends, and the primary difference is the presence of grain whisky in the blended Scotch. Blended malts, as the name implies, are composed entirely of single malt whiskies from at least two different distilleries blended to create something new. A blended scotch is essentially the same; the product of two or more distilleries; in addition to malt whiskies, however, they also contain grain whisky.
For example, Compass Box’s “Artist Blend” below contains grain whisky from Cameronbridge Distillery and malt whiskies from Linkwood, Clynelish, and Balmenach. As the blend contains grain whisky, it is a blended scotch. On the other hand, Compass Box’s “Orchard House” has whisky from Linkwood, Clynelish, Benrinnes, and Caol Ila— because these are all malt whiskies, the final product is a blended malt.
I do not find any inherent quality difference between the two styles, though I know some enthusiasts and consumers prefer blended malts, especially when judging between mass-market products. I frequently focus more attention on the producer and label— do I trust that they are using quality products or assembling something more than the sum of its parts? Trust must be earned through positive experiences with the product.
Compass Box and Douglas Laing are bottlers I trust to maintain a high level of quality, even when mass-producing blended malts or blended Scotch. I have had positive experiences with these bottlers in the past, and I appreciate that they both provide additional details about the whisky components. Compass Box is a leader in this regard, providing online fact sheets with general details about the composition of each blend, credit the blender responsible, and they are more than willing to provide additional information by email.
Three of the four blends below come from Compass Box and are part of the bottler’s core lineup. The Artist Blend and Glasgow Blend are flagship mass-market whiskies and are generally budget-friendly. The Orchard House is a slightly more premium blended malt, but still a core product and widely available. The fourth whisky is the Epicurean Blended Malt from Douglas Laing, part of their Remarkable Regional blended malts series, along with Timorous Beastie, Scallywag, Rock Island, and Big Peat. The whiskies are core products for Douglas Laing and are widely available; the bottler frequently releases special editions of the Remarkable Regional Malts, often featuring specific cask maturations, finishes, or age statements.
With the explanatory material out of the way, on to the whisky!
Whisky Details: Compass Box Orchard House, Blended Malt 46%
Nose: Gentle citrus, chalk, dehydrated apple slices, apricot, cinnamon bread, walnut, hints of grassy-herbal tea.
Palate: Medium-bodied, citrus, apples, pears, dried persimmon, walnut or almond pastry, herbal tea and oak, lemon zest, mellow chalk-stone toward the end.
Finish: Medium-length, herbal tea and citrus.
Score: 5
Narrative & Notes: A pleasant and unassuming blended malt featuring Linkwood, Clynelish, and Benrinnes. The three major components of the blend played nicely together; Linkwood appeared with the citrus and herbal nuts, Benrinnes gave a lovely weight on the palate, and the Clynelish more citrus, orchard fruit, and chalk-stoney depth. I did not quite get the impression of an orchard— maybe a house near an orchard; possibly, that was Compass Box's intention. While orchard fruits— citrusy and otherwise— played a starring role— notes of old oak, tea, and pastries brought to mind a farmhouse and a picturesque brunch.
While this did not tickle my fancy, I would grab it ahead of Glenlivet, Glenfiddich, or Balvenie 12 Year. It fits into a similar place as those single malts but with more depth and restrained sweetness. It was pleasant and, perhaps most importantly for an unassuming whisky such as this, affordable.
Whisky Details: Compass Box Great King Street Artist's Blend, 43%
Nose: Cream, lime and ginger candies, polished oak, butter, brown sugar, molasses, peppercorn, herbal tropical citrus.
Palate: Medium-bodied, mild, citrus and ginger candies, dried apricots and kiwi, seasoned oak, subtle strawberry and balsamic in the background, gingerbread toward the end, shortbread cookie, orange zest.
Finish: Medium-length butter, oak, and citrus.
Score: 5
Narrative & Notes: Cost-effective and well-balanced, this was another great one for kicking back with at a party or elevating one's cocktail game with something that has a bit more finesse than your typical lower-shelf blended whisky. Back in the day, I used to always kick back with a bit of Kirkland 12-Year Blended Whisky— an anonymous blend sold in a huge bottle. It was not great whisky, but it was serviceable and drinkable. Though this Compass Box is a bit more expensive, it is well-balanced: the flavors largely harmonize, there are no off notes, the mouthfeel is even, and there is no lingering bitterness. While I have had my qualms with some of the premium Compass Box releases and whether they are worth the ask, the core Compass Box products are dependable and delicious for the price. This was no exception.
Whisky Details: Compass Box Great King Street Glasgow, 43%
Nose: Dried fruit, wispy chimney smoke, vegetal, antiseptic iodine, dried grass, charcoal.
Palate: Medium to light-bodied, toffee or smoked caramel, toasted herbs, charcoal grill smoke, mellow nuttiness, dark chocolate chips, molasses cookies, very Autumn, dried vegetation, a kiss of salt.
Finish: Medium-length with wispy smoke and molasses cookies.
Score: 5-6
Narrative & Notes: Very similar to the Artist’s Blend, but more up my alley regarding flavors. The sherry-matured highland malt paired beautifully with some pungent Laphroaig. I was surprised at how the smoke manifested on the nose and palate. There was no missing it, though it did not dominate the experience. It was always there, a companion to sweeter notes of dried fruit and vegetation. The effect struck me as very Autumnal, and I love a good Fall-themed whisky. At $40-50, I would pick this ahead of most peated single malts and similarly priced blends when searching for something easy to drink with a bit of peat. While I am a fan of the Johnny Walker Double Black, I thought the finish of the Glasgow Blend was much better, even if it lacked some of the richness upfront.
I have always found the Peat Monster to be a bit more of a Teddy Bear than anything ferocious, but maybe compared to this more subtle and soft blend, it is a bit monstrous.
Whisky Details: Douglas Laing "The Epicurean" Lowland Blended Malt, 46.2%
Nose: Sinus-clearing citrus and herbs, menthol, yeast, cereal sweetness, green grass, tart fruit
Palate: Medium-bodied, cream, citrus, grassy, big and herbal toward the middle and end, grain chaff, crab apples and tart fruits, spirited pickle toward the end, citrus pith.
Finish: Medium to short with grassy sugars, persimmon, and hints of citrus.
Score: 3-4
Narrative & Notes: I have enjoyed my previous encounters with Douglas Laing’s Remarkable Regional Malts series. I loved Rock Oyster (now Rock Island), especially the 18 Year; Big Peat was right up my alley, and I was surprised at how good the Timorous Beastie can be. I had high hopes coming into this whisky, and I left pretty sure that I needed to just stay away from the Lowlands.
While some of the flavors were interesting, especially with a few drops of water to bring out more cream and minty herbal notes, there was an odd bit of spirited prickle toward the back end and on the finish. That spirited quality stood out even more when I compared this with the Compass Box whiskies I reviewed. Overall, I am still a fan of Douglas Laing’s blended malts, but I think I will leave the Epicurean to his own devices.
Weekly Theme: Blended Malt
I originally intended the theme this week to be on blends broadly, but after all was said and done, I realized I had been tasting blended malts specifically. So instead, the theme this week is blended malts, a small but beloved category of whiskies that includes everything from Monkey Shoulder and Johnnie Walker Green Label to many of the Compass Box products. The Whisky Exchange has an entire page of blended malt listings, illustrating the market's diversity in age, price, maturation, and label.
Blended malts contain only single malt whiskies, which, as the name suggests, have been blended together. This is a bit different from your everyday blended scotch whisky, which contains single malts and grain whiskies. Grain whiskies can vary wildly in quality, and some whisky aficionados avoid blended whiskies because they can contain cheap, mass-produced grain whisky.
Grain whisky can sometimes take a few decades to mellow and develop into something beautiful, so while high-end blends may utilize very mature grain whisky to help elevate or complement the malt flavors, cheaper blends might contain young, spirited, and less flavorful grain whisky. This varies, and I would never write off a whisky just because it is a blend or a blended malt without first having a background with the producer or bottler. Experience is key, but in place of experience, hopefully, online reviews, mine or otherwise, can help fill in the gap.
Whether to go blended malt or just plain blend, it is, in the end, a matter of personal preference!
