A Little History
Ballantines Finest is the oldest in the product line of this Scottish blender of whisky. It all started back in 1827, where an enterprising gentleman, George Ballantine, opened up a grocery store and started selling some whisky (not his creation). Eventually, he let his son take over while he set up an establishment in Glasgow that did feature his own blends. Within his lifetime he was supplying the Royal Family. Ballantines Finest that you can drink today is based on a blending recipe from those days.Today, Ballantines is very popular in Europe and Asia. In addition, Ballantines Finest has won some awards. In the International Spirits Challenge: 2006 Gold; 2005 Silver; and in the International Wine and Spirit Competition: 2006 Silver; 2005 Bronze. That said, generally, serious connosieurs of scotch do not like this blend because they consider it rather uninteresting, boring, bland. More about such observations later.
Suggested Serving
This blended whisky is so gentle and sweet that the addition of ice, in order to mellow out any roughness or burn that is common with cheaply priced whiskies, is not necessary. However, if you like a little ice, I would suggest a single ice cube.
Nose (undiluted)
Cheap and malty. No peat whatsoever.
Palate (undiluted)
Very sweet like a bowl full of Splenda or NutraSweet mixed with grain alcohol. Terribly grainy.
Finish (undiluted)
Smooth. No rough edges here. No burn or excess heat. Just horribly sweet, with bad malty flavors that fortunately disappear from the palate quickly but not quick enough from one's memory.
Add Water!
Tasted neat, this blended scotch whisky is too sweet and grainy. Add a teaspoon of water and it will greatly reduce that grainy character and add a nice malty note to the flavor profile. How much water? Try a teaspoon to a 1 and half ounce shot.
Add Water!
Tasted neat, this blended scotch whisky is too sweet and grainy. Add a teaspoon of water and it will greatly reduce that grainy character and add a nice malty note to the flavor profile. How much water? Try a teaspoon to a 1 and half ounce shot.
General Impressions
On a hot summer day, this will work very well as a key ingredient in a mixed drink. Alternatively, over ice it will prove to be barely tolerable.
This is bottom shelf blended scotch. In that price range Ballantines Finest is a step above the likes of Whyte & Mackay, J&B or Jameson (no age statement). But that's not saying much. This is nowhere near the best economy blend. In the category of blended scotch (no age statement) Teacher's Highland Cream and Johnnie Walker Red are better buys.
The chief defect that prevent this blend from being a decent one is due to a flavour profile that is far too sweet to the point of being like corn syrup and overall the flavour profile (very grainy at times), while interesting initially, soon can become boring for someone seeking intriguing flavours. For those who like a lot of peat notes in their scotch, Ballantines Finest will disappoint. What it does offer is an inoffensive, very sweet/grainy dram that will serve as a gateway to great blended scotch. If you are new to scotch, this may be pleasing to you. Drink it, make notes and then move on to better stuff. When you progress to superior blends (ie. Teacher's, White Horse, Chivas 12, etc.) refer to your notes and you will soon realize how dreadful Ballantines Finest is.
Cheers!
This is bottom shelf blended scotch. In that price range Ballantines Finest is a step above the likes of Whyte & Mackay, J&B or Jameson (no age statement). But that's not saying much. This is nowhere near the best economy blend. In the category of blended scotch (no age statement) Teacher's Highland Cream and Johnnie Walker Red are better buys.
The chief defect that prevent this blend from being a decent one is due to a flavour profile that is far too sweet to the point of being like corn syrup and overall the flavour profile (very grainy at times), while interesting initially, soon can become boring for someone seeking intriguing flavours. For those who like a lot of peat notes in their scotch, Ballantines Finest will disappoint. What it does offer is an inoffensive, very sweet/grainy dram that will serve as a gateway to great blended scotch. If you are new to scotch, this may be pleasing to you. Drink it, make notes and then move on to better stuff. When you progress to superior blends (ie. Teacher's, White Horse, Chivas 12, etc.) refer to your notes and you will soon realize how dreadful Ballantines Finest is.
Cheers!
© Jason Debly, 2009-2011. All rights reserved.
