Scotch Review: Grant's "Sherry Cask Finish"

Me:  I'm stalking a wall of economy blended Scotch whiskies, and trying to decide which one to abduct and hustle to checkout.

Customer:  A soccer mom in an expensive red and yellow Manchester United jersey approaches with two boys in tow.  I am guessing 8 and 12.  I think my friend Keith has the same Kankichi Ryotsu shirt as one of the boys.

"Can you tell me what aisle the Grand Cru Saint-Emilion is in?"

Me:  "Sorry, I don't work here."

Customer:  She stares clinically into my eyes like she might catch a glimpse of the depths of my soul.  Then, her nose flares, as if she has found my soul located on a tropical island littered with bikinis, white sand, waves and Johnnie Walker Black on ice that never melts in spite of the heat of the nearby hibachi and the endless summer afternoon.

"I have seen you here before.  I am sure of it."

 Me:  "I have been here before because I am a regular, but I don't work here," I somewhat sputter.

Customer:  "You are wearing black pants and a red golf shirt like the rest of them."

Me:  So, does Tiger Woods on the Sunday afternoons.  

Customer:  "This is unbelievably bad customer service!"

Me:  Before I can say anything, she storms off with her offspring, much to my bewilderment.  I turn back to my wall of shame, and try to choose a blend that is cheap.

Customer:  She points at me, followed by an employee, presumably the 'supervisor' who is also wearing a red polo shirt and black chinos.

"That's him," she hisses.

Supervisor:  He looks me up and down and maybe also sees my soul's quest for rest at a Caribbean island beach under a palm tree that would be fitting for an Axe deodorant commercial.

"Ma'am, he doesn't work here."

Customer:  "Are you sure?"

Me:  I don't even wait for the supervisor to respond.  I randomly grab a bottle and hightail it to checkout, where I pay the ransom.

Grant's Cask Editions "Sherry Cask Finish"
I can't make this up.  I get out of the liquor store and am headed to my Ford with all the urgency of Steve McQueen in Bullitt, only my all wheel drive Escape doesn't squeal in spite of me tramping the pedal, as I exit the liquor store parking lot.  I knew I should have bought that Mustang in the showroom.

Once home, I look at my Friday night purchase with little enthusiasm.  Been drinking a lot of Teacher's Highland Cream lately and was thinking I need some variety, but the choices are pretty slim in the economy blended Scotch category.  A lot of blends are designed for mixing and I don't want a cocktail.  I want a cheap, but pleasant sipper that I can enjoy neat.

So, I grabbed the Grant's, off the shelf (bottom shelf that is), figuring it's been about six years since my last review.  Maybe it has changed a bit in flavour.  You'd be surprised how many blended Scotches can change for a number of reasons ranging from new corporate ownership (e.g. Teacher's) or new staff (e.g. master blenders).  Sometimes there is substitution of old faithful malts with new ones because head office bean counters (e.g. pinstripes at Black Bottle) decide to use other distilleries in their portfolio to contribute to the blend rather than others who are not owned by them.  That's what happened to Teacher's Highland Cream.  GlenDronach was a key malt for decades but a change in ownership triggered the decision to drop GlenDronach from the blend and use another sherried malt from a distillery already owned by the company.  The change was not good for Teacher's.  Fortunately, since then they have improved the quality of sherried malt in the blend once more.

Nose (undiluted)
Sweetness of vanilla, bread, dandelion and sliced oranges.

Palate (undiluted)
Apples, honey, fruit cocktail, orange rind, cheerios cereal, white cake bread, pleasant oak.

Finish (undiluted)
More orange rind, citrus, a wee peat, a puff of decent smoke, and then it's gone in a flash.  The finish is short, but hey this is a cheap blend.



General Impressions
This has improved since my last review.  The improvement is in the finish.  Six years ago, I sampled two bottles and the finish is where the wheels came off the wagon.  It would be bitter on the finish.  Not so now.  You are left with a simple but pleasing sherry note that manifests itself as Florda oranges and rind.  All pleasant.

The nose was good on this blend, and the palate was not offensive in the least.  With no change in corporate ownership at Grant's, I would attribute this improvement to the blending team's attention to detail.  Well done!

I am not a huge fan of the Grant's Family Reserve, but this Sherry Cask Finish is much better.

Worth a try, especially if you need a cheap daily sipper!

Cheers!



Jason Debly

P.S.  I am back from a bit of an entrepreneurial sabbatical and ready to post much more regular, so get ready for lots of my nonsense!

Glenfiddich 15 year old Solera Reserve - Single Malt Scotch Review

William Grant & Sons Ltd. is the company that makes Grant's Family Reserve, a blended scotch whisky which I consider a very poor entry level blended scotch whisky.  It is weak in flavor, grainy and instantly forgettable.

William Grant & Sons Ltd. also make Glenfiddich single malt scotch at the distillery of the same name in Dufftown, Scotland.  The Glenfiddich brand is a good one.  The iconic triangular bottle that was introduced into the market place in the 1960's steadily grew in popularity until it appeared and continues to appear in virtually every bar in the world.  So, can something so common be any good?  Well, we know that Grant's Family Reserve is common, like chicken pox, but is not good.  Meanwhile, Glenfiddich single malt scotch, regardless of how common it may be, actually is good!

The Glenfiddich product line starts with the 12 year old single malt, a citrus, honey, oak dram that is rounded and pleasing.  Next up is the 15 year old, the subject of today's review.  The 18 and 21 year olds are special also but will have to wait for another day.  I gotta keep you coming back somehow! 

When I indulge in the 15 year old, I am immediately struck by how much distance there is in quality between it and the 12 year old.  While the 12 year old is a decent and pleasing introduction to Speyside single malts, it is the 15 year old that will reveal why single malts enjoy cult like affection from their admirers. 

Color
Amber.

Nose (undiluted)
The aromas drifting upwards from your glass are heaven sent.  Rich, fragrant spices with oak and a little peat swirl.  Rarely does a single malt have aromas that can be termed complex, but this is one.  A real treat to nose.  The only other scotch with a possibly superior aroma is Johnnie Walker Gold Label.  Is it better?  I am unsure.  They are both great.

Palate (undiluted)
The complexity promised by the aromas is fulfilled on the palate.  Take a sip and you will enjoy honeyed, coffee crisp candy bar center, with an intricate spiciness.  All of this takes place against a tapestry of oak and white chocolate.

Finish (undiluted)
Puckering dryness with intensifying spices moving eventually to mild peppercorns.

General Impressions
This is a light bodied single malt which showcases the best that Speyside has to offer.  It is smooth, yet interesting.  The honey and vanilla are there, coupled with oak and some toffee.  You will enjoy a concentrated flavor profile.  The honey flavors have a wild taste, some heather mixed in, making for a complex dram. 

Good price!  They could raise this price by $10 and it would not affect market share in my opinion. 

If you like Dalwhinnie, Cragganmore, Chivas Regal 18 year old and in general anything from Speyside, then Glenfiddich 15 year Solera Reserve will not disappoint!

Cheers!


Jason

Copyright © Jason Debly, 2012. All rights reserved.

Grant's Family Reserve Scotch Whisky

If you take a look at most of the tasting notes I have posted in this blog, you will observe that I praise most of the different scotches. Reviewers of scotch, amateur (myself) and professional (ie. Jim Murray) tend to heap praise on every spirit evaluated. Trouble is, we may give the impression that it is all good. Not so! There are some dogs out there and the question for this post to consider is whether or not Grant's Family Reserve Scotch Whisky is one of them.

Whisky expert, Jim Murray, in his book, Classic Blended Scotch, described Grant's Family Reserve as "A stunner of a whisky, one of the most complex blends the industry will ever produce."

Ok, that is saying a lot. Too much in my opinion. It's one thing to like a blended scotch, but when you make statements like ". . . one of the most complex blends the industry will ever produce" you catch my attention. For me, Murray had thrown down the gauntlet and challenged me through his words. Me, being a big fan of blends, decided to try this blended scotch and see if it lived up to his high pitched praise. I had tried this blend in the past and did not like it one little bit, but in light of Murray's eloquent admiration of the highest order, which is trumpeted on William Grant's & Sons website (http://www.grantusa.com) I decided to second guess my earlier judgment and revisit this very popular brand (4th best selling blended scotch in the world).

Nose (undiluted)
Faint malty notes. Not picking up much else. Not overly inviting.

Nose (diluted)
Water added to this blend seems to accentuate the malty notes.

Palate (undiluted)
You need to take a big slug of this to get any flavor. Don't be shy. This is not a 25 year old single malt that rewards the tiniest of sips with an explosion of splendid flavors. Not so here.

Once you take the medium to big sip, you will be greeted by light/thin flavors of cinnamon stick, cloves, and nutmeg enveloped in an unmistakably grainy, unadulterated alcohol bear hug.

Drank neat, there is no complexity of flavors. I am dumbfounded as to how Jim Murray can say ". . . one of the most complex blends the industry the industry will ever produce." There's truly nothing here.

Palate (diluted)
I added a splash of water (ie. one teaspoon per shot) and was able to detect some creaminess in addition to the malty/cinnamon flavors present when drunk neat. The water lessened the grainy, alcohol soaked backbone of the flavor profile. Bottom line: Water improves this blend.

Finish (undiluted)
Almost non-existent. The finish is gone in a flash and while it lasts, it's mostly a grainy alcohol imbued couple of seconds.

Finish (diluted)
Strangely, the addition of water adds some body to this scotch that translates into a finish with more depth and even a richness to the aforementioned flavors than when drunk neat.

General Impressions
Served neat, this blended scotch tastes cheap mainly due to the alcohol hanging in the background like a groupie at a rock concert. How Jim Murray can praise this blend at all is beyond my comprehension. This is not a stunner of a whisky. It has virtually no complexity of flavor.

Served with a splash of water, this blend improves. Alcohol is toned down, the grainy character is still there but more tolerable, and there is a creamy richness that emerges. Does the addition of water transform this blend into a "stunner?" I think not. It still tastes cheap, but simply more tolerable. Maybe on a very hot summer's day with ice, it would be pleasing or as a base ingredient in a mixed drink.

Whether consumed neat or with water, there is no peat flavors. The constitutent single malts used are Speyside classics: Balvenie and Glenfiddich. You can taste the Balvenie, unfortunately, not enough of it. There is a great deal of grain whisky in this blended scotch, and that is not a good thing.

My lasting impression from tasting this on several occasions is that it Grant's Family Reserve is cheap, bottom shelf, blended scotch, that is not worth the low price charged. For the same price, there are significantly better blends out there like: Black Bottle, White Horse, Teacher's Highland Cream, Johnnie Walker Red, and Cutty Sark.

So how come this blend is one of the top world leaders in sales? I think the combination of the low price, a weak flavor profile that lends itself easily to mixed drinks results in it being a staple of bars around the world.

Anyway, you deserve better! Avoid this.

Cheers!

© Jason Debly, 2009-2013. All rights reserved.