…with The Balvenie. In the Times of Big Whiskies it is Nice to Return to Some Balance:
by Chris from WhiskyWall

Let’s face it, there has been a movement towards big, over-the-top scotch whiskies lately.  Bruichladdich’s Octomore releases (versions 1.1, 2.1 and 2.2) boasting 140 parts per million of pure peat power bottled at a whopping 62.5%ABV – and if you’re not sure what all that means – trust me – its big, its hot and its peaty!  Not to be outdone by the much anticipated Ardbeg Supernova 2010, officially released on May 31^st, which also makes sure to point out that it is a big boy of peat – over 100 parts per million of peat bottled at 60.8%ABV. And its not easy to find as many retail shops are still pacing in circles like an expecting father, waiting for their allocation of the Supernova to arrive. Having had the pleasure of tasting both, I humbly label both as pure unadulterated excess.  While these monsters of scotch whisky are fun to take for a spin once in awhile, they’re not something that you can casually sit back and relax with.

Step in The Balvenie.  For those not familiar with Balvenie, it is one the last remaining family owned distilleries left in Scotland.  The others being Glenfarclas and Springbank.  Balvenie, located in the Speyside region, takes great pride in the fact that they still practice the craft of making whisky from field to bottle.  Unlike almost all other distilleries, Balvenie, among other hands-on details, still grows their own barley and has their own in-house cooperage.

I received information about the Balvenie’s Masterclass event being on June 8^th at the Beach Chalet off of the Great Highway, hosted by Balvenie’s Western United States Ambassador Andrew Weir.  Who am I to turn down free whisky and appetizers? I shot off an email and received my invitation.

The Beach Chalet restaurant was a perfect location for the event, elevated above the highway with magnificent views of the beach and the Pacific Ocean.  There were roughly twenty other scotch enthusiasts in attendance filling their senses with great scotch and beautiful scenery.  Mr. Weir started the program with an introduction to the different regions of Scotland and why Balvenie was a truly unique distillery.  During this introduction we were treated to appetizers from the restaurant: mushroom fritters, mini salmon sandwiches and even spare ribs!

We then moved on to what we were all there to do: drink some scotch.  The expressions for the night consisted of four samples from the Balvenie line up.  We started off with the 12 year old Doublewood, which as the name suggests, is aged in two different types of barrels before it is bottled.  I classify this expression as a “gateway” whisky: interesting and complex enough to get someone new to whisky interested without scaring them away with huge, bold flavors.  It is complex and smooth with no rough edges – very drinkable.  The 12 year old had honeyed sweetness, with hints of vanilla and spices all wrapped up in a velvety smooth finish.

The next expression was the Single Barrel 15 year old that truly exemplifies Balvenie’s attention to detail and handcrafted whiskies.  While larger distilleries dump hundreds of casks together to achieve a consistent flavor profile to bottle, at the Balvenie they choose each cask individually to determine if it properly represents how the 15 year old should taste and bottle it that way.  So each bottle of the 15 year old is unique and comes from one cask not a melting pot of different casks.  The 15 year old was earthy, flavors of vanilla and oak with a strong dark spice backbone.  Something a little more advanced than the 12 year old.

We then moved on to the 17 year old Madeira cask, which means that this whisky was aged in oak casks but finished its maturation in a Madeira wine cask.  The 17 year old is Balvenie’s experimental expression.  Over the years there have been different finishes to the 17 year old:  sherry, rum and Islay casks.  The 17 year old had more fruit and a stronger sweetness from the Madeira cask, the spices were also present with hints of cola in the nose.

Last, was the highly acclaimed 21 year old Portwood.  It is rare that a whisky makes it to it to 21 years old.  Most are abruptly pulled from their cask and bottled at a much younger age in the hopes of the distillery collecting on their investment sooner.  This whisky, also, as the name suggests, finishes its aging life in port casks.  The 21 year old was rich, full flavored and luxurious, vanilla and dark spices again with licorice hiding in the background with a nice dry finish.

This event was a great experience and, as an added bonus, was completely free.  I learned a lot and was able to sample some very solid whiskies.  The Balvenie line up as a whole, is complex and interesting but at the same time extremely well balanced and friendly.  So if you are done with your mid-life crises, brash and unapologetic whiskies and want to settle back down into something more mature and refined or are simply looking to try scotch whisky for the first time give these Balvenie’s a try.

If you want to learn more about the Balvenie or receive emails regarding future tastings like this one you can sign up on their website:  www.thebalvenie.com