A month after trying the Macallan Fine Oak and loving what I tasted, I decided to give the Balvenie Doublewood a try. Unlike the Macallan which was aged 10 years, the Balvenie was aged 12 years however much like the Macallan it is aged in two different oak casks, in this case a traditional oak whisky cask and an oak sherry cask. It's 43% alcohol (86 proof) and runs approximately $42.
I got it home, poured it in a nice open whisky glass, poured a little chilled water on top of it, swirled it around and then took my first sniff and then sip. Not terribly impressed. So I gave myself a few minutes to let the palate cleanse and did it again, still not very impressed.
Before I delve into why, let me issue a disclaimer; I don't particularly care for Sherry. I've had "good" Sherries before, and to me there just isn't such a thing-the nose is the only thing worse than the taste, it's just not a flavor I care for. It is because of this, that I think I was unimpressed with the Balvenie Doublewood, because the taste of the Sherry casks definitely came through heavy on the whisky. It had a little honey and a tiny bit of vanilla, but to me the notes of sherry overpowered everything else. The body on it was good although it wasn't extremely silky, although to be fair the bite on it wasn't terrible.
It wasn't a bad whisky, I mean it certainly beats the stuff you'd find in a plastic jug at your local liquor store, but I didn't find myself enjoying it anymore than say a blended like Johnnie Walker black (which would be less expensive) nor did I find it to be any more complex. There are better single malts and even blended whiskies out there for this price.
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