| Scotch
Whisky Blends
Defining the Art of Blending
'The art of combining meticulously selected, mature, high-quality
whiskies, each with its own flavour and other characteristics,
with such skill that the whole is better than the sum of its
parts, so that each makes its contribution to the finished blend
without anyone predominating.'
David Macdonald
Former Chairman of Macdonald Martin Distillers
Whisky.com's
Top Blended Scotch Whisky
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BALLANTINE'S SPECIAL RESERVE
BLENDED SCOTCH WHISKY Balanced, delicate,
rereshing.
Colour: Bright honey
gold.
Nose: Honey sweetness,
major influence of oak, vanilla.
Body: Creamy.
Palate: Complex, floral,
honey and oak sweetness, perfect balance.
Finish: Refreshing
with a hint of salt. |
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BELL'S SPECIAL RESERVE BLENDED
PURE MALT SCOTCH WHISKY Bell's Special Reserve
is enormously complex yet surprisingly easy to drink.
This exquisite malt has true charm - it simply tastes
gorgeous.
Colour: Deep amber
Age: 8 years and older
Aroma: Sweet honey
and nutty, Bourneville chocolate.
Taste: Rich honey
complexity with a warm peppery finish.
The secret behind the Bell´s blend lies in its
undeniable quality and it is the task of the Bell´s
Master Blender to ensure that this legacy remains
unchanged, year after year. Bell´s unique character
is derived from 35 different malt and grain whiskies,
each matured between 5 and 12 years. More...
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BLACK & WHITE BLENDED
SCOTCH WHISKY Tasting Comments: A clean,
pleasant mild blend, Black & White has a fresh,
grassy flavour, which is complemented by a light sweetness.
Tasting Notes from the Collins Pocket Reference
Black & White was created in 1884 by James Buchanan.
It was originally named Buchanan Blend and was marketed
in a black bottle with a white label. Customers simply
started referring to it as "that black and white
whisky". Buchanan - an animal lover - added the
black Scottish terrier and the West Highland white
terrier to the label and it was then adopted as the
brand's motif which is still used today and is one
of the world's most famous trademarks.
Black & White Blended Scotch whisky contains 60-65
percent grain whiskies including Port Dundas and Cameronbridge.
More...
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BLACK BOTTLE BLENDED SCOTCH
WHISKY Colour:
Rich and golden.
Nose: Fresh and fruity
with hints of peat.
Palate: Full with
slight sweetness followed by a delightful, smoky flavour.
Finish: Long and
warming with an interesting, smoky, Islay character.
This smooth and distinctive Scotch whisky, carefully
blended by master craftsmen, each with a lifetime’s
experience in the Scotch whisky industry, uses only
the finest grain and malt whiskies, including all
of the single malts from Scotland’s most famous
whisky producing island, Islay. More..
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CHIVAS REGAL BLENDED SCOTCH
WHISKY Chivas Regal 12 year old is a whisky
you can enjoy anywhere, at any time because it is
easy to appreciate and share. It has a renowned smoothness
and a honeyed, fruity taste.
Colour: Radiant, warm
amber.
Nose: An aromatic infusion
of wild herbs, heather, honey, and orchard fruits.
Taste: Round and
creamy on the palate, Chivas Regal has a full, rich
taste of honey and ripe apples, with vanilla, hazelnut
and butterscotch notes.
Finish: Rich and
lingering.
Chivas Regal is often described as the smoothest Scotch
whisky in the world. It's the ultimate testament to
the work of the Master Blender whose quest is to carry
on the vision of James and John Chivas. More..
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CUTTY SARK BLENDED SCOTCH
WHISKY Pour yourself a real drink. Made from
a blend of over 20 of the finest Single Malt Whiskies,
Cutty Sark is enjoyed around the world for its smooth
and clean taste.
Appearance: Pale
golden, clear and bright.
Aroma: Light, fragrant
with hints of vanilla and oak.
Taste: Medium intensity,
sweet creamy vanilla.
Finish: Crisp and
clean.
The Cutty Sark blend is made up of around twenty renowned
single whiskies, predominantly from
the Speyside region in Scotland, which are blended
with high quality grain whiskies. These single malt
and single grain whiskies are matured in carefully
selected American oak casks. More... |
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DEWAR'S WHITE LABEL BLENDED
SCOTCH WHISKY Colour:
Clear golden honey.
Nose: A perfectly
balanced blend of Scottish heather and honey, with
delicate notes of unripened pear and a hint of oak.
Palate: A delightful
blend of soft vanilla with honey and blooming heather,
well rounded with a slight smoky sensation emerging.
Body: Medium and
smooth.
Finish: Medium finish,
slightly dry with lingering heather/honey overtones,
and the faintest touch of smoke.
Up to 40 of the finest malt and grain Scotch whiskies
are blended together in perfect harmony, to create
this time honoured blend. Our Aberfeldy single Highland
malt, with notes of Scottish heather and honey, is
placed at its heart to ensure this whisky is smooth
and perfectly balanced. It is no surprise to learn
that this is the Number 1 selling Scotch whisky in
the USA today. More... |
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FAMOUS GROUSE BLENDED SCOTCH
WHISKY Appearance:
Full-golden, clear and bright.
Bouquet: Full aroma,
well-balanced oak with a hint of citrus orange.
Palate: Medium body;
rich, full, slightly sweet flavor with Speyside fruitiness.
Finish: Long, clean
and medium dry.
The living, breathing spirit of the outdoors, The Famous
Grouse Finest Scotch Whisky is the #1 selling Scotch
in Scotland. Classic, smooth and a famously popular
choice. More... |
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GRANT'S FAMILY RESERVE BLENDED
SCOTCH WHISKY The nose is unmistakably Speyside
with malty fluting notes. A clean aroma with a sweetish
fruity edge. Intriguingly and deliciously structured.
It has a firm mouth feel with banana / vanilla sweetness
balancing sharper malty notes. Clean but very complex.
A long, smooth, lingering finish.
The deliciously complex taste and long smooth lingering
finish of Grant’s Scotch Whisky is known and
loved throughout the world. It is enjoyed by whisky
drinkers in over 180 countries.
It is the Master Blenders’ special recipe, a
blend of the finest single malt and grain Scotch Whiskies
– including the company's own
Glenfiddich and The
Balvenie Single Malt Scotch Whiskies and its renowned
Girvan Grain Scotch whisky – that creates the
magical taste of Grant’s.
When blended together, the malts and grains produce
the deliciously complex, long, smooth taste that is
known and loved throughout the world. More... |
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J & B RARE BLENDED SCOTCH
WHISKY DESCRIPTION:
Light gold. Moderately light-bodied. Dried herbs and
sea air with unusual flavors of buckwheat, bitter
almond, and white pepper over a slight graininess
in the texture.
Each time you sip J&B Rare, 42 different whiskies
pass through your lips. They are carefully blended
together to create a subtle, smooth and complex flavour.
The delicate balance is what gives J&B Rare its
distinctive character. If even one whisky was taken
away, you would taste the difference.
The heart of J&B Rare is formed by Speyside Malt
Whiskies. They provide the fruity, fresh quality you
can taste and give J&B its light colour. Speyside
is recognised as the superior area in Scotland for
making malts. Added to that are some of the finest
grain whiskies Scotland has to offer. They help reveal
the individual flavours of the various malts, unveiling
the pleasant, smooth character of J&B Rare.
J&B is the No. 1 Scotch whisky in Europe and
the No. 2 in the world with its delicate rounded and
balanced flavour which produces a uniquely smooth,
long lasting and satisfying taste. More... |
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JOHNNIE WALKER BLACK LABEL
BLENDED SCOTCH WHISKY Johnnie Walker Black
Label has an enigmatic character. The first sip leaves
you with an overwhelming curiosity to discover more.
As Black Label's deep taste unfolds a myriad of flavours
are revealed in several waves: first, there is an
impression of silky richness; then deep and fruity
foreground flavours give way to drier peaty nuances,
followed by the complementary flavour tones of sweet
vanilla and raisins.
This unique complexity is achieved by expertly blending
an extremely diverse, but complementary range of malt
whiskies, each of which has been matured for a minimum
of 12 years and some for much longer. In total, up
to 40 malts and grain whiskies make up the Johnnie
Walker Black Label blend. Island and Islay malts deliver
spice, richness and lingering peat. Speyside malts
make an important contribution to the depth of taste,
bringing smoky malt, fruitiness, apple freshness and
a rich sherry character to the blend. At the heart
of Black Label lies 12 year old Cardhu, an outstanding
malt from Speyside, which imparts silkiness, a characteristic
which has made it famous as a single malt. More... |
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TEACHER'S HIGHLAND CREAM
BLENDED SCOTCH WHISKY Nose:
The subtle notes of bittersweet chocolate, dark toffee,
and bacon fat sneak up on you only after a couple
of minutes of air exposure. One of the more complex
and elegant bouquets in Scotch blends. Buttery, oily,
luscious.
Palate: The sweet,
wine-like, sherry imprint taste of the Glendronach
Distillery malts is all over this poised, chewy thoroughbred.
Finish: Long. Oloroso
sherry sweet and almost prune-like. Satiny. I think
of the muscular, sinew, peaty side of Speyside malts.
Comment: Cream is
the appropriate moniker. Smoky, robust, vibrant.
Tasting Notes by Paul Pacult
Awards & Accolades - #3 Scotch whisky in the UK
and #52 on the world’s top-100 spirits list.
More...
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What is a blended Scotch Whisky?
If all the whiskies in a blend are malts, the resulting whisky
is called a 'vatted malt' rather than a 'blend'. Some vatted
brands are called "pure malt', or simply 'malt whisky'
as opposed to 'single malt' which is the product of one distillery.
Blended whisky is a mix of malt and grain whiskies. This
style of Scotch accounts for the majority of sales worldwide
(in 1995, it was 96 percent; in 1980 it was 99 percent).
A blend will typically consist of between 15 and 40 different
malt whiskies and two to three grains. Despite the fact that
grain whisky is relatively light in flavour, attempts to use
just one grain grain in a blend have proven unsuccessful.
The percent of malt in a blend can vary from 20 to 60 percent.
The quantity of malt, as well as the age of the malt in a
blend, will inevitably be reflected in the cost of the end
product.
Malt whiskies are all different, and each has its own unique
flavour profile. The blender sets out to balance the characterists
of one whisky with another (in fact many others) so that the
original aromas are so well integrated that they are unidentifiable.
In the perfect blend each aroma makes its contribution to
a 'flavour complex' that is much more than the sum of its
parts.
Blends are made to a formula but it is not always possible
to adhere strictly to that formula. Some fillings might not
be available or are inhibitingly expensive. The blender's
task is to create a finished product that tastes the same
from batch to batch and from year to year.
The blender is thus guided by the formula and a deep familiarity
with the flavour characteristics of the blend he wishes to
re-create. The blender noses samples of every constituent
malt and grain whisky that will go into his creation. He is
aware that slight changes in flavour may occur over time -
the peaty dryness of Highland or Island malts might increase
and additional sweet and floral Speyside fillings will be
required to redress the balance. On the other hand blends
that use large amounts of Speyside malt may have to be 'dried'
out by the addition of malts known for their dry flavour.
Once the blender is satisfied that the marriage of the ingredients
will create what he is searching for, the individual casks
are moved from the warehouses where they have been maturing
to the blending hall. He will once agin check by nosing. He
will have spent many years commiting the individual characteristics
of individual casks to memory. Once he is happy with the quality,
the contents are poured into a large blending vat.
In the blending vats the mixtures is stirred to thoroughly
blend the contents. then it is either rested for a short period
before being bottled or transfered to casks for one to six
months to marry before bottling.
It is often remarked that while distilling is a science,
blending is an art. |
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