Ballantine's Finest Bottled 1950s

Ballantines 17 Year Old

This bottle has been opened for over 7 months. I bought it because I wanted a whisky to drink in the summer and it was highly rated, named whisky of the year by Jim Murray. Although many people didn't agree with him on this, but since it's affordable to me, I still gave it a try. At first I was rather disappointed because it was light and watery,...

Score 86/100

Ballantines Finest

Nose: a little floral, chocolate-y with coffee, some lemon citrus, and some nutty flavours. There is also moderate smoke and peat, a little in the background. This really doesn't come together for me as a harmonious whole. A nice balance of sweet and dry, though. Taste: this is sweeter in the mouth than in the nose. All of the flavours from the...

Score 74/100

Ballantines Ballantine's Gold Seal 12 Year Old Special Reserve

My alphabetical order is a bit out of whack, but I'm going to try to (roughly) adhere to it as we go through these minis. This is a Ballantine's 12 Year Old, but the label is very different from the current bottling, with "Gold Seal" and "Special Reserve" on the label. And, again, we are at 43% rather than the current 40% ABV....

Score 87/100

Ballantines 17 Year Old

Some say the art of blending achieves the pinnacle of whisky perfection. Others say it's the single malt. I don't know who's right, but IMHO Ballantine's 17 is one of my favourite blends for my palate. The nose is always a delight. Citrusy lemon is always the starting point, pear drops, floral, creamy caramel, stem ginger, honey, slight volcanic...

Score 92/100