Drambuie

Rating: 10/23 I've heard great things about Drambuie, but I've always been skeptical because it's made from scotch. Scotch is a vague enough category that I don't know what to expect and it's also an expensive category, so I worry that the scotch used to make Drambuie is likely to be low quality. Today's the day to find out how good Drambuie is. N: Sweet, herbal, and faintly musty. It reminds me of Chartreuse Green a fair bit with its spices (including cardamom and coriander) being balanced with the mint. I don't love the smell, but it's solid. P: Immediately, I get sulfur mixed with heat and sweetness. More herbs come out, with licorice being especially prominent, as the palate goes on. The sulfur fades a bit throughout. F: A big bitterness that's a hair numbing. There are faint herbal notes (including mint) and there's still a bit of a sulfuric presence. - Conclusion - This is a pretty big disappointment. I was prepared for it to be less than awesome, but that sulfur really made a mess of it. It's extra disappointing because the nose reminded me of Chartreuse Green and seemed to hold potential. Chartreuse Green is a lot stronger with more focus on the various herbal flavors instead of the sweetness (and none of that sulfur). This might go well in some certain cocktails - and it could possibly work as a Chartreuse Green substitute in a pinch - but it has a substantially flawed profile and certainly isn't sippable. Compared with Jagermeister, this is sweeter and more complex, probably with less confectioner's sugar. Being sweeter than Jagermeister, this might be kind of too sweet. I would like take it over something like Vita Divine Hazelnut though. I'm trying to decide how much to penalize this for the sulphur. It can easily be drowned out, but it is definitely there when sipping this neat. I've considered the 9 to 11 range for this. So here's the cocktail twist. The only cocktail I know of that uses this stuff is the rusty nail (3:1 scotch:Drambuie). The sulphur does show through when this is mixed with something like Pure Scot Virgin Oak (and so does the sweetness), but it also adds some nice complexity with its herbal character. In comparison with a 4:1 rusty nail, Highland Park 12 is substantially more complex and balanced, but also more sulphuric. Even with that fairly effective mixing in a rusty nail, I find that this doesn't work super well because I want to compare it with scotch rather than cocktails and it's pretty easy to find a more complex scotch.Mixed with any scotch I'd actually drink, this at best does not improve it. Mixed with anything cheaper (which fortunately I don't have right now), this could possibly improve it, but I'm very skeptical that I would want to drink the result. Considering that, I'm going to go with the neat score of 10 here. So here's the cocktail twist. The only cocktail I know of that uses this stuff is the rusty nail (3:1 scotch:Drambuie). The sulphur does show through when this is mixed with something like Pure Scot Virgin Oak (and so does the sweetness), but it also adds some nice complexity with its herbal character. In comparison with a 4:1 rusty nail, Highland Park 12 is substantially more complex and balanced, but also more sulphuric. Even with that fairly effective mixing in a rusty nail, I find that this doesn't work super well because I want to compare it with scotch rather than cocktails and it's pretty easy to find a more complex scotch.Mixed with any scotch I'd actually drink, this at best does not improve it. Mixed with anything cheaper (which fortunately I don't have right now), this could possibly improve it, but I'm very skeptical that I would want to drink the result. Considering that, I'm going to go with the neat score of 10 here. I did try it with some cheap Irish whiskey. I went with some very heavy forms of a rusty nail, but at best that faint Drambie added some slight improvement. Going back to scotch, I tried a range, but found that even the faintest of this was adding some complexity but not necessarily improving the product. I got a bit of Clynelish waxiness in one context, but this was drier and more herbal, so I don't think that it's really a fair comparison there. Considering the tiny volumes of this required, this is much more likely to be effective as an ingredient for home blending than for mixing. Of course, I've yet to find a scotch based cocktail that I thought was worthwhile, but I still don't like this that much, even in a cocktail. Thanks for the sample @ctbeck11 :)

Appearance: Transparent yellow-gold. Aroma: A sweet herbal-honey nose with a strong alcohol prickle. Flavour and Texture: Unctious and sugary-sweet on the arrival with a character almost like golden syrup. The honey is noticed after the initial sugar bloom and the herbal flavours follow, and there are notes of orange zest, menthol and licorice. The texture is thick and there is a soothing warmth to the aftertaste. Drambuie can be divisive. Some drinkers find it far too sweet and brightly herbal - an unnecessary embellishment of scotch whisky. For others it is the epitome of the ideal liqueur - high abv, bold taste, whisky based, no dairy component, etc. Personally I think it tastes like medicine - very nice medicine. In fact, the best medicine I know of to deal with the symptoms of the common cold is a hot toddy made with Drambuie. Pour a generous double dram into a tumbler, add the juice of half a lemon, two aspirin tablets and top it up with very hot water. Stir well and sip it as it cools. If it's not strong enough, add some whisky or more Drambuie. Go to bed and put a hat on the bedpost - keep drinking until you see two hats. Beats the heck out of any medicine I've bought in a pharmacy. As for drinking it for pleasure, I've been known to indulge but one small dram is usually enough - it's just not something I enjoy sufficiently to crave more and a little goes a long way. Oh, and as for the Rusty Nail - it's a good way to get smashed quickly but most times I'd rather not spoil a good whisky (and the hangover can be monumental). The one exception is camping in cold weather - a flask of pre-mixed rusty nail is just the thing to take the chill off a cold tent. "Good" : 84/100 (3.75 stars)

OuuNovember 20 2021 A sentimental favorite from my squandered youth. And so a whole 50 years gone by, naturally I can’t resist revisiting this old girl. A one ounce pour into a Glencairn glass. Wow, it’s sweet! Yet there is a very slight burn in the back of the throat, indicating some cheap scotch whiskey underlying, aha! The sweetness strongly suggests honey, yes? Oh, I think so. It’s nah so bad, but even this half bottle gonna last me quite the while, methinks.

The nose is aniseed and honey, followed by flowers, some bright citrus, an an underlying gaminess that I can't quite put my finger on. Wow! The flavor hits hard though: Honeysuckle (emphasis on the honey), with a malty backbone and some mint. This is a liqueur with legs, and every bit of the extra ABV is put to good use. As expected since they're both from Skye, this pairs extraordinarily well with Talisker to make the perfect Rusty Nail.

I'll admit, I'm new to this. However, I absolutely love Drambuie as a sipping liquor. It is so smooth, perfect for the winter and colder days to warm you up. Love the honey flavor and rich spices that bring up the end. It is much sweeter than the average whiskey. To be honest, I'm not sure where it falls, whiskey or scotch or liqueur. I just know I love it and I love feeling super Scottish while drinking it. Definitely worth a sip.

We were offered this at the Legend Riders Pub, Zagreb. Unclear golden to amber, quite thick. Aroma is intensely sweet honey, herbs, herbal liqueur, some oak and some malts. Moderately to intensely sweet, honey prevails, oak and whisky adding some counterbalance. An unusual combination of honey, herbs and whisky in the finish and the aftertaste. Not very drinkable, medium to full body sticky texture.