Grant's Family Reserve

A buddy of mine was given a bottle of this stuff for his birthday. Knowing nothing about this blended whisky, I could already tell this was going to be some rough stuff. When you see labels like "Finest" and "Extremely Rare" you know you're likely to be in for a bad time. I'm very confused on the connection with Glenfiddich and Balvenie, though - do they really also distill those brands? I'm on their site as I write this review and I can't quite believe they're also responsible for those two brands. The nose smells like a cheap blend. Ethanol and bready yeast fill your nostrils. A little deeper still brings apple and.... burnt candy corn? Palate begins light and indeed the whole taste is quite light and one dimensional. I'm getting some spicy cinnamon, dry brush, honey and as the taste comes to the finish some faint musty prunes. The finish is.... well where exactly is it? Perhaps that close to the taste with the mildly musty prunes was it. I hesitate to take a bigger sip to see if I get more of a finish but as I do, I discover a deeply bitter, almost medicinal quality creeps in with the musty prune flavor. Reminds me of very bad cough syrup. Yuck. I guess if I was given a bottle of this stuff I'd be thankful it wasn't Scoresby or Glen Ness but lord is that bar low. I hear they bottle this stuff as "Grant's Triple Wood" now. Whatever the case, please don't ever spend money on this stuff. I had a look online and discovered a 1.75 of this is $26. Look ~ if you've only got $26 to spend on whisky, maybe just buy some less expensive hooch and forgo this stuff.

- William Grant and Sons - Empresa familiar - Fundada em 1889 às vésperas do natal - Balvenie e Glenfiddich - 3° marca de whisky mais vendida do mundo, atrás de JW - 40% ABV - Corante + Filtragem - Substituído pelo Triple Wood (2018) Olfato: suave e agradável, apesar da forte presença de álcool. Adocicado, baunilha, leve vínico de sherry, frutado de frutos vermelhos, figos em calda, maçãs, morangos, leve caramelo, leve toffee, cítrico, apimentado e algo amadeirado que remete ao carvalho europeu. Aromas agradáveis, apesar do calor do álcool, e que sugerem uma quantidade decente de single malt em sua composição. Paladar: Relativa correspondência com o olfato, mas com o álcool bem mais presente nesta etapa da degustação. Em seguida um amargor áspero também é perceptível, mas não compromete o whisky. Adocicado, amadeirado de carvalho europeu, apimentado, cítrico, leve amanteigado e frutado de frutas vermelhas. Entretanto, estas notas são facilmente superadas pelo calor do álcool e do amargor áspero. Finalização: curta, doce, amarga e quente. Impressões gerais: blended scotch whisky de entrada, com preço muito acessível e com boa complexidade para a sua categoria. Foi substituído pela versão Triple Wood, uma versão bem similar em seu perfil. O álcool evidente é o ponto baixo deste whisky, que seria bem mais agradável se fosse menos quente. Recomendo para beber em drinks doces ou, no máximo, com gelo.

I spotted this bottom shelf, blended scotch at my local liquor store while browsing for something new. I remembered that the U.K. only Ailsa Bay whisky I tried recently was a primary supplier for Grant's Family Reserve, so I figured I'd buy a cheap blend that I felt I was already a bit familiar with. Plus, for $19, worst case scenario is that I had a bottle for when I wanted a scotch & soda. The scotch & soda craving hit me tonight, so what the hell, I might as well pour a dram and give it a review neat, too. It's a standard 80 proof and looks very thin in the Glencairn. It produces no legs when giving it a spin. On the nose there's a very faint oak and a bit of honey sweetness. There isn't much happening on the tongue, either. Weak oak tannins and muted vanilla. There's no kick whatsoever, and it finishes really boring. A tad flash of warmth that washes away quickly. In soda, it really curbs the bitterness of Coke and makes a very sweet cocktail. It'll get ya drunk, but that's about it. I can't recommend it neat or in your cola of choice. Very bland. Look elsewhere, my friends. Cheers.

I will give it just two stars, but these are really strong ones. It is really bland on the nose and the subtle scent it gives is rather sweet. The same goes for the taste. It's bland but then it gives a strong kick. There is nothing peculiar in there that would get a grip on my taste buds. So for now I was pretty harsh on it and gave a really negative review. But... Its real strength it's in blandness so to speak. I've tried it as an old fashoined with some bitters and it really lets everything shine through. You will still get some whiskey in there, which is nice, but as with most of the nicer ones, they dominate the field when it comes to cocktails, this just lets everything to get a say in the final outcome, which is very nice. So if you want something for cocktails, especially Old Fashioned, then go with this. You will be surprised how much the orange peel, the bitters and sugars will play with your senses whilst the whiskey plays the main tunes from the background.

Whisky 9 of the current batch of 12 affordable blends I'm rating. Nose: Some cereal, oak, and slight sherry notes but it's not impressive. An odd rubbery character. Palate: A hot alcohol arrival full of oak tannins, like overbrewed tea. No development to speak of at all. Finish: Sour, and unfortunately not short, with a lingering burn. Ah, Grant's Family Reserve - the blend I love to hate. I wish they really would reserve this stuff for the family and not release it to unsuspecting consumers. This was more than just not great - it was rough and actively unpleasant neat, and it's one of the worst widely known bottom-shelf blends. Drown it in a sweet mixer and it's almost acceptable but you still get that bitter and sour taste on the palate. My only recommendation for this is to avoid it. It is not the worst blended scotch you can buy but there are much better blends available, so why bother with it? "Poor" : 62/100 (1 star)

Hanging out on the bottom shelf with this scotch looking for value. Poured neat, light thin legs. Nose has mild fruit, pear, apple with some gentle malt honey and faint smoke. Soft better than expected mouthfeel. Palate is smoked honey, caramel malt and barrel wood with char. After some time in the glass a milk chocolate note develops . Grain alcohol is certainly there but not overdone. Finish is medium with drying wood, trailing smoke, char and malt. For the $15 I paid this is decent. Not a world beater or deep and complex just a nice cheap blend with good smoke to it. I would give the edge to Teachers but this is one of the better low cost blends. Take it over JW red or Dewars white (not sayin much).........72/100 blend score..........not sure if I like the funky bottle though