Johnnie Walker Blenders' Batch Red Rye Finish

I had this bottle for a long time, unopened since it just looked like something i would not drink and of course it will be a dissapointing dram. I had some time to spare today, and i found the bottle when reorganizing my bar, and i did not want to spend one of my high end samples tonight, i just didn't feel like it. So, i guess i decided to finally open the Experiment #1 of Johnnie Walker. I had most of the other experiments and they are not all that bad, without being anything memorable either. Well, this is a 40%abv, blended scotch, matured in bourbon casks, and finished in Red Rye whiskey casks. On the nose, it is not bad. It actually fights for some points. Starts with an instant grain whisky note. Raw rice, corn, very perfumed in a cheap but not bad way. Acetone, feels young. After a minute, it releases red fruits, cotton candy, sweet gum. It is very grainy on the nose. I liked the bubble gum note. The palate is nothing. Vanilla, very light. Nothing else. I actually had it for 20 seconds to see if something happens and nothing. There is some kind of spice trying to emerge but it just doesn't make it. It actually has no flavor. Ok, maybe vanilla. Aftertaste is poor, but still better than the palate. Rye whiskey aftertaste, dry. Barley, grassy and grainy. Nothing interesting really. Overall, for a 20-30$ whisky, this is really boring. A dull whisky, that i guess you can use to make the most unappealing cocktail or something like that. My score for it is 49 over 100, and you know i am used to give high scores to whiskies, so maybe this has even a lower score for everybody else.

Nose: Very typical "workhorse" blended scotch - a strong ethanol aroma from the youthful grain whisky plus some slight notes of interest from a small percentage of malt. Vanilla and a definite baked cereal aroma (that's the rye influence). There is a hint of oak on the nose, but it lacks depth. Palate: Dominated by a flavour rather like ginger-nut cookies and very strong sweetness. This sweet character is it's undoing, as it's not a soft honey sweetness, but rather like straight-up sugar which becomes a bit cloying after a couple of drams. In the same way that Double Black is like Black Label engineered with a liberal dose of smoke on top, this is like Red Label blinged-up with a lot of rather safe rye aromas & flavours. Finish: Very short. Not much happens at all. Having run out of mixing whisky I picked up a bottle of this at the local liquor shop today. I'd noticed it on the shelves for a while but never got around to trying it before. In a nutshell, it's a different spin on Red Label. I can see what the blenders were aiming for, but to me it lacks the simple honesty of Red Label (which I don't mind at all as a mixer) and tries to gain complexity from the sweetness. It also sacrifices the fruity and slightly smoky notes of Red Label. IMHO they would have been better off giving it some hot spice in the finish instead of so much sweetness. This is probably a good mixing whisky for introducing bourbon drinkers to scotch. The nose is scotch with hints of bourbon, and the palate is bourbon with hints of scotch. "Adequate" : 74/100 (2.25 stars)

Slightly sweet with honey and vanilla notes. It has a bourbon feel with the spice notes mixed in with sweetness from the vanilla and honey. Im also getting a subtle vanilla/cocoa wafer cookie sweetness to it on the nose as well which is interesting when you take the time to go back and smell a couple of times. The more I go back for another sip, I notice it gets sweeter as you go on the tongue and then a short burn on the end.

This is the bottom-rated whiskey in my collection. It seems right, yet somehow unfair. It’s not just a regular Scotch, all pungent malt, whiffs of fruit for the fortunate. The red rye finish actually adds something really tasty, like buttered honey on toasted rye. Don’t blow a wad of cash on this, but don’t underestimate either.

Scotch bourbon! Mainly on the nose - JW Red Rye smells like straight bourbon. NOSE - Sweets, caramel, vanilla, hint of oak. TASTE - more dry, than average corn bourbon - eventually it’s scotch! Wood&spices, gentle, smooth&easy to drink. Overall very enjoyable experience.

Mild woody and sweet scent from the nose. Has a very light bourbon/rye peppery taste to it but also the mouth feel is very flat like the Red Label. Would recommend this for a scotch based cocktail.