Johnnie Walker Blenders' Batch Wine Cask Blend

After assaulting my tongue with overly salted pork roast, ham, spaghetti, assorted cheeses and crackers, several different types of pies, my fair share of whisky, endless cookies and various other holiday treats over the three day holiday weekend, I decided to make my next review with something simple. An inexpensive Johnnie Walker blend provided by @LeeEvolved is what I landed on. This is one of the newest NAS blends in the JW catalogue. I’m not exactly sure how the wine casks were used here, if it was for finishing off the blend, or full maturation of one or more of the individual components. Either way, it’s bottled at 40% ABV, is chill filtered and has colorant added making it an amber gold with just a hint of a pinkish hue. The nose starts off quite floral. Heather honey and soft oak. Vanilla quickly takes over and dominates for a while. Fine by me, I love whiskies that are vanilla heavy. Orange rind, dried pineapple, red berries, rep plums and figs all hang out somewhere between the background and foreground. Honeysuckle, toffee and light tobacco. Candle wax and a slight smoky/peaty presence. Buttercream frosting, quite sweet really. More of the vanilla and tobacco come back around. Quite a pleasant nose, although fairly light overall. The palate is vanilla forward. Plenty of red fruits, berries and grape skins. Oaky, honey and quite malty. A little toffee, butterscotch and tobacco with a hint of raisins and figs. Just enough peat to let you know it’s there without ever really jumping out in front. More butterscotch notes come through after a while. A light bodied mouthfeel that is very creamy. Medium length finish that is very dry and full of vanilla, butterscotch and oak. I have to say I was expecting a Red Label with a wine finish, but this is head and shoulders above the Red Label. Not quite Black Label quality, but somewhere in between. The nose is very pleasant, again I am a sucker for vanilla. The palate and finish are a bit lacking, but this is a cheap JW blend after all, so it can’t be all good. A very good value for a JW at $30 locally. I would take this over the Red Label any day for any purpose. Just what I needed to get the gears of the review machine turning again. 3.5. Thanks for the sample lee. Cheers

I was scanning the shelves of my local liquor store back on Black Friday, looking for deals of any and every kind. Well, I stumbled across this new variation from Johnnie Walker. The Blender’s Batch series is a run of experimental blends ranging from ex-American rye casks to Spanish wine casks. This is the latest one and I snagged it for a reasonable $22 US. It’s the industry standard 40% ABV and definitely has coloring added to make it appear as though it spent a significant time in old wine barrels. It’s a pinkish hue and makes quick, skinny legs in the Glencairn. The nose is still dominated by oak casks and vanilla, with the faintest hint of red berries and grapes. The palate is pretty delicate with just enough heat at the midpoint to keep beginner whisky drinkers from running away, crying. The finish is smooth with some vanilla and oak, but it doesn’t hang around very long. Overall, I said I was done with Johnnie Walker awhile ago and this special blend isn’t close to pulling me back in. I could, however, see mixing this with a few ice cubes and some seltzer water or Sprite and making a peppy, pick-me-up. If that’s what you’re into I suggest giving this one a try, especially if you can snag a bottle for around $20-25. As for the experienced, neat whisky drinker- it’s another mostly uninspired, money grab from JW. The ability to turn this into a nice little mixer gives it a small boost in my rating, but it’s still just a 2.75-3 star dram. Cheers, my friends.

Johnnie Walker Blenders Batch Wine Cask Blend. 40%, Chill Filtered and Colored Ok so first off - it’s a JW blend that is priced right and isn’t trying to fool you into thinking it’s something more than it really is (like some of the higher prices JWs). Smelling this is full of young grain and a little fruit and cherries. The Taste is what you would expect.  Thin, sweet, boring but enjoyable. Certainly better than a lot of the competition in the $30 blend space. The Finish is immediate….maybe a little grain spice hanging back This isn’t terrible for what it is.  In fact - I can verify that after 12 hours of walking the Disney resorts with a 7yr old and a newborn this whisky works just fine on it’s own in a tumbler.  Overall Grade: C

The experiment #6, intended "to be mixed with wine" (it prepares you to the dud you are about to taste) its matured in red wine casks. Problem is, that just as the White Walker, is full of grain whisky, a cheap one. Bottled at 40%abv. On the nose is plain grain whisky. Vanilla, fresh field, corn. Maybe some slight cheap chocolate note. On the palate is corn. Maize. Creamy, not off putting, but totally boring. A slight creamy vanilla note for the aftertaste with a herbal spiciness. Overall this is a cheap whisky (about $25) and should be avoided at all cost except if you are a bartended and you want to make a wine cocktail with it. 52 over 100.

The experiment #6, intended "to be mixed with wine" (it prepares you to the dud you are about to taste) its matured in red wine casks. Problem is, that just as the White Walker, is full of grain whisky, a cheap one. Bottled at 40%abv. On the nose is plain grain whisky. Vanilla, fresh field, corn. Maybe some slight cheap chocolate note. On the palate is corn. Maize. Creamy, not off putting, but totally boring. A slight creamy vanilla note for the aftertaste with a herbal spiciness. Overall this is a cheap whisky (about $25) and should be avoided at all cost except if you are a bartended and you want to make a wine cocktail with it. 52 over 100.

Other reviews weren't kidding. It smells like nail polish remover. It's not an overpowering burn in the nose, but the similarity to nail polish remover is unmistakable. There are some faint red fruit and berry aromas on the back end or when nosing from a distance. Wow, first sip burned. I think one could use this for industrial cleaning. I was not expecting that. Upon letting it sit open for a while and revisiting, it was infinitely more approachable, but still not good. $20 on sale, marked down from $30. Probably not worth even $20, since I could have used that on something better.