Royal Brackla 16 Year

I recently reviewed The Deveron 12 and 18, which were quite disappointing. Not to be deterred, I’m giving Bacardi another crack with the now discontinued Royal Brackla 16 year. That’s really the only reason I bought this. That’s a good reason right? They decide to stop producing this stuff, so I figure it must be worth a buy. That’s the completionist in me. Let’s see what we’re working with here. Nose: Vanilla, toffee, and caramel. Toasted almond and walnut. Butterscotch. Pretty standard stuff. Apricot. Orange peel. White grape and golden raisin. Black pepper and oak. Pencil shavings and lumber. Mocha. Palate: Brown sugar, caramel, vanilla, and toffee. Apple, pear, apricot, and white grape. Raisin. Sugar cookie. Unripe banana. Flax seed. Malt and grain. White pepper, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, and oak. Wood and pencil shavings. Finish: Brown sugar, caramel, vanilla, and toffee. Apple, raisin, grape, and pear. Sugar cookie. More pencil shavings. Clove, nutmeg, cinnamon, white pepper, and oak. Moderate length. This is a solid blend of orchard fruit and dessert sweetness. It’s full-bodied and balanced. Even though Bacardi once again cuts corners at 40% ABV here, this does suffer from the bland, thin profile of The Deveron releases. This is a nice display of the Highland character, with the welcome addition of some plush notes from the Olorosso sherry butts. Now for the final verdict. On its face, I scored this a 3.75. Above average nose, palate, and finish. As for VFM, this is a respectable 16 years old, but a meager 40% ABV. I wouldn’t dock it for alone, but it failed to be reach very good or great in any of the three phases of testing, and I suspect it’s the lack of oomph where it counts. So it falls just a tad short of VFM at $150. 3.5/5. The bar is high at this price point. Solid stuff.

Royal Brackla is one of those distilleries that are unable to impress me. Not bad whiskies at all, but all too boring. This expression, as the 21yo lacks of fun and i would not buy them. Bottled at 40%abv On the nose Orange jam, Oranges bathed in chocolate, Caramel and Orange candy. Not bad. On the palate, Artificial flavors, Spicy "crazy dips", Excess of oak and a Cloying sensation without been too sweet. Finish has a chocolate note, very short. Overall i give this dram a fair 74 over 100.

As strange a whisky as I have ever come across. I can't get myself to either like it or dislike it: there's a malty quality I really enjoy here, like drinking beer, but I question their choice of casks - I can't get past this hint of rotting wood. Teasing out the flavors more, there are additional notes of apples and walnuts that I don't find play nice. And while the finish is pleasant and reminiscent of drinking a really delicious white ale, the road to get there was too bizarre.

Orchard fruit, light smoke and some floral notes on the nose, followed by honey and citrus on the palate. Short and slightly bitter malt finish. Not bad, but not great.

Amazing, moderate sweet, super smooth, very light burn (almost none), very light smoke (maybe none). Not as good as balvenie 21, but close. B21 has more burn.

Caramel, oranges and heather on the nose. Palate is mellow with fruity sweetness, but marred by an astringent (slightly sulfuric?) woody finish.