Shackleton Blended Malt

I have been finishing off a lot of high cost bottles recently and may have overcorrected with purchase of several low cost options including this Antarctic marketing special. Blended malt without nasty grain alcohol which is important for a NAS. The site notes are pretty good on this one. Nose is canned pear, red apple and malt with wispy smoke/peat and light barrel. Palate carries the nose and finishes quick with dry wood spice and fading malt. This is decent enough with no off notes but its a thin affair. Its drinkable and satisfies the itch for a low cost malt but does not bring anything special to the table. Monkey/Naked/Lineage easily best this for similar $$ so cannot recommend repurchase but this is better than a lot of blends........78/100.....If you are a scotch guy/gal this will work in a pinch and does have an interesting story(marketing-wise)

It’s hard not to be taken in by the story of this whisky. I know it’s all about the marketing, but it’s a nice little conceit to think you’re drinking something with a similar flavour profile to one that Shackleton himself may have enjoyed. Almost definitely a load of bollocks, but still fun! The first taste is quite alcohol heavy. It then mellows into a caramel and citrus sweetness. The finish is long, sharp and honeyed, with a light buttery aftertaste. It’s not a refined whisky, but there are a few layers of flavour and it’s certainly an easy dram to drink. Overall, it’s not a bad dram, but the story is definitely more interesting than the whisky.

I really enjoy the nose on this whisky but the palate slightly lets it down. Having said that, for the price you pay it’s a really decent drink. I would love to try this bottled at 46% rather than 40% as I suspect that would make all the difference - but as a historical recreation it’s a brilliant idea and well-executed. Nose. Lemon, vanilla, butterscotch and cereal. There might be some brine as well. Palate. Lacking a bit of depth, but there’s some apple, honey and smoke. Finish. The fruit disappears quickly, but there’s a nice peppery smoke that lingers.

Nose is lemon (like lemonheads candy), butter, coffee creamer, barrel wood, sugary caramel and honey. Some barrel tannins in the nose if you let it settle. Taste is more lemon drop candy, vanilla creme, sweaty salt brine, earthy autumn leaves, coffee grounds. Grassy/lemongrass. No peat, but a tobacco burn on the tongue. Almonds, rye toast. Apple skins. Finishes with tobacco ash, earthy forest floor, cut tobacco leaf, Caraway seed bitterness. Pencil-shaving wood. This is a very solid blended Scotch under $40.

Your score is much too low for this dram. I don't know too much about depth, when it comes to a Scotch. I only know what tastes good to me. And on the first sip, I got less 'pears and apples,' and more of the kind of aroma and flavour you get when making low-heated 'Grape Nuts' cereal with a dash of pure vanilla extract; just a dash. In other words, it's like a liquid version of a hearty breakfast cereal. And I likewise savor it! That rates a lot higher than a '79.'

This is what I imagine blended scotches *could* be if they skipped the grain for straight malt. MUCH richer mouthfeel and flavor than a blend, but a similar “down home plate” flavor profile. By comparison, Chivas is 80 proof same as this, has less flavor and is $40 vs $30. Overall…its pretty tasty, if accessible and middle of the road.