The Epicurean Blended Malt

Rating: 9/23 I know nothing about this. It's a blended malt from the Lowlands, which is a bit of a surprise since I usually think of that region for its grain production. N: Not a big nose. It's young and light, with a lot of alcohol coming through. I get some grain - not very malted - and also some tartness along with sulfur, which I must say is not a very appealing combination. Not a good nose. P: Not as bad as I feared it would be. It's clearly quite young, but the higher proof accentuates the grain and cereal flavors. It's fairly light and I surprisingly get fairly little of the sulfur from the nose and what I do get largely fits in with a somewhat smoky flavor to the not-so-malted grain. There's a lot of alcohol in here. There's also something a hint fruity (light, like apple, pear, peach) and perhaps vaguely floral (perhaps a hint of vanilla), but this is really just all about the grain. It's on the harsh side, but I can forgive a little of that considering the proof. It's hard to tell if there's pepper in it because of the harshness, but there might be. It's gradually quite numbing, so maybe there's some clove in it. The complexity is so-so and the balance is tragically fairly off. F: The alcohol lingers, but I also get some hay. It's a bit more bitter on the finish and some smoke like burnt grass wafts up. It lasts a while and has a clean grassy field character to it. I don't like this, but I could stand to drink a pour of it. It's too young with too many problems in its profile. It reminds me a lot of Auchentoshan, which I enjoy at older ages, but struggle to appreciate at younger ones. I like Sir Edward's 12 better because of its richness and sweetness, but not tremendously better. It is without doubt a couple of steps up from Grant's. Seems like a 9. If this costs anything over $20, it isn't worth it, but at $15, it would be reasonably priced. $46?! Hard pass.

Tasted a 2020 bottling from batch 14. I've had the bottle open for about a year. This one is unfortunately quite hard to finish. Nose: Young and aggressive malt that opens up with a pleasantly floral and herbal nose. It's like walking into a thick meadow in the middle of Spring. The immature malt rains hard on it all though. Taste: Harsh. The 46 ABV really doesn't do this whisky any favors. The palate is overwhelmingly herbal with most of the floral notes from the nose nowhere to be found. It all closes with unnaturally sweet candy and burnt sugar. Not a balanced palate at all. Finish: Hot. Bitter herbs and burnt sugar. Not very pleasant. Final thoughts: This is just a poorly executed blended malt that could have been a very different story if only it was 40 ABV and a couple years older. The harshly immature malt just ruins this dram and I do find the burnt sugar in this way too excessive. I'm not a fan of Lowland whisky and this one certainly didn't help sway my opinion in the opposite direction.

I will be reviewing all of the core expression of Douglas Laing Blended Whiskies, absolutely the most fun and good looking bottles in the market. I'll start with the most simple one: the epicurean. The story about this epicurean guy that is shown in the bottle is that he was a 1930 person who like the best of food and drinks. This is a blend from lowland malts... pretty interesting. Bottled at 46.2%abv. On the nose: Dry orange cake. Chantilly cream. Raisins. Tobacco. On the palate: very bitter, tobbaco notes and some citric lime notes. Finish medium long, with a very pleasant ginger note. Overall i give this dram a 78 over 100, it is an easy drink even for 46.2%abv. I Love the bottle. Slainte!

Nose: Dill flavor hits the nose initially with a buttery fragrance, delicate floral and grassy notes. Some lemon zest appears with green apple and a mild spearmint note at the back. Addition of water brings out a rich chocolate note and making th sugar much more apparent. Palate: Cinnamon appears much more prominently with strong grassy notes, fennel, pears and apples. The spiciness lingers throughout giving way to a creamier flavor, vanilla and soft herbs, almost like a mint tea. Adding water opens up fruitier notes of green grapes and slight hints of banana with milk chocolate Finish: A long-lasting combination of lemongrass, fennel and subtle oak.

A delicate, lowland blended malt from the excellent Douglas Laing that's "city born and bred" & is personified by the 1930s cheeky chappy and all-round connoisseur on the label! It has a very buttery birth with notes of lemongrass, grist, cereal, hints of green banana & refreshing spearmint; while a rich life adds notes of apple, pear, white grape. grass, with hints of chocolate fudge, sugary sweetness & pepper; that led to a delicate death with notes of cloudy lemonade, honied barley, granary bread & a hint of thyme honey. February 2018 / August 2022

The Nose: overwhelming sweet red wine, after spending some time with it fresh cut grapefruit, and dark red grapes The Pallet: slightly bitter and alcohol forward, delicate floral notes, butter, and some earthy notes. It feels very oily and creamy The finish: slightly bitter lemon zest, and earth notes, medium length finish My first experience with this blender and I hope to try more of their blends. unfortunately this one just isn't in my wheelhouse. It's good and I would definitely take it over your usual blended scotches.