It’s the first day of ‘Whisky Month 2015’ and also the start of the Speyside Whisky Festival. To celebrate, we’re going to be writing one review per day for the month of May and this is the first.
Cragganmore Distillery produces one of the classic Speyside whiskies, which is known (according to Diageo) for having ‘the most complex aroma of any malt – astonishingly fresh and delicate’.
This 2012 Distillers Edition takes that whisky and adds a bit more depth to that aroma by double maturing the standard 12 year old in a Port pipe for an extra couple of years before being bottled at 40%.
Colour
Warm gold.
Nose
Very pleasant nose with a lot of fruit.
Black cherry and raisins are prominent which is clearly the Port influence, however there is apple peel and almond / marzipan notes too.
Taste
Neat, this is very drinkable.
Rich mixed fruit is the main flavour, but there’s a tobacco and leather dryness which becomes apparent and continues into the finish. Medium mouth feel.
Light spice appears at the end, but the sweetness remains throughout.
Adding water brings out a bit more of the apple flavours but the other flavours stay in place.
Overall
This is a good whisky, which has a lovely smooth flavour and a bit of complexity.
As drinkable as it is however, it could not help but be improved by increasing the ABV as 40% seems quite mean when a lot of other Diageo single malts are bottled at 43%.
I wouldn’t go out of my way to get a bottle, but it priced quite competitively and would make a decent drinking whisky or alternative bottle present for a whisky novice.
Braw Spirit 