Penderyn Legend Single Malt Welsh Whisky

I bought this ages ago, after seeing it on special offer online, after warming to the Penderyn Madeira Finish.

Maybe I'll warm to this one with time, but it's a bit of a disappointment, it doesn't seem as complex as the box notes suggest.

At 41% it is surprisingly mellow, very smooth, very little burn, and tastes quite mild, a lot milder than the Madeira Finish from what I remember. This is another fruity one, but it's more subtle, pear maybe, some vanilla.

It's  a bit bland, I won't be buying it again. Out of curiosity I added a drop of water to it, and tried another with some lemonade, but it doesn't have a strong enough flavour for a mixer, and so I'd imagine it would be pointless using it in a cocktail.

The Balvenie 12 Year Old Doublewood Single Malt Whisky

This has been on my wishlist to try for a while, a couple of friends have recommended it, but it's never on special offer in the supermarket, and costs a bit more than I usually spend. £39 is not expensive in the grand whisky scheme of things, but is at the more expensive end in your average supermarket, and it's a lot of money to spend on a whim to try something new.

Anyway, at Christmas I caught up with a friend who doesn't live near me, and he was kind enough to surprise me with a bottle as a gift, as he had been banging on about it as a friend of his introduced him to it on holiday.

I'm very grateful, it's very nice, and well worth the money, which isn't something I very often say about the whiskies I review, yes, I would happily pay full price for this, it's that good!

It's very smooth, next to no burn, but you know it's there. It's sweet, without being sickly, starts off with warm vanilla, then the subtle fruits come through, which according to the tube comes from the oak cask which is used first, then the sherry cask.

I wish I had some Yamazaki left to compare it to, as I think that's the only other whisky I've had which is comparable in terms of quality.

If no-one buys me this for Christmas this year, I may treat myself, or even try one of their other affordable whiskies.

Also, I've only drunk it neat - seems a waste to pollute it with a mixer ;)

Lidl's Ben Bracken 23 Year Old Speyside Single Malt Whisky

I wouldn't normally spend £40 on a bottle of whisky, but the chance to buy a  23 year old whisky for a lot less than a 23 year old normally costs was too good an opportunity to miss. My local Lidl had a few bottles, so I purchased one, I had been impressed with one of their blends I had bought last year, and Lidl and Aldi have a reputation for good value for money spirits.

The good news is, it's nice. I'll be honest, it's not mind blowingly amazing, but I guess my disappointment is my fault. I think I got excited by it being a 23 year old whisky, at a bargain price, so I was expecting it to be leaps and bounds better than my normal whisky drinks, but instead, I should have been looking at it, as a £40 whisky, which is 23 years old.

It's nicer than most of the other whiskies I've reviewed, but it costs a bit more than most of them, however it's not as nice as the Yamazaki, or the 12year old Balvenie Triple Cask I tried a while ago, but it costs less than both of them. As is often the case in life, you get what you pay for, I paid £40 for a bottle of whisky, which is nicer than one that costs £25, but not as nice as one that costs £50 upwards, so I can't really complain 🙂

 

So, now I've got that out the way, how does it taste? It's smooth, slightly spicy, fruity, slightly woody, not much burn. There's nothing overpowering or obvious, not sure if that's a good or bad thing. In short, it's a nice whisky, but unfortunately nothing stands out about it to make me want to buy it again, or recommend it. It ticks the right boxes, it smells and taste like whisky, but there's nothing special about this drink :(