Balblair 38 yo (distilled in 1966, bottled in 2004, non chill filtered, 44 %), period ! TOP 100 whiskies I ever tasted out of around 4000 now...Cheers, Jason !
I used to be a Balblair vintages fan, so here is my answer to your question concerning our favorite Balblair: 1. Balblair 1983-2013 2. Balblair 1991-2018 3. Balblair 1990-2017 4. Balblair 1997-2013 5.Balblair 2006-2020 56,3% WB166123 (think you’d actually love that one as a Sherry lover)
Balblair 2002 first release is amazing! If you see it up for auction buy it. The fruit bursts out of the glass. The 12 year old is good and it is a good price but not nearly as good as 2002 first release. The new 12 year old has more sherry and less bright fruit.
By the time I've been starting my whisky journey the praised and dearly missed Balblair vintage bottlings have gone out of stock. The indi bottles, as scarce as they are in Bulgaria, haven't caught my attention due to either poor feedback or absurd price. The rebranded core range is presented on our market by the 12 yo only, which again doesn't strike me as particularly good price/quality ratio. So, no Balblair for me so far :) It is a shame but hey, this is life. We are given only a certain time frame to walk the Earth and my time frame obviously doesn't align with the vintage Balbrairs, with great price/quality Macallan and so many other great whiskies. But I've been spared also the bubonic plague and world wars, so IMHO things are balancing each other out :) Over 200 euros for a bottle of whisky, which I'm going to drink, are way over the limit I'd be willing to pay. Even being it 23 yo old, cask strength and with such a great profile. I just won't feel right tasting it. Expecting the price hike to come with the next batches that are to be imported in Bulgaria, I'm buying mainly whisky which I have already tasted and liked or has been recommended by reviewers I trust and is reasonably priced. There are still plenty of bottles in Bulgaria from previous imports, non-affected by the price rise, that I can stock on. After the prices go up I'll most probably reduce the quantity I buy and focus almost exclusively on bottles with very high ratings, both taste-wise and value-wise. Yesterday I finally got a bottle of AnCnoc 24 for roughly 119-120 euros and I hope I'll be able to get another one before the end of the year :) Cheers!
Jason I know you focus on more of the rare whiskies but I think you should do some budget whiskies and see if there are any that pleasantly surprise you. Suggestions are: Monkey Shoulder, Naked Grouse, Adelphi Private Reserve, Adelphi Private Reserve Cask Strength Peated.....exhausted now.....bye....oh and promise me you will never ever ever ever ever review Johnnie Walker Red.
The origin of orange trees in Andalusian cities goes back to Islamic period. The smell of orange trees was a civic air freshener and that was their purpose. The oranges are so bitter they are inedible and I've seen many a daft tourist pick them off the trees and chew into them with deep regret because you need to wash your mouth out with water to remove the taste. The oranges that get used in the juice are from legit orange producers. Fresh orange juice in Spain (zumo de naranja) is a great and inexpensive joy. Spain is the place to be. I love Italy as well but it's twice the price. Spain has its problems like all countries but you can live well in Spain on a decent budget and people are happy. Seville and Andalusia are great but Spain is actually a mini continent such is the variety of regional differences. Spain is also the best country for great food and great value food bar none. You can have a king of a meal for 10 euros in Spain and that wont happen anywhere else. My wife is Spanish so it's a done deal. Balblair have gone down the toilet for me. We don't talk about them because they are no longer worth talking about since the change. Used to be fantastic. Can also say the same for Gordon & MacPhail and their astonishing price increases. They have great and unique stock but the new prices of are a step too far. I've bought some and it's good stuff but too expensive. My ultimate Balblair was the 1983 but the 1999, 2000, 2001, 1997, 2000 were all stunning. Can't say that about any of the age statements that are affordable. Cheers Jason. WT
Love the 1983 ex bourbon 31 year.
old but good - something too rare for me
Balblair 38 yo (distilled in 1966, bottled in 2004, non chill filtered, 44 %), period ! TOP 100 whiskies I ever tasted out of around 4000 now...Cheers, Jason !
a once in a life time dram - WOW!
@@WhiskyJason1 Well, I had the chance to try it twice (2 Whisky Live Paris shows in a row !)
I used to be a Balblair vintages fan, so here is my answer to your question concerning our favorite Balblair:
1. Balblair 1983-2013
2. Balblair 1991-2018
3. Balblair 1990-2017
4. Balblair 1997-2013
5.Balblair 2006-2020 56,3% WB166123 (think you’d actually love that one as a Sherry lover)
the 2006 was Bottled for La Maison Du Whisky - interesting - still around 200€
@@WhiskyJason1 yes, that's the one and to me it is the old Sherry that you seem to cherish.
That's the one. Balblair are done for me now. I got a bottle of the 18 but it was not as good as any of the Vintage range.
Balblair 2002 first release is amazing! If you see it up for auction buy it. The fruit bursts out of the glass. The 12 year old is good and it is a good price but not nearly as good as 2002 first release. The new 12 year old has more sherry and less bright fruit.
Thanks - I will try to keep my eyes open
By the time I've been starting my whisky journey the praised and dearly missed Balblair vintage bottlings have gone out of stock. The indi bottles, as scarce as they are in Bulgaria, haven't caught my attention due to either poor feedback or absurd price. The rebranded core range is presented on our market by the 12 yo only, which again doesn't strike me as particularly good price/quality ratio. So, no Balblair for me so far :) It is a shame but hey, this is life. We are given only a certain time frame to walk the Earth and my time frame obviously doesn't align with the vintage Balbrairs, with great price/quality Macallan and so many other great whiskies. But I've been spared also the bubonic plague and world wars, so IMHO things are balancing each other out :)
Over 200 euros for a bottle of whisky, which I'm going to drink, are way over the limit I'd be willing to pay. Even being it 23 yo old, cask strength and with such a great profile. I just won't feel right tasting it. Expecting the price hike to come with the next batches that are to be imported in Bulgaria, I'm buying mainly whisky which I have already tasted and liked or has been recommended by reviewers I trust and is reasonably priced. There are still plenty of bottles in Bulgaria from previous imports, non-affected by the price rise, that I can stock on. After the prices go up I'll most probably reduce the quantity I buy and focus almost exclusively on bottles with very high ratings, both taste-wise and value-wise. Yesterday I finally got a bottle of AnCnoc 24 for roughly 119-120 euros and I hope I'll be able to get another one before the end of the year :)
Cheers!
enjoy the AnCnoc 24 - very good stuff!!!
Jason I know you focus on more of the rare whiskies but I think you should do some budget whiskies and see if there are any that pleasantly surprise you. Suggestions are: Monkey Shoulder, Naked Grouse, Adelphi Private Reserve, Adelphi Private Reserve Cask Strength Peated.....exhausted now.....bye....oh and promise me you will never ever ever ever ever review Johnnie Walker Red.
The origin of orange trees in Andalusian cities goes back to Islamic period. The smell of orange trees was a civic air freshener and that was their purpose. The oranges are so bitter they are inedible and I've seen many a daft tourist pick them off the trees and chew into them with deep regret because you need to wash your mouth out with water to remove the taste. The oranges that get used in the juice are from legit orange producers. Fresh orange juice in Spain (zumo de naranja) is a great and inexpensive joy. Spain is the place to be. I love Italy as well but it's twice the price. Spain has its problems like all countries but you can live well in Spain on a decent budget and people are happy. Seville and Andalusia are great but Spain is actually a mini continent such is the variety of regional differences. Spain is also the best country for great food and great value food bar none. You can have a king of a meal for 10 euros in Spain and that wont happen anywhere else. My wife is Spanish so it's a done deal.
Balblair have gone down the toilet for me. We don't talk about them because they are no longer worth talking about since the change. Used to be fantastic. Can also say the same for Gordon & MacPhail and their astonishing price increases. They have great and unique stock but the new prices of are a step too far. I've bought some and it's good stuff but too expensive. My ultimate Balblair was the 1983 but the 1999, 2000, 2001, 1997, 2000 were all stunning. Can't say that about any of the age statements that are affordable. Cheers Jason. WT
My wife is Germany so it's a done deal for me here :-)