Balblair 25 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky (700ml)

As of 2019, Balblair have abandoned their vintage dated bottlings, instead offering a range of age statements, all at a 46% minimum with zero chill filtering or colouring.  The house style aims to maximise the esters at the start of the cut giving core characteristics of apricots, oranges, spices, floral notes and green apples. The heavier oils and lipids at the end of the cut are also captured, giving leathery, nutty and full-bodied characteristics. Initially matured in American oak ex-bourbon casks, then refined over the years in Spanish oak for extra richness and complexity, the handsome new-look 25 year old promises a full-bodied malt with oily citrus, chocolate praline and a faint note of fresh tobacco leaf.

Other reviews... There has been hard work here to harmonise fruit and oak, and allow the barley a say too. But when the sherry is this ripe, not an easy stunt to pull off. Gets pretty close though! 91 points - Jim Murray's Whisky Bible 2022