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Berry Bros & Rudd Islay Blended Malt Scotch Whisky (700ml)
Whiskyfun.com's favourite bang for your buck bottling (May 2020) "...classic Islay...Impeccable blended malt, where are the oysters?"
A blend of malts from Islay, composed of whiskies from some of the island's most iconic distilleries. Very pale straw gold. Light citrus, crisp barley and sweet sooty peat, all perfectly tuned, with air contact adding smoked meats, dark chocolate and hints of pencil shavings. Juicy maritime-accented delivery - creamy and sweetly smokey with brine, cocoa, white pepper and hints of dried banana through the aftertaste. Offers a complex and beautifully integrated range of delicious flavours. 44.2% Alc./Vol.
Other reviews... An endearing vatting which sums up the island's whiskies without any drama but still highly attractively and with no wrong turns. 90.5 points - Jim Murray's Whisky Bible
One of four new affordable blended malts in the range, this delivers a direct line of clean, pure smoke; richly peaty, with shrimp shells, salty sea spray, fresh citrus peel, vanilla, and the aroma of fine cigar smoke. There's an elegant purity to the nose. The palate takes a different course, with tangy, sharp citrus, bitter orange, herbal notes, lemon sherbet, shortbread, and jagged spices. Quite a stallion. 88 points - whiskyadvocate.com
I can’t see what could go wrong here. Colour: a whiter shade of pale (aarf). Nose: fresh, peaty, very coastal, gristy (youth) and pretty tarry and on diesel oil. I would imagine ¾ young CI and ¼ young Laphroaig would be a bit like this. No bad names. Mouth: just very good, more on brine, gherkins and olives, roots, pure mezcal and a little mercurochrome. Excellent briny ashes. Finish: long, crystalline, peaty, salty. Salty smoked almonds in the aftertaste. Comments: classic Islay, I’m not so sure. Not all young Islays are this good if you ask me. Impeccable blended malt, where are the oysters? 87 points - whiskyfun.com