Flavour profile is AI-assisted and still being refined.
Tasting
How it drinks
Sight
Deep amber gold with warm copper highlights; richer and more complex appearance than the 12yo DoubleWood, with slow, viscous legs
Nose
An elevated, more complex version of the DoubleWood concept. Rich honey, dried apricot, marzipan, and toasted oak. The extra five years add leather, polished wood, and a gentle tobacco note absent in the 12yo. Sherry influence is deeper — more fig and walnut than the 12yo lighter raisin and orange. Sweet baking spices throughout
Palate
Silky smooth with remarkable depth. The Balvenie honey-vanilla core is now wrapped in layers of dried fruit, marzipan, leather, and polished wood. Oak tannins are perfectly integrated — assertive enough to provide structure but never bitter. Dark chocolate, cinnamon, and toasted almond emerge mid-palate. The extra maturation has added a gravitas and complexity that the 12yo only hints at. Full bodied with an oily, luxurious mouthfeel
Finish
Long, complex finish that evolves — honey and dried fruit first, then leather and oak spice, finally a lingering malty warmth. The interplay between bourbon cask sweetness and sherry cask richness is more nuanced and prolonged than the 12yo. A masterclass in what five extra years of maturation achieve
Tasting notes are AI-assisted and still being refined.
One distillery, one story, one thing worth knowing — drawn from the JourneyM8 archive of 600+ distilleries. No noise, no selling; just a good pour of whisky in your inbox each Sunday.