Grant’s 18 year old

Kev’s take:

So let’s start with some thanks. This bottle was One Minute Whisky’s very first bottle sent to us for a review and I think that means it’ll always occupy a special place in my heart. So thank you Thembella, of ButterKnife. Having said that, I really did try to give an unbiased review and had zero obligation or pressure to assume a positive take on it. So here it is…
I don’t really like blends but this is an exception to that rule. In fact, it’s in my top 3 blends for sure so good job Grants Distillery. It has a really unique taste with a mix of sweet vanilla and pepper. If this whisky was a person, it’d be that friend who can joke around but also have deep and meaningful conversations. And given that the youngest whisky in this blend has been doing nothing but chill in cask for 18 years, I guess its no surprise that it would be so versatile.
My one concern is that it doesn’t really handle the addition of water too well and it should definitely be consumed as is. But don’t let that deter you too much since it is rocking a very good 9/10 on the OMW rating scale.

Luke’s take:

It’s just a whisky – judge it for what it is, and don’t get sucked into the hypnotic storyline it’s feeding you. That’s at least what I keep telling myself. It’s hard work not judging a book by its cover.

The bottle is beautiful, and has a sturdiness about it that makes you take it seriously, everything in this bottle is old enough to vote, and then they finish this whisky off in port casks. My bias radar is screeming at me! Ok, calm down Luke, just focus on the whisky itself.

I put my nose into the glass, and the smell of honeyd spices engulfs me. Lots of dried fruits, spices, and honey come through on the nose.

The taste reminds me a lot of Christmas cake, especially post-Christmas. It’s practically a family tradition to cut thick slices of Christmas cake that had been soaked in brandy for months, and fry them till crispy in butter. The richness of caramelized raisins, nuts and sultanas coat the mouth in richness.

That port finish definitely does it’s job well!

At the back end there are some more subtle vanilla and oak notes coming through.

I found adding water really diminished the fruitcake elements and turn them more toffee. This is definitely a whisky I would prefer neat most of the time.

I give it 5 out of 5.

 

{Note: a sample was supplied by the PR company. All thoughts and images are our own.}