Monday 2 June 2014

Johnnie Walker Black Label (12 Year Old)


Opening todays' offering from the usual supply my first reaction was "Really?". Johnny Walker Black isn't exactly the rare or interesting selection I was expecting from this calendar. My second reaction was far more reasonable and open minded. Johnnie Walker Black has a reputation as a great blended whisky. I myself have tried it on numerous occasions and to be honest it is one of my favourite blends. It is incredibly well balanced stuff. I would definitely say that it is hands down my favourite in the JW line.

A couple of weeks ago I received a tweet with suggestions to help me find that perfect marriage of whisky and music. I am flattered to have received the idea and excited to be able to take the advice. The suggestion came from @ankitsethi. He suggested JW Black with "EDM". I had to look up what "EDM" meant... It means Electronic Dance Music. This was a bit of a challenge for me as I don't listen to a lot of electronica. This meant I had to improvise. I chose Medeski, Martin and Woods - Combustication Remix EP. This album is a mix of trance, jazz and funk. Pretty out there stuff.

On that note I will get to the tasting and send a thank you and cheers out to Mr. Sethi.

Nose: Maple, apple and smoke come to mind initially, I then detected an almost minty tone. upon further inhalations I discovered hints of toffee and just a slight bit of coffee.

Palate: In the mouth it is so smooth and warming. Flavours of malteasers are apparent. To break that down it would be like chocolate, toffee and bread. In this case the bread is dark.

Finish: Long and so smooth. The flavours almost cling to your tongue. Apples and grasses are tastes that are brought to mind.

 A wonderful blend. It is no wonder this is so popular. As for the musical pairing I think it worked quite well. I believe a better match would have been some classic Jazz like Dizzy Gillespie; however, I really appreciate the suggestion and hope you don't mind my "slight" tweaking of it.  

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