The Famous Grouse
Finest Blended Scotch Whisky
40% abv
£14
$27.45(CAD)
$23.50(USD)
NOMINATED in the 2008 DRAMMIES
*Bang for Buck
Vote HERE (before Mar 6, 2009)
Just the facts, baby. Matthew Gloag established as a grocer and wine merchant in Perth in 1820. In the 1860’s, his son William moved into blending joining John Dewar and Arthur Bell in the competitive venture. In 1898 one of these Gloag blends was named The Grouse Brand and its local popularity earned it the name the Famous Grouse. In the 1970’s, after Highland Distilleries bought Gloag, the brand soared to be the biggest selling whisky in Scotland. It still is. It is the second largest brand in the UK and only started to address the global market in the 1980s where it now moves more than 2 million cases.
Have read that the component malts of Famous Grouse include (or has included) the Bunnahabhain, Glenglassaugh(closed), Glengoyne, Glenrothes, Glenturret, Highland Park, Macallan, and Tamdhu. Apparently there is still a good chunk of old Cambus(closed) as well as North British grains making up 65% of the blend.
TASTING NOTES:
Well, to be fair, this smells like whisky. Grain is upfront in this one with butter, clotted cream, and strawberry jam. If I dig there is some spice, cumin seed? There is a nice sherried undertone and some white pepper and the smell of the cold dryness of a freezer. Jim Murray has described this as light nose, and I cannot accept that... it is weighty, low down, if you know what I mean, bass heavy with the cheesy saxophone of grains up top.
Nice mouthfeel with pleasant sweetness. Barley and green bananas. Creamy with dried fruits. A great balance of the firm graininess against great speyside characteristics with a whisper of pepper or peat. A good, solid drink.
SUMMARY:
Bumped into an old gentleman in the spirits section of our local Sainsbury.While we were waiting for staff to come open the locked cabinets for us we got to chatting. He told me that he only drinks Grouse. "I'm done with Teachers, and I've gone off Bell's, I just drink Grouse. The wife, too!" That is all I have to say. This guy may have more to say...
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3 comments:
i used to really like it, now, not so much. but if offered to me, i wouldn't turn it down. i am easy to please? maybe.
It tastes like a good whiskey more than it tastes like a good scotch. It's tasty though.
I get the Sherry flavors, but no idea where you get the other flavors, lol... Just a newby tho...
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