scotch review

Johnnie Walker Green Label Scotch Whisky Review

Johnnie Walker Green Label is the odd one of the bunch.  It is a blended malt whisky, whereas all other Johnnie Walker whiskies are blended whiskies.  Blended whiskies contain malt and grain whiskies.  Blended malt whiskies are strictly a blend of malt whiskies.  There’s no grain whisky to be found in this bottle.  A quick internet search reveals Johnnie Walker Green Label is a mix of Talisker, Linkwood, Cragganmore and Caol Ila single malts, all aged at least 15 years.  In late 2013, Diageo, owners of the Johnnie Walker brand, announced a discontinuation of Green Label to all markets except Taiwan.  In 2015, Johnnie Walker Green Label started showing up on shelves here in the U.S. in small numbers.  This could be a limited run, however, as JW Green isn’t listed as part of the Johnnie Walker lineup on their website.

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Johnnie Walker Double Black Scotch Whisky Review

Johnnie Walker Double Black

Although I’ve enjoyed American whiskey for years, I’m a Scotch newbie.   The idea of a peaty, smoky whisky intimidated me.  So I started my Scotch adventures with some sweeter and fruitier Scotch whiskies, such as Glenlivet 12 and The Balvenie 14 Caribbean Cask (full reviews coming soon).  Johnnie Walker is such a giant brand, so that was my next stop.  Diageo was kind enough to send me samples of most of the Johnnie Walker lineup, including the focus of this post, Double Black.  I sampled and tasted them all several times, but waited to taste this one last.  It was worth the wait.

Johnnie Walker Master Blender Jim Beveridge took the dark, smoky notes from Johnnie Walker Black Label and amplified them to create Johnnie Walker Double Black.  This is the smokiest JW blend thus far (to my knowledge).  The press release states Johnnie Walker Double Black contains some single malts from smaller distilleries on Scotland’s west coast.  This whisky retails for about $42.   So, how is it?

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