Balvenie DoubleWood 17 Year Old

Created by Malt Master David Stewart, DoubleWood is aged in vanilla-imparting oak casks for 17 years and then spends a few months in European Oloroso sherry casks (hence the name “DoubleWood”) to gain spiciness and depth. We find that the “average” 12-year is pretty darned tasty, but this whisky’s five extra years of maturation, alongside its “bonus barrel” conditioning, seems to breed entirely different flavor profiles and intensities.

Expect honey, vanilla and oak on the nose; dried fruit, toasted almond, cinnamon, toffee, oak, vanilla flavors and, eventually, caramel reveal themselves on the tongue. Don’t get lost in the forest of flavor and down the entire bottle.

TASTING NOTES

NOSE
Elegant and complex oak, vanilla, honeyed sweetness and a hint of green apple.

TASTE
Sweet with dried fruits, sherbet spice, toasted almonds and cinnamon, layered with a richness of creamy toffee notes and traces of oak and deep vanilla.

FINISH
Vanilla oak, honey and spicy sweetness.