This is The Whisky Exchange‘s yearly Christmas celebration, a sherry matured blended malt that is 19 years old. It was intended to be a whisky lover’s gift (with bottle engraving if you like) but as Christmas is behind us now, maybe it can just be a gift to yourself…
A Fine Christmas Malt 19 yo (44,5%, The Whisky Exchange 2020, 1918 btl.)
Nose: a nice fruitiness up front. Juicy red berries, orange peel, fresh figs and stewed apples with brown sugar. The baking spice, like ginger and cinnamon. Toffee and raisins. Hints of buttery cake in the background, as well as some cold coffee grounds.
Mouth: sweet and spicy. Still lots of toffee notes, mixed with cherries and milk chocolate. Walnut cake, cinnamon pastry and a bit of dusty oak. Brown sugar again. Red apples. A nice sweet and sour theme with crushed peppercorns towards the end.
Finish: medium long, on candy apple, sweet coffee and a bit of oak char.
This finds a nice balance between juicy fruits and darker, spicy notes. It’s a Christmassy crowd-pleaser, without offering anything extraordinary. It’s too late to order this for Christmas, but if you buy this as a daily dram for wintertime you won’t be disappointed. Only from The Whisky Exchange.