Dewar's 12 Year Old

Dewar's Special Reserve
Blended Scotch Whisky
12 Years Old
$30

Dewar's Special Reserve is a direct competitor to the excellent and well-reviewed Johnnie Walker Black. Both are relatively famous blends, made up of whiskies at least 12 years of age, and running about 30 dollars. I have had JW Black on several occasions and have been quite impressed with it. This will be my first experience with Dewar's equivalent blend.

The brand was originally created by John Dewar, Sr. in 1846. His son Tommy Dewar drove the brand to worldwide success using a combination of aggressive marketing and a quality product. In the 19th century, the first Dewar's master blender, A.J. Cameron, came up with the idea of what Dewar's calls the "marrying process." This refers to a period in which the blend of fully-aged grain and malt whiskies are blended then returned to casks to age together for a further period of time, usually several months.

Nose:
Buttery and creamy. Fruity aroma with a more intense alcohol smell if nosed deeply.

Palate:
Heather honey. Fruity again, perhaps like melon or cantaloupe. Some oak, reminiscent of a bourbon but with a bit less sweetness. Light honey and just the slightest touch of smoke on the finish.

A good, accessible scotch. Not particularly challenging but enjoyable and well-balanced, though it could use more peat, I think. I imagine this to be a good first whisky, Probably very tasty on ice.