The Balvenie DoubleWood 12yo
Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 12 years
Abv:  40%

A Christmas gift last year, the Balvenie Double Wood is a special bottle that I only occasionally bring out. Past drams have not particularly wowed me, but this will be my first sit-down with the whisky to give it a focused turn. 

Bottle Notes
“The Balvenie Double Wood acquires its complex yet rich and smooth taste from its maturation in two different types of Oak cask.
Whisky Oak – Many years of maturation in traditional whisky casks mellow the maturing spirit and imparts warming layers of vanilla spiciness. 
Sherry Oak – Further maturation in European Oak sherry casks increases complexity, bringing fruity, honeyed depths to the resulting single malt.”

Nose
Delicate, fruity, sweet, floral.  In fact, an extremely pleasant first greeting. Vanilla icing maybe? There is a sweetness with hints of vanilla that is quite lovely. Faint wood notes wisp about in the background, gentle and fleeting. Maybe it is not so much fruit, but honey, that I am getting a sweetness from. It is a gentle, mellow experience on the nose – light but not so much that I strain for the experience. At times there is a syrupy sweetness that I hope the taste does not mirror.

With time, floral scents are more prominent.  Perhaps some orange and citrus notes

Palate
Spicy barrel notes, but with a coating of sweet honey. It is light – very light – on the palate. 

Second sip, sweetness is a bit more pronounced, but a stringent wood alcohol note creeps in. 

Now, there is a strange plastic or rubbery feel after a sip, not unpleasant but very odd. It gives the taste and finish an almost … manufactured? … quality to it. There are definitely hints of sweet and spice, but there is an undertow of spirit that I don’t care for, and a short finish that feels … cheap. 

Finish
It passes quickly, faint spicy burn, barest hint of sweetness.

Final Thoughts
This is a popular, well regarded whisky, so I am somewhat sheepish to share these thoughts. Unfortunately for me, it seems to miss the mark. I do love the nose – even to the end it is pleasant and a nice experience. Not terribly complex or evolving for me, but comfortable and interesting. The palate did not get to a good place for me tonight – simple, one-dimensional, and not entirely pleasant. That odd plastic/rubber taste progressed through the dram.  This last sip is just such an entry level cheap booze feel. Quite a dissonance with the nose.

I do love the bottle – a lovely fluted neck with a sizeable shoulder at the opening. Squat and sturdy, small, and the label is striking in its elegance. I appreciate the description of the two cask maturation and what each brings to the whisky. 

For me, not a dram I would be quick to put on the shelf again.