Editor’s Note: Fuck that was a hell of a week, anyway.
We have sort of a complicated relationship with Dewar’s – on the one hand we prefer Famous Grouse or just a Glenlivet 12 Yr for a mixing/well scotch. (we really should review those) That’s not to say the white label hasn’t occasionally showed up in the bar. The 12 year Dewar’s is thankfully a bit better, but given the length of age one would expect that. This though – this was unexpected, and quite frankly much better than it had any right to be.
Originally a long-distance gift from a friend (which the scores can prove why we’re friends) – it was a bit of a concern what this would end up being like. The aging was there, and while we’ve tried some scotches with the sherry or rum casking, and even a few anejo tequilas or port – this is just some unknown mezcal. What does it bring to the table – a sort of warm roasted sugary flavor that fails to throw off the taste.
What they Say: “Bottle Front: Double aged and finished in Mezcal casks for extra smoothness. With notes of caramel, herbal flavors, and a wisp of smoke.
Bottle Back: Dewar’s Blended Scotch Whisky, double aged and finished in Mezcal casks for extra smoothness”
Taste: 7.5 – It’s a bit odd, there’s certainly some sweetness from the agave, a bit of smoke, and an almost cocoa/roasted like flavor. For what it is, it’s nice.
Aftertaste: 7.0 – The wood does show up, but only really on the backend, the lingering taste being that roasted sweeter flavor.
Burn/Smooth: 6.5 – Considering how big smooth is here, you would sort of expect this to maybe be smoother – but that aside it’s quite good.
Aroma: 7.0 – Unsurprisingly it smells a bit more like a tequila that’s been aged then a scotch with a hint of agave. Overall it’s nice, if a bit odd knowing it’s a scotch.
Honesty: 8.0 – You know that’s all fine, aside from the tiny bit of ‘Illegal’ considering there’s nothing inherently illegal with Mezcal. Beyond that though they don’t pontificate and are basically on point for what they say.
Mixability: 3.5
W/ Rocks: 3.0 – Nope. Damn. That just hides all the character of the casking as it were. You mostly just get some smoke, it somehow feels less smooth, and just isn’t ideal at all.
Rusty Nail: 4.0 – The sweetness of the Drambuie counteracts the above, but it’s overall muddled and sadly for us as you can tell by the image above – a sad way to end this bottle.
Value: 6.0 – You know? Yeah. For just a few dollars more you get a lot more complexity and character, and while yeah it’s a neat-only affair – we wouldn’t be remiss to buy again, and neither should you.
Google Shop Average: $24
Website: https://www.dewars.com/us/en/
Reviewer Scores:
BuffaloJern: 7.0
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Metric Score: 45.5/70 |+| Metric Average: 6.5 |+| Reviewer Average: 7.0
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Final Thoughts: Sure we’ve sung some of the praises here, but then it’s twinged by the comparison to the white label and how with just a few more dollars you can get something that is uniquely different, tastes great (sadly mixes awful), but is just a better thing to have. A commenter on the white label’s suggested us to try the rum-casking version and given the success of this, it’s something we’ll look into.
