Blended Whisky Reviews
Blended Whisky accounts for the vast majority of the whisky consumed globally, and can be incredibly diverse in flavour profile, as well as price and uniqueness. Fortunately, we get to review quite a few of them so take a look at what Blended Whisky we’ve been reviewing.
whisky
A BEGINNER’S GUIDE
So, Whisky / Whiskey for Beginners, you want to start drinking Whisky. It’s a pretty versatile drink and caters to many tastes. It also makes you look cool and sophisticated, so what’s not to love?
Featured Blended Whisky Reviews
latest Blended Whisky Reviews
Greg Dillon
Hi, I’m Greg: I love whisky. And I’m a man on a mission: to share that passion with whiskey lovers everywhere.
Top Blended Whisky FAQs
Blended whiskies are just cheap whisky?
Not at all - Blended Scotch Whisky accounts for around 91% of the volume of Scotch whisky consumed globally, and around 76% of the value in the category.
Blended Scotch whisky has been around for around 300 years, but has only been created commercially since 1840 thanks to the first Master Blender, Andrew Usher. Before this, whisky from single distilleries – single malt, of sorts – were so random and inconsistent in flavour that trying to sell them was nigh on impossible because, in no small part, the flavour variance between batches was significant meaning that one batch of whisky from Distillery X may taste great this week, but next week it may be like fire water.
Which is better? Single malts or blends?
The perception amongst many whisky drinkers and commentators is that single malts are best. This is patently untrue. Anything other than single cask Scotch is a blend. Let that settle.
Single malt Scotch whisky is still a blend, but it is a blend of whiskies from one distillery whereas blended Scotch whisky is a blend of whiskies from multiple distilleries.
How much Blended Scotch Whisky is sold in the world?
According to many sources across the industry, blends make up over 90% of the global whisky market. Seriously. They are enjoyed the world over by whisky newbies through to whisky connoisseurs and collectors, and it’s all because they came first, commercially at least. Single malt as we know it only started being sold to consumers in 1963 (more on which whisky brand launched the first single malt in a chapter or two's time), but prior to that single malt was reserved for the lucky distillery workers and locals. Everyone else was interested in blends, or so they thought.
What is the different between blended whisky and single malt whisky?
I always think of single malt as being the perfect expression of a distillery's product whereas I view blends as being a blender's masterpiece. The skill of the blender is in crafting the same flavour profiles year after year, batch after batch, bottle after bottle, not to mention using different ingredient whiskies than were available last year.
Why would I drink a blended whisky versus a single malt?
This is down to which you prefer. There are some exceptional blends out there and there are also some exceptional single malts. At different times throughout whisky history, one has often been enjoyed over the other. But you should explore both and find which whisky you prefer based on taste, rather than category.
What is the best whisky distillery tour in Scotland?
There are plenty to choose from, but we have to go with the Strathisla Blending Experience. Strathisla is one of the prettiest distilleries in Scotland and the Blending Experience gives you the chance to see exactly how the blenders there work. And you get to take home your own bottling at the end!
