What could be better than a new Compass Box release? Two Compass Box releases…! When these samples turned up on my desk I was really quite excited, knowing these purveyors of premium blended whiskies always pull out all the stops when bringing new bottlings to the table
Kicking things off with Compass Box ‘This Is Not a Luxury Whisky’, is it or isn’t it a luxury whisky? The inspiration behind this name came from surrealist painter Rene Magritte’s piece of art during 1929 “Ceci n’est pas une pipe”, described to be a painting which changes your perception of reality. He says this is not a picture of a pipe in the name of the painting. Besides the name, the whisky is made up of some exceptional blends so let’s get to ‘em.
The Treachery of Images – “Ceci n’est pas une pipe”
Compass Box This Is Not a Luxury Whisky – Blend Breakdown
79% – 19 year old Glen Ord matured in a first fill sherry butt
10.1% – 40 year old Strathclyde grain whisky matured in a refill American oak hogshead
6.9% – 40 year old Girvan grain whisky matured in refill American oak hogshead
4% – 30 year old Caol Ila matured in a refill American oak hogshead
Compass Box This Is Not a Luxury Whisky – 53.1%
Tasting Note for Compass Box This Is Not a Luxury Whisky
Nose: Brimming with Sherried fruits, buttery, raisins, Demerara sugar cubes.
Palate: Powerful, rich fruits, more sherry, boiled sweets, sultanas, banana, honeycomb, vanilla pods.
Finish: Subtle peat smoke, although nothing too dominant.
Overall: A great combination of whisky and the cask type used, to create an exceptional blended whisky.
Compass Box began back in 2000, in 2015 they marked the 15th anniversary of Compass Box with a hot new Flaming Heart bottling, presented at 48.9% ABV. “This is a whisky born of oak, smoke and fire – with a big heart all of its own” John Glaser – whiskymaker & founder. A whisky for the evening and the late nights, drink alongside a cigar or to your favourite rock song with the volume cranked right up. They released just 12,060 bottles globally.
Compass Box Flamming Heart 15th anniversary – Blend Breakdown
27.1% – 30 year old Caol Ila matured in a refill American oak cask
24.1% – 20 year old Clynelish matured in a rejuvenated American oak hogshead
10.3% – 7 year old Highland malt whisky matured in a new French oak hybrid barrel
38.5% – 14 year old Caol Ila matured in a refill American oak hogshead
Compass Box Flaming Heart 15th anniversary – 48.9%
Tasting Note for Compass Box Flamming Heart 15th anniversary
Nose: Toffee apple, progressive peat smoke, coastal air.
Palate: Sweet smoke (great influence from the 27.1% Caol Ila used here). Herbal sweets, almonds, charred oak.
Finish: Herbal sweets, more clean-sweet peat, berries.
Overall: Lovely and sweet with plenty of peat!
So here’s some superb blended whiskies to get your nose into over the festive season (it won’t be long before you’re sat beside the Christmas tree with a dram eh). Definitely a job well done with these new blends by artisan Scotch whiskymakers’ Compass Box.
Jerome