Marks & Spencer Speyside 12 Years Old

By Barry Bradford on February 5, 2014 • ( Leave a comment )

Marks & Spencer Speyside 12 Years Old

Category: Speyside single malt scotch whisky
Origin: ?
Bottling: Marks & Spencer
ABV: 40%
Cost: £29

What they say

This smooth Speyside classic is made using time honoured, traditional methods that haven’t changed for over 130 years. In the heart of north-eastern Scotland runs the fast- flowing waters of the River Spey. On whose banks, it’s cool clean waters are at the heart of the country’s treasured and esteemed whisky making tradition

You can taste the history in each distinctively creamy sip, redolent with notes of mature vanilla and warm, spicy cinnamon.

What I say

Part 1 of the Marks and Spencer own bottlings vertical was this Speyside 12 Year Old, picked to go first as the Highland, blend and Islay expressions were likely to have increasing levels of peat in them. To avoid this gradual impairment of my palate, I opted for the whisky I expected to be the most subtly flavoured (and least peaty).

My tasting notes:

Colour: Full gold with strong tears (oily?)
Nose: Malted milk biscuits and Flapjacks, golden syrup, sweet heather honey, oats
Taste: Full bodied, golden syrup with a slightly bitter tang, heather honey and butter, light in texture and slightly oily this whisky was redolent with malted barley and cereal (wheat, oat) flavours like toasted bread, with some sugary sweetness from the bourbon oak wood with hints of vanilla and cinnamon
Finish: Short to medium, sweet honey, malt and cereals

Overall

Surprisingly, even amazingly good! This is probably one of the first undisclosed distillery bottling that has really made me sit and think and mull over all the flavours in this whisky. I am actually quite tempted to purchase more of this, it is hugely drinkable but incredibly cereal-y compared to most of the Speyside malts I have tasted and very full-bodied. This is like liquefied golden syrup flapjacks, something I am rather partial to.