Compass Box Whisky Hedonism Blended Grain

Wine information: Compass Box is a small independent specialist Scotch whisky company, devoted to making some of Scotland’s premier whiskies through the art of blending. Similar to fine wine negociants, they choose individual casks of whiskies from different distilleries, which offer complementary sets of flavours, and then blend the whiskies in small batches. Their whiskies have unusual names and the labels are contemporary in style; it’s all part of their vision: take a contemporary approach to a traditional product. At the core of everything they create is a desire to bring out a purity of flavour, a richness, a drinking experience that will call people back to their glass; to Compass Box, this is the true measure of a whisky’s quality. Hedonism is unusual in the Scotch whisky world: a 100% Scotch grain whisky. It is very rare to see 100% grain whisky bottling, even in Scotland. Going back 100 years, grain whisky brands were more common, but they were overtaken in popularity by the big brands of blended Scotch, which comprised both grain whisky and malt whisky. Today, most Scotch grain whisky gets blended into the big brand names, typically at young ages. For Hedonism, Compass Box search for very old casks of Scotch grain whisky, typically over 20 years in age. Hedonism is only bottled once or twice a year, when casks are found with the right flavour profile. The grain whiskies sourced for Hedonism are Cameron Bridge, Carsebridge and Cambus, between the ages of 14 and 29 years old. These are aged in 100% first-fill American oak barrels or rejuvenated American oak Hogsheads. When good Scotch grain whisky is aged in good quality American oak casks the results are stunning. Hedonism has soft spice on the nose, some vanilla, oak, and a little grainy sweetness. Initially tastes of a soft creamy flavour, some vanilla and oak followed by spice, mixed peel and a touch of lemon. Quite long and well-structured. Try as an aperitif, serve with a small amount of chilled water. Late in the evening, serve neat. Also makes a great whisky sour.

 
     

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