Some bottles are built to impress. This one is built to be there. Finest is the workhorse of the Ballantine stable, the blend standing at the back of every bar from Glasgow to Barcelona, and it has never tried to be anything other than exactly what it is.
The expert's description
Ballantine's Finest is a Blended Scotch Whisky matured in oak casks and bottled at 40 %.
Finest is the house bestseller and has been for generations. The blend draws on more than 40 different single malts, with Miltonduff and Glenburgie as the load-bearing Speyside voices, and the grain whisky ties it together into something light, floral and very approachable. The Master Blender role has been handed down since 1827, and the recipe has stayed remarkably steady.
This is not a whisky that demands concentration. It is built to be drunk over ice, in a highball or in a simple cocktail, and it takes that treatment without falling apart. If you are teaching someone to drink Scotch, this is a sensible place to start.
Tasting notes
Nose
Pale and light. Apple blossom, vanilla and a dry cereal note, with a hint of hay and pale oak behind it.
Palate
Light in the good sense, with honey, green apple and a little vanilla sweetness. The malt is there but it does not push forward.
Finish
Short, clean and slightly dry. No bitterness, no edges.
Specifications
Name: Ballantine's Finest
Distillery: Ballantine's
Region/Country: Scotland
Type: Blended Scotch Whisky
ABV: 40 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Oak casks
EAN no.: 5010106113127
Flavour profile
Light · Floral · Honeyed · Soft · Fresh
Did you know?
Ballantine's once kept its own guards at the Dumbarton warehouses. Two Scottish eagles, Glen and Nevis, were used for years to keep gulls and pigeons off the buildings, and they appeared on the company's own letterhead.
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