The Johnnie Walker Greens

THE JOHNNIE WALKER GREENS

Johnnie Walker Green Label is a blended malt whisky which was pulled out of the market in 2012 due to non-availability of certain core single malt whiskies. It has reappeared on the shelves in mid-2016, but with a different nose and palate, a change for the better for some, but not for all. In creating the Green Label, Jim Beveridge, the Johnnie Walker Master Blender, set out to craft a whisky with a taste experience which can’t be found in any one single malt whisky. His vast knowledge of Scotland’s malts helped him decide on a balance of Speyside, Highland and Lowland malts and more intense whiskies from the Scottish islands, each of them carefully matured for a minimum of 15-years in American and European oak casks.

The unique flavour of Johnnie Walker Green Label is a delicate blend of four key signature styles, represented by Talisker, Linkwood, Cragganmore and Caol Ila. The individual characteristics of these mature malt whiskies are perfectly balanced to bring together intense aromas of crisp cut grass, fresh fruit, wood smoke, peat, pepper, deep vanilla, and sandalwood. It creates a depth of character that just isn’t possible to achieve with one malt whisky alone. Minor gaps, if any, are plugged by Clynelish and Dailuane.

This bottle of Johnnie Walker comes with an age statement of 15 years. On top of that they’ve also upped the ABV a little to 43%. All this combined made it a fan favourite, and when they discontinued the Label a few years back, people were outraged. Exaggerations aside, they got enough complaints that they decided it was best to continue the label after all. And we can still enjoy this beautiful blended malt today because of it.

TASTING NOTES

Appearance: Golden straw. Thin rims and quick legs.
Nose: Very slight smoke, not clearly peaty at first. Pineapple acidity - pineapple caramelised on the grill, more toasty than overtly sweet.
Palate: The slight smoke is still there, but quite mild. Malted character comes through well and pumps up the smoke that’s clinging to my top palate and teeth. Mouthfeel is light, but super coating - the smoke clings more than the sweetness.
Finish: Finish allows peat to build but remains pleasant. An almond nuttiness joins the party as the smoke builds.
Overall: I like this, but it feels like the peat is continuing to build past where it should be.

Johnnie Walker Island Green, available from July 2016 as a 1L 43% ABV NAS travel retail exclusive, is a brand that owner Diageo is hailing as a ‘true game changer for the Scotch whisky category’. With a greater proportion of malt from Caol Ila distillery on Islay, Johnnie Walker Island Green Label is said to have a ‘rich, fruity sweetness’ that’s complemented by pronounced flavours of peat smoke. It is a much smokier version of the 15 YO JW Green Label, which itself has reemerged from the boondocks in a very pleasant avatar. Beveridge says: ‘As whisky makers, we’re passionate about flavour, and creating this exclusive travel retail variant of our blended malt whisky has given us an opportunity to showcase a rare blend of rich malts.’ The NAS maritime blended malt includes whisky from Clynelish, Glenkinchie and Cardhu and a greater proportion of malt from Caol Ila distillery on Islay. Minor gaps, if any, are plugged by Talisker, a Singleton 12 YO and Dailuane.

The “Island” here refers to the Scottish isle of Islay. Again, this “Green” includes only single malts, making it a blended malt scotch whisky. Those malts are, of course, all owned by Diageo: Caol Ila, Clynelish, Glenkinchie and Cardhu. Caol Ila makes up the lion’s share, thus weighting Island Green more towards Islay peat. This lineup makes the vatting significantly different from the standard Green Label, since the only overlap in the recipe is Caol Ila.

TASTING NOTES

Appearance: Deep Amber, decent legs.
Nose: Mild peat – dark wet soil – with only a touch of smolder. Hot coals. Mildly sweet malt, with sooty cereals and only a very little bit of a floral note (rosewater, maybe). Delicate, but unmistakably peat-forward.
Palate: Medium body. First impression is of vanilla cream soda and then a wave of peat crashes, turning smoky and earthy. Extremely mild tongue burn.
Finish: Medium-long. A twinge of honey sets in adding much-needed sweetness, and the charcoal notes turn slightly bitter. Fades slowly, without evolving.
Overall: More peat than the Green, taken to the right level. A good buy.

×