The Famous Grouse Smoky Black

 ขาย The Famous Grouse Smoky Black ตัวนี้เป็นตัวที่เปลี่ยนชื่อจาก The Black Grouse มานะค้ะ รสชาติต่างๆคล้ายๆกันจ้า

ลองมาฟังรีวิว The Famous Grouse Smoky Black  จากเมืองกันดีกว่าครับ 

Now, you probably have been wondering throughout the above discussion of Teacher's why a bottle of Black Grouse has appeared at its side?  Black Grouse and Teacher's share something in common that is germane to this discussion. 

The commonality goes beyond both being blended Scotch whiskies.  That observation is even too trite for me to make.  What they share is a significant change in flavor profile in the recent past.  While Teacher's has become lighter, thinner, and less smoked,  so too has The Black Grouse  downed a couple of Dexatrim to shake its hefty phenolic girth.  Black Grouse was once a total smoke and peat bomb, that was about as balanced as Rodney Dangerfield in snow boots.  It is now a sherried blend with a dash of peat and smoke.  Or in other words, the standard bottling seasoned with a little smoke, peat and bonfire.  What happened to The Black Grouse?

This time I do not have a theory that involves a corporate merger and the decision to source a malt elsewhere.  The Black Grouse was launched in 2007 and I got a bottle at that time.  I recall it clearly as a very intense homage to Islay.  Very peated, smoked and likely a young Ardbeg or Laphroaig was making up the core malt that was complimented by sweet grain whiskies.  My point is that this was an Islay influenced blend.  No doubt.  It gave the likes of Black Bottle and White Horse a serious run for their money.

What happened? 

Here is my guess:  Maybe The Black Grouse was not flying off of shelves due to the Islay emphasis, so the Edrington people decided that sales could be strengthened by becoming sherried and accented with a little peat and smoke.  I think they were correct in that estimation (in terms of figuring out what people want).  The average person who explores blended Scotch whiskies is going to latch on to anything that is sweet, maybe consisting of red fruits with a wee little smoke and peat.  The average person buying in the blended whisky category probably will be repelled by an overly peated whisky harkening Islay.  So, a decision was made to change the blend from the bonfire it once was to essentially a sherried blend with a few glowing embers tossed in.

Another guess for the flavor change is that the core Islay single malt (possibly a young Ardbeg or Laphroaig) that was an integral part of the Black Grouse is no longer available at the price point it once was.  So, the owners of Black Grouse looked to source another Islay, and maybe too expensive to be feasible for the Grouse.  Islay whiskies are very popular for blending and in the single malt format as of late.

My great love for Teacher's is gone, but how about my affair of the heart with the Black Grouse

Nose (undiluted)
Roses, plums, wet wood, malt notes.

Palate (undiluted)
The unmistakable taste of the standard bottling of Famous Grouse is present, but it has been accented with peat and smoke.  The sherry notes are nice, bringing to mind red licorice, strawberries and raspberries.  Black plums and malt notes appear mid to late palate.

Finish (undiluted)
Slightly drying, velvety red fruits, orange chocolate with some more smoke.

General Impressions
Black Grouse was originally launched in 2007 in the Scandinavian market, a market segment with an affinity for smoked and peated whiskies.  At that time, I tried a bottle (got it via duty free retail) and as I said above, it was a tad bit unbalanced.  A bonfire in a glass.  I did not detect much, if any, sherry or red fruit notes.  I was not a huge fan of it.

Fast forward to the present and I think The Black Grouse has changed for the better.  The plum, currants and strawberries give a fruity compliment and much needed balance to the Islay influence.  I and my whisky club really liked it for what it is: a reasonably priced blended Scotch that delivers sherry, red fruit flavors intertwined with a little embrace from Islay.  It works.  No great complexity but that is ok.  I wasn't expecting any.

So, with respect to The Black Grouse, my heart is growing fonder, and with regard to Teacher's, I'd tell the corporate owners they need to heed another Supremes tune:
 

The Black Grouse 

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