Edinburgh-based grain distillery North British is usually found in older expressions (we’ve even had a 48 year-old). Here’s a medium aged single cask version bottled by Master of Malt.
North British 20 yo 1991 (55,8%, Master of Malt 2011, first fill bourbon, 244 btl.)
North British 20 yo 1991 (55,8%, Master of Malt 2011, first fill bourbon, 244 btl.)Nose: rather warm at first with plenty of vanilla and fresh oak shavings. Soft white chocolate / very light mocha notes in the background. Sweet and thick. After some time it seems to loose some of its vanilla creaminess and it gets a little sharper, with traces of grass and Nivea cream that I found before in much older North British.
Mouth: very sweet and quite surprising. Big notes of Pisang Ambon (banana liqueur) and Malibu (coconut liqueur). Very thick and almost sticky. Sweet corn. Pineapple syrup. Butterscotch. A burst of pepper and ginger in the end.
Finish: not too long, still extremely sweet with some spirity notes and an oaky / spicy edge.
This is not a complex grain whisky but it’s interesting as it lacks some typical grain flavours but also shows a few less common elements. Around € 52.
Score: 82/100