Spey River 12 Year

Review by: TOModera

Quick thank you out there to Porkpants81 for the sweet Secret Santa Swap on this one.

Also, man, I gotta catch up on my reviews.

So… let’s address the elephant in the room. Or at least the perceived elephant. I thought, while reviewing this, that Spey River 12 was a blend, and, well, I don’t really give them the greatest scores.

And it isn’t because I hate blends. Yamazaki 18 is amazing. So is Johnnie Walker Gold Reserve. It’s just… well, if I’m going to have a dram, which is less often for health reasons than it used to be, and I’m going to pay the cash out… well… It better be a dram that is just as tasty. To me. Which is the point of reviews, to give a personal account.

And sometimes Blends don’t get as high of scores, because I’m a douche bag. Anyway, onto this new Scotch I though was a blend that honestly, I’d never know about if not for getting is as part of a sweet swap.

Spey River 12 is a Speyside malt. At least 12 years old. And… that’s all I really could find about this one.

Well, let’s dive in, shall we?

Distillery: Unknown Distillery.

Bottler: Quality Spirits International Ltd.

Region: Speyside.

ABV: 40%.

Age: 12 years.

Cask type: Bourbon Cask.

Price: N/A in Ontario.

Color: Dark Mandarin

Nose: Peach, smoke, nail polish remover, apple, light wood, wheat, lime

Really fruity, only a little bit of harshness, which I’d expect for 40%, however… it fits. Granted, it’s mostly just fruit in the nose, however it’s really nice to sit back with this and find the little elements on the outside of the fruit.

Like finding quarters in an orchard. Little prizes.

Taste: Liquorice, lemon, faint mineral water, faint grapefruit, white chocolate

Starts out with strong flavours, and then… all goes faint. Watered down Sambuca after letting it breathe through giving it time. Really simple.

I want the fruit from the nose, and yet… Not getting too much flavour from this one.

Finish: Lemon, earth, pepper, tabasco, wheat

Simple finish, almost screams “Hey, I’m whisky” and little else. Somewhat off putting as the hot sauce flavour is front and center, which I’m not liking.

Conclusion: I think there is some things this does well. That nose is one of them. It’s good and interesting. Now if the taste wasn’t forgettable or the finish wasn’t painful, I may have found a blend that gets a good bang for a buck.

However it needs a lot of work, and I probably won’t have it again, as I’m not too impressed.

Final Score: 64.

Scoring Legend:

  • 95-100: As good as it gets. Jaw-dropping, eye-widening, unforgettable whisky.
  • 90-94: Sublime, a personal favorite in its category.
  • 85-89: Excellent, a standout dram.
  • 80-84: Quite good. Quality stuff.
  • 75-79: Decent whisky worth tasting.
  • 70-74: Meh. It’s definitely drinkable, but it can do better.
  • 60-69: Not so good. I might not turn down a glass if I needed a drink.
  • 50-59: Save it for mixing.
  • 0-49: Blech.

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