Review by: dustbunna

It’s been quite a while since I reviewed a Compass Box: I’ve been waiting for one where a reasonable price point aligns with blending ingredients that really interest me, often I see a new release that satisfies one or the other, but not both. That changed last year when Orchard House became part of their core range, a blended malt coming out between $40-$60 regionally and with a core of young Linkwood, Clynelish and Benrinnes (perking up the ears of a number of IB enthusiasts.) The full makeup of the blend, as CB describes it, is included below (matured in first-fill bourbon barrels unless otherwise noted):

• 39% 8yr Linkwood
• 29% 8yr Clynelish
• 20% 8yr Benrinnes
• 8% 6yr “Distillery near the town of Aberlour” (revatted Oloroso sherry-seasoned butt)
• 2% 8yr Caol Ila
• 2% 10yr CB Highland Malt Blend (Glen Moray, Balmenach and Tomatin in French Oak heavily-toasted barrels)

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Distillery: Various.

Bottler: Compass Box.

Region: Scotland (blended malt).

ABV: 46%.

Age: NAS but youngest component 6 years. Bottled in 2021.

Cask type: 90% first-fill ex-bourbon barrels, 8% Oloroso sherry-seasoned butts, 2% French Oak toasted barrels.

Price: $40 USD.

Natural Color. Non-chill-filtered.

Bottle open across approx. 4 months, notes taken leisurely across that period. Bold notes taken beneath the shoulder, regular-formatted notes taken further into the bottle past the halfway point, italicized notes taken towards the heel.

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Nose: red apples, pears, grapes, pencil shavings, water reveals orange peel, ripe pear comes forward a bit.

Palate: medium body ~ more apples (now red and green), more pencil shavings, a youthful zing from the alcohol, honey, pineapple, pencil shavings retreat a bit.

Finish: medium-short ~ turns more austere here with minerals and a tiny wisp of smoke, more pineapple, salt.

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Conclusion: This improved with time– I found it considerably better once it had seen some air exchange. The nose certainly promises more than the palate delivers, but then again that tiny bit of Caol Ila delivers some very nice surprises on the finish. I suspect that *lots* more time could round off the pencil shavings and the ethanol bite completely, but I found this whisky perfectly serviceable as is (and super easy to share), and at $40 there’s really nothing I can complain about reasonably. I probably won’t buy another, but I’m glad to have gotten it to share around.

Final Score: 77.

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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.