Compass Box Canvas

Review by: The Muskox

I really love Compass Box. Not just because of their beautiful labels, their unique blending philosophy, or their inventive and subversive bottlings. Fundamentally, I just love the style of whisky they make. Clean, fragrant, balanced, understated, strongly influenced by their use of whisky from distilleries like Clynelish, Dailuaine, and Tomatin.

This bottling fits neatly into that style. It’s mostly unpeated American-oak-matured whisky (including some from a few of my favourite distilleries), but with a small fraction of malt aged in vino naranja casks, a Spanish fortified wine infused with orange peels.

This is a blend of:

  • 43.4% 13-year-old Tomatin, matured in refill bourbon barrels
  • 24.2% 14-year-old Glenburgie, matured in first-fill bourbon barrels
  • 15.4% 18-year-old Glen Elgin, matured in recharred American oak hogsheads
  • 10.9% 13-year-old Tomatin, finished for 3 years in vino naranja barrels
  • 6.1% 24-year-old Imperial, matured in first-fill bourbon barrels.

Distillery: Blend

Bottler: Compass Box.

Region: Blend.

ABV: 46%. Cask strength.

Age: 13-24 years.

Cask type: Various.

Price: N/A, sample.

Color: Gold. Natural Color. Non-chill-filtered.

Nose: Fragrant and sweet. A bit of a tart and lactic sake-ish note was the first thing I noticed, which I thought was interesting. Orchid petals, cardamom, cloves, and the slightest hint of cayenne. Papaya, Asian pears, green apples, orange peel, some black plums. Lightly malty. A bit of a grassy note, some olive oil… tomato vine? There’s a winey note too, but in the back. A bit of a mineral limestone-y character.

Palate: Medium texture. Arrives gently and sweet with mixed citrus zests, vanilla, powdered sugar, grass, and honey. More of that yogurt-y sake flavour, but getting creamier. Fragrant greenish tropical fruit on the development – underripe pineapple, mango, and more papaya. Creamy and soft, orange sherbet. Soft weathered oak, sandalwood, parchment paper, and candlewax. The citrus zest comes back in on the back end, along with more flowers. Another small hit of cayenne.

Finish: Long, light but constantly evolving. More of that sake. The sweet fruit gets tarter and greener – green table grapes, Granny Smiths, grapefruit zest, gooseberry, cantaloupe, and yet more papaya. Honey-drizzled goat cheese and white chocolate. Birch bark, ferns, cardamom, and a hint of black pepper.

Possible SMWS bottling name: “After-dinner onsen soak with dessert platter”

Conclusion: WOW, this shattered my expectations. Awesome complexity, great balance of softness and depth, fantastic structure on the palate and finish (a consistent feature of Compass Box), and gorgeous fruit. The vino naranja casks are way in the back, I guess. The yogurt/sake note is odd at first, but ultimately unique and endearing. It’s so elegant – I feel like I should be at a candlelit dinner with this whisky, or in a warm bath outdoors on a cool night. It’s relaxing somehow – wait, maybe that’s the alcohol.

Final Score: 91.

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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