Ahhhhh, Johnnie Walker Black Label, one of the most well known (and well marketed) scotch brands in the world.
I have to admit, I have a history with Johnnie Walker.
As I described in my real Aberlour A'bunadh Review, my scotch journey began with the sherried malts.
But that's not quite the whole story.
Back in college, I drank all the same bottom shelf swill all college kids drink. And lots of it. I won't even mention the names. They are unworthy.
But over time, Red Label became my special reward. I would buy a bottle of it to enjoy on what a college student might call a special occasion: finishing mid-terms, getting a cute girl's number. You know the drill. (And, yes, you can infer exactly what this suggests about my college budget.)
It's funny how things have changed.
I picked up a bottle of Black Label a few weeks ago as part of my never ending quest to find affordable but high quality scotch to use as an "Every Day Scotch" (EDS). At ~$32 for 750 mLs of scotch, if it rates well with my palate, it'd have to be a serious EDS contender.
Tasting Notes
Eye: Pleasant golden caramel color. Largely unremarkable. The eye rarely affects me.
Nose: Light and sweet. Grainy flavors come through the strongest. The peat is present but surprisingly soft. Honey. I have to dig, but I can find vanilla mingled with a floral bouquet.
Palate: Creamy mouth feel. Pure malt and caramel shine across the palate. As with the nose, vanilla is intertwined with the floral notes, but it is much easier to find now. Impossible to detect any peat (I am again surprised).
Finish: Medium length. The peat finally makes itself known. Tremendously smooth.
Review
Overall, I was pleasantly surprised by this scotch. Yes, surprised.
Despite the nostalgia I wrote of above, my thoughts regarding Johnnie Walker have been incontrovertibly colored by the fact of its ownership. I try to avoid letting my pre-existing thoughts affect my judgment, but it can be hard.
The brand has come under the rule of Diageo, a sprawling, massive company. When you hear stories of Walmart coming in and out-competing the local mom and pop store down the street, well, that's sort of how I envision Johnnie Walker working with other distilleries.
I also have philosophical questions about the quality control that can exist when a brand produces such massive quantities of whisky. Can I really feel like a scotch expert specially designed what is going in my glass with the utmost care I know is found at other distilleries?
That said, this scotch has its good points. There was some complexity within this dram. While pure grain struck me first and lasted longest, the floral notes and vanilla that hid underneath were pleasant. The scotch also has a wonderful mouth feel that is at the same time creamy while remaining overall light. This is followed by a pleasant finish.
The downsides are that there seems to be little that would actually draw me to this scotch. I can't imagine ever sitting down and thinking, "Wow, a spot of Black Label would be just perfect right now." The flavors I have described are present but not particularly moving. They are disappointingly mild. Black Label has a nice mouth feel, but it loses points for its 40% ABV.
Overall, it's a solid scotch.
But that's it.
However, at $32 for a bottle, that's enough. This is a decent Every Day Scotch, but I hope for more. I remain in search of the world's perfect Every Day Scotch. If that search comes full circle and ends here, however, I won't hang my head in disappointment.
Scotch Dreams Score: 83
*Scotch Dreams Value Adjustment: +2
*The Scotch Dreams Value Adjustment attempts to account for the price/quality balance in some of the world's cheaper or overpriced drams. Cheap scotch that is good enough to earn a decent rating will typically see a positive adjustment, while overpriced scotch that is mediocre will see a negative adjustment. Adjustments are on a scale of -5 to +5 and may be added directly to the Scotch Dreams Score - which addresses ONLY the dram's quality - to achieve a price weighted scoring. Check the Scotch Dreams Scoring System page if you're interested in learning more.
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