What do you know about Drambuie? Most people already got the country wrong, thinking it’s French and pronounce it that way. How wrong. It’s Scottish and therefor pronounced as Drambuie. The whiskies used for Drambuie come from the Speyside, perhaps the most famous part of Scotland for producing whiskies, but certainly the most productive. This areas delivers somewhat sweeter whiskies and are perfect to combine with herbs and spices. Which is why Drambuie tastes so nice.
Quite recently, the line of this over a century old family-owned company has been extended with the Drambuie 15 Years Old. The name kind of reveals what’s inside the spirit, but if you haven’t guessed by now: it’s Speyside Whisky with a minimum aging of 15 years. The master blender has accumulated a fair amount of great whiskies and could choose from them to blend together with the famous elixir of Drambuie. With a secret formula I might add, but with a little browsing one can get to anise, saffron and cinnamon, although nowhere confirmed.
The bottle: I know good things come in small packages, but in this case it literally came in small packaging. The good people of Drambuie sent me a 5 cl sample bottle and although I can say it looks nice on the picture, I only can describe a bottle when I’ve held it in my hand.
…./100
The nose: In the nose there’s a loverly maltiness, that is accompanied by honey and spicy notes, together with hints of citrus, like orange and lemon. The spirit is bottled at 43 % ABV (or 86 proof) and that’s noticeable here, really emphasizing the influence of the aged whiskies.
91/100
The contents: A very warm taste and a silky mouth feel, despite the high ABV. The citrus notes come through really nice and it’s remarkable how this spirit goes from whisky to liqueur and back several times in one sip: sweet notes, malt, orange, wood, butterscotch, a little salty even at times.
93/100
The mixability: This one is enjoyed best neat (I used a Glencairn Glass) or over ice.
Overall: A very rich spirit that has all the maturity of a Speyside whisky and the characteristics of a great liqueur. It rivals other liqueurs like Bénedictine B&B and Grand Marnier 100 and will be very nice additition to your spirits collection. But then of the one that you want to drink regularly!
92/100