Breizh Blended

In solidarity with the people of France in this difficult time, I chose a French whisky to review.

Breizh is a product of the Warenghem distillery in Breton which also produces Armorik. It is composed of 50% malt and 50% grain whiskies, and carries no age statement. A NAS blend bottled at 42% is not something that would easily catch my eye. I tasted this from a recently opened bottle owned by @TAlexander over a year ago (I think) and he generously allowed me a sample for future review. The future is now (which means that for those of you who read this after I post it, the future will actually be in the past).

This expression is reviewed in my usual manner, allowing it to settle after which I take my nosing and tasting notes, followed by the addition of just a few drops of water, waiting, then nosing and tasting.

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Nose:

Neat – floral and sweet, like French “parfum”. A few minutes in the glass, covered, and the nose takes on a thicker, syrupy consistency . Hard to get specific, but I get some overripe cantaloupe. Not overly complex, but nice and fruity. A hint of spiritiness and spice in the background. Simple, but I like it. 22/25

With water – no appreciable change

Taste:

Neat – thin, fruity. Sweet arrival with a sour astringent development that becomes drier. No real specific flavours speak out to me. 18/25

With water – slightly richer mouthfeel, and some spiciness in the development, but still to specific flavours other than “smooth whisky”. (19/20)

Finish: Fairly short, sour, kind-of forgettable 18/25

Balance: This has a pleasant but simple nose that doesn’t really come through in the palate. The whole thing kind-of “comes and goes” without leaving much to remember it by. 20/25

Score: Neat - 78/100 With Water: 79/100

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I think I actually liked this lot more when I tasted it the first time. My original plan was to taste it again within a few days and decide on whether to buy a bottle, but as with many samples I never got around to it. Now it is no longer listed at the LCBO.

This one might be nice to sip as an accompaniment to some hors d’oeuvres, or splash into some Sangria to zip it up a little.

Thanks again @TAlexander