Royal Salute 21 Year Old

The Royal Salute is a blended Scotch that is produced by the Chivas Brothers at the Strathisla distillery. The 21 year old comes in a blue porcelain flagon that would look excellent in the most esteemed of whisky cabinets. I stole a dram of this from my father as I was desperate to try it.

Nose: It's a light nose, not very pungent. It is very fruity with hints of apple and pear. It's similar to the Chivas Regal 12 year old except much more refined in scent and a lot fruitier. There's a small cloud of smoke lingering in the back if you take a deep sniff.

Palate: Sherry fruits! Like in the nose there are apples and pears galore. It's very creamy and is almost reminiscent of the gooey filling of a nice apple strudel, mixing the sweetness of apples and sugar and some cinnamon together. I taste nuts, like pecans, which prevent the whisky from getting too sweet.

Finish: The finnish is relatively long but very subdued in my opinion. It dries the tongue out a little and imparts a smoky residue in the mouth.

Overall I think it's a great dram. It was a little bit of a let down though because I was expecting to be extraordinarily mystified by it. I think that it is rather overpriced, but then again it is 21 years old. All in all it gives speed to the recent revival of the aged blended whiskies and I think does a great job of it. I rated the whisky without consideration of the price.