Balvenie 15 Year Old - Sherry Cask

@WhiskyMojo I was told the same thing at the Nashville TN whisky festival last month. Also, like the new 12 yo, no more casked/bottled on dates on the new 15. Also, he did say that the sherry cask 15 will replace the current 15. I was waiting on confirmation from another source - looks like I got it :-) thanks!

I have mixed feelings about what I am reading here. On the one hand, I like sherry cask matured spirit. But we already have Bladnoch and A'Bunadh, to mention just 2. Do we need another? And will the subtle flavours that come through the bourbon cask make it through the sherry?

I guess I'll know in about 12 years. I figure that's when I will have made enough room in my cabinet to buy 1. I will seat it next to my traditional 15 yo single cask 1976 (whatever that meant).

@Onibubba - Excellent. Glad to see I'm not crazy!

@Nozinan - I'm partial to Bunnahabhain 12 and Glendronach in general. If Balvenie can achieve what Glendronach has with their 15, I would be happy. But if they price themselves too far out...

The 15y single cask is on my wishlist. Looks like I'm going to have to make a decision on actually buying it or not. (It's not the only bottle on that list you see) I do have a 6cl sample in my cabinet. Just hadn't had the urge to crack it open yet.

But maybe that changes now you tell me it will be discontinued. I've got to know if it's worth putting it on top of that wishlist.

@wtrstrnghlt

They're all different. The first cask I tasted, 1976, was really good, and I had bought it as a gift for my uncle. I then went back to the same store and they had several bottles but only one from that cask. It's now in my cabinet. I've had another taste from another cask and it wasn't the same experience.

It's pretty pricey to buy on spec, but in general the quality tends to be good.

@Nozinan Your right, it gets great reviews, but has a big 'batch variation' sign around it's neck. Let's wait and see what my sample brings. Then I'll decide to take a chance or not.

And, it has been released into the wild. Hoping to have a bottle in hand to try this weekend. Good luck fellow hunters! Let's hope this is as much of a knockout as their new 12 YO Single Barrel!!!

Not ready to review this yet, but here are my first impressions. Wow. That's dark. And let's just take a closer look at that label...non-chill filtered. Hmmm. Nothing about coloring. I will assume that means coloring has been added. So there's that. But you know what? This smells just great. Cinnamon and brown sugar. Buttered French toast and scrambled eggs...What? I'm on a roll here. The smells promise a luxurious sweetness, and the taste almost delivers. It is a kind of muted all spice, and the sweetness only delivers on the finish. But you know what? I am fine with that. I just called up the store and had the remaining 2 bottles put on hold for me, as they were all from the same cask. A shame about the coloring, but it is still quite good.

Balvenie 15 SB is a great oak aged malt in a single cask sherry world.... why turn it into another sherry only when they have such a nice niche?

@Onibubba - Nice to see your initial impressions are positive. I haven't procured a bottle yet, but this might kick me into high gear. @Jules - I have wondered about this as well, as the now "old" 15 was great. On the other hand, Balvenie seems to offer consistent quality (more so than many others), which makes this release intriguing to me.

I just bought a bottle as a new Balvenie is always a treat. The bottling was from cask number 4441 and it was purchased in the Tampa area. My first impressions are mixed. My first wee dram from it tasted flat and not as rich as I had expected. I think it may get better with time. The original 15 yr single barrel appears to have been much better. It was one of my very favorite single malts. I could have bought a bad bottling too.

Is it me, or is $100 a bit steep for this new whisky?

I think the price at $100 plus is too high. I used to get the original 15 yr single barrel in the $55-$60 range and it was a much better product. I tried another wee dram last night and my opinion is still mixed about it. I think the 12 yr Signature was better than this new sherry cask too. The sherry cask has no nose and the taste us flat and a bit harsh.

@gibbsjim I've been belssed that a store nearby me had recently re-stocked their shelf with the 15 yr Single Barrel (was bare for several months), and they kept their price at $59.99.

I purchased 5 bottles; 3 from 1 batch, and 2 from another.

@gibbsjim I agree that 100 plus is too high. I got mine for 85, which is only about 5 dollars more than Glendronach 15, and about 5 dollars more than the regular Balvenie 15 SB sells for in TN / KY, so that did not seem so bad.

Sorry to hear that your barrel was not a good one. That was always an issue with their regular single barrel. Some were great. Some were OK. But in general, I was always happy with the flavor profile. I'm not as big on sherry, so I can see how a bad one would be a complete turn off.

I am willing to try another bottle of this sherry cask from a different cask. No Balvenie could taste like the one I just purchased. The 17 year old Sherry Oak was much better than the 15 yr Sherry Cask.