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Cardhu 12 Year Old Single Malt

Blessed Fruit right from the start

0 785

@RantavahtiReview by @Rantavahti

1st Mar 2013

0

  • Nose
    23
  • Taste
    22
  • Finish
    19
  • Balance
    21
  • Overall
    85

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Distribution of ratings for this: brand user

The Cardhu 12 year old is another good reminder for me that there's good things outside Islay. It is also a good example delicate sherry taste, that doesn't strike me down right at the faceoff. Cardhu 12 is absolutely nice and smooth but with a surprisingly stunning alcohol feel in it.

Like Blessed Fruit the movie, Cardhu gives you a good mix of sweet and sour. Emphasis on the sweet side, kinda like the main character Molly in Blessed Fruits fantasy skits, where she's imagining what life could be.

Blessed Fruit was a mix of different kinds of storytelling and that's just what Cardhu 12 year old is. Only Cardhu does it better.

Nose: Subtly sweet and very rich. Apples and pears come across with a touch of malted barley.

Taste: The apples and pears with barley come striking in the taste as well with mild sherry and soft peat. This one's just faintly smoky.

Finish: In midway the sweetness turns into dry sherry with very small hints of smoke.

Balance: Well balanced, smooth and round. Sweetness and dryness combined together nicely.

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7 comments

@Victor
Victor commented

Very nice review, @Rantavahti. Cardhu 12 has both lovers and haters. Based on my bottle of it and as reflected in my review of it, I am lover. I can see, though, that Cardhu 12 has such a fine and delicate balance that it is easy to imagine that if there were an off batch that it could be quite a mess.

11 years ago 0

@CanadianNinja
CanadianNinja commented

I've almost bought this so many times. Every time I go into the liquor shop by the train station in my area I eyeball this bottle thinking 'Should I pick this up?'... After reading this review... I think I will!

11 years ago 0

@hunggar
hunggar commented

Like @CanadianNinja, I frequently see this at my local booze shop. Unlike some brands, where there's universal praise or at least a certain consensus, Cardhu has often left me stumped. Not a lot of talk out there about this distillery. The discussions that are there tend to polarize people. I guess this one goes into the 'pro=Cardhu' category. Not sure I'm ready to grab it just yet, as I have higher priorities on my wishlist, but my interest is certainly peaked! Thanks for the review!

11 years ago 0

Rigmorole commented

I've heard the complexity and finish on this one are lacking. However, Victor says it has "significant complexity" in his review. This leaves me with mixed signals. The price is right for this whisky, low enough to be a "daily dram" while a bottle lasts. I'm still on the fence, however. My impression from friends has been that this one will appeal to "women that have not tasted many whiskies before and prefer a sweet drink." Yikes. Not exactly a selling point for me.

11 years ago 0

Rigmorole commented

Plus the average rating down in the 70's is daunting

11 years ago 0

Rigmorole commented

This review, of course, is yet another positive one that certainly goes far towards counteracting the negative ones. Thanks for the review, rantavahti.

11 years ago 0

@Rantavahti
Rantavahti commented

Thanks everyone, nice to see that this got your attention! I also was surprised on the low average rating because all my Finnish friends seem to like this one too...then again, Glenfiddich 15 got only 64 from me (with the average of 83)...just matters of taste.

@rigmorole I'd also say this is complex but the finish isn't the strongest part. Well, it isn't bad either.

@Victor Thanks, great to hear that, especially coming from you. My short reviews ain't nothing compared to your accurate and capturing descriptions.

11 years ago 0

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