Johnnnie Walker ‘The John Walker’

The John Walker is a blend in the category ‘super deluxe’. For the meagre sum (sarcasm, anyone?) of 2.600 EUR you will get a unique blend in a Baccarat crystal decanter with a 24 carat guilded neck in a beautifully lacquered box. The contents in a tribute to the founder of the company, which explains why it is sometimes referred to as the Founder’s Blend. It is composed with only malts and grains that existed when Mr Walker – Johnnie to his friends – roamed the earth. Just 9 distilleries, in fact, and they were married in a bespoke cask of 100 years old. Said cask has now given all it can and will be retired, so this series will come to an end. High time to try it, I say.

Oh, boy, what a nose! Deep and rich on juicy fruit – pears whose juice drip down your chin and mildly bitter but very sweet oranges. Leather. Vanilla. And a soft trace of smoke. Nice, nice, nice.

The body is light, but the taste is outstanding. Vanilla and some spicy oak come first, to be followed by mandarin and pomelo, pink grapefruit and toffee apples and lots of roasted nuts. Again that trace of smoke that offers depth, without imposing. Almost like muzak. Very elegant indeed.

But the finish… now the smoky note really shines. While the fruitiness (almost exclusive citrus) slowly fades and the nuts blow their last breath, the smoke keeps entertaining your mouth with a heartwarming glow.

Everything about this whisky screams luxuriousness. Luckily, same is true for the liquid itself. It does not happen often that I score a blend 90 point, but there you have it. This is in a league of its own.