Malt Fascination

The last of my Balvenie Tun 1401 samples to be reviewed at this time. I know I can get Batch 1 and 2 as well, but I haven’t seen the people that were willing to trade or sell in a long time.

Batch 6 was another one for the American market, which is nice since it gives you an extra 50 ml to savour! It consists of seven ‘traditional whisky casks’ and two sherry butts. The traditional whisky casks are of course bourbon barrels or hogsheads. I can’t seem to find the ages of all barrels for some reason.

Balvenie Tun 1401 Batch 6

Sniff:
Quite a lot of tropical fruit with grilled pineapple. Also quite some spices but not in surprising amounts, compared to the earlier ones. Due to the increase in fruit it smells a tad sweeter than the others. The wood is in the background and is rather fresh.

Sip:
The palate is a lot spicier than the nose. Not in the way of added heat, but more spice flavours. Quite dry as well with a rather big emphasis on oak. Less typical Balvenie, less focus on honey. It’s there, but not as much.

Swallow:
The finish corrects that lack of honey right away. Spices honey to be sure with a little bit of bitterness. The sweet tropical fruitiness (peaches at least) lingers for quite a while.

While this is still a rather tasty whisky, it is my least favourite of the bunch. It started to show some more oomph, but in a very strange way. Mostly, it was as open as I would like it to be. There’s a lot of nice flavours but I found it very hard to describe which fruits, which spices. Still, worth the original price I guess, but it’s probably increased by now and that would make this one more for the collectors.

Balvenie Tun 1401, Batch 6, 49.8%, American market, released in October 2012. Used to cost $ 350.

The penultimate Balvenie review in this series. This one is released in Europe and the Middle East. For some reason they spread them thin across Europe…

This batch consists of nice casks, of which four were sherry butts (1970, 1971, 1972, 1975) and five bourbon casks (1966, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1991). A lot of old stuff is in there with a bit of 1991 to spice things up a bit, I guess.

The idea is that these releases are all unique and the casks are blended together in vat 1401. There also is a separate release for Taiwan that came from vat 1858.

Balvenie Tun 1401, Batch 5. Image from Whiskybase

Sniff:
Again a slight more spicy one than batch 3, just as batch 4 was. A bit less fresh but richer with tropical fruit. It has a certain dusty quality to it with pound cake and sherry scents. Honey as well, after all, we’re talking Balvenie here.

Sip:
Full, rich and sweet. No real spiciness here but with honey and peaches. Also plums, cinnamon and oak. Lots of flavours, but all very well married together. The honey and fruit are most prominent but that edge of spice is very nice.

Swallow:
The finish has a bit more spice and has a very rich feel to it. It lasts pretty long with some allspice.

Again, a really lovely whisky. I’d say it’s rather feminin as most Balvenies are in my book. The 30 maybe is the exception but this one certainly is not. That might also be my biggest concern for the Tun 1401 series. It might all be a bit too gentle and easy going. There is a lot to be discovered but you really have to work it. Delicious, but in a timid way.

Balvenie Tun 1401, Batch 5, 50.1%, Europe and Middle East. By now it’ll probably set you back some € 300.

The 4th batch was released in 2012 for the Travel Retail market at select locations across the globe. Although you’d say it would be more available then, the current price is about € 800 for a bottle, compared to the € 500 of Batch 3.

This batch once again consists of 7 American oak bourbon barrels and 3 sherry butts. The age varies between 1966 and 1988, so a slightly older blend if you only count the extremes. That sentence was a waste of everyone’s time…

Sniff:
Fresh and spicy with a hint of provencal herbs like thyme and rosemary. Some toasted oak as well and very complex. The scent gets warmer and warmer but not as rich as the previous batch. Honey, mint and maybe some anise. I also get old library and a burning hearth.

Sip:
The palate is rather light and right in the middle between thick and thin. Fairly spicy with crushed black peppercorns and chili peppers. Honey sweetness and a touch of wood, fruit and rather hard to pin down. The fruitiness is tough to pin down and is mostly a rather tropical sweetness in the background.

Swallow:
The finish is suddenly very rich, spicy honey, wood and allspice. Long and rich and complex with a touch of resin.

Hmm. What to say? The finish is a surprise, but with all the jumps this one is less consistent than the previous one so I guess so far I prefer the third batch. This has some really nice touches and I think the individual bits of nose, palate and finish are preferable but it just feels like it doesn’t know where it wants to go.

Balvenie Tun 1401, Batch 4, Travel retail only, 50.4%. No longer available, but if you find it in an auction, be prepared to sell a family member.

Ah, the Balvenie Tun 1401 series. Whiskies that have been hyped incredibly since 2012 with each of them selling out really fast. Most reviews have been in the ‘this is a steal at € 200’ category.

For some reason it took me quite a while before I got my hands on a few samples. Not that the samples weren’t available, but I just never thought about getting them. Until last February that is. I happily bought them from Mr. Malstock, Teun van Wel at the Hielander Whisky Festival in Alkmaar.

This batch 3 was made for the American market and consists of a blend of 7 bourbon casks and 3 sherry butts, the oldest being from 1967, the youngest from 1989. Technically that makes this a 22 year old whisky but I don’t think many people care about the age of this type of whisky.

Balvenie Tun 1401 Batch 3

Sniff:
The first whiff makes me feel rich. The whisky is rich too and full bodied. There’s fresh baked bread, just crushed barley corns, cookie dough, ginger and toasted oak. Then I also get a bit of the sherry scents. Wood and wine. Is that rancio of am I misusing that term now? The background of this whisky is fresh with mint.

Sip:
Not sharp at all but there is quite some spice. Wood, pepper, sherry and that wine/wood thingy again. Vanilla and old coconut with peach and corky apples.

Swallow:
The finish is gentle but very, very tasty. Maybe a tad thin but still rather long. Dusty and moldy like an old attic with the sunlight pouring in. Some mushrooms maybe?

I always have trouble properly appreciating Balvenie whiskies. The regulars normally don’t sit well with me so I never spent a dime on double wood, 12 and 15 year old and such. During Maltstock my perception changed significantly during the masterclass by Sam Simmons. This one would have fit that masterclass. It is a truly beautiful whisky, but it is one you have to sit down with and get to know a bit. If I would have tasted it during a festival or so, it’s beauty would have been lost on me.

Balvenie Tun 1401, Batch 3, USA only, 50.3%. No longer available, but if you find it in an auction, be prepared to sell a family member.