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Ballantine’s Scotch Whiskey is perhaps the best option for a debut in terms of drinking much loved and appreciated smoky scotch.
Description of whiskey Ballantines
If you don’t want to end up in an awkward situation, never say the phrase: “Ballantine’s single malt whiskey.” Such a drink simply does not exist. In our case, we can only talk about blends. The composition of whiskey Ballantines includes more than sixty malt and just grain alcohols of various exposures. These are “representatives” of four of the five distillery regions of Scotland: Highland, Lowland, Speyside and Islay. A special place in this series is occupied by truly single malts: Glenbergi (Glenburgie), Miltonduff (Miltonduff) and Glentachers (Glentauchers), respectively, bringing sweetness, richness and a long aftertaste to Ballantine’s blends.
The aging of Ballantines whiskey covers the range from 3 to 40 years. The fortress of brand representatives ranges from 35-43 degrees. For example, whiskey Ballantines Hard Fair, Ballantines 12 years old or the famous Ballantines Finest contain 40% alcohol. In turn, Ballantines 17 years old, Ballantines 21 years old and more aged drinks from this series can boast of a 43-degree fortress. But the strength of Ballantines Brazil, which deviates somewhat from the original traditions of whiskey smoking, is only 35 degrees.
Ballantines whiskey: producer
The brand was created by a descendant of Scottish farmers – George Ballantine, who founded the company Ballantine and Son Ltd in 1869. In 1919, the business was bought out by the Ballantynes’ junior partners, Barclay and McKinlay. Subsequently, the brand, which gained worldwide fame, changed hands several more times, until in 2005 it eventually became the property of the French alcohol giant – Pernod Ricard.
At the same time, it is interesting that starting from the mid-60s of the last century, the brand owners abandoned competition in the British market and shifted their attention to the countries of Southern Europe, and then to the Far East, Southeast Asia and even Latin America.
A legend is born: the history of the Ballantine’s brand
The history of the brand begins in 1869, when George Ballantyne from Edinburgh, an experienced grocer, decided to develop his business. He decided to create his own blends of whiskey, which were popular with his customers. In Glasgow, on the basis of his own store, he opened a mini-enterprise. Very soon, production capacity began to grow rapidly, as the drinks were to the taste of fastidious Scots, who know literally everything about the “perfect” scotch.
The thriving business eventually included the youngest son of George, and then his grandson. Own warehouses, vineyards and distilleries – the Ballantine’s brand is a market giant. It is now owned by the French company Pernod Ricard. Despite the change of owners, the brand continues to delight fans with exceptionally high-quality blended scotch, prepared according to traditional recipes.
Awards Winning Ballantine’s Drinks
The unsurpassed quality of Ballantine’s whiskey is not only positive feedback from consumers, but also numerous awards at international competitions. In total, the brand has over 100 prestigious awards throughout its history. The company is very proud of its achievements and is not going to lower the bar quite high.
For example, in 2014, at the International Wine & Spirit Competition, one of the most popular whiskeys from the entire line, Finest, was awarded gold. In 2015, at The Scotch Whiskey Masters, 21 Year Old whiskey was awarded the most prestigious gold medal. And in 2016, at the International Spirit Challenge, Ballantine’s products won 6 silver awards. At the same competition, Ballantine’s 30 Year Old whiskey was awarded the gold medal.
Varieties of whiskey Ballantines
For 2023, the Ballantine’s line contains 9 items:
Ballantine’s Finest
A three-year-old drink that was born in 1910. It has a light golden color; notes of spices and heather honey in the aroma; Hints of milk chocolate, red apples and vanilla on the palate and a fresh finish with floral hints.
Ballantine’s Hard Fired
Whiskey three years aged in double-charred barrels of white American oak. It has an amber-gold color; contains a hint of ripe fruit and creamy toffee in the aroma; also distinguished by honey-licorice notes on the palate and a long vanilla aftertaste.
Ballantine’s Brasil
An experimental three-year-old drink, one of the alcohols of which, before becoming part of the blend, is infused with Brazilian lime zest. It is distinguished by rich golden color, lime-vanilla leitmotif in taste and aroma, as well as lime notes in a slowly fading aftertaste.
Ballantine’s 12 Years
Blend of honey-golden color. Creamy-honey sweetness with floral-vanilla undertones prevails in the taste and aroma of this, in part, ladies’ drink. In the aftertaste, according to some connoisseurs, you can catch salty notes, although the manufacturer himself does not say anything about such a possibility.
Ballantine’s 17 Years
The drink is a deep amber-gold color. Its rich honey-creamy taste with spicy licorice inclusions is accompanied by a woody-vanilla aroma and a long, slightly spicy aftertaste.
Ballantine’s 21 Years
Pure gold whiskey aged in sherry casks. It has an aroma rich in apple, floral and honey motifs. Its rich rounded taste, endowed with raisin-marmalade and marshmallow-licorice shades, ends with a long aftertaste that evokes thoughts of dried fruits.
Ballantine’s Limited
Dark golden drink, produced in small batches and containing rare malt distillates refined by many years of aging. The aroma clearly reveals notes of creamy toffee, pear, orange and oriental spices. The taste abounds with unambiguous hints of peaches, pears and vanilla. All this ends with a stable multifaceted aftertaste.
Ballantine’s 30 Years
An aristocrat of the color of old gold. It contains spirits that were once produced at long-closed distilleries. You yourself understand that such a period can ennoble even the most unpretentious blend, utterly deepening and expanding its flavor and aroma range.
Ballantine’s 40 years
A drink that resembles molten gold in its color. In this whiskey, all the organoleptics traditional for Ballantine drinks are mixed and intertwined beyond recognition, which allows you to meditate over a glass for hours, discovering more and more new sensations.
With what and how to drink Ballantines
The scotch we are interested in, like all drinks of this kind, is not among the canteens. Therefore, it will be correct to drink Ballantines whiskey without accompanying it with any snack.
Three-year-old brands can be consumed with ice or soda as an aperitif, and also used in mixes and cocktails appropriate for the occasion. More aged options are served neat after a meal in traditional roks, filled no more than a third. At the same time, the temperature of the drink should remain within 17-18 ° C.
How to spot fake Ballantines
The main features of the original drink, the knowledge of which will distinguish it from a low-quality fake.
Whiskey Ballantines is in the TOP-3 best-selling scotch in the world, and the Scots themselves have called this drink their favorite for 10 years in a row. Whiskey of this brand has a pleasant taste with hints of apples, chocolate and vanilla, and peat, smoke, spices and honey are mixed in the aromatic bouquet.
Ballantines belongs to the category of blended whiskeys and consists of several dozen single malts with different aging. Every year, people buy millions of bottles of this iconic drink, but according to economists, up to half of all products sold under the brand name are fake. How to determine that you have an original drink? Let’s figure it out.
Inspecting the bottle
Ballantines is a whiskey of the mass segment, it can be found in almost all chain supermarkets and specialized stores. We do not recommend buying such alcohol in dubious small shops and kiosks, most likely there will be a fake. Always check for an excise stamp on the bottle.
Often counterfeit products are identified by the lid. The original drink has a metal screw cap, and for a fake one, a cheaper polymer film is most often used. In the center of this cover, a convex letter “B” should also be depicted – a kind of company signature. 2 inscriptions should be applied around this letter: below – Distillers Dumbarton Scotland, and above – George Ballantine and Son Ltd.
It is also worth checking the presence of an engraving with the company name on the bottom of the bottle. It feels good to the touch, but scammers are usually too lazy to reproduce such details, since their implementation is too expensive.
Attention! In 2021, Ballantine’s has made changes to the design and material of the cap. The material has changed from plastic to metal. The changes were made with the environment in mind, as products made from combined plastic and metal are not recyclable. And also changes were made to the design of the cover, instead of a convex letter “B”, now a chevron is used in the upper part, inside which is the inscription “Ballantine’s”.
Information on the label
Ballantine’s is a serious company with high-tech production, so you will never see a poor-quality printed or crookedly glued label on the original bottle. If you see that there are glue stains on the bottle, the paint looks dull, and the image seems fuzzy, you have a fake.
Also, when buying, be sure to look at the drink itself, it should not contain any impurities and sediment. Try to shake the contents of the bottle a little: rather large bubbles should form in it, which will slowly disappear.