Braeval is a big unknown distillery, owned by Chivas. It is fairly young and started distilling in the early seventies. As far as I know, there are no official bottlings. You do encounter the occasional independent release though, but even among the indy bottlers Braeval isn’t very popular. There just isn’t much name recognition, and therefor will never be a big seller for a bottler. But that doesn’t mean that Braeval churns out shyte whisky. Today’s review is an example of that, as I taste a Braeval bottled by David Stirk’s Creative Whisky Company.
Braeval 1995/2010 (54,5%, Creative Whisky Company, C#186018)
Nose: Very malty with lots of barley notes and oranges as well. There is a sweetness, but it does stay in the background a bit, sugar cane, caramel and cherries. With water the whole becomes nuttier. Very clean and balanced.
Taste: Fairly spicy and herbal on the arrival, and a nice oily mouthfeel. Cherry syrup, toffee and almonds. Restrained sherry yet very rich.
Finish: A woody finish with tannins. Also fairly spicy (chili) and nutty.
Rating: 87 points
A proper sherry whisky, with a nice finish in a PX-cask. Nice underdog pick by David Stirk.
Thanks to Het Whiskyhuis for providing the sample.
