Origin: Isle of Jura (Scotland)
Type: Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Strength: 40%ABV
Ageing casks: Ex-Bourbon
Chillfiltered: Yes
Added coloring: Yes
Owner: Emperador Inc. (Whyte & Mackay Ltd.)
Average price: € 40.00
Official website: jurawhisky.com
After the 12 years, here is another of the entry-level bottlings introduced with the distillery’s relaunch in 2018.
And we are at the most basic of the basics, with a classic aging (without age statement) in ex-bourbon casks, a minimum alcohol content, and an ultra-affordable price.
The bottling was replaced at the beginning of 2023 by the Jura Bourbon Cask during a new reorder of the distillery’s base malts.
I’m not approaching a complex and mature whisky, but rather something designed to be easy to drink and suitable for everyone: it is right to evaluate this Jura for what it wants to be, without expecting any profound depths.
Tasting Notes
It opens with pronounced herbal and floral notes, among cut grass, wood, and hyacinth, but briefly develops on the nose into vanilla pastry, lemon cream, butter cookies, fondant, and marzipan. The aromas are marked by a sour and lactic vein reminiscent of yogurt, accompanied by a sensation of damp paper. Hints of cinnamon and nutmeg emerge. In the finish, a whisper of smoke. Jura is present.
The smokiness becomes more evident on the palate, remaining in the realm of burnt wood, serving as a backdrop to a predictably light dram. Well-present spice notes, including black pepper, nutmeg, and cinnamon, accompany fleeting sweet notes derived from grains and baked goods, making room for occasional fruity hints (peach, pineapple, poached pear). A bittersweet note lingers, with a hint of salinity.
Finale quite short, with extinguished fireplace, cereals, spices, sugar paste, malt cookies.
Review: It delivers what it promises, perhaps even a little more, with those smoky (not peated) notes that add a special touch to an otherwise harmless and forgettable dram.
Vote: 81/100