Compass Box Great King Street New York Blend

It has happened, this blog influenced my drink choice.  I'll almost always grab a North American whisky given my choice, but I want to set myself for something that I want to do on here to make this actually interesting.  Not sure if that will work, but I can try.  Anyway, traveling to the world of Scotch for this one.  

Nose: typical scotch; light grain with floral, herbal, and vegetal notes.  Just a hint of smokiness. I'm trying to pin down just what smacks me first, and I think I want to say sage, thyme, and a dewey fresh cut grass.  Very little alcohol on the nose.  This is 46%, so it isn't exactly watered down swill, but the vapors nicely mingle to enhance the nosing qualities.  The floral notes are not refined, not a pure flower such as a Rose or such, more like a wild prairie flower.  I'm envisioning a Victorian garden in a big greenhouse.  I know, how British.

Palate delivers exactly what the nose promises.  Light, but with a depth to develop all the flavors nicely. Mouth feel is fantastic.  Just a little slippery and a very nice texture to accentuate the old school flavors. 

Finish: decent length, with a pretty strong decrescendo.  I was just listing to Elsa's Procession to the Cathedral (Wagner) and the ringing of the hall after the final chord is a nice parallel for me.  This whisky isn't that powerful, so it is more like listening to it as background music than sitting in a concert hall.

I'm not a huge scotch fan.  I have a low tolerance for peat and crazy phenols. The Great King Street is one of my go-to blends to pick up to have something that I like handy.  This is a little bolder expression of that, and it is decent, not a bajillion dollars and drinks well.  That said, a bottle will last me maybe up to two years.  I just prefer the spice blend in American whisky.

This is good enough to keep on the shelf for the rare drinker that prefers scotch as a visitor.  A head to head with a nice Japanese whisky will be forthcoming.  Maybe I'll pick up a Johnny Walker Black to pair with them both for curiosity.