Yesterday I reported on the Balvenie tasting held in TLV earlier this week and I suddenly noticed that I didn’t publish tasting notes for the 17 Year Old Peated Cask on the blog although I did taste it numerous times in the past, so let’s fix this, OK?

The 17yo peated cask is a standard Balvenie unpeated spirit that was finished in casks that held peated spirit. Yes, Balvenie do distill peated spirit, but they do so for only one week every year.

Fun fact: when I visited Balvenie I noticed they are using peat for couple of hours when drying the barley to stop germinating but it’s done for a short period and it’s not imparting the barley with enough PPM to be called peated malt 🙂

The Peated cask is a discontinued expression so prices are high considering its age, but it may be worth it. let’s check.

Balvenie 17 Peated Cask (43%, €117.5 / $138)

Nose: A no doubter Balvenie profile, with smooth and velvety nose. Full of  honey and fruity notes and there’s the mild gentle oak and also marshmallows. Oh, and a touch of smoke to remind us it’s not your ordinary Balvenie.

Palate: Fruity, honey and vanilla, here the smoke is heavier and more pronounced than what I felt on the nose, also some spices with nutmeg and cinnamon leading the way and mild oak.

Finish: Medium finish with oak, fruity touch of smoke, spiciness.

Thoughts: It’s a decent whisky  as it’s still a Balvenie despite the added touch of smoke, but for me it feels like the stepchild in the Balvenie family. Should you go and get one? As a discontinued expression, I think that the prices for what remained in the market are too high but if you feel like having a touch of smoke in your Balvenie, it’s your bottle.

And I do wonder what Balvenie plans to do with all the aged peated spirit one day…