Fragrant Drops North British 1989 Cask #O180-44 & Fragrant Drops Japanese Blend

Fragrant Drops North British 1989 Cask #O180-44

Region: Lowlands

ABV: 45.8%

Price: £94.95 

This bottling was distilled on 1st September 1989 and matured in a refill bourbon barrel until it was bottled on 23rd July 2024. A total of 266 bottles were released.

Nose

The nose opens with fresh peaches, a little soft tangerine, acetone, torched meringue and green apple skins. Behind this sits the distinctive grain spirit note, melding well with the bourbon cask maturation. We're also finding a bit of white pepper spice as we go back, it's fairly prominent but not too overpowering. There's also something slightly dusty that emerges after we let it sit in the glass for a while. It's fruitier than other North British's that we've tried, less upfront vanilla for us.

Palate

The palate opens with fizzy apple sweeties, pear drops, vanilla slice pastries, moving into orange peel, and a bit of richer bourbon sweetness as the palate develops. The mouthfeel is nice and viscous, there's a pleasant creaminess that coats the mouth. The finish lingers for a good length, mostly showing vanilla, caramel, bourbon biscuits and white chocolate. Time and air brings out honey butter and orange essential oil. The alcohol can be a bit hot in certain places but it's quite well balanced overall.

Nose (with water)

The reduced nose brings forward more of an industrial spirit note, nail varnish remover, hair spray, old perfume bottles, quite fragrant. There's still some of the soft fruits but it's a bit punchier now with alcohol, we'd suggest skipping water on the nose.

Palate (with water)

The reduced palate has more of rich caramel and toffee flavour up front, but it also has some of those rougher grain spirit flavours alongside. There's a fair bit of cask influence, lots of brown sugar now, with a tinge of grapefruit peel. Again, we'd skip water here, it doesn't benefit the dram for us.

Conclusion

A lovely old North British, great balance, not too much sweet cask influence, instead a fruitier, fresher profile which is interesting for an older grain whisky. It can be a bit tight on the nose and hot in places, but these are small imperfections and overall it's a lovely dram.

Score: 8/10

Value

You will struggle to get a 34yo grain whisky any cheaper.

Fragrant Drops Japanese Blend

Region: Japan

ABV: 47.4%

Price: £180.00 

There aren’t many details on this one, but we know that a portion of the whisky is significantly older, and it was matured in both bourbon and sherry casks. A total of 873 bottles were released.

Nose

The nose opens with apple juice drink, the preserved kind you can find in the non-refrigerated section of the supermarket, poached pears, candy necklaces, and a bit of grain spirit in the background. The alcohol is really nicely balanced here, and we're finding slightly richer aromas of toasted oak, caramel and brown sugar as the dram sits in the glass.

Palate

The palate opens with light orchard fruits, but quickly moves into toasted brioche loaf, buttery croissants, light brown sugar, crushed biscuits, and apple crumble topping. There mouthfeel is good, it's relatively syrupy, and the finish has a medium length, with a bit of a bitter orange pith note that lingers on. Time and air brings out cocoa beans and light coffee notes with a splash of full fat milk.

Nose (with water)

The reduced nose has a bit more citrus for us, tangerine peel, orange essence, but it also maintains the apple and pear notes from before. Behind this sits a nuttiness, honey roast peanuts and brown seeded bread. Fairly complex with water, there's a lot going on.

Palate (with water)

The reduced palate has a bit of a thinner mouthfeel, but still packs a lot of flavour, with milk chocolate, raisins and warm oatmeal cookies coming through for us. It's much more sherry forward now, coffee grounds, caramel wafers, but there's a bit of bitter oak that lingers on the finish now.

Conclusion

We don't have too much experience with Japanese blends, but this is a pretty solid dram. The malt content seems to be quite high, there's only a bit of grain spirit in the background for us. The sherry in the mix is mostly a background note, coming through more on the palate.

Score: 7.5/10

Value

It’s a bit tricky to decide if this is value for money without more details.

• 10 - Perfection. One in a million
• 9 - Outstanding. Exceptional whisky.
• 8 - Great. Would seek this out.
• 7 - Good. Quality whisky.
• 6 - Above average. Happy to have a dram.
• 5 - Average. Drinkable whisky.
• 4 - Below average. Passable.
• 3 - Flawed. Noticeable negatives.
• 2 - Defective. Significant faults.
• 1 - Offensive. Pour it out.

If you like what you’ve read then check out our social media (Facebook, Twitter and Instagram) to get notifications of when we post a new review or just to chat about whisky with us.