MACLEAN’S NOSE
Blended Scotch WhiskyMASH BILL – 70% malt, 30% grain
PROOF – 92
AGE – NAS
DISTILLERY – Ardnamurchan Distillery
PRICE – $31 (normally ~$40)
WORTH BUYING? – Yep!
As single malt scotch made its gradual ascent in the estimation of scotch aficionados, blended whisky just as gradually descended in their estimation to the proverbial bottom shelf. Nevertheless, outside of hardcore whisky fan circles, in the wider drinking world, blended whisky remains the top selling category. Popularity and “cool” have never been besties.
But over the past handful of years, newer distilleries like Ardnamurchan and Dornoch have been making efforts to make blends cool again. Compass Box had already long been on that train, and Japanese whisky makers have always embraced the art of blending. Nevertheless the category has not managed to step back to the fore of scotch fan esteem. Re-crowning blends king need not be the goal. But blends arguably do deserve to stand in appreciation next to their single malt cousins.
When I recently uncorked a bottle of the 2025 Ardnamurchan 10 Year Single Malt, it had been a minute since I’d tried Maclean’s Nose. A colleague had given me a sample about a year ago and I was very impressed. So when that Ardnamurchan 10 wowed me, I got an itch to revisit Ardnamurchan’s affordable blend and see how it compared.
So here we are with a bottle of Maclean’s Nose, a week after uncorking and four pours into it. These brief notes were taken using a traditional Glencairn.
COLOR – pale straw yellows, with lemony and honey highlights
NOSE – a desserty vanilla sauce, salty and sandy sea air, peach, smooth beach wood, preserved apricot, new copper
TASTE – very like the nose, with the tangy bright elements of the apricot and copper amped right up front, soon giving way to waves of creamy vanilla and salted caramel, with the maritime breeze wafting throughout
FINISH – vanilla, salted caramel, the beach wood now offering subtle tannins
OVERALL – a solid, bright, inviting blended scotch whisky that I’d believe was a single malt if you told me so
I’m guessing the whiskies in this blend are some handful of years old. There is a youthfulness to it, though not a brashness. The kid’s got wit and intelligence, and knows how to have a good time. It’s not a complex whisky. But it’s not boring either. It’s fun, and if you’re a fan of vanilla, peach, and typical maritime notes, you’ll enjoy this, whether neat or mixed.
Of course, I had to compare it to the Ardnamurchan 10 Year.
Interestingly, the 10 Year—likely ~twice the age of Maclean’s Nose—is distinctly lighter in color. But then on the nose, the 10 Year shows a bit more gristle against the vanilla foundation. The range of oak notes is more evident, and, if aroma can have a texture, there is a rustic roughness to the whole, whereas the Maclean’s Nose comes across much smoother.
On the taste, up front, the 10 Year’s texture is now less immediately distinct from the Maclean’s Nose. Here the differences lean forward more toward the end of the palate and into the finish, where the 10 Year tilts darker while the Maclean’s Nose is content to linger in the bright seaside sunlight.
Both share a vanilla foundation on which the other sweet and savory aspects stand. Neither whisky broods. But the 10 Year definitely makes more time for thoughtful contemplation, while the Maclean’s Nose seems ever ready for a good laugh.
I gotta say, given the price difference between Maclean’s Nose and the Ardnamurchan 10 year, the blend really does hold its own. It’s good whisky, period. Sure, I do ultimately prefer the greater complexity of the 10 Year. But do I prefer it ~$60 more than the brightly optimistic Maclean’s Nose…?
What impresses me most here is that Ardnamurchan has quite evidently granted its affordable blend the same quality standards as its more prestigious 10 Year release. The Maclean’s might arguably be thumbing its titular Nose at age-stated single malts. If so, I’d say the confidence is warranted.
Sláinte!
Last Call
I put the Maclean’s Nose to use in a Penicillin cocktail, with the following recipe:
2oz Maclean’s Nose
0.75oz Meyer lemon juice
0.5oz ginger syrup
0.25oz sugar cane syrup
0.25oz Laphroaig Càirdeas 2024 floated on top
No surprise, it worked great! Very refreshing. And the sherried smokiness of the Laphroaig added an excellent accent of complexity to the foundational ginger, lemon, and vanilla notes.
Cheers!
The Right Spirit 