New releases ... Balvenie 12 years old 'Signature'

This is the brand new release from Balvenie and is replacing the 10 year old 'Founder's Reserve' in their range. Balvenie is found in the Speyside region. We have only just received this in the shop, so I was interested to taste the difference between this and the 12 years old 'Doublewood' that it will be sold alongside. The 'Doublewood' is matured in a bourbon cask and then transferred to a sherry cask, whereas the 'Signature' is matured in two different types of bourbon casks and then a sherry one. I found the nose quite complex and picked up vanilla and woody notes from the bourbon casks, followed by a sweetness (imagine dried fruit and raisins). All these flavours were present on tasting, along with a very nice creamy feeling. However, although it was nice, the finish was too dry and very short. There was too much bourbon influence and not enough sherry influence, there is a better, smoother balance in the 'Doublewood'. The 'Signature' is a decent whisky, but I feel it's not different enough from the other 12 year old they have and can't really work out why they are replacing the 10 year old with it.