A mystery dram ... but what is it?

There hasn't been a 'mystery dram' for a while and there has been a good reason for that - our trip to Speyside. This has taken us a while to write up, so now we can return to 'normal'. But not before we write about one last whisky that we sampled. However, the tasting notes are below but we invite you to try and guess what the 'mystery dram' is. This can be done by clicking on the 'comments' section at the bottom of this post once you have read the notes, following the instructions and leaving us your guess/answer.

The answer will be revealed on Wednesday when we will post a full review of the whisky in question. This will incorporate these tasting notes, information about the whisky and also include our regular dose of distillery history and facts. There are no prizes for guessing correctly but correct answers will be mentioned in the final article, so please leave your name! We aim to set a new 'mystery dram' challenge roughly once a month in the future, so good luck and here goes ...

The 'mystery dram' is light and golden in colour and has a lovely fragrant nose. There are obvious notes of vanilla and sweet cereal grains but these are joined by more subtle aromas of fresh green fruit (especially apples and pears) and a hint of something floral, reminiscent of honeysuckle. On the palate, this whisky has a medium body and feels slightly creamy. The sweet vanilla, malty cereals and fresh green fruit are prominent again, although the vanilla note has more of a marzipan feel to it. The slightly floral honeysuckle note comes through again, as does an interesting warm spicy note (think of ginger and a touch of nutmeg). The finish is soft and smooth. It begins sweetly with the vanilla and grains evident before turning drier and woodier, allowing the nutmeg style spiciness to end.

This 'mystery dram' is not the most complicated of single malts but it is of great quality and offers good value for money (a bottle should cost around £25-30 from supermarkets and specialist stores alike). For this reason, this pleasant and easy drinking whisky would be an excellent choice to introduce a beginner to the world of single malts, while still having enough character to keep the connoisseurs interested. A classic Speyside dram.