Review - Black Bull 40 years old

Black Bull is an award-winning super-premium blended whisky from the independent bottler of Duncan Taylor.  This 40 years old expression, which is bottled in small batches and was first released in 2010, has yielded just 1,500 bottles.  It contains a high single malt content of 84% for a blended whisky and some of the rare single malts included are Aberlour 1975, Glenlivet 1968 and Macallan 1967. The oldest whisky in the blend was distilled in 1966.  The Black Bull brand has been around for over 75 years since it was originally produced in the early 1930s, with Duncan Taylor taking it over in 2001.

Inbox - The Week's Whisky News (July 1, 2016)

Welcome to this week's Inbox.  For those that have recently discovered us, Inbox is our weekly round up of whisky news and PR material that has found its way in to our email inbox. It was created as we cannot write full articles or do justice to every piece received. It features items from around the world of whisky and is published by us each Friday.

New releases > Black Bull Special Reserve

The Black Bull Special Reserve is a newly released blended whisky from Duncan Taylor Scotch Whisky Ltd, the renowned independent bottling company. It joins the award winning 12, 30 and 40 year old versions in the Black Bull range, which has been around since the 1930s. The brand was acquired by Duncan Taylor in 2001 and revamped recently.  The Special Reserve is a small batch release (batch number one in fact) and there are only 978 bottles.  It is constructed using equal measures of single malt and grain whiskies, which is relatively rare in blending circles (the grain whisky percentage is normally higher). This premium blended whisky is bottled at the natural strength of 46.6% ABV and should cost around £95 from specialist whisky retailers.

New releases ... Black Bull 40 years old

A new addition to the 'family'
The Black Bull range of blends is owned by Duncan Taylor & Co, one of Scotland's largest independent bottling companies. They have recently revamped the brand and this new 40 years old joins a 12 and a 30 years old in the range. The Black Bull brand has been around for over 70 years since it was originally produced in the early 1930s, with Duncan Taylor taking it over in 2001. We thank Karen Law at Duncan Taylor for supplying us with this sample. More information can be found on www.blackbullwhisky.com.

Large collection of casks
Duncan Taylor and Co. were set up in Glasgow in 1938 with the plan to bottle and blend whisky for export to America following Prohibition. They are now based in the town of Huntly, close to the Speyside whisky region of Scotland. Duncan Taylor are reported to have one of the largest privately held collections of rare whisky casks in the world and bottle approximately 200 different whiskies a year. Their range is extensive and has numerous branches to it . For more information on their ranges of whisky and Duncan Taylor, check out their website www.dtcscotch.com.

High single malt content
The Black Bull 40 Year Old is a premium blended whisky and contains 90% single malt whisky and 10 % grain whisky. As with all blended whiskies, the stated age (in this case, 40 years old) is that of the youngest whisky that is contained within the blend. This is the first batch of Black Bull 40 years old. It is released this week and it contains whiskies aged between 40 and 44 years of age. The single malt whiskies included are from a broad mix of distilleries - Bunnahabhain, Glenburgie, Glenfarclas, Glenlivet, Highland Park, Miltonduff, Springbank and Tamdhu, with the grain whisky coming from Invergordon. It is bottled at 40.2% ABV and should cost around £125 from specialist retailers or Duncan Taylor's website.

Our tasting notes
The colour of Black Bull 40 years old is a deep golden yellow and the nose is inviting. It feels fresh considering the age of the whiskies including. The nose is packed with obvious vanilla, coconuts and lots of oak. These aromas are joined by more subtle notes - honey, dried grasses, cereal grains, something citric (think of lemon or orange zest) and a slight hint of dusty mustiness creeps in with time. On the palate, this is intense and zingy with the vanilla, oak and coconut at the forefront again. These mingle with other more subtle notes that give this whisky pleasant complexity - there is plenty of honey, some almonds, dried fruits (imagine raisins, sultanas and apricots), cereals and dried grasses/hay. A lovely oaky spicy element appears towards the end of the palate that is reminiscent of a combination of ginger and nutmeg. The finish is massively woody and oaky, with vanilla and cereal grains prominent. It becomes very dry, very quickly but remains as clean and intense as before.

What's the verdict?
This is a very pleasant whisky and offers exceptionally good value for money, when you consider the age of the whiskies involved (check out the prices of some of the 40 year old single malts that are around and you will see what we mean!). It is remarkably fresh for a whisky of this age and maintains its intensity despite the relatively low ABV alcoholic strength. A lovely dram.

Have just tried ... Black Bull 12 years old

The Black Bull range of blends is owned by Duncan Taylor & Co, one of Scotland's largest independent bottling companies. They have recently revamped the brand and we have been lucky enough to get a sample of the 12 years old to try (we thank Karen Law at Duncan Taylor for this). The blend has been around for over 70 years since it was originally produced in the early 1930s, with Duncan Taylor taking over the brand in 2001. This new 12 years old version is a blend of 50% single malt whisky and 50% grain whisky and is also bottled at 50% ABV, to carry on the 50% theme! They also release a 30 years old version. A bottle of Black Bull 12 years old should cost around £35 from specialist whisky retailers. More information can be found on www.blackbullwhisky.com.

Duncan Taylor and Co. were set up in Glasgow in 1938 with the plan to bottle and blend whisky for export to America following Prohibition. They are now based in the town of Huntly, close to the Speyside whisky region of Scotland. Duncan Taylor are reported to have one of the largest privately held collections of rare whisky casks in the world and bottle approximately 200 different whiskies a year. Their range is extensive and has numerous branches to it . For more information on their ranges of whisky and Duncan Taylor, check out their website www.dtcscotch.com.

The colour of this Black Bull 12 years old is golden amber and the nose is robust and aromatic. It is packed with clean, expressive notes that fight for your attention and make you want to take a sip - malty cereal grains and vanilla are particularly prominent, with dark dried fruits (think of raisins and sultanas), caramel, woody coconut and a hint of something darker (imagine cocoa powder). On the palate, this feels viscous, oily and little buttery. The malty grains hit first with a lovely sweet combination of the vanilla, caramel and coconut coming through shortly afterwards. There is also a distinct woody spiciness (think of cinnamon with a touch of pepper), some more dried fruit (especially sultanas) and some other fruits that are reminiscent of stewed pears and apples. The finish is clean, long and begins sweetly with vanilla, toffee and fruit before turning dry and slightly bitter (think of the coconut husks here). This leaves your mouth watering and wanting more.

Black Bull 12 years old is a rich, complex and characterful whisky that demonstrates how good blended whiskies can be if they are constructed and married with care and expertise. The robust nature and strength of the alcohol lends itself to adding water to the whisky and this takes away the spiciness and especially the dryness on the finish. This softens it and may appeal more, but in our opinion we prefer at 50% ABV as it is more interesting and flavoursome. A pleasant and enjoyable dram that is well worth a try.