Abrachan Blended Malt
On a quest for bread, I found whisky
I was on vacation in France, with the family. And my wife and I made a deal.
Since we have an almost 2 year old toddler, our mornings were early. Very early. Like 5 in the morning early. So we made a deal were every other day, one of us would have the toddler and bread shift. Meaning: Get up, take care of the kid and get fresh bread. My very first shift, the local Boulangerie was closed and I was looking for another place where I could buy bread at 7 o'clock in the morning. Spoiler: Most bakeries were for some reason closed. I think I drove through half of the Calvados region, until I ended up at a Lidl around 08:45. Not very French, but breakfast was needed and with no other choice, I went in.
Cutting this story short: I came home with bread, some local apple juice, dinner for that night, some cheese and meats and a bottle of whisky.
Because while passing it in the store, this bottle caught my attention. Yes, for a small part because of the label, but also the price. For €19,90 this bottle of Abrachan Blended Malt, Peated and Smoky, was coming back to the rented mini-home.
"Rich and distinct Speyside and Highland malts with earthy and maritime notes intertwined with heavy roasted coffee and chocolate characters." These are the notes on the label. quite promising I thought!
Bottled at 41% Vol, this coloured blend made for Lidl was a blast! It has been coloured to a dark brown, going towards a breakfast tea.
On the nose: Dried fruits like raisins, but also dried apple. Some caramels. Very, very subtle hints of smoke. Not a very powerful smoke and peat punch. Second nose made the caramels turn into honey and I got some citrus notes. for a blend, I find this a very full nose!
Taste: Wow. At first I thought it would be all spirit, but it is a very fruity dram, ending in a summer campfire. I got oak, plums, some malts and then the more warmer and bitter notes: roasted coffee, dark chocolate and even a slight hint of tobacco. (So the label was not exaggerating!)
Finish: Short, but very chocolaty. This is going to be a very fun whisky to experiment with in pairing with desserts!
Overall conclusion, for this price you cannot go wrong. I should have bought a second bottle, since supermarkets in the Netherlands are not allowed to sell spirits and Lidl does not carry this bottle in the Netherlands. But should you encounter it, get it!