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Whisky Review: Johnnie Walker Masters of Flavour

We review Johnnie Walker Masters of Flavour. It's a 48-year-old blended Scotch that includes whisky from four silent distilleries.

OVERALL RATING

9
$25.00
  • Margarett Waterbury is a whiskey enthusiast and industry expert.
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Johnnie Walker Masters of Flavour

Tasting Notes

About:

Blended Scotch whisky. 48 year age statement. Contains whisky from Glyn Albyn, Port Dundas, Glenury Royal, Brora, Cameronbridge, Blair Athol, and Dalwhinnie distilleries. MSRP $25,000 per decanter.
Appearance:
A restrained amber tone.
Nose:
Heady and aromatic. Sweet cantaloupe, honey and honeycomb, banana, and dried mangos are accented by a spicy ginger sharpness, rich leather, and just a thread of gentle smoke. It’s elegant and dimensional, the kind of aroma you just want to crawl into.
Palate:
At first it comes off as extraordinarily–almost shockingly–dry, with none of that fruit from the aroma making an appearance on the palate. At first, I get ginger molasses cookie, oak, pepper, and dry spices that carry on through an extremely long and lean finish. The smoke is modest but somewhat heavy, like smoldering coals. As it sits, however, this whisky really changes in the glass, developing a voluptuous sweetness and body along with beautiful flavors of buttery malt, mango, sticky salted caramel, brioche, lemon peel, and candied ginger. Smoke hovers in the background, present but not at all overpowering.
Finish:
Comments:
Very old whiskies often change dramatically over the course of 30 minutes, and not always for the better. This one, happily, moves in the right direction. At first it seemed as if all the meat had melted from its bones. Eventually, however, it evolved into something quite lovely–harmonious, elegant, understated, and beautifully balanced. Whether that’s worth $25,000 to you is a question only you can answer.

Editor’s Note: This whiskey was either bought as a sample by The Whiskey Wash or provided to us as a review sample by the party behind it. Per our editorial policies, this in no way influenced the outcome of this review.

Margarett Waterbury

Margarett Waterbury is the author of "Scotch: A Complete Introduction to Scotland's Whiskies" and a full-time freelance writer and editor specializing in the beverage industry. Her work has graced the pages of numerous publications, including Whisky Advocate, Food and Wine, Spirited Magazine, Artisan Spirit, Edible Seattle, Sip Northwest, Civil Eats, Travel Oregon, and many others. She also boasts editorial experience as the former managing editor of Edible Portland and as a co-founder and former managing editor of The Whiskey Wash. In recognition of her talent, Margarett received the Alan Lodge Young Drinks Writer of the Year award in 2017 and was awarded fellowships for the Symposium for Professional Wine Writers in 2017 and 2019.

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