Every so often, you find that something comes along which is perceived as being just a standard product and no one thinks anything of it. Only when it is about to disappear do people start to realize just how lucky they were. That is the case with this whisky. It is from a family-owned distillery, which is an unusual enough thing in itself, in this day and age. It is almost unique in Scotland, where big business has controlled most distilleries for generations.
I would not want to suggest that there is anything wrong with most Scotch whiskies simply because they are made by big companies. Far from it. In a world of drabness and mediocrity, the distilling industry in Scotland produces some extremely fine produce, much as its counterparts do in the USA, Canada and so on. However, this is a whisky which, I would argue, is a good step ahead of most of
the competition.
Scotch whiskies are, in general, either malts or blends. Some are rather more at the cheap end of the scale, including at least one which I won’t name, but which isn’t my favourite. Others are quite simply excellent and you will hear more about them in other reviews. In this case, Grant’s blended whisky is a gem. The blend itself is a clean, smooth blend with just the right balance to offend no one who is not an aficionado of malt whiskies (yes! I am afraid that there are some). As with all other good Scotches, you would not want to drink it with anything other than water, if you are a purist (ice on a hot day). I will admit a shocking thing, however. I have found that blended Scotch whisky makes a terrific long, cold drink if you add ginger ale to it (Canada Dry, for example). Don’t tell ...
