Compass Box Hedonism Whisky Review!

"Hedonism" - the pursuit of pleasure & self-indulgence. An ambitious name for a blended grain whisky perhaps, but we're about to find out...

It's been a while since I last mentioned Glasgow-based whisky blender & rule-bender Compass Box, a few years in fact, last appearing when I reviewed their very nice Peat Monster blended malt. Unfortunately that's mainly because we don't see the vast majority of their bottlings in Australia, with almost all of their releases being exclusive to a certain large retailer. Since that last review Compass Box have caused a bit of a stir, in a positive way, by bringing light to the issue of "transparency" in Scotch whisky, specifically with regard to age statements. The issue arose when Compass Box started releasing the full details of the component whiskies in their blends, and stating the age and proportion of each component whisky. The problem with this is that according to the SWA regulations, an age statement can only declare the age of the youngest whisky in the bottle. So for example a whisky that is a blend of 10-year old and 20-year old spirit can only have an age statement of 10 years, it can't legally state "a mix of 50% 10-year old and 50% 20-year old whisky". So Compass Box had to modify how they were doing things, and you can now need to email them requesting the age details of their blends.

That said, they still publish plenty of detail on their whiskies, just not the actual ages. A quick look on their website will give you access to the typical recipes for each bottling, often also naming the actual distilleries involved, which for one reason or another is not something you see very often with blended whiskies. This 'Hedonism' bottling for example typically contains 66% grain whisky from Cameron Bridge Distillery, a massive Diageo-owned grain spirit plant located in Leven, and the remaining 34% grain whisky coming from Port Dundas, another massive Diageo-owned grain spirit plant located in Glasgow, which closed in 2011 and has since been demolished. The majority of this blended grain whisky was matured in first-fill ex-bourbon barrels, with a small component being matured in refill American oak hogsheads. It's also naturally coloured and non-chill filtered, which is great to see considering it's bottled at 'only' 43% rather than the more usual 46% ABV for a naturally presented whisky.

Personally, I'm not really a big fan of grain whiskies. I usually find them to be too light, both in texture and flavour, and often also too sweet for my tastes. Although they can be fantastic if aged for a long time in good casks. Truthfully I've only had a couple that actually impressed me, one of which was an oddball 27-year old cask strength Sauternes-finished single grain bottling from the SMWS (G8.7), and the others have been over 25 years of age. That said, I haven't tasted a Compass Box whisky that I haven't liked, so I have high hopes for this one. Let's give it a whirl.

Compass Box Hedonism, NAS, 43%. Blended Grain Scotch Whisky.

Make-up varies by batch but typically 66% single grain whisky from Cameron Bridge Distillery, 34% single grain whisky from Port Dundas Distillery. Mostly aged in first-fill ex-bourbon casks. Natural colour, non-chill filtered.

Colour: Pale gold / white wine. 

Nose: Light. Milk chocolate and dried  / desiccated coconut, reminiscent of a 'bounty' chocolate bar. A little sweet vanilla icing, and a hint of pencil shavings under the typical spirit-y acetone note found in most young grain whiskies. Becomes a little floral with more breathing time. 

Texture: Light & clean. Slight heat and raw spirit but not overly harsh. 

Taste: Grain spirit & acetone, not in a harsh way though. A little more pencil shavings & desiccated coconut, and there's chocolate again but it's more of a cocoa powder now. A bit of a let-down here after the nose, to be honest. 

Finish: Short. A little spirit heat initially. More acetone and coconut, hints of tropical fruit underneath. Mango nectar but without the thick texture. A little more cocoa powder too, and a touch of something a little bitter. 

Score: 2 out of 5.

Notes: Not undrinkable, but not really my cup of tea, and I probably wouldn't have named it after the pursuit of pleasure. I remember liking it more on the first try though, so maybe the sample has oxidised a little since then. It's definitely lighter now than I remember it being. That bounty bar chocolate & coconut note is very pleasant, in fact it's definitely the highlight of the whole experience. Still, it's nice to try something different every now and then, and re-assert my love for malt whisky... 

I still like what Compass Box are doing, and what they stand for. They're trying new & different things and they're being open about it, where permitted, and they're breaking new ground at generally reasonable prices. But for my tastes, at around $100 AUD, this one cannot compete with the single or blended malts that are around the same - or even a lower - price level. But if you're a fan of lighter, cleaner drams or perhaps even white spirits, this one will probably be more up your alley than it is mine. I do think it'd make for a nice summer's day dram though, or maybe even a highball. 

Cheers!