The Johnnie Walker Green Label has returned! In case you missed it, this expression from Johnnie Walker was discontinued in 2012 from all markets except for Taiwan. Why Taiwan? Well they probably have the highest proportion of single malt drinkers of any country. For single malt sales in 2016, Taiwan came in 3rd place after USA and France. 3rd place for a country with a population of 23 million. That’s a third of France and less than a tenth of the US. So naturally the Green Label, which is the only blended malt in the Johnnie Walker core range, had some pull in that market. In 2015, the Green Label was re-released in the US and Canada and then to all markets in 2016. It is this newer batch of Green Label that I am reviewing in this post but I have also had the good fortune to try the Green Label from before the discontinuation. I can easily say that the two are different. I prefered the older style as did some of my friends who were at the tasting but hey it’s gone so this is what we have now!
Johnnie Walker Green Label is a blend of single malts from Talisker, Linkwood, Cragganmore and Caol Ila.
A big thank you to Matthew from the Water of Life Society for the sample!
Type: Blend
Age: 15 years old
Cask: No information available
ABV: 43%
Price: £39.95 at the Master of Malt
TheMadVatterNose
Sticky Taiwanese pineapple biscuits, fruit roll up, waxy apples, hint of that sweet chlorine smell from public swimming pools.
Taste
Sweet tropical fruits like pineapples and rambutan. A bit of meaty-ness like sweet beef jerky. Waxy bitterness. Some funky notes like root beer, full bodied cheese and wet oak. Peppery. Rocket.
Finish
Preserved Pineapples, light custard, tart bitter oak, pool chlorine, wax.
Rating
7
Afterthoughts
The nose starts off with some enticing sticky sweetness of tropical fruits but then the body surprises with some funky notes. A real mix of flavours. Not sure if I like it but at least it’s active. The finish lasts with waxy bitterness and sticky sweetness lingering. It’s definitely more interesting than the blue. There is a lot of depth in the body and different things came into mind with each new sip. A surprisingly complex dram that would really work for drinking while reading a book by the fire.
Adventures in Whisky Land 