Haig Dimple 15 Year Old

Sweet fruit & vanilla loaded fast arrival followed by light dry middle develops a short sweet cauliflower finish.

Dimple (or "Pinch" as it is known in the US) is a very old, highly revered brand of blended scotch. Launched in 1890 with its distinctive packaging (which gives it its name, of course) by G.O. Haig, it really goes back to 1627 when his ancestor John Haig began distilling. The brand is currently owned by Diageo. Besides the "pinched" bottle shape, it also has a thin wire net around it, to absorb changes in temperature so the cork doesn't pop out. I had the great rare pleasure of tasting a Dimple bottling (NAS) from the 1950s at a Bonham's auction in NY - it was malty, savoury, leathery old-school scotch and it was amazing.

I don't know when this mini was bottled but it looks old, certainly older than the current bottling. Interestingly, the lettering on the back is in Hebrew (but the front is in English).

The colour is a deep gold. The nose is a little shy - some peppermint, a hint of smoke and barley sugar. A little rough around the edges. A wee bit of tropical fruits, especially banana - but it is all oh so quiet. Needs more character here. Water adds the slightest touch of maltiness but the nose is still very closed.

On the palate, quite malty with some light milk chocolate, papaya and a touch of spice. The age of the whisky comes through here - quite rich and complex. Barley sugar comes out with a drop of water. Very satisfying, especially after that quite nose.

The finish is brackish, with more pronounced peat and sea salt. Spicy and also herbal - long and very clean. Very interesting whisky, not what I was expecting - similar notes as the 1950s bottle but much quieter overall. It's really too bad about the nose, but perhaps some people fancy a whisky that is shy at first? I wish I had a current bottling to compare it with - in fact, I brought back a bottle for my father from my first trip to Scotland, as a birthday gift. A few weeks later, I came to visit and asked my dad for a dram, as I had always wanted to taste it. He sheepishly looked at me and said, "I drank it. All of it." So perhaps I'll never know...

I'm always looking to try new whiskies, whiskies that I haven't encountered before. This pursuit leads me to going to whisky tastings, oftentimes a couple times a month. It's led me to starting a whisky club here in Perth and it's led me to doing sample swaps as often as I can.

Several months ago I'd posted in a discussion on Connosr that I would love to do sample swaps with anyone in Australia (or anywhere in the world for that matter).

I didn't and don't care about WHAT I'm trading for, as long as I've never tasted it. Want to do a blend for a cask strength Buffalo Trace? Done! Entry level bourbon for a 40 year old single malt? Done!

As long as the whiskies were in good condition (not overly oxidized, light shock, etc etc etc) and were not any whiskies that I'd already tried I was more then happy to make a trade.

Several members took me up on the offer and samples were sent out and samples were received.

This sample was from Donski in Victoria. Thanks Buddy!!!!

This whisky was Dimple 15 year old, a blended Scotch whisky, which I'd never tried before and made me grin in the fact that I was getting ready to expand my whisky horizons!

So I got home from work, ordered some yummy Indian food and sat down with my wife to watch Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and enjoy a new whisky.

Nice aroma, very similar to many bourbons, so there's got to be some ex bourbon casks somewhere in there right?

Vanilla, apples, pears, fudge, toasted oak, citrus and orange rinds and a hint of smoke. As the whisky opens up more and more vanilla appears as the smoke retreats, orange rinds and citrus move back and forth through the vanilla.

Not bad!

Time for a taste!

A bit oaky, citrus, honey, vanilla, oak spices such as cinnamon and nutmeg, vanilla, it's not bad, however there is an interesting and slightly unpleasant interplay with the overwhelming sweetness of honey and vanilla and oaky bitterness. It's not really unpleasant, but at this moment it doesn't encourage me to run out and buy a bottle.

Am extremely short finish, almost nonexistent, with just some lingering hints of vanilla end this whisky.

Definitely not the worst whisky I've ever tried, but very entry level, it's something I might give to people who are afraid whiskies are all smoke and peat, something soft and sweet and just a wee bit boring as the whisky opens up.

Nice thing is price point you pretty much get what you pay for, roughly around $55 to $60 a bottle and fairly easy to find. I'd probably pick up a bottle of Aberlour 10 year old myself, being at a similar price point, but for myself it honestly has roughly the same complexity on the palate as say Glenlivet 12 year old or Glenfiddich 12 year old and they're in that same price point so it is a fair price in my opinion.

Got this for my birthday!

Color: yaaay E150

Nose: Its a bit bourbon-ish, rich vanilla, fudge, cake, wood, suede leather; like an old antiqueshop, dry grass, some floral notes and a little bit of smoke in the background. Not too bad actually but no changes over time in the glass.

Arrival: Fresh and quite lightpicy wood and some hazelnut

Developement: the spice and sherried wood give way to sweet grainflavours, but not the cheap kind of grain, caramel, vanilla and some vegetal notes, the malt fades away quickly and it gets a little buttery creamy

Finish: the wood, the nuts (almond) and the spice come back and leave a gentle burn; in the mouth, not in the throat. Its soft and comfortable. It ends with a chocolaty dryness and even some ash

Hey! Not bad for a blend! I especially like the nose, Its like a Bourbonnahabhain haha. But after the surprising arrival it fades away pretty fast into a sort of caramelvodka so be shure to swallow quickly! Finish is not too long, but again, for a blend its pretty good! As long as you dont drink it like its a Single malt you'll be fine. Nice with a cigar while watching James Bond after a long day of work. After the boxingmatch you turn on the stereo and you put on your favourite symphony and pour a complex single malt:)

Here comes the BLENDscore:

Slightly oily medium thick slow leags. Nose: Sweet, caramel, chocolate,raisins, butterscotch? Taste: Honey, caramel, sweetness. Finish: Originally a drying effect spice then lingering sweetness. Honey throat lozenges. With water...it doesn't swim well.On nose, taste & finish loses spice but keeps the sweetness.

I have had this bottle for awhile and it has been my go to blend for the past few weeks. I believe it is a very good blend but somehow rather than having a synergy which makes it greater than the sum of its parts, it is rather just equal to the sum of its parts. Although such things usually do not persuade me, I'd say the bottle shape is very unique, the only thing close being the bottle for Johnnie Walker Swing.

I usually have my wife try a sip or two of my drinks. With bourbons or Islay scotches she gets a look on her face like a little kid eating vegetables. With some mild blended scotches she might say "it's not bad" with this she actually said "It's pretty good." And for the most part I concur.

The nose is overall consistent with the mild spicy, sweet taste I overall get from this. The taste and palate are pleasant again with a light spice and sweetness to them. There is a mild orange, citrus note, together with a very faint amount of smoke which almost manifests itself more on the finish.

While there is a lot going on in this which makes the balance score higher in my mind, nothing seems to stand out as remarkable or memorable. This is good for those that prefer milder tastes, for beginners, or for warmer weather. I think one could certainly do much worse than this although there are blends which appeal to me more. Overall I would recommend this though.

A mate of mine (Jimmy) and I have this arrangement that whenever we get something new we always invite each other over to have a glass. He recently had a birthday and was gifted a few bottles - a Haig Dimple 15 year old, and Chivas Regal 12 year old and a Bruichladdich 18 year old.

First up was the Haig Dimple 15 year old.

The nose was full of pears, malt notes, oak and a sweet, caramel smokiness. There's just a gentle hint of moss throughout. Unassuming, but genuinely pleasant.

The taste is a light spicy wave, with a mix of cinnamon, nutmeg, clove and (thanks to Jimmy for having it in his cupboard to compare) cardamom. Beyond that there is a little oak, moss and a little caramel sweetness. This is genuinely decent, but after a couple of sips the spiciness fades (or more correctly my taste buds become used to it), and I start to notice a distinct lack of depth.

The finish is short and clean, with fading spices, caramel and light butter-scotch.

I've rated this a 7.5, but by the end of the glass, it's more like a 7. It's genuinely pleasant, but once the spice is gone it does become a little boring. Decent drinking malt though.