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Balblair (Pronounced: ball-BLAIR)
Northern Highlands
Glenmorangie, Dalmore, Teaninich
1894 (an earlier 'Balblair' distillery was built in 1790)
Ben Dearg
Two stills (the third still needs repairs)
1,350,000 litres of pure alcohol per year
Pacific Spirits > Inver House (since 1996)
Edderton, Tain, Ross-shire, IV19 1LB, Scotland
+441862 821273
Yes - but Balblair only releases vintages these days
Below, on WhiskyFun and on the Malt Maniacs Monitor
GPS location:
Water source:
Production capacity:
Telephone number:
Visitor centre:
Official bottlings:
Scores & tasting notes:
1) Balblair claims that it is one of the oldest Scotch whisky distilleries still in operation - but the current distillery actually has very little to do with the 'Balblair' distillery which was founded in 1790 and located somewhere else on the same Balnagowan estate. Just a handful of other distilleries in Scotland were founded before 1790, including Bowmore and Strathisla. Well, at least that's what they claim - the records from these days are often quite vague.
2) Although Balblair distillery 'officially' has three stills, the oldest and smallest pot still isn't used anymore.
3) The people behind Balblair like to brag that the distillery was founded in 1790 - but that was actually another distillery with the same name. That previous Balblair distillery was built by somebody else, a few miles away on the Balnagowan estate. The current Balblair distillery was built in 1894 by Alexander Cowan.
4) The official motto of Scotland is "Nemo me impune lacessit", or: "No one provokes me with impunity".
This motto is used by the Order of the Thistle and on later versions of the Royal coat of arms.
5) One of the reasons to replace the original Balblair diustillery with a brand new one on a new location was easy access to the railway system. The nearby Edderton railway station near Balblair distillery was closed in 1960.
Balblair 2000/2010 (43%, OB, 1st Release)
Nose: Flowery and chalky. Sweet with fruity accents. A little honeyed, but you have to dig quite deep.
Taste: Malty and slightly fruity. Smooth. Grows very bitter in the finish. Feels strangely cool in my mouth.
Score: 73 points - a nice alternative for blends, but not really op to single malt standards in my book.
Balblair 1989/2010 (43%, OB, 2nd Release)
Nose: Chalky and a little sour. Some farmy notes emerge after a minute with more sweetness later on.
Taste: Round, mellow and a little flowery. The finish starts off a little bitter before very heavy tannins set in.
Score: 75 points - oddly enough, this mature Balblair malt whisky shows many underage traits.
Balblair 1978/2008 (46%, OB)
Nose: Clean and light. Malty with some chalk that disappears over time. Fruits, slowly opening up.
Leather and spices, but you have to wait for it. This is one of those whiskies that really NEED a lot of time.
Taste: Sweet. Malt and mocha. Very light smokiness in the centre. Tannins in the fairly bitter finish.
Score: 83 points - although it gains one or two points if you wait long enough for it (at least half an hour).
Balblair 1997/2007 (43%, OB)
Nose: Lemony. Opens up very nicely after a few seconds, sweetening out. Some spices.
Not really my kind of profile - but this Balblair is still a good, well-rounded whisky.
Taste: Lemony. A tad perfumy in the centre, growing stronger towards the finish.
Feels a tad weak on the palate, making my score for this bottling of Balblair drop from 78 to 77 points.
Score: 78 points - a second tasting confirmed that this Balblair was definitely a few points above average.
Balblair 1975/2007 (46%, OB)
Nose: Big, spicy and complex. A lot of development over time. I had so much fun I forgot to make many notes.
Taste: Brilliant mouth feel; a perfect combination of wood and tannis with a finish that lasts forever.
Score: 90 points - very good whisky, but not all maniacs agreed with my gold medal nomination.
Balblair 40yo 1965 (47.7%, The Single Malts of Scotland, Cask Strength, Bottled June 2007).
Nose: Woehaah! VERY nice. passion fruit, a bit like Bowmores from the late 1960's. Sweet wood.
Over time some 'glue' components pop up. Coconut - or rather the coconut in liquorice all sorts.
Then organics emerge, lifting it back up to 90 points (I dropped it to 89 a few minutes earlier).
Taste: Passion fruits here as well, and a mouth feel that suggests a far bigger strength.
Over time the passion fruit evolves into 'old fruits' with a gentle tangerine bitterness.
Score: 90 points - after a few minutes it loses some steam, but just give it some more time.
Excellent stuff; this is by far the best Balblair I've ever sampled - although it's 'on the edge'.
Balblair 1973/2006 (45%, Gordon & MacPhail Private Collection, C#3184-3185, 385 Bts.)
Nose: Polished and woody. Classic. Evolving with more spices emerging. Wood dominates the other elements.
Taste: Extremely woody on the palate, just like the nose. Some fruits in this Balblair, but not a lot.
Very solid with emerging organics, but the wood dominates. After half an hour it finally jumped into the 90's.
Score: 90 points - I preferred this version quite a bit over the Balblair 1975 OB.
Balblair 16yo (40%, OB, Bottled +/- 2005)
Nose: Mild sherry, sweet and fruity. Beeswax? Faint spices in the background. Very pleasant indeed!
Later on I got oatmeal and warm milk. I like the fact that it develops, but I'm not crazy about the direction.
Taste: Smooth and sweetish, growing grittier in the centre. Feels a bit rough and grainy. Fruits. Hint of liquorice?
It falls apart in the finish - a little bitter, like burnt coffee beans. Could this be a blend or an Irish whiskey?
Score: 78 points - an enjoyable nose (subtle but still lower 80's) but the palate keeps it below the 80's.
Balblair NAS 'Elements' (40%, OB, Bottled +/- 2001, 70cl)
Nose: Light sweetness. Heather honey. Citrussy and malty. Raspberries! Toffee & Spices.
More 'coastal' and spicier after a few seconds, but the fruity/sweet undertone remains.
Hints of smoke, salt and peat. Chloride and dust. A little spirity with very soft sherry overtones.
Oily with a fair dash of peat. Some smoke, chloride and dust. 'Coastal'.Licorice root. Strawberries?
Taste: Ooh - that's a pity. Not as good as the nose. Clean with a hint of smoke. Sweetish, malty.
A tad too bitter in the finish; slightly metallic. Sweet and rough, with strong pear impressions.
A hint of peat; gritty with a tingle on the tongue. Smooth with apple overtones. Gingerbread?
Score: 74 points - I'm afraid the palate keeps it just below average.
Balblair 16yo (40%, OB, Bottled +/- 2000, 70cl)
Nose: Amazing development - very distinctive. A little pepper. Clove. Nutmeg?
Furniture wax. Hint of soap. Spicy. Fresh and old fruit. Quite entertaining, actually.
Taste: Flat start - malty, then bitter. Sweeter and nuttier later on. Someting fishy.
Smoke. Pinch of salt. Tannine without the grapes. Ultra-dry wood.
Score: 76 points - but I guess I expect a little more from a Northern Highlander?
Balblair 21yo 1975/1997 (56,5%, Signatory Vintage, Cask #7275, 655 Bottles)
Nose: Another light and 'bourbony' malt - but it has much more 'volume' than the Glenury Royal.
Soon spices and organics emerge; nice. Strike that - very nice! Whiff of peat after adding water.
Taste: Quite drinkable at cask strength, although it grows very hot and dry towards the finish.
Fruity in the centre with a faint hint of smoke or peat in the background. Loses point in the finish.
It seems even more fruity after adding some water. And once again I seemed to detect a little peat.
Score: 82 points - very interesting but in the end it's a little too hot, dry and bitter in the finish.
The surprising pinch of peat keeps it the eighties, though - and interesting experience.
Balblair 10yo (40%, Gordon & MacPhail, Bottled +/- 1992, 70cl)
Nose: Furniture polish? Intruiging fruity notes. Lots of character, but it drops off quickly.
Taste: Soft, smooth and sweet. Toffeeish. Slightly bitter. Dark chocolate in the finish.
I didn't find a lot of individuality, but it's very nice for everyday dramming.
Score: 77 points - above average; a good sipping whisky.
Balblair 10yo (40%, Gordon & MacPhail, Bottled 1980's, 5cl)
Nose: Oily. Wet wood. Very faint hint of peat. Not very expressive but quite unique.
Taste: Sweet, malty and woody. I absolutely love the tannins in the (ultra dry) finish.
Score: 70 points - sorry, I couldn't get any more from my quarter of a 5cl miniature.
Balblair NAS (70 Proof, Gordon & MacPhail, Bottled 1970's)
Nose: Lots of sherry. Antiquity. Chocolate. Furniture polish. Lemon. Salt. Organics.
What a lovely rich profile! Based on the nose alone this would surely reach the upper 80's.
Taste: Old cold tea. Not much else I could pick up - or if I did I didn't make notes of it...
Nice enough, but just not very interesting. Still a very good dram, mind you!
Score: 81 points - the palate pulls the score down to the lower 80's.
These were not all (official & independent) bottlings of Balblair Scotch whisky I've tried over the years.
Besides, these tasting notes only reflect my own, personal opinion; your tastes might be different from mine.
Fortunately, you can find the scores and tasting notes from up to two dozen other whisky lovers in the 'Malt Maniacs Monitor' - an independent whisky database with details on more than 15,000 different whiskies from Scotland and the rest of the world. Visit the Balblair page on the MMMonitor and select 'scorecard view' if you want to know how other whisky lovers felt about the hundreds of Balblair expressions that have been released in recent years. However, if you'd like to learn more about whisky in general (and single malt Scotch whisky in particular), you might want to check out the Beginner's Guide to Scotch whisky (10 chapters filled with everything you need to fully enjoy and appreciate a glass of single malt whisky) or the mAlmanac (sort of a rudimentary whisky shopping guide).
2001 - Inver House (the parent company that bought Balblair in 1996) was bought by Pacific Spirits from Thailand.
2007 - The entire range of Balblair official bottlings is refreshed, just after the release of a few very impressive vintage expressions that were distilled in 1973 and 1975. Beforehand, the official range of Balblair consisted of the 'Elements' expression, as well as a range of releases, mostly with an age statement. These expressions have now been replaced by vintage editions of Balblair in a higher price range.
The first Balblair
distillery was built in 1790 by John Ross.
That distillery was later managed by Andrew Ross & Son.
A second Balblair distillery was founded nearby in 1894 by
Alex Cowan & Co. This second Balblair distillery was closed
during World War I in 1915 and it wasn't revived again
until 1947, after the end of the second World War. In the
mean time, the Balnagowan Estate went bankrupt in 1941.
Inver House
bought Balblair distillery in 1996. Inver House Distillers Ltd. were themselves bought in 2001 by 'Pacific Spirits', part of the so-called 'Great Oriole Group'. This group is in turn controlled by a businessman from Thailand; Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi.
During the 1990's, most of the Asian investments came from Japan.
The three major Japanese investors in Scotland are Suntory (owning Auchentoshan, Bowmore and Glen Garioch through Morrision Bowmore), Nikka (owning Ben Nevis) and Takara Shuzo Okura (owning Tomatin). That means that by the turn of the millennium, 5 out of the circa 85 remaining active distilleries in Scotland were under Japanese control.
By buying Inver House in 2001, Thailand
matched the Japanese investments in a single blow, doubling the East Asian involvement in the Scotch whisky industry. Through Inver House, there are now five more distilleries that are being kept alive with funding from Asia; Balblair, Balmenach, Knockdhu, Old Pulteney and Speyburn.
Comparing the two lists of acquisitions, I'd have to say that the Japanese seem to have chosen more carefully. Most of these 'Thailand' distilleries haven't produced a lot of malts that made a lasting impression on me... Well, at least no so far - but I guess improvements in Balblair's production policy won't be felt on our shelves for a few years.
In 1949 Balblair was taken over by R. Cumming & Sons, a
subsidiary of Hiram Walker-Gooderham & Worts Ltd from
Canada. They expanded the number of stills at Balblair
from two to three. Only two of the stills are used regularly.
The Japanese have a broader 'portfolio' as well, including Lowland and Islay malts.
The Inver House distilleries are located in Speyside (Balmenach, Knockdhu and
Speyburn) and in the Northern Highlands (Balblair and Old Pulteney). I don't know
if the more nortnern location of Old Pulteney has something to do with it, but most
of the expressions I tried had a little more power and character than bottlings from
its relatively southern cousin, Balblair.
A generous glass of Balblair whisky is nothing to be scoffed at either, mind you...
Not all of the younger expressions I've tried so far made my heart really flutter,
but then again I haven't tried a bad Balblair either so far - most scored around
average in my book. Some bottlings from the mid 1970's were quite fantastic.
DD Overview
Is the distillery or


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As you might have followed my previous blogposts about my trip to Beijing and my 3 days there, you know that the city was a very exhausting one. There is no denying it, that it is beautiful, has a lot of culture and history and I saw so many different things I couldn't have seen anywhere else, I can be sure that I would never want to live in this city, even if the smog disappeared one day. This also doesn't mean that I dislike big cities, quite the contrary actually, I really love big cities. I am in love with Shanghai for example, and I could seriously imagine living there, but Beijing was something different. It's nice for a trip, but that's all.
If you have missed the posts, you can read about them here:
Arrival | Day One: Great Wall |Day Two: Forbidden City
When I woke up on my fourth day in Beijing, I took my bags, checked out and headed to the train station to catch my early train to Xi'An. The train station was smaller than expected and super busy. There were almost more foreigners than chinese people. I also saw like three travel groups full with german people.
Taking trains in China is so convenient and the prices are pretty good. Way cheaper than the trains here in Germany. That's one of the things that I miss the most about China.
Anyway, I arrived in Xi'An in the late afternoon. By the time my taxi driver took me to my hostel it was almost early evening. While I was on the train and on the taxi, I was texting my friend Qiqi, who lives in Xi'An. I met her on my travels to Suzhou in September as I posted on this blogpost, and I promised her to visit her in Xi'An before I left China.
She told me that her friend would pick me up and show me around town until she made it out of work.
By the time I got my things inside my dorm room which was huge by the way and very clean and almost empty (only 2 other people with me there), Qiqi's friend texted me that he arrived and waited in the lobby for me. We planned to go visit the Drum Tower and Bell Tower and then go to the Muslim Street Food Square. I was starving, so this was a great idea.
It was really nice of him to show me around. His english was also quite good, so he could do a little bit of translation between Qiqi and me. Qiqi's english was around the same level as my chinese. We somehow managed to communicate, even if it was just through smiles, gestures and hugs. But it was nice to somehow be able to communicate with her through her friend.
The Muslim Square actually blew my mind. It was my favourite part about Xi'An, and I would love to return just for the food sold there. They have everything from Kebap, Nut Candies, Muslim noodles, soups, pita-like breads, Fruits, Juices, Milk drinks, Fried stuff, just EVERYTHING! I was so overwhelmed, I didn't know where to look at and what to eat.
We sat down at a traditional restaurant that sold soups and meat. My friend told me that this place was a very old family restaurant, and all the locals knew about it. I ordered a normal noodle soup, my friend ordered the spicy version and he also ordered a dish made of intestines. He didn't know that I don't like intestines, but I tried to see how it tasted. I definitely didn't like it :D But he appreciated that I tried.
The food was delicious. We continued to roam around the streets a little bit more. I found a stand with the pita-style bread and bought one. It looked yummy, but it tasted a little bit dry.
Then I saw something fried. It was dough filled with vegetables and it looked sooooo yummy! We ordered some, shared it, but could only eat a little bit since it was really oily.
The Street Food market has a lot to offer. I was so full after only 3 dishes, that I could neither eat nor drink anything. I regret not having tried the pomegranate juice and the milk drinks that are really famous here.
I still wanted to buy some boxes of the nut candy though. I love them and I wanted to bring them to Germany so I bought two boxes, one with sesame and one natural.
After that, we finally went to meet Qiqi. She came with our friend's car which was a Jeep. We then drove to the Wild Goose Pagoda, another famous sight in Xi'An.
Bascially, on that first evening, I saw all the famous sights you can see inside of the city of Xi'An.
We took a lot of pictures there, walked around the square, and even found a park which had funny sculptures to pose with.
It's one of the best things you can do during your travels: Hanging out with locals who can show you around.
Unfortunately, it was getting quite late already, and I was feeling really sleepy. I had an early start and I had to wake up early the next morning as well, to go see the Terracotta Warriors.
Have you guys ever been to Xi'An? And let me know about your favourite street food you ever had.
Thanks for reading and travelling with me!


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Will Jon Stewart bomb as Oscar host?
Smile, David Letterman. You may soon lose your place in the history books as the worst Oscar host ever. The turkey could go to Jon Stewart.
Stewart has the potential of being a catastrophe of Cecil B. DeMille-sized epic proportions when he holds forth on the stage of the Kodak Theatre on March 5. Sure, he's edgy and full of the kind of defiant 'tude that attracts young hip TV viewers, but he's a comic assassin. When Stewart aims his jokes, he goes in for the kill.
That's what Chris Rock did last year when his potshot at Jude Law backfired, causing Sean Penn to rally to Jude's defense by going off script during the ceremony to insist that Jude is "one of our finest actors!" It was a snafu that's still talked about today and one that threatens to haunt Rock for eons.
The reason that Billy Crystal, Bob Hope and Johnny Carson reign as Oscar's greatest hosts is because they joshed affectionately with their peers while never losing a sense of awe for the augustness of the occasion. Can anti-establishment rebels like Stewart, Rock and Letterman get that? It's one thing Chris Rock certainly didn't understand — dismissing the whole occasion as only something those silly gay guys care about.
A great Oscar host is humble while presiding over a moment in history. "Welcome to the Academy Awards," Bob Hope once famously said, "or as it's known at my house, Passover." Another variation on that same gag, but in a different year: "We're all here to celebrate Oscar — or as he's known at my house, The Fugitive!"
Comedians like Jon Stewart exult in their own cockiness, not humility.
A great Oscar host appreciates the fact that he's presiding over Hollywood's family reunion. It's important, for example, to acknowledge esteemed seniors present, like Steve Martin did when he hailed Mickey Rooney in the audience, saying, "Mickey, I'm sorry we couldn't get you a better seat, but Vin Diesel is here."
Ah, just the right touch. An affectionate tweak, not a slap. And the audience — and Mickey — loved it.
When acknowledging the family rascals, it should be done with playfulness. "Roman Polanski's here," Steve Martin once said, "Get him!"
And if certain family members are in a family way, it's important to note so. "As host, I have a lot of duties to do tonight," Billy Crystal said. "If Warren happens to be on stage, if Annette goes into labor, I have to be her Lamaze coach. But she's a pro and I know she'll do it in one take."
Jokes can be savage, even cruel, but only if counterbalanced with affection. In 1981, when the Oscarcast was bumped a day while America waited to see if President Ronald Reagan would survive an assassination attempt, host Johnny Carson took a huge gamble. Knowing that the bedridden ex-actor was watching from his hospital room when the show finally went on, Carson suddenly launched into criticism of Reagan for cutting government spending. He called it "Reagan's strongest attack on the arts since he joined Warner Bros." Shocked viewers watched on in embarrassed silence, which Carson let linger for a painfully long while. Then he winked and said confidentially to the audience, "I'll bet he's up and around now!"
Oscar's chief gag writer Bruce Vilanch once described the perfect host: "It's best to have an insider who the live audience is comfortable with. You don't want them to feel like this is a person you jobbed in."
But that's what Oscar bosses have done this year by jobbing in another cocky New Yorker — much like David Letterman — who has never been chummy with the California film crowd.
Are they crazy?
"Oh, what could Jon Stewart possibly do wrong?" you ask.
Stewart, let's face it, is famous for insulting his hosts — and without an affectionate follow up.
Remember what he said to Tucker Carlson when he appeared as a guest on "Crossfire"? After mocking Carlson for wearing a bow tie, Stewart fumed, "You're as big a dick on your show as you are on any show!"
OK, so Stewart had a private beef with Carlson that fueled his outburst. ("What you do is partisan hackery!" he railed at the "Crossfire" host.) But Stewart had no apparent grudge against the Magazine Publishers of America last September when he agreed to emcee a discussion about magazine humor.
Once underway, no one was laughing when he launched into attacks against Time and Cosmopolitan that didn't end in punch lines.
He told Cosmo editor Kate White, "You clearly have disdain for your readers."
Then he turned on editor Jim Kelly for Time's handling of the Valerie Plame case: "One federal prosecutor says 'let me see your notes' and immediately everyone pulls their underwear over their heads and hands it over! Not only that — Newsweek breaks the story!"
One thousand of those magazines' advertisers watched on in the audience, dumbstruck at the sight of a very unfunny prima donna in meltdown mode.
"I don't consider the print media as relevant," Stewart harrumphed at his hosts who had paid him an appearance fee of $150,000 to lead a discussion about comedy. "I didn't say you weren't important. I just said you were at the kids' table."
Obviously, he wasn't kidding. Stewart's appearance at MPA turned out to be one of the biggest media debacles of 2005.
So considering that, how do you think Stewart will handle his job hosting that big media event out west in March? Can this guy be all warm, fuzzy and cuddly? And convincing at it?
Keep in mind that he didn't do a very good job hosting the Grammys in 2001 and 2002. At least he wasn't too arrogant, though. The Hollywood Reporter described his performance as "hopelessly awkward and uncomfortable."


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Great news! Barnsdall Art Park Foundation has approved $25,000 worth of grants towards important long-term purchases for Barnsdall facilities. We have offered $5000 to each of the 5 facilities at Barnsdall — the Art Center, the Junior Art Center, the Gallery Theatre, the Municipal Art Gallery, and Frank Lloyd Wright's Hollyhock House — and have worked closely with the city staff and other support organizations to identify the most needed items.
To date, we have dispersed approximately $18,000 of the total funds. Purchased so far:
- A brand new piano for the music program at the Junior Art Center
- A Bonny Doon hydraulic press for the jewelry program
- State-of-the-art Sennheiser microphones for the Gallery Theatre
- Patio furniture for the Gallery for use during its openings and events
- New mahogany countertops that match the original kitchen countertops in Hollyhock House
Your generous tax-deductible donations and wine tasting tickets have made these important gifts possible. Please donate to help us keep Barnsdall as a vibrant and dynamic center of activity!