Ballantine's whiskey is a brand of blended whiskey native to Scotland. Its production is carried out by George Ballantine & Son Ltd. The company settled in the Scottish city of Dumbarton. “Balantays” - whiskey (reviews of amateurs and experts confirm this), which is considered one of the best representatives of strong blended drinks.
Brand history
The story of Balantays began in Scotland when grocer George Ballantyne decided in 1869 that he could leave his old business for his eldest son and move from Edinburgh to Glasgow. There he opens a specialized store selling wine and spirits. As a connoisseur of strong drinks, George decides to launch his own whiskey. To do this, he develops a unique blending recipe, the result of which was liked by the residents of the capital. Mr. Ballantyne's whiskey was a great success, and after a number of years he kept several of his own distilleries and distilleries throughout Scotland.
Meanwhile, George had a second son, who enthusiastically took part in his father’s business. George Ballantine and Son Ltd. was founded. Around the same time, export of Balantays whiskey abroad began. Things went smoothly, and in 1881 the founder of the company retired, entrusting the management of the enterprise to George Ballantyne Jr.
The offspring of expectation lived up to and increased paternal achievements. He managed to obtain for Balantays whiskey a license from Her Majesty's suppliers and a royal certificate of quality. In 1919, the family managed to profitably sell the plants, technology and company name Barclay and McKinlay. Later, all rights were resold to the French giant Pernod Ricard, which is engaged in the production of alcohol brands such as Chivas Regal, Jameson, Havana Club, Beefeater, Absolut, Malibu, Martel, Olmeca.
Ballantine 's Assortment
To date, the Balantays whiskey line is represented by six types:
- Finest is the flagship product, has a relatively mild flavor with hints of sweetness and a multi-faceted aftertaste.
- Whiskey "Balantays" 12 years of aging - the honey sweetness of the blend is diluted with the aroma of spices.
- “Balantays” 12 years of aging: blended melt - aged in the barrel pure malt whiskey with a mild fresh taste with a delicate nutty aftertaste.
- "Balantays" 17 years of aging - a sweet taste with woody oak shades.
- Whiskey "Balantays" 21 years of aging - a combination of aromas of spices and heather fumigation in a bouquet.
- “Balantays” 30 years of aging - the tenderness of fruits and vanilla is flavored with harsh oak tones, these are whiskeys in the color of aged gold.
The appearance of the bottle and the company label has been almost completely preserved since the 19th century. The standard volume of containers "Balantays" is 0.7 liters. The exception is Finest, which is produced in bottles of 0.75 liters, 1 liter and 1.75 liters. The recipe for the legendary drink is kept secret, but it is known for certain that in addition to grain alcohol, the blend includes various single malt varieties. The foundation is Glenburgie-Glenlivet. Blend ingredients include approximately 57 different alcohols. In just over 180 years of history, Ballantine's has been replaced by only five major blending masters. The current is Sandy Hislop, appointed in 2006.