Dewar’s 21-Year-Old Double Double Aged

Mar 7

Dewar’s 15 Year Old “The Monarch” introduced me to the brand - Dewar’s 21 Year Old Double Double Aged put it on my must-have list. Master Blender Stephanie Macleod introduced the The Double Double series in 2019 with three ages - 21-, 27-, and 32-years-old. In each, there is a four-step aging process:

The malt and grain whiskies are aged separately in oak casks.
The malt whiskies are blended together and allowed to rest and marry in casks that are 2nd-use or older, meaning it is basically just a neutral container. The grain whiskies go through the same process.
After the malt and grain whiskies have sufficiently blended themselves (separately) in the neutral casks, they are finally blended together and allowed to rest one more time in a neutral cask.
The malt and grain blend is finished in an Oloroso sherry cask for up to one year.

Let’s think this through - this is a lot of work, and doesn't even go in-depth into choosing the grain and malt whiskies to go into the first step. Blenders are seriously under-appreciated in the US. In Scotland, Ireland, Japan, and Canada - the other four major whisky-making regions - blenders are the backbone of the industry. While the US is obsessed with single malts from abroad, they only account for 10% of the scotch industry’s volume - 90% of all scotch sold is blends.

Macleod is responsible for all the main-line blends in the Dewar’s lineup, and each has its own story to tell. By adding this double-aging (really quadruple-aging) process, she has managed to add new layers of complexity, smoothness, and depth to an already masterful blend.

The Double Double is what won Macleod the 2020 Whisky of the Year at The International Whisky Competition®, where she was also named Blender of the Year for the second year in a row. Once you try it, it’s not hard to see why.

Dewar’s 21-Year-Old Double Double Aged: Specs

Classification: Blended Scotch Whisky

Origin: Dewar’s

Mashbill: 100% Malted Barley

Proof: 92 (46% ABV)

Age: 21 Year Old

Location: Scotland

Dewar’s 21-Year-Old Double Double Aged Price: $50 (375ml)

Official Website

Dewar’s 21-Year-Old Double Double Aged: Tasting Notes

Eye: Dark maple syrup. Thin-to-medium unstable rims bleed thin syrup legs.

Nose: Plenty of sweet sherry, red fruits studded with cinnamon, clove, and star anise. Some oak up in the nose, but it’s mild. Undertones of malt and grain give body and a not-too-sugary sweet element.

Palate: Oloroso, smoothed out and chocolate-heavy. Dark red fruits dried under the chocolate. Oak spice lurks, but is perfectly kept in check by the Raisinette sweetness. Mouthfeel is wonderfully coating, silky, not overly heavy, textured, oily, and creamy (I couldn’t stop thinking of descriptors for this, seriously).

Finish: Dark, cigar-like, dark oloroso for days. Red fruit, oak, fruit wood, and chocolate all perfectly in balance.

Overall: What a showstopper. Blend is completely balanced, with each flavor playing its part. Hints of dried fruits peek out more towards the end then they do up front (where it’s more fresh than dried), and the pour develops as you drink it.

Final Rating: 8.4

10 | Insurpassable | Nothing Else Comes Close (Blanton’s Straight from the Barrel)

9 | Incredible | Extraordinary (GTS, Elijah Craig Barrel Proof B518 and B520)

8 | Excellent | Exceptional (12+YO MGP Bourbon, Highland Park Single Barrels)

7 | Great | Well above average (Blanton’s Original, Old Weller Antique, Booker’s)

6 | Very Good | Better than average (Four Roses Small Batch Select, Knob Creek 14+ YO Picks)

5 | Good | Good, solid, ordinary (Elijah Craig Small Batch, Buffalo Trace, Old Grand-Dad Bottled-in-Bond)

4 | Sub-par | Many things I’d rather have (A.D. Laws Four Grain, Compass Box “Oak Cross”)

3 | Bad | Flawed (Iron Smoke Bourbon, Balcones)

2 | Poor | Forced myself to drink it (Buckshee Bourbon and Rye)

1 | Disgusting | Drain pour (Virginia Distilling Co. Cider Cask)