Monkey Shoulder is a blended malt from William Grant & Sons, launched in 2005 as a deliberate “triple malt,” combining single malts from the company’s three Speyside distilleries on the Dufftown estate: Balvenie (built 1893), Glenfiddich (1887) and Kininvie (1990). The whiskies are vatted together in small batches of 27 casks at a time (hence the “Batch 27” marking on the neck collar) and matured in first-fill ex-bourbon casks for three to six months before bottling at 40% ABV. The quirky name comes from an old repetitive-strain injury suffered by distillery malt men who turned barley by hand on the malting floor, leaving one arm hanging low “like a monkey’s shoulder.”
CHARACTER
Orange Peel: zesty orange on the nose
Vanilla: mellow on the nose and palate
Honey: on the nose
Cinnamon: on the palate
Pineapple: overripe pineapple on the nose
TASTING NOTES
NOSE- Zesty orange meets mellow vanilla, honey, overripe pineapple and spiced oak.
PALATE- Mellow, creamy vanilla with spicy hints, toasty oak and cinnamon.
FINISH- A light citrus note and a long, delightful finish.
