Before I start I would like to say that this has not been an easy review to write. For a long time I just sat staring at the computer with no words coming to mind for me to type. I at first thought this was writers block...check out how pretentious I am getting in my old age...however, I now realise it was the product that was causing the problems.

Aberlour 10 Year Old Whisky is a good whisky. And that was my problem, I really do feel I could stop the review now with those nine words! However, you obviously need to know more than simply that and why that is the case, so here goes.

Lets start with that all important sniff. This is a very dry whisky, very reminiscent of the sherry oak cask that it is matured in. Fruit is also a main factor in the aroma and that makes this a very sweet smelling whisky. To sum up this section I would say that this whisky smells like you would expect a whisky to smell.

Taste? The first thing that you notice is the smotthness of the whisky, it doesn't so much assalt you as caress you. Once again you are reminded of the fruit with pear and apple tones being the order of the day. I am going to say this again though as this is going to be my main point later, this whisky tastes exactly like a whisky is supposed to taste.

How about that all important finish? Once again I would simply like to say that yes it has a finish. It is long, soft and warming, just as a whisky should be.

And that really is the main problem with this whisky. It is a good whiskey. The description says that this is a definitive example of a Speyside Single Malt and that is exactly what it is, it is a whisky. However, it is not a memorable one.

I first encountered this whisky at a pub, and as I recall now I enjoyed it, abd then thought nothing more of it. My next experience was buying a bottle for a holiday from a supermarket. I saw it, I know that I had tasted this whisky before but I couldnt remember where, and I had no recallection of it so I thought I would give it a go again. That bottle is long gone and now that I come to write this review, I couldn't for the life of me remember it. It took this long mulling it over to recall it and to have an opinion of it.

Don't get me wrong this is not a negative review. Aberlour is not a bad whiskey. It does exactly what it says on the bottle. It is a 10 year old Speyside single malt, but that is all that it is. Don't expect fireworks with this bottle.

In my mind a great whisky is one that leaves you with a memory, the place you drank it, the people you were with, the reason it was good, heck I can remember the atmosphere at the time of drinking a great whisky. Aberlour does not give you that. It is a good whisky to introduce whisky to friends or as a bottle to take on holiday with people that drink whisky but dont love whisky.

Picking this out from the shelf you are looking for a deep red cylinder box with the white label. If you are looking to buy this whisky it is available online from the Aberlour website (www.aberlour.com) for £23.00. Alternatively Sainsbury's currently have it on offer at £16.99. My local whisky shop I have not asked what he sells it for, and I don't think I will be doing.

Dont get me wrong, I don't hate this whisky by any imagination, I merely don't love it either. It's middle of the road. A safe whisky.