Captain Springtide has the dubious honour of being a Christmas Eve baby, he was born to the strains of "Silent Night" being sung in the maternity ward which I suppose was a fairly daft choice of carol considering. Any way he has always felt hard done by as many friends and family would get him a joint Christmas and birthday present, we even had an official birthday one year on June the 24th to make up for his great hardship in earlier years. No matter what time of the year we celebrate there is never any problem in a choice of present. Whisky.He loves it and I do like a dram or two myself, being born in Glasgow you really cannot escape liking it but as I have become older or let us say, matured gracefully I find I will choose it over many other sweeter drinks.

The Famous Grouse is one of the bottles that winged it's way into our home over Christmas and is a brand that we are quite familiar with. Developed by Matthew Gloag, whose name is embossed on the clear bottle, it has remained a hugely popular whisky for many years. It is a rich, golden brown colour which blends beautifully with the Red Grouse which graces the cream label, The bird was originally drawn by Phillipa, Matthew Gloag's daughter when the whisky was first blended in Perth in Scotland in 1896. I was intrigued as to the ingredients that make up such a successful whisky so I did a little research and came up with the conclusion that they are not going to tell you!. On the label on the back of the bottle it reveals that it is a blend of fine malt whiskies The Macallan and Highland Park. On the website it revealed that it also includes Glenturret which is a grain whisky and comes from one of the oldest distilleries in Scotland. After that it is as hidden as red grouse up in the heather! Long may it stay that way, I like a bit of a mystery.

The whisky is matured in oak casks which gives it a touch of sweetness, even so I cannot drink it neat except in times of dire emergency. It is just too strong at 40% vol and makes my lips numb, what a wimp! But, over ice or with soda water it is a smooth and delicious drink with a clean finish to be savoured on a cold night and will definitely give you a glow inside. It mixes very well with dry ginger and will lift an after dinner coffee into something very special.

My Opinion.

Apparently The famous Grouse was a favourite of Queen Victoria's and who am I to argue with such an authority! It is a smooth whisky, perhaps not quite up to the standard of sipping on it's own but great with a mixer such as ginger. If you are taking a present to a whisky drinker and do not know his preferences this will always be acceptable and welcomed in whole heartedly. As such it earns it's place amongst other whiskies as a good all rounder and can proudly bear the Gaelic name for whisky, "Usquebaugh", The Water of Life.

Living so close to Gibraltar as we do we can buy our drinks at around 40% cheaper than in the UK which makes The Famous Grouse a good buy but looking on the website www.thefamousgrouse.co.uk I see that it retails around 21.99pounds for 1litre and 15.99pounds for 75ml. You can also order your own customized label which is a nice touch.

4 stars from me, a good blended whisky but a bit on the expensive side.

Thanks for reading my review, I also post on Ciao under splishsplash