Kirkland 15yo Highland
Costco Bottling | 46% ABV
Score: 4/10
Some promise.
TL;DR
Drinkable, but nothing’s there
Reversion to the mean
Let me first say the obvious: I’m an ardent whisky lover.
That’s a bit of a “no-duh” statement. I ramble for an independent whisky website for free. I take bottle pics and notes. I host tastings. I post on Instagram. My only payment is the joy and satisfaction I receive from combining my two passions: whisky and writing.
Like any hobby, we do it for the pleasure of it and that’s it.
Someone who plays adult sports, takes acting classes, or does painting, dancing, gardening, birdwatching, stamp collecting, extreme ironing, or any of the infinite activities that exist simply for happiness and relaxation likely has the same thoughts about their chosen obsession: we love it, it feeds the soul, what else is there?
This is an important point I’ll come back to in a bit.
A few months ago I wrote a lengthy piece about a big box store (Total Wine) white-labelled whisky: Sheldaig. Within it I made not only some scathing comments about the surreptitious nature of Total Wine’s business model of pushing these mediocre bottles to unsuspecting consumers, but also a self-accepted charge, brought on by a friend and our readers, to attempt more “whisky for the masses” write-ups.
This also comes from a marketplace of ideas shared closer to the beginning of the year in Wally’s “State of the union” Dramface story where a handful of comments asked whether we should feature more mainstream bottles, seen through the eyes of the casual whisky sipper, who comprise 90%+ of the whisky drinking population.
I suppose my second in that “series” (if you want to call it that) was the new core range Lagavulin 11 year “Sweet Peat” release. A bottle I likely wouldn’t have purchased on my own, but did so on behalf of our readers.
The obvious difficulty with showcasing more mainstream releases is that the Dramface writers’ group is a passionate collective of punters who agonize over their whisky purchases (as we all do). Asking someone to carve out a piece of their preciously allocated budget to go toward an “average” bottle that’s popular but may lack engagement is a tall order.
And this is where the first point comes back into play. I’m a whisky lover.
I want to seek the best of what this amber liquid I’ve chosen to obsess over has to offer. The delicious and exciting, distilleries and bottlers I’ve yet to explore, different cask profiles and age statements, the funky, fresh, fruity, strange, divergent, dirty, clean, and inviting. What’s new? What’s old? What’s good? What’s special? What’s exceptional?
As Homer Simpson so eloquently stated: “…I want it all! The terrifying lows, the dizzying highs, the creamy middles!”
Because of this the bottles I’ve chosen for this website tend to score higher. As our writers go, I’m probably on the higher end if one were to average my scores, minus a few landmines here and there. But that’s simply because I seek out very good whisky and I like to write about very good whisky. Not that the others don’t obviously, maybe I’m just lucky.
To be clear, there are duds in the Dunlop closet for sure and plenty of bottles I hesitate to reach for over others, but what’s the fun in writing about those? I don’t see myself as a whisky critic, I’m a whisky lover.
But we’re in the arena of opinions (and a vast array of opinions I might add) and building trust among our readers is paramount for our little website to succeed - who can trust a writer who only fawns over their subject? Where’s the spectrum of viewpoints?
Further, to take it to the philosophical level, we must absorb the good with the bad so the “good” seems better and is more recognizable. Joy and suffering forever intertwined, all very Nietzsche. (Friedrich only had to say that’s why “averages” exist.)
Bottom line, a score correction, or “reversion to the mean” is in order from ol’ Archie.
As I mentioned in my Sheldaig piece, according to the internet, Total Wine is the undisputed champion of North American alcohol sales (which makes their peddling of second-rate swill a further travesty). But we can’t talk about spirits heavyweights without mentioning Costco, who also - according to the internet, are the world’s largest alcohol retailer and sell more wine by volume than any store on the planet, particularly their “Kirkland Signature” series, which is omnipresent in households across the U.S.
I grew up in an alcohol control state, a concept our intrepid “whisky desert” contributor Ogilvie has repeatedly opined on. When I moved to California, as a spirits enthusiast, more in the “bottom-shelf” category at the time, it was a revelation. Booze in the grocery store? Heaven.
But such is the power of Costco, and our fragile democracy, that a few years after moving here, they funded a ballot measure in my home state to reverse its status as an alcohol control state and allow private businesses to sell spirits. Despite soaring taxes on said spirits and now suffering some of the highest alcohol prices in the country, the ballot measure passed and consumers made the transition - obviously a boon to this behemoth of the industry.
So to the point; Costco got the juice, in more ways than one.
But I digress, the power of corporations over American elections is a discussion for another time. I have no problem with Costco. The Dunlop household are Costco members. Where else can one have their tires rotated while picking up a whole rotisserie chicken, four pounds of coffee, new gym shorts, two liters of whisky, and a pair of eyeglasses all in the same place?
And speaking of which, for the most part, their in-house brands aren’t bad. Kirkland Signature tequila is good (their Reposado is a shelf staple) and for fun I presented it at a blind tequila tasting where all agreed it was tasty. And I’m in lock step with Nick’s Kirkland Signature Islay Single Malt (rumored to be Caol Ila) Dramface write up. If I was merely looking for cocktail mixers, the Kirkland Signature 12-year blended scotch is only $35 for a 1.75 liter bottle. Insane value.
Review
Kirkland Signature 15yo, Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky, matured in bourbon barrels, finished for nine months in Oloroso Sherry casks, 46% ABV
$65 paid (£51). Widely Available (Only at Costco)
But it’s hard for me to quantify the bottle under discussion today. Because the specs are right there: a 15 year “Highland Single Malt” whisky for $65 (750 ml!), Sherry cask finish, 46% ABV (although it doesn’t say “no color added” so we can assume there is).
True whisky for the masses…. but are the masses being let down?
Score: 4/10
Some promise.
TL;DR
Drinkable, but nothing’s there
Nose
Pleasant enough, but unfortunately everything feels faint; there’s no strong notes that jump out initially.
Raisin bread. Plain pastry. Honey sweetness, brown sugar, and apple sauce do come through. Lots of doughy maltiness. Oatmeal, pastry, and pie crust. Dry wood. A little stale dustiness and traces of old couch mustiness. Orange gummy bears. Finally, some vanilla. Just a very light whisky. Flat Dr. Pepper. Round, inoffensive, mellow, and plain, like a xerox copy of what Highland malt whisky is supposed to smell like.
Given time I did pick up some fruity fresh Gala Apple notes and overripe nectarines that salvage this overall, but again it’s faint. Water flattens this further, but brings sugar muffin and Hawaiian Punch. Watery apple puree.
Palate
A little spiciness I wasn’t expecting and more honey and generic red stone fruits. More inoffensive “roundness” (don’t say smooth), faint red fruits like cherries but not a ton of depth. I thought at 15 years there’d be a little more stickiness on the palate, but the mouthfeel is thin and basic. A little wood spice. Water brings a diluted juiciness that’s a little fruitier but just thins it out. Heaps of malty sweetness on a short-medium finish. Red apples and more brown sugar.
The Dregs
I drank A LOT of this whisky trying to find something! Anything! That could stand out. I think I wanted to like it. So many big box brands and white labelled whiskies are chill filtered and knocked down to 43 or 40% ABV so as to be undrinkable. I was hoping the higher ABV would lead to more engagement. A triumphant victory for the masses.
Welp.
It’s so rounded and inoffensive that the average punter would yawn, but as I said it’s like a “copy of scotch whisky” so someone might find this, enjoy it, and move on to other gateway whiskies. We welcome them all! If someone who likes this is led down the amber highway toward the “good stuff” then god bless ‘em. It’s very drinkable, but there’s just nothing there, like a Vitamin Water or La Croix.
When I originally purchased this bottle for the point of writing about it, and checking out a 15 year 46% ABV bottle (what could go wrong?); I thought it might be fun to try and “guess” the distillery since Alexander Murray, the bottler, have strict non-disclosure agreements with the sources of their Kirkland Signature whiskies. I thought I could narrow it down, but this is so generic and basic that it’s next to impossible: maybe a forensic whisky scientist far more skilled than I could figure it out.
Whoever the distillery is, they’re shipping volume because this stuff is not only bottled at 750ml, it disappears by the palette at Costco’s nationwide. Good for them. It’s possible they just vat all the discarded casks the distillery doesn’t want to bottle together as a way to just get it out, who knows.
I’ll keep on doing the people’s business and writing about these as I come across them from time to time, but readers be warned - I’m a whisky lover.
Stating the obvious once again, and I’d much rather be seeking out the best of the best, honing my craft, hunting for value-and-quality, and hoping to have fun, because that’s what we botherers, enthusiasts, punters, and worldwide whisky zealots do.
Good thing my partner likes whisky cokes because I’ll be pouring those all Summer.
Score: 4/10
Tried this? Share your thoughts in the comments below. AD
-
Dramface is free.
Its fierce independence and community-focused content is funded by that same community. We don’t do ads, sponsorships or paid-for content. If you like what we do you can support us by becoming a Dramface member for the price of a magazine.
However, if you’ve found a particular article valuable, you also have the option to make a direct donation to the writer, here: buy me a dram - you’d make their day. Thank you.
For more on Dramface and our funding read our about page here.
