Compass Box Rogues’ Banquet is a gastronomically inspired blended whisky created for the 20th anniversary of the company. It celebrates the art of dining together, sharing a dram and gathering with other people – it’s quite ironic that it was launched in March 2020, not long before a global shutdown.
The recipe for Rogues’ Banquet includes roughly 70% of Miltonduff, 25% North British grain and tiny portions of Clynelish and Glen Elgin, all from classic barrels / hogsheads, the majority of which recharred. All components are 25 years or older.
Compass Box Rogues’ Banquet (46%, OB 2020, 5267 btl.)
Nose: fresh and open, with lots of juicy fruits like ripe pear, apricots and light tropical notes (pineapple, papaya). Candied ginger. Some meadow flowers and subtle waxy notes. Vanilla custard. Quite gourmand indeed.
Mouth: same feeling. Peaches, hints of banana and plums. Now the grain whisky becomes noticeable, as well as some drying oak char and spices like pepper and cardamom.
Finish: long, with more ginger and peppery oak, softened by honeyed fruits and some caramelized nuts.
A very good blend: a generous amount of aromatic malt whisky supported by the right dose of mature grain. That said, you get the same profile from a single malt Miltonduff of similar age, for considerably less… Still available from The Whisky Exchange or Master of Malt for instance.