Brand

Ballantine's whiskies

Ballantine’s is one of the world’s best-selling Scotch blends and a brand with a long history in Spain. Its origins lie in the grocer’s shop George Ballantine opened in Edinburgh in the first half of the 19th century, where he began blending whiskies. Today it belongs to Pernod Ricard. The range goes from the popular Finest, designed for mixing, to very old blends that are benchmarks among luxury Scotch.

Created
1827
Owner
Pernod Ricard
Origin
Scotland
In the catalogue
6 whiskies

History, style and where to startBallantine's official website

6 whiskies

Guide to Ballantine's

History

George Ballantine went from selling groceries to specialising in wines and whiskies, and his sons expanded the business until it became a prestigious brand at the end of the 19th century. In the 1930s the Canadian firm Hiram Walker bought the company and built a large grain distillery in Dumbarton, as well as acquiring several Speyside malt distilleries. Ballantine’s Finest already existed at the beginning of the 20th century, and the aged blends, such as the 17-year-old, came later. After several changes of ownership, the brand passed to Pernod Ricard in 2005, which brought it into Chivas Brothers.

House style

Ballantine’s style is smooth and balanced, with a light grain whisky base and Speyside malts that bring honey, fruit and vanilla. Distilleries such as Miltonduff and Glenburgie are the heart of the blends, and in the older versions a touch of island smoke appears. The young blends are sweet and easy; the older ones gain oak, spice and complexity, with a longer finish. It is a very consistent style from batch to batch, which is exactly what you want in a great blend.

Average flavour profile of its 6 whiskies in the catalogue

Sweet
2.9
Fresh fruit
2.1
Ripe and dried fruit
1.1
Floral and herbal
1.3
Cereal and malt
1.5
Vanilla and creamy
2.4
Oak
1.6
Spicy
1.3
Toasted
1.3
Smoky
0.5
Maritime
0.1
Body and intensity
2.2

Where to start

If you want a blend for mixing, Ballantine’s Finest is the house benchmark. For drinking neat, Ballantine’s 12 Year Old adds body and honeyed sweetness, and the 7 Year Old Bourbon Finish adds vanilla. If you’re after an old Scotch, the 17-year-old is one of the most highly regarded blends.

This text was generated and translated by AI and may contain errors. Founding year, owner and official website come partly from Wikidata.

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