Trader Joe’s does not have a distillery in Scotland to make their 10 yr Highland Single Malt. Nor does Alexander Murray & Co. who sourced the casks that ended up in the bottles. Alexander Murray, and by extension Trader Joe’s is a NDP. A Non-Distiller Producer. Which just means that they make a deal with a distillery to buy some barrels, bottle it as their own and in this case not tell anyone where it came from. Which is not a big deal so long as they don’t claim to have distilled it. Which they don’t so we’re all good on that front.
Though being the curious fell that I am I did some digging around on-line to see if I could find out where it came from, but to no avail. The secret has not slipped out so I have to turn to the senses. The nose and finish reminds me a lot of Glenmorangie 10 (which it definitely isn’t because they don’t do private bottlings), but the palate reminds me a bit more of Glenfiddich 12. It’s a Glenmoddich if you will. But hey we could sit around and speculate about who made it all day long, and in the end it’s rather unimportant. The important thing is how it actually tastes and if it’s worth the $20 I paid for it.
Trader Joe’s 10 yr Highland Single Malt Review
ABV: 40%
Age: 10 years
Price: $20
Distiller: N/A
Bottler: Alexander Murray & Co. / Trader Joe’s
EYE
Golden pear juice
NOSE
Sweet, fruity and surprisingly robust for what I was expecting. It can’t hold a candle to the aforementioned Glenmorangie, but it has some nice notes of honey, vanilla, apricots, malt, pears, apples and graham cracker pie crust. There is an intense buttercream like sweetness riding under the whole thing that can become a bit cloying once you lock onto it, but really not too bad at all.
TASTE
Mildly sweet with dark dry undertones and an overall watery quality to it. Notes of malt, vanilla, oak, honey, dried orchard fruit and a touch of overripe banana and caramel dominate the palate. There is a bit of bitterness hiding out in the glass along with an ambiguous “dirty” sweetness that tastes just a few degrees off of center.
BALANCE, BODY & FEEL
An ok balance with nothing too cloying or overpowering supported by a medium body and a lax mouthfeel.
FINISH
Medium in length with a dry, sweet and oaky flavor mixed with some notes of honey, malt, graham, ash and vanilla.
OVERALL
This is a “set it and forget it” whisky. It’s the kind of cheap dram you keep around the house for when you’re doing chores and your only requirement is to not have something terrible in your glass. It’s also good for cocktails or when you’re having guests over who “like” Scotch, but don’t LIKE Scotch, if you know what I mean. So all in all, not bad, especially for the price.
SCORE: 81/100
I’ve tried 4 TJs scotches in the past 6 months (which is about how long ive been drinking scotch… mostly a bourbon fan). This one wasn’t bad, some complexity (from opening to finish) and is good for the price ($24 here in New Mexico 2023). I liked the 8 year Speyside better but liked the 10 year better than the rum finish or finlaggan… the fruit is better on the 8 year spey. The rum and finlaggan was basically like a cheap young light blended scotch with artificial fruit or smoke/iodine flavoring added (respectively) but hey this 4 bottle tour of o
Joe goes to Scotland set me back a whopping $90 and cigars cover the taste of everything so I’ll call it a win.
That ain’t a bad price for a tour, and a good cigar always helps :) Cheers Casey!
Got it for $17.99 in Goleta CA; not bad, at least as good as most blended. Reminds me a bit of Glenmorangie. I was also trying to figure out where it really came from. If Glenmorangie doesn’t sell to third parties, then it is similar to Dalwinie or Dalmore, but I suspect they don’t have capacity. So, I remain puzzled. I mean to try their Speyside…$16.99.
I’ve talked to several Glenmo reps, and Dr. Bill himself, and they all swear Glenmo hasn’t let any casks out on the indie market in about two decades or more so it’s not likely. Cheers!
Man, this is a pretty bad one. I wish I had laid down the extra 8 bucks and grabbed the Glennfidich or Monkey Shoulder. I have half a bottle left and am trying to get through it, but I might just have to let it be in the cabinet for mixing for guests or something.
I don’t know how long you’ve had yours open for, so I hate to tell you this, but it gets even worse the longer it’s open. I’m creeping through the end of this bottle so I can do the last glass re-review and it only got worse with time.
Have you tried their 8 year old speyside yet? It’s actually quite good, especially for the price. Speyburn with less acridity.
I haven’t yet, but I’ve been thinking about it. Cheers!
No, you cannot get it in Texas. Texas does not allow liquor sales in grocery stores – only beer and wine. The closest place you could get any of their offerings, is the Baton Rouge La., Trader Joe’s. My wife works for TJ’s here in Houston, and every time we pass through Baton Rouge, we stop and stock up in their liquor department.
My guess is this came from a large producer of single malts whose product goes into other companies’ blended Scotch. Based on the flavor profile, much, if not all, could have been young Tomatin or something else of the ilk.
Can you get TJ scotch in Texas stores?!
If they sell liquor in the grocery stores there then I imagine they would carry it, but I honestly don’t know.
I guess finding useful, reliable intiamrfoon on the internet isn’t hopeless after all.
Thank you :)