Overall rating
87.93/100
votes
56
Whiskybase ID
WB204161
Category
Single Malt
Distillery
Bottler
Archives (Arc)
Bottling serie
Venomous Snakes
Vintage
11.01.2017
Bottled
27.07.2021
Stated Age
04 years old
Casktype
New French Oak Barrel
Casknumber
15981
Number of bottles
213
Strength
66.3 % Vol.
Size
700 ml
Added on
08 feb 2022 2:52 pm by Dirk
UncoloredNon-chillfilteredCask StrengthSingle Cask Whisky

Average value

€ 117.00

31 × in wishlist

56 × member ratings

102 × in collection

Whisky reviews for Balcones 2017 Arc

19 users have left 19 reviews for this whisky. Average rating is 87.93 points.

  1. MaltMartin scored this whisky 90 points Connoisseur

    For me Balcones is one of the real new bright stars in the whiskey world of today. It seems their single malt whiskey becomes better by the year. This Balcones four years old is ridiculously good and a step-up in comparison to the Archives which was released last year.
    • Nose
      Starts with truckloads of toasted oak, molasses and hints of nutmeg. After a while the stewed fruitiness of figs and dates arrive. Also plenty of glazed cherries and raspberries. Hints of raisins, mint and espresso coffee. Honey-clover. Chili pepper and leather in the background.
    • Taste
      Rich and round with bitter dark chocolate, butterscotch and treacle. Followed by orange peel and sultanas. Later on blue berries and black currants as well. Maple syrup, moccha and pine resin. Multi-layered spiciness of cumin, caraway and aniseed.
    • Finish
      Long and lingering with cinnamon and a little clove. Some liquorice and fudge. Spearmint at the end. There's so much to discover in this whiskey.

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  3. peatbogger scored this whisky 88 points Specialist

    A WB sample.
    I've had a bottle and some of the Texas and enjoyed it a lot.
    This is another great one from a relative new contributor.
    • Nose
      89 89
      Rich and amazingly complex for it's age.
      Sweet dark fruits. Molasses. Nuts. Coffee. And I detect a hint of glue.
      Alc is noticeable but I would never have guessed +66
    • Taste
      88 88
      Solid. It doesn't knock you off your feet, it rather leans in and pushes you over.
      The heavy toasted wood brings bold flavours in a variety that manage to hide it's youth very nicely.
      Not red but rather black berries. A bit of resin.
      Water reduce the heat of the ABV but does little to reduce the spice, so it gets easier to drink although it feels more spicy.
    • Finish
      87 87
      Quite long, sweet and dark fruity.
      Empty glass have an unusual but very nice smell of scorched wood mixed with mint.

  4. karloff scored this whisky 87 points Specialist

    This was a sample courtesy of Whiskeybase.
    I too really like Balcones and what they are putting out. I've tried a few and loved them al. Just never see their stuff on the shelves.
    • Nose
      87 87
      Dive straight in the deep end you will discover deep meaning.
      Concentrated raspberry jelly, dry roasted coffee, summer pudding, toffee apple and hot cross bun.
      Deep robust and rich.
      With a few drops of water the nose gets richer and more fruity.
    • Taste
      88 88
      Dove straight into the deep end again but this time got my fingers burnt, well, tongue.
      The strong alcohol takes some getting past but when you do there are still some really strong and pleasant flavours.
      With water it is easier to drink but it's not as robust and in your face which is what I like. Plus it brings out the spice more.
    • Finish
      87 87
      Very long and dry but in a good way because those strong red fruit flavours are stuck and not going anywhere.
      With water it is still strong but those flavours aren't so strong.

  5. robain scored this whisky 85 points Specialist

    • Nose
      86 86
      Sherried oak, vanilla, chocolate, fudge and nutty.
    • Taste
      84 84
      Dry sherry-soaked oak, chocolate with sweetness and spicyness, slight salty.
    • Finish
      86 86
      nice sweetness with oak, slight note of chestnut cask(?), slight ashy finish aswell.

  6. Mark-E scored this whisky 87 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      88 88
    • Taste
      87 87
    • Finish
      86 86

  7. whiskytornado scored this whisky 89 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      90 90
    • Taste
      89 89
    • Finish
      88 88

  8. SimonOHA scored this whisky 90 points Expert Senior

    Definitely, everything I taste from this distillery is top notch, it's really incredibly tasty and really beautiful for its age. We just have to make SC between 50-60% and it will be perfect. Delicious.
    • Nose
      Powerful and intense nose. Ripe fresh fig, blood orange, black cherry. Caramel tar espresso syrup. It still remains fresh with a minty melon juice. Brioche with wood.
    • Taste
      How good it is in the mouth. A superb copy of the nose with this black cherry extract dominating. More spices with cinnamon, nutmeg; roasted nuts too. The alcohol is a bit too strong, it's a shame, but he swims very well.
    • Finish
      Final on dense and slightly smoky espresso, dark chocolate. Caramel flamed wood.

  9. Jercky043 scored this whisky 90 points Expert Junior

  10. Banzai scored this whisky 88 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      89 89
    • Taste
      88 88
    • Finish
      88 88

  11. MaltMonkeyPetro scored this whisky 86 points Expert Senior

    • Nose
      86 86
    • Taste
      86 86
    • Finish
      85 85

  12. WantsWhisky scored this whisky 90 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      90 90
    • Taste
      90 90
    • Finish
      89 89

  13. g2ther scored this whisky 90 points Expert Senior

    • Nose
      90 90
    • Taste
      90 90
    • Finish
      89 89

  14. Lerraa scored this whisky 90 points Expert Junior

    • Nose
      90 90
    • Taste
      90 90
    • Finish
      89 89

  15. rpvdwel scored this whisky 86 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      87 87
    • Taste
      86 86
    • Finish
      85 85

  16. Wolf68 scored this whisky 88 points Expert Senior

    • Nose
      88 88
    • Taste
      88 88
    • Finish
      89 89

  17. rdk88 scored this whisky 85 points Member Senior

    • Nose
      85 85
    • Taste
      83 83
    • Finish
      88 88

  18. glenrob scored this whisky 90 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      89 89
    • Taste
      91 91
    • Finish
      90 90

  19. Sjaak92 scored this whisky 88 points Connoisseur

    Young stunner! unbelieveable if you taste this the alc% would never pop up in your mind. Incredibly smooth.

    It reminds me of the finest amarena cherries, a true desert. I wonder how older balcones would be!

  20. Hvdree scored this whisky 86 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      87 87
    • Taste
      86 86
    • Finish
      85 85

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