Cutty Sark Prohibition Edition - Whisky Review 120

[@Rohit_M]

Right on! In today's scotch segment of consumers getting stiffed by sky rocketing prices, Reward the companies that offer good value for your money is an honest truth! It's refreshing to see someone like yourself reviewing blended scotch whiskies because they are often neglected just because they are blends and wrongfully perceived to be made for the masses. Sometimes the quality is there in some blends if you look around and can find it.

[@WhiskyLock]

Absolutely. A certain large multinational company in particular are really taking the piss lately with their prices. I feel like over the coming years it will become more and more necessary for us to seek out well made, well presented whisky. Younger but well made stuff like this might become more of a necessity. I don't mind reviewing / drinking a blend. As you say, the quality stuff is there. Just takes a bit more digging. Cheers 🥃

[@M10-i6b]

Just picked up 2 bottles while on holiday in Spain find it quite tasty, and for the price a must buy.

[@WhiskyLock]

Very tasty indeed! I'm considering buying my third bottle 👍

[@botvidsson]

On my 8th bottle now. Really enjoy this one too. Sometimes I go wild and top it up with Ardbeg 8, great mix. Thanks for a great review.

[@WhiskyLock]

Thanks! You know, I finished this bottle last week and totally forgot to try blending with it. I think because I enjoyed it so much as it is. But I can see it being good either as a base or to add power to something else. Cheers 🥃

[@Zephon9]

I bought and tried the 12 year recently and it's good. It won't blow anyone's mind, but it has its place as a crisp, maritime, malty blend to change up the whiskey lineup.

[@WhiskyLock]

Good to know that it's at least decent. The Cutty Sark brand has really upped its game lately 👍

[@Gwhisky]

Sounds like an interesting budget pick. I'll be on the lookout for it. Great review! 🥃

[@WhiskyLock]

For me it's *the* budget pick at the moment. Not only is it good but 50% too 😍 Would love to hear your thoughts on it if you find a bottle. Cheers 🥃

[@Gwhisky]

@@WhiskyLock I can't say I've seen it around, but I'll be on the lookout! Cheers!

[@welshtoro3256]

@@Gwhisky Let's not get too excited, it is budget stuff. Uncomplicated but tasty and worth it.

[@JeffWhisky]

I will always have a soft spot for Cutty Sark Prohibition. It even started my journey onto Whisky Tube because I loved it so much and wanted to tell everyone! Think you are right with the higher malt than the standard and I think there is a few similarities between this and Talisker. Well deserved to be nominated in the OSWAS this year and a great review! Cheers.

[@WhiskyLock]

Ah yes, your review #1! It's a great one to start with unlike me who chose a totally obscure Bruichladdich to slip under the radar 🤣 I'm very pleased to see it mentioned in the OSWAs too. To the point where I feel like it should've been an option in the Best Value Whisky category as well. Cheers 🥃

[@RoscoRiot-w2c]

I'm new to whiskey. In the last month I tried glenmorange 10, singleton 12, glen grand 12, monkey shoulder,Cutty Sark prohibition... and I liked the last one the most. Only for 15 euro ...

[@WhiskyLock]

It's an incredible whisky for €15 right? Sounds like you're having a great introduction to whisky. Cheers 🥃

[@MilesOnTheCorner]

I’m a month late 😂 Glad that the recommendation paid off. And I see you’ve already finished the bottle. Enjoy the next 🍻

[@WhiskyLock]

Close enough 🤣 a very solid recommendation. Thank you! It's a great whisky to have around and very easy to keep going back to. Cheers 🥃

[@WhoeverNevermind]

Thank you for the recommendation. I whould have never bought this bottle if you didnt recomend it, and I love it.

[@WhiskyLock]

Success! That's great to hear and I'm glad you enjoy it too. Yeah... Cutty Sark doesn't have the best reputation! 🙂 but this is very different to the standard bottle and very good. They undoubtedly would've sold more if they'd launched it under a different brand all together...

[@zhongminfan6367]

I bought this for AU$68，but I fell it is way better than Johnie Walker Green Label, which costs almost $90 in Australia with 40% ABV.

[@WhiskyLock]

Hi! Very different flavours from those two but I'd agree that Cutty Prohibition is much better value and just more fun! Here in England JW Green is nearly twice the price of Prohibition Edition. Really makes you reassess what is cheap/expensive.

[@VinceW187]

Will be on the lookout for this one

[@stejskyn]

This is an amazing one....bought aprox 12 bottles at 13 pounds/bottle (crazy discount). THX for your opinion, its an excellent review.

[@WhiskyLock]

12 bottles at £13! That's a LOT of bang for your buck 🙂 I can understand exactly why you'd stock up like that. Thanks for watching 🥃

[@indepublican]

actually just purchased this on a lark and was hugely impressed. I really enjoyed it and will go to it routinely. I'm a big ralfy and roy fan but not sure either of them have commented about it recently.

[@WhiskyLock]

I purchased it because it's 50% and cheap and how bad can it be?! 😂 apparently the answer is pretty damn good! I really, really like it too. It is still flying under a lot of people's radar though.

[@MARYN0077]

Great review. I just found this in New York for $23... unreal ... very interesting and engaging every day sipper for anyone

[@WhiskyLock]

Thanks Jozef! $23 and 50% sounds like a pricing error doesn't it 😂

[@siddeshbandekar1913]

Happy to subscribe 🔥 Saw your smokehead and then here. Good content very detailed not too short not to long to the point like a medium long finish😍

[@WhiskyLock]

Thanks Siddesh 🙂

[@ronaldtheriot]

I was able to get this for $27.00 for a liter bottle. I score it in the "A" (most excellent) range.

[@WhiskyLock]

That's such a great price. If my girlfriend liked this as much as I do, I'd probably buy a whole case of it. Scoring this one had me a bit conflicted. To me, the flavours are slightly limited and simple, which is what kept my grade lower than yours. But the flavours that are there are really bold, honest and really enjoyable. So I can totally see why you gave it an A. Cheers 🥃

[@dantasker9310]

I'm enjoying my second bottle of this one, pretty good straight up (especially for $51 NZD!!), but have taken to adding a splash of Edradour 10 into the mix...it's a great pairing!

[@WhiskyLock]

Oh yeah! I can see that working really well 😎👍

[@zooologist]

I always have a bottle of this. It´s a real bang for the buck, a real good blend.

[@WhiskyLock]

It certainly is. I love how it shows that blends can be cheap but still good 👍

[@rares_21]

Good review,mate! I avoided blends by now, but this one really seems to have what it needs to get my curiosity, maybe also my attention:) Keep up the good job, cheers!

[@WhiskyLock]

Thanks Rares! 🥃

[@krisverding3908]

I'll look out for this one, looks interesting !

[@WhiskyLock]

Well made whisky with solid flavours at a great price 👍 I'd buy it again.

[@pedrobaptista3303]

Very good whiskey, although being 50%/100 proof alcohol it's a very smooth. I liked it a lot, recommend this if you are into smoother or starting with whiskey. Thanks for the review.

[@WhiskyLock]

Agreed most whisky that's this smooth at 50% costs much more! Cheers 🥃

[@WhiskyLoversSociety]

Interesting one. I only tried the standard one and it was terrible. Will give it a try maybe in the future. Nice review.

[@WhiskyLock]

Thanks Gert. I think the last time I tried standard Cutty was around 5yrs ago and I agree; its really not good. I look forward to your thoughts on Prohibition Edition if you give it a try. IMHO it's much better. Cheers 🥃

[@justwhisky]

Finally something I have😅 But haven’t opened yet. It’s $30 here. Great review. I’ve always heard good things about it based mostly on value for money. Cheers 🥃

[@WhiskyLock]

The big JustWhisky / WhiskyLock crossover at last 😉 I've seen the bottle for this one in the background of a few of your videos. Looking forward to your review when you get around to it. Cheers 🥃

[@welshtoro3256]

Excellent review. It's been on my wish list for ages. I have a few bits and bobs on my next order and it's going in. I'm just finishing a superb bottle of Chequers 12, which can only be found at auction, which is a great blend. It's probably a thing of the past. I'm on record, of course, about ditching rip-off stuff. WT

[@WhiskyLock]

Thanks WT. I lookin forward to hearing your thoughts on Prohibition Edition and hope you enjoy it. I really enjoyed it and for the price I LOVED it. It was really nice that for the first time in quite a while I felt like I was getting exceptional value out of a whisky. I don't think I've tried Chequers. I too have bought some old unloved blends at auction recently though. The old unloved stuff is usually just about all I find at auction that stands a chance of going for a fair price. I refuse to finance flippers on the more trendy bottles. Cheers 🥃

[@welshtoro3256]

@@WhiskyLock I'm on to my second glass. I would say it's worth it but I wish I liked it as much as you. It's blended well enough but it's pretty young stuff and the casks aren't giving much to write home about. Young whisky isn't always a problem though and the 50% lifts the profile and compensates for the lack of complexity. I think if this was in a blind tasting I would say it's 43-46% abv. Going back to the bottle of Chequers - It's 12 years old but I rather think there's older stuff in it as was the case back in the day. My Spanish father in law gave it to me as he had a few bottles as work gifts back in the 80's. He doesn't drink whisky so I got a 75cl bottle of Chequers 12; A 75cl bottle of Chivas Regal 12 and a fantastic Chivas 21 (unopened) in a case which includes the 21 year bottle but also a fantastic crystal decanter. All bottled at 43% abv. In good time the EU would shrink the bottles and the distilleries would shrink the abv. Serge reviewed the 12 year Chivas and gave it a very good score. Far better than today's offering. I like the Chequers 12 even more. Superb blending going on and the more so because the grain is very apparent but in a positive way. (I'll send you a sample. You have my email so no need for us to go public.) Anyway, the maths tells me that the Chivas 21 started life in the 60's and the Chivas 12 and Chequers 12 started life in the 70's but might have 60's stuff in them. Are these blends worth hunting down? Hell, yes! A few glasses in to the Cutty Sark Prohibition now and I'm enjoying its light profile. It's reminding me of vodka or gin more than whisky though so I'm about to do a little experiment. Portobello Road Vodka (40%) not much difference in quality. Cadenhead's Classic Gin (50%) about the same in interest but a better gin than the Cutty Sark is whisky. I would say that it's the 50% that rescues the Cutty Sark Prohibition but that's it. WT

[@WhiskyLock]

@@welshtoro3256 Hi WT. From what I know of you I did suspect that you might not be as taken with it as me but I'm glad you enjoy it. At least very few people will feel cheated out of £23 over this. It is relatively young and simple but very enjoyable to me. The limited range of flavours are bold and honest and make it worth the price of admission. I think tasted blind I would probably guess 46-48%. Which in itself is probably an achievement for a young 50% blend. I'm sure many contemporary blends would be literal fire water at 50%. Coincidentally I have a review of the modern Chivas 12 coming out soonish. I like it but it is very much a modern, economical blend done well rather than the fantastic well aged blends we used to be spoilt with. I feel we'd be looking at a much higher price tag to get anything resembling your Chequers 12 today. Cheers 🥃

[@welshtoro3256]

@@WhiskyLock I do enjoy it and glad to have it on the shelf. I agree with you about the limited but enjoyable flavour. Let's face it, we need some value whisky right now and this fits the bill. The bursting of the whisky bubble has been speculated upon for a few years now but it's just got bigger and bigger. I feel as though we are in a moment where it could happen. The price of whisky these days is more obscene than gas or oil and there are some actual political reasons for those prices. With whisky it's just naked greed. Many folk of regular means have been spending big over the past few years but that is coming to an end. £100 for 12 year old whisky? It's all over. There are so many variables that are plain rip-off. I'm with Ralfy - £100 is a lot of money for a bottle of drink and I'm experienced enough to know that we are very much in the realm of diminishing returns when it comes to expensive stuff. People can spend their money how they like but I'm off that train now. I'm fed up with the marketing guff and expense. Folk in Spain still use the peseta in their minds to determine the cost of something. It's what they think the real value of something is rather than than the price in euros. I think like that when it comes to whisky. This Cutty Sark is worth it and that's high praise these days.

[@WhiskyLock]

That bubble has proven to be surprisingly tough and elastic...

[@phillipwallace7211]

To me cutty sark prohibition tastes like many classic Irish whiskeys...barley sugar ,biscuit, mild citrus. Good whiskey in the price range.

[@WhiskyLock]

Good point, I see what you mean 👍

[@MuttonBiryani1994]

Does it take some water well?

[@WhiskyLock]

I think so. Considering the probable youth and higher strength I was surprised that it didn't need it though. It's a solid dram 👍

[@MuttonBiryani1994]

@@WhiskyLock Thanks!

[@Nikolay_Nikolov]

In Bulgaria I can buy this for 17.40 euros. 50 % ABV, NCF. What's not to like😀 Great for treating buddies at the office who think Johnnie Walker Black Label is the best scotch whisky. Cheers!

[@WhiskyLock]

Great price 👍 ahh imagine trying this when all you've ever had is JW Black Label 🤣

[@pierreluna1654]

Awesome review !

[@WhiskyLock]

Cheers Pierre 🥃

[@davidaraujo927]

Ah! You should have tried the first batches of that blend, when Rachel Barrie was the master blender! Cheers!

[@WhiskyLock]

I wish I had! How do you think it compares to what we're getting now? Cheers David

[@davidaraujo927]

@@WhiskyLock I don't wish to p*ss on your parade 😝but, substantially superior. I tried a recent batch and was a bit underwhelmed. more young spirit than mature cask influence. But, that is expected, unfortunately. Quite a few years back I contacted Rachel via Twitter and congratulated her. She replied that she was very proud of that blend.

[@WhiskyLock]

@@davidaraujo927 Not pissing on my parade at all! I think it's pretty common that batch 1 of anything is the special on to grab attention. Nice that you got to experience it 👍 While I really like the current product I don't get much in the way of particularly mature notes. It is what it is. A very solid affordable blend. Better than most in its class IMHO

[@davidaraujo927]

@@WhiskyLock Oh yes! In Portugal it is under 21€!!! For a 50% blend it is unparelleled! No question.

[@koski1885]

Will give this a whirl. Have you tried Hanky Bannister Heritage? Think they are trying something similar - 46% and i think the same price. Would you give this the nod over the black bottle island smoke?

[@WhiskyLock]

No I haven't tried that. Sounds interesting though. Funny that we're seeing Blended Scotch get more craft and integrity when many single malt distilleries are still resisting so hard! Island Smoke is more of an obvious Peat Bomb. It's just more about the peaty flavours and is the obvious choice if you're after peat whereas Prohibition Edition is a well made blend that has some peat in it if that makes sense. I probably do enjoy Prohibition Edition more than Island Smoke though. I would buy it again over the Island Smoke.

[@MrChristopherMolloy]

Maybe I need to revisit this because when I first tasted this when it was first released I thought it was a hot mess and could not get past its youth.

[@WhiskyLock]

Maybe it has improved but it might just be that you're more intolerant of youth in whisky than many. Nothing wrong with that and I think I used to be that way but over time I've started to appreciate younger whisky for what it is providing it is well made. I think this one is young but I wouldn't describe it as hot or immature. YMMV 🙂

[@MrChristopherMolloy]

@@WhiskyLock I'd like to consider myself fairly evenhanded when I comes to passing judgement, especially when grading on a price/value curve, but palates change, as do whiskies, so I'll check it out again one of these days, but only if I can still find it for under $30 ✌️

[@Ebril]

That's two whiskies in a row that I've been pondering for a long time forr which you've revived my interest. This one in particular jumped at me earlier this year with it's presentation and made me think, "really?" Next time I treat myself, I think I'll be considering this bottle. I really liked the comparison to other malts towards the end. Comparisions to other whiskies really help us get a better idea of what to expect as many reviewers only note flavour/smell and end up having reviews of very different bottles which sound the same on paper but really aren't. Have you by any chance tried the Adelphi Blended Scotch? That was the last blended scotch bottle I bought and I thought it was decent but when I sat it next to Famous Grouse it didn't seem amazing by comparison.

[@WhiskyLock]

Yeah, when I saw that it was £23 50% and NCF "really?" was my reaction too. It's greag that some brands like Cutty Sark are 'trying harder' with releases like this though. Thanks for the feedback on comparison to other whiskies. I'll try to remember to do more of that 🙂 The Adelphi Blend. The Dancing Man one? Black and white drawing of a man in a kilt on the label right? Me and my dad bought a bottle at Ardnamurchan distillery. We just happened to be passing by and it was about a week before they released the first Ardnamurchan so that blend was all they had for us. I didn't like it a lot. Not the worst but nothing I'd buy again! I'm pleased to say that everything from Ardnamurchan has been MUCH better.

[@Ebril]

Yeah that Adelphi bottle. Not going to be a repeat buy for me either, but neither is Ardnamurchan however. I've got a bottle of batch 5 I think. Decent perfectly enjoyable, but I felt was lacking in distinct character and I'm not sure it's worth the price compared to some of it's competition yet.

[@WhiskyLock]

@@Ebril really! That surprises me. I have a bottle of AD10.21:06 so I guess that's batch 6? Haven't fully figured out what their bizarre names mean... and I like it. Decent amount of peat, sherry and malt. Well balanced and one of the better new distillery releases IMHO. It cost me £45 which I thought was fair. How much did you pay for your batch 5? My only criticism is that it is slightly light in body for 46.8% but it improved quite a lot over time and airing.

[@Ebril]

I think I paid about the same. People were really hyping it at the time and that perhaps lead me to expect much greater things from it and thus my mild disapppointment. It arrived alongside my order of Arran's Man with the Golden Glass Palo Cortardo and Ben Nevis MacDonald Traditional which were way more to my taste. Tough competition... :p

[@WhiskyLock]

@@Ebril There is always that. I always try not to get too carried away when something is simply better than expected so I don't give people the impression that it's some god tier Grade A stuff. My bottle of Ardnamurchan is outstanding for what I believe is a 7-8yo whisky at mid strength. But at the end of the day it is still just a 7-8yo mid strength whisky. I think I'd give it a respectable B grade. That Arran Golden Glass is cracking stuff. Very tough competition indeed. I haven't tried the Ben Nevis. Haven't had any of their whisky in years. Cheers 🥃

[@steveh.3370]

I wanted to like this one, but I just didn't.

[@WhiskyLock]

Hi Steve. Nothing will be for everyone. What was it that you didn't like about it?