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Single Reserva Whisky Review

Single Reserva Whisky is made by India Glycols and this is the company’s first product in the semi-premium whisky market. They have another product in the vodka category called Amazing Vodka (which you can view by clicking on the link) as well which comes in different flavours as well. And if you enjoy watching video reviews then you can click above and watch the video review.

So this whisky is priced around Rs. 600 in Chandigarh and currently it is available in UP , Delhi , Uttrakhand and Chandigarh. It will soon be available in other states like Rajasthan, Punjab, HP and Mumbai and of couse the prices are expected to be higher at that point. This whisky positions itself in the popular/semi-premium category between Blenders Pride and Royal Stag, both of which are very popular Millionaire brands. Which means that Single Reserva has its task cut out for itself right from its launch phase.

But if you are thinking that India Glycols is a new company who might not know much about the industry, then you would be wrong. Infact chemicals are the primary cornerstone of India Glycols Ltd business and as we know that ENA, Sugar, Chemicals, all of these are by-product that lead to liquor, which means it was only natural that at some point the company would foray into this business. And the company is a massive player in the country liquor market with its popular brand ‘Bunty and Bubbly’, which sells a whopping 1.32 lakh cases a month. We have done a full length interview with the team when these products were launched, so do check that out as well.

So this whisky is manufactured at two different plants, one is at IGLs Kashipur plant which caters to all the States and the other is at their Gorakhpur plant that caters only to the UP market.

When it comes to the Single Reserva Whisky, the new concept of blending has been made with the help and research of none-other than the legendary Peter J Warren and you can see his signature as well on the bottle as well. And if you don’t know this name, then Warren is credited with creating some of the malts that go into creating some of the world’s highest selling whisky’s like Johnnie Walker and J&B. But the actual blend of the whisky is made my Surrinder Kumar, who is already a known name in the industry in India.

Packaging

If we talk about the packaging then a lot of thought has gone into this and I think the brand is trying to provide a premium experience to the consumer at a semi-premium price bracket. The bottle is well designed and looks great. Deep drawn long caps, typical Single Malt bottle design and excellent colour scheme of labels. Brilliant branding on Labels and Exotic Canister packing.

Tasting Notes

In terms of the tasting you surely get that peaty and smoky Malt notes. Like a lot of the Indian Malts that we have tasted recently you get that nutty and honey, sweet notes as well.

Conclusion

So what do we think about the Single Reserva Whisky? Well for a price tag of Rs. 600 in Chandigarh, it does provide you with enough to come back to that bottle again. There is some amount of mystery to it for you to enjoy. So does it serve the objective of India Glycols of providing a premium experience in a semi-premium price bracket? We think it does.

Sterling Reserve B10 Whisky Review

Sterling Reserve B10 whisky is made by ABD, which is Allied Blenders and Distilleries, the largest manufacturer of IMFL spirit by volume. The whisky is priced at Rs. 1,350 in Maharashtra and it is available almost Pan India. The reason why this whisky is called ‘B10’ is because it is supposed to give the experience of 10 different flavours to the consumer. If you are more of a video person then you can check out the video review on top as well.

Before we start talking about Sterling Reserve let’s take a look at ABD. So ABD is a very renowned name in the industry and has been in the market for decades now. One of their best- known millionaire brands is Officers Choice, which also is a category leader in that segment. For ones who don’t know what a millionaire brand is, millionaire brand means that it sells more than a million cases in a year, which isn’t an easy feat to achieve.

Now what is interesting is that this is also a millionaire brand which means it automatically puts pressure on it to taste good. This whisky is placed in the same segment as Blenders Pride and Antiquity Blue. So basically, this is positioned in a category where you have some of the best premium and highest selling Indian whisky’s honestly. This whisky comes in two variants, B7 which is positioned in the popular category and of course this, which is the B10. If we talk about the blend of this whisky, then there isn’t much clarity about the age of the malts that have been used in this. But this uses imported Scotch malts, which means malts that have aged at least 3-year’s have been used. This is combined with the Indian grain spirits with the Scotch Malts used from different barrel origin including bespoke bourbon oak casks. Naturally there is neutral spirits that are used as well in this since it has Indian grain spirits as well. Now this whisky is also chill-filtered, which means it won’t change colour when you add ice or water to it.

Packaging

If we talk about the packaging of the brand, then it is very clear that ABD wanted to create an impact since it is a tough market and they have spent a considerable time on this packaging as well. In comparison with blenders and antiquity it is the only brand that comes in a canister, which shows how serious they are about this category. In terms of packaging, it gives you a feel of the premiumness like others as well. They’ve gone with the deep Purple as the base colour and I think it could be coz they want to stand out on the shelf and they’ve managed to achieve that as well to some extent. In terms of the bottle as well it is nice and reminiscent of Indian whisky bottles.

Nosing

In terms of the nosing you get some honeyed sweetness, nuttiness of the barley and a fruity and heathery nose.

Tasting

The ABV is 42.8% and it gives you that punch as you taste it. The flavours of oak are clear and also a sweet flavour also comes from the whisky. Although it feels like honey but it is more of vanilla. There is a fruit as well which I think it berries. The finish is meduim-longish and honestly it is difficult to identify 10 flavours honestly but the whisky does seem smooth.

Conclusion

So what do we think about the Sterling Reserve B10 whisky? For a price of Rs. 1,350 in Maharashtra it is already a very popular brand. It gives you that mix of nice flavours, smooth refines for the price and you really can understand why the people who have this brand swear by it and won’t touch anything else. It is not something that you can have on the rocks naturally like most of the whisky’s in this segment. But with water or a mixer of your choice is suited. Maybe you can try it next when you are going to have any whisky’s in this segment and let us know how it is in the comments.

Amazing Vodka Review

The Vodka market in India hasn’t been experiencing high level of growth for few years now. But while the regular Vodka category has witnessed a flat line, the flavours category has been witnessing good growth in the industry and nearly accounts for 60% of the overall vodka sales. Precisely the reason why you see manufacturers offering flavours of their vodka. So it is only natural that when India Glycols must’ve chosen to launch their vodka, it would be in two flavours, Green Apple and Orange.

If you remember then recently, we reviewed the Single Reserva Whisky which was also from India Glycols. The price of this product is Rs. 750 in UP is also available in Uttarakhand, Chandigarh and Rajasthan. There are also plans to take it National this year. With its price this Vodka is in the same category as some of the highest selling brands like Magic Moments and similar to Single Reserva, this vodka is also made at the company’s Kashipur and Gorakhpur plants.

Now Amazing Premium Vodka has been developed with the help of Raju Vaziraney who has been in the industry for many years and has helped in developing a lot of brands. This is a Grain-based Vodka which is infused with imported enhancers that have been brought from Germany. As you might knoe that enhancers are added flavours that provide the spirit with a premium feel. This is common in the industry and the flavoured vodka market. But since these are imported from Germany, it also is the distinguishing factor for this vodka as compared to the other vodkas made in India. The vodka is also 5-times filtered to make it smooth.

Packaging

Vodka packaging is always more bolder since it needs to be attractive to appeal to the youth and women. Amazing Vodka comes packed in a frosted bottle with four colour printing and the bottle features an illustration of Mermaid suggestive of fantasy. What’s also clear is the flavour with the green colour for the label and the caps. We like the printing on the bottle, it feels premium and nice and also that the word amazing is embossed on the bottle.

Nosing

In terms of nosing you get the subtle green apple flavour, which isn’t very overbearing. With a 37.5% ABV the vodka isn’t exactly very strong. But the filtration process ensures that you can nose that the spirit is refined and smooth. The aroma is also very distinctive and crispy.

Tasting

With the first sip itself you can get the flavour. The spirit is smooth and it feels premium, especially since they’ve used imported enhancers. The finish is medium-longish and there isn’t any afterburn as it trickles down. There is a slight hint of peppery note in the taste to give some spice to it. But again, it isn’t overbearing.
We also added a mixer to it to allow the vodka to open up a little and see what it does. Once added it makes the spirit even more milder, so may be as a tip: don’t add too much of the mixer when you choose to drink it.

Conclusion

So what is it that we think about the Amazing Premium Vodka. For a price of Rs. 750 for a bottle it is clear that it is targeted to users that are looking for good value for money. And of course you do have popular brands in that category already. When mixed with something that you like as you usually consume vodkas then you might feel really at home when it comes to this vodka. But our suggestion would be to not mix it with something very sweet since green apple flavour already has a hint of sweetness. But all in all, it has everything that you want from a vodka at this price point and it surely is worth a try.

Roku Gin Review

In this video we review Roku Gin from Beam Suntory which comes from Japan. Roku stands for the word 6 in Japanese and it pays tribute to the 6 special botanicals that come from Japan.

The gin is available in Mumbai for Rs. 6,500 making it one of the most expensive gins in the market. We have reviewed and tasted the gin which contains the ABV value of 43%.

This video is for entertainment purpose only and the magazine, channel and the host do not promote alcohol consumption.

Click here to watch the full video.

Epitome Reserve Whisky Review

In this video we review the limited edition Epitome Reserve Rare Grain Whisky that was launched recently by United Spirits, a Diageo Company. With only 2000 bottles made yet this is India’s first 100% Rice Grain whisky which celebrates India’s iconic people that have shaped the various landscapes and industries that they’ve been in.

The ABV percentage is 46% of this whisky and check out our Exclusive First Review of what we thought.

This video is for entertainment purpose only and the magazine, channel and the host do not promote alcohol consumption.

India’s Most Expensive Unknown Vodkas

In this video we take a look at India’s Most Expensive Unknown Vodka’s. Usually consumers always tend to pick vodkas that are more affordable or known to them. But did you know that there are Vodkas in a Super Premium Category as well which are more expensive?

So in this video we take a look at some of these Vodka’s and see how they taste. The ABV % of the Vodkas are 40% and they are available online select states.

This video is for entertainment purpose only and the magazine, channel and the host do not promote alcohol consumption.