Reflecting on the rise of modern blends; Fletcher thinks about the incidental rise of the amateur blender, and tries a few of these newer products up against the benchmark; Johnnie Black 12yo.

As Murdo tells tales of travel and opening minds, he shares his take on three very rare and curious 'whiskies', while taking us through his life-long dream realised: a trip to North Korea.

Hamish not only celebrates the ability to follow the birth of new distilleries, with these 8 Doors releases he enjoys how open and accessible they are too.

Paisley declares her love for her adopted hometown of Glasgow, choosing two pours which adorn the city’s most iconic and infamous image; the traffic cone atop the Duke.

Upon discovering Borders’ under-the-radar inaugural release for £35, Fletch gets excited, but is immediately disappointed and takes a moment to offer some ‘feedback’. Oh dear.

Ainsley wonders three things as he sips the 2023 Festival Blend from J&A Mitchell: is 2024 finally the year of the blend?, isn’t grain whisky basically vodka?, and why are people paying £180 for a cheap sipper?

Fed up with grey days and bad news, Fletcher cracks open two well-aged blends on a budget to see if they can bring a little lightness. A Glenallachie made NacNair’s 21yo vs a Cadenhead’s 25yo.

Our Dramface debutant today shares his passion for music with an appropriate release form Turntable; their malt-heavy and affordable Paradise Funk. It’s Fergus’ call as to whether it’s killer, filler or grower.

Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should. It’s one of Fletch’s favourites; Deanston. Looking for something that the Tequila cask has imparted, he compares it to a similarly insipid Tequila cask blend.

Broddy was one of those who stepped forward to declare 2023 ‘the Year of the Blend’. In 2024, he reflects on his prediction over a glass or two of Turntable Spirits exceptional inaugural Track 01 & Track 02 releases

Dramface takes on a six bottle outturn from Watt Whisky, it’s a team effort. Two single malts, a blended malt, a blend, a single grain and a curious Bas Armagnac. No wonder the images are blurry.

A self-administered humility check is required as Ogilvie is disappointed to receive an old standard. As he digs in to the Johnnie Walker Black, he’s reflective of the easy rise of snobbery in whisky.

Whisky is better when shared, right? Well, sometimes. Ogilvie discovers how even a modest blend, ubiquitous in the Americas, is elevated when applied to the shared joy of an occasion.

How much would you expect to pay for 30 year old whisky in 2023? Ramsay was pleasantly surprised when it came to this Cadenhead’s value prospect, but he wobbled before opening it… for our pleasure.

Calder, Dougie and Wally team up to asses what either appears to be a great value sherry-bomb, or a premium-priced blend. We don’t always align on Dramface, but when we do, it’s usually deserved.

Marking the year of your birth with whisky may be vane, but it’s fun and whisky inspires it. Elis shares his thoughts on this 1988 vintage bottle which has been around for every breath he’s taken and, at 31yo, is just about still within reach.

We find Wally in an unfortunate huff. In a whisky world with too many examples of things being cynically enshittified, he’s on the hunt for an antidote.

A two bottle review and a very difficult and revealing challenge in the face of today’s whisky prices

Another strong entry in the year of the super-blend

For £20, there’s nothing to complain about