My wife asked me what I wanted for my birthday. Half joking, I asked her for a bottle of Johnnie Walker Blue. A 750ml bottle in these parts costs a good $180 bucks.

I was half joking in the sense that, although I’d love a bottle of Blue, I’d hate to skip over all the other “colors”.

Not only did my wife give me a bottle of Blue, but she gave me a bottle of Black, Gold, and Platinum!

This is the 4-bottle Johnnie Walker Collection. It contains 4 x 200ml bottles of the good stuff.



The outer sleeve slides off to reveal a very nice looking, collectible, presentation box.



It’s metallic ink... and the black, gold, platinum, and blue really shine in the light.



The front swings open from both sides.



And there they are: Black Label, Gold Label Reserve, Platinum Label, and Blue Label. Although the Blue looks bigger, it’s because of the thicker base. It’s also 200ml in size.



I’ve had my fair share of Red and Black, so I was really excited to try the Gold, Platinum, and the end-all-be-all of Johnnie Walkers: the Blue.

I first thought about popping them all open and having a taste test of all 4 bottles side-by-side, but I’d didn’t want to open all 4 bottles at once. The Double Black that I had a few weeks ago tasted horrible towards the end. I didn’t want to run the risk of these bottle doing that too. I’ve read that once opened, whisky will still last years and still be OK. It’s once the bottle hits that half-way mark that it’s a ticking time bomb. Maybe that was the case with the Double Black. There were only a few glasses left when it went “off”. It almost tasted....fizzy.

In addition, I figured after 4 drinks per bottle, that would be enough for me to tell if the bottle before it was any better, or worse.



I started out with the Black just to reestablish a baseline. Two drinks, 2 nights in a row, and this one was a wrap. It’s the Black I’ve come to know and love: better than Red.



Next up was the Gold Label Reserve.

The good stuff? I’m not so sure. This stuff tastes like Double Black. One site said, “Smooth and succulent with a honeyed sweetness that's typical of Johnnie Walker. There's more to this though, the floral elements are quite prominent and there's a spiced sweet vanilla note too.”

I don’t taste any of that. This stuff’s like fire-water. It’s hot, and rough going down. Very potent. The finish is supposed to taste “long, sweet and toffee-like”, but I just taste wood. If they mean “burns going down” when they say “long”. Then yeah, it’s “long”. Just like the Double Black, if I had to choose, I’d stick with plain-old Black.



As far as the Platinum, it’s supposed to be “Sweet and warming, with creamy malt, oats and cereal. A spicy vanilla cinnamon dusting too with the gentle smoke again developing.”

Do people really talk like that? Let me give it to you straight: It’s like Gold, but less “burny”. Sorry, but I didn’t taste any “dark chocolate with caramelized peel” on the finish.

I know by now, the whisky snobs must be trying to reach through their monitors to choke me, but in my own defense, I bought my first bottle of whisky less than 2 months ago. Although I’ve been drinking about a bottle a week for 2 months, maybe all these high-end Walkers are all still wasted on me. Don’t get me wrong, I like them. I can drink them. I’m just not picking out all the subtle nuances that I’m reading about in the reviews. Maybe that just comes with time.



Reading something like this should tell you why I wanted to save the best for last. I was afraid that drinking a whisky that’s in a league of its own would spoil the rest.

Palate: Supple and balanced. Good toffee and hints of very wistful smoke. Chocolate, hints of grass and a good hit of malt.

Finish: Floral, oaky, good length, urged on by a plume of very well-kept, highland style smoke. Dried fruit, spice, honey.

Overall: One of the ultimate premium blends, Blue Label is a legend in its own right and will continue to be.



Once I peeled the foil off the top, a nice little cork was revealed; similar to that found on a Port. Classy. I guess it’s just in poor taste to give it a screw top like the others.



So how is it? Three words: Oh. My. God!

Now this is the good stuff! I though that not being overwhelmed by the Gold and the Platinum, that the Blue would be wasted on me, but I can totally tell the difference. It combines the best of all of them. It’s much tastier than th Black, sort of like the Platinum. But it’s so much smoother. Maybe like a Platinum without the burn.

The second glass was better than the first. I couldn’t resist a third glass. I wanted to pace myself and let it last at least a few days, so I stopped at the 3rd. Hopefully I can still squeeze 2 more glasses out of it!



My wife asked me which one was my favorite, and I have to say the Blue by far. Not just because it’s the most expensive, but because it is the best. I guess that’s what makes it the most expensive. Don’t get me wrong. If I was to get a bottle of Gold or Platinum as a gift, I wouldn’t turn my nose up at it. But I think I’ll stick with the Red and Black as my “everyday” whiskies. I think forward going, I’ll splurge for the Black when I’m drinking it neat, but keep a bottle of Red around for mixing with ginger ale / ginger beer.

That Blue was so good. At $65 for a small 200ml bottle, I don’t know when I’ll be seeing it again. I guess there’s always Christmas.