Royal Lochnagar 12

Game of Thrones was massive! Even if you didn’t like the ending or thought it was overhyped you cannot deny just how large of a cultural impact this fantasy show had. Diageo, one of the biggest Whisky portfolios in the land have embraced this and released a full Game of Thrones Whisky set spanning from the Lannisters to the Nights Watch. The first release was marketed as “limited” and sharply ran out being quickly followed by resellers at inflated prices. Then batch 2 came out which maybe running low now however some places resorted to them being on offer to shift them.

Experience

Part of the Game of Thrones release, the Royal Lochnagar represents the House Baratheon. There has been a lot of debate if any thought went into what bottle belonged to what house, however I feel the most important factor would of been make the more popular houses like House Lannister the more expensive bottle. For example, people who are not Whisky enthusiasts would pay more for the House Lannister because who doesn’t want to be like Peter Dinklage therefore can charge for a more expensive Whisky. This is just speculation though, I may drink but I certainly don’t know things.

Lots of people have viewed this as a cash in on something popular and to be avoided. I think if it brings people into the Whisky world, great! Also I genuinely think the bottles look great.

Nose

It is quite hefty on first sniff with these musty, mossy and earthy notes. As you climatize to the aroma there is this subtle, salted blood orange tang which seems a strange mix.

Taste

On the taste it continues with smooth sea salted caramel taking center stage with malty and slightly spicy flavours kicking around. It is super friendly while still leaving a medium length pleasant warmth.

Value for Money

While not a bad Whisky, I feel like they could have gone for a dram that better reflected the mighty Baratheon family, maybe with a higher ABV to give it more fight.

Currently it is only £3 more for the GOT version sitting at £39 which I think is a fair price even if this collection wasn’t as limited as first advertised.