Compass Box Eleuthera is an all malt blend of Scotch whisky. This style of blended malt whisky, as it’s known now, used to go by the term vatted malt until the Scotch Whisky Association deemed it to be confusing and changed it in the mid 00’s. However this bottle was put out from 2002 – 2005 and sported the vatted malt term on the bottle so we’re going to use it here too. As a side note I think the term Vatted Malt was much less confusing than Blended Malt Whisky.
Made from 15 year old Clynelish (some aged in re-charred hogsheads) and 12 year old Caol Ila it was discontinued in 2005 due to running out of the 15 year Clynelish. More specifically they ran out of the Clynelish that was aged in the re-charred hogsheads and instead of finding something to replace it with they just discontinued the line. However, all hope is not lost because their current Lost Blend is a modified recreation of this whisky and from recent experience I can tell you it’s both a really good tribute and a really good whisky.
Compass Box Eleuthera Info
Region: Scotland
Blender & Bottler: Compass Box
Mashbill: 100% Malted Barley
Cask: ex-Bourbon & ex-Sherry
Age: 12 years
ABV: 46%
Non-Chill Filtered | Natural Color
Price: NA – Auction, private sale or dusty find
Compass Box Eleuthera Review
EYE
Honey
NOSE
Crisp malt and tropical fruit with a light peaty punch. A bright citrus pop brings along some honey, vanilla and a touch of spice. The nose on this is just fantastic and while the Lost Blend isn’t the exact same, it is pretty similar.
PALATE
Light peat, caramel, malt, vanilla, butterscotch, banana and coconut with a touch of spice and a light bit of wood. Comparing this to the LB I’d say I like the palate on the LB a bit better, but this Eleuthera is no slouch; It’s complex and rich.
FINISH
Smoke fades to wood fades to malt fades to a thick fruity sweetness that slowly dies out.
BALANCE, BODY & FEEL
Great balance with a med body, soft texture and a touch of heat. The experience matches the flavor, aroma and finish well.
OVERALL
Refined is the adjective I’d use for the Compass Box Eleuthera, but that refinement also translates to it being a bit light end up being what kept it from scoring an A and instead pegs it in at an A-. If it was a bit richer or had a bigger spice presence it would go from fantastic to stellar; regardless it’s still a whisky I’d snatch up in a heartbeat if I saw it lounging on a shelf collecting dust. It’s just plain awesome and the Lost Blend is a suitable tribute to it so don’t despair if you never got to try this one because the LB is a decent facsimile and fairly easy to find as of writing this.
SCORE: 90-92/100 (Range due to a single glass & not tasting at home)
