Royal Eagle, Premium Whisky, 42.8%, Nigeria

To celebrate World Whisky Day I’m cracking open this Royal Eagle Whisky – kindly bought for me at a local Spar shop in Lagos, Nigeria, by my African correspondent.

Fly like an Eagle! c/othewhiskeynut

The label states “A fine blend of Scotch Whisky and the Purest Quality Spirit”.

Voltic Nigeria are the producers.

The Eagle’s back c/othewhiskeynut

They are/were a subsidiary of SABmiller – originally founded in South Africa with an HQ in the UK – who in turn were bought up by the giant Brazilian-Belgian conglomerate of AB InBev.

A more globally connected brand would be hard to find.

Nigerian Coat Of Arms c/olegit.ng

The image on the attractive bottle is rather striking – an imposing gothic eagle – which bears a resemblance to that in the Nigerian Coat Of Arms – and lends a degree of localisation to the brand.

Strength in the Eagle c/othewhiskeynut

It’s presented at 42.8% Nigerian strength – with added caramel.

For this style of whisky – it’s quite light in colour.

There’s that intense caramelly nose – a sweet graininess & a hint of smoke.

The palate is pleasantly smooth. A rich mouthfeel – a touch of biscuity malt & a faint burnt note to add character.

The finish is like gently glowing embers slowly fading.

I’m glad this Eagle flew over to me!

Sláinte

 

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Royal Circle Whisky, 42.8%. India via Nigeria

Nigeria.

A land of 190 million souls – 3 Guinness Breweries and a variety of local whiskies.

I say ‘local’ as a quick internet search failed to find any Nigerian whisky distillery. It did find however a selection of whisky brands that are sold in Nigeria – but have been sourced elsewhere – namely India in this instance.

Whiskey that fringes you high!!
Try #RoyalCircleWhisky. Cling and Cheer the peg with #RCW pic.twitter.com/QF6nO7AJwh

— Royal Circle Whisky (@Rcwhiskynigeria) December 19, 2017

I managed to get my hands on Royal Circle Whisky via a friend who kindly brought me back some samples whilst working in Lagos. A trip to the local Spar shop did the trick.

Royal Circle Premium Whisky c/othewhiskeynut

Packaged in an attractive dumpy bottle with a logo that reminded me of Chivas Regal – Royal Circle is presented at 42.8% and hails from the Khemani Distillery in Daman, India.

It’s a blend of ‘Selected Malt Whiskies’ as it says on the label. Probably imported Scotch and locally produced ethyl alcohol as a lot of these Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) brands are commonly made from.

The IMFL category interests me. They represent THE BIGGEST selling whisky brands in the world – they contain Scotch whisky (which must feed back into profits for those involved) – and yet they are mostly ignored.

Meanwhile – I jump straight in.

A healthy dose of caramel assaults the nose along with a rather spirity aroma.

After working through the cloying artificial tasting sweetness, a muted soft malt briefly appears before a rather robust alcoholic hit warms the palate.

The heat – which I must say is the most attractive part of this otherwise characterless expression – slowly fades away.

Nothing unpleasant – just devoid of any real flavours other than the dreaded caramel.

1st bottle of 2018 down! c/othewhiskeynut

An entry level drinking experience with which I celebrated the New Year.

Sláinte.