Dimple
The Scotch blend in the triangular bottle with indentations, made by the Haig family. Everything about the percentage, the blend and the glass that goes with it.
The bottle recognized by its indentations
Dimple has existed since 1890 and comes from the Haig house, one of the oldest names in Scotch whisky. It is a blend: malt whisky from pot stills mixed with grain whisky from column stills. What distinguishes Dimple from most blends is its high malt content, with Glenkinchie and Linkwood among its distinctive building blocks. This makes the whisky fuller and rounder than its price range would suggest.
The bottle is just as famous. It is triangular, with an indentation on each side, and is enclosed in a wire mesh. This design was patented in 1958 and had a practical reason: the indentations make the glass stronger, which helped during transport over unpaved roads. In English-speaking countries, the same whisky is therefore called Haig Pinch, after that pinched shape.
In brief
Dimple Gold and similar whiskies
This is Dimple Gold. These bottles are in the same category: soft, rounded and bottled at 40%.
Dimple Gold
The blend with a high malt content: vanilla, dried fruit and nuts, with a medium-length finish. Approachable and rounded.
Johnnie Walker Black Label
The best-known blend with an age statement on the label. Slightly smokier and spicier than Dimple.
Glen Talloch Gold 12 Years
Twelve-year-old blend with a high malt content. Smoother and sweeter than Dimple, and significantly better value.
Cardhu Gold Reserve
Not a blend but a single malt from Speyside, in the same smooth style. For those looking for this flavor but wanting a single distillery.
Dimple if you want a smooth blend with some dried fruit in it; Black Label if you're looking for something smoky.
Smooth, round and slightly nutty
Vanilla & mocha
Vanilla and smooth mocha, with dried fruit and a light woody note underneath. No smoke and no harsh edges.
Round and full
Full and smooth, with nuts, dried fruit and vanilla. The high malt content gives it more body than an ordinary blend.
Medium-length and sweet
A medium-length finish with wood and a sweet note. Never harsh, even neat.
Flavor profile of Dimple Gold. Johnnie Walker Black Label scores higher on smokiness and spiciness; Glen Talloch Gold scores higher on sweetness.
Three ways to drink Dimple
A smooth blend with plenty of malt is perfectly enjoyable neat, but works just as well over ice or with sparkling water.
Neat after dinner
4 cl in a tulip-shaped tasting glass at room temperature. Dimple is smooth enough to drink neat and is often served as a digestif, with dark chocolate or aged cheese.
Glass: tasting glass →On the rocks
5 cl over two or three ice cubes in a heavy tumbler. The ice removes the last of the sweetness and makes the notes more pronounced. Use large cubes, as they melt more slowly.
Glass: tumbler →As a highball
40 ml Dimple in a highball glass filled with ice, topped with 120 ml ice-cold sparkling water and a strip of lemon peel. Light and refreshing, and one of the better ways to drink a blend with food.
Highball recipe →The best cocktails with Dimple
A smooth blend without harsh edges is exactly what you want in a whisky cocktail where the other ingredients are allowed to do the work.
Whisky Sour
Whisky, lemon, sugar and egg white. Dimple's notes come through nicely.
Rusty Nail
Scotch with Drambuie over ice. Sweet, spicy and ready in thirty seconds.
Godfather
Whisky with amaretto over a large ice cube. The almond complements the notes in the blend.
Hot Toddy
Whisky with hot water, honey, lemon and clove. For cold evenings.The right glass for Dimple
A heavy tumbler for whisky on the rocks, a long drink glass for the highball, and a tasting glass if you drink it neat. These are the glasses we recommend ourselves.
Everything you still wanted to know about Dimple
Can't find your question here? Check out our cocktail recipes or get in touch.
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