BALLY Art Déco Batch 2 Conquête, 43.5% ABV

The Bally Art Deco is the second edition of the Art Deco Series featuring the iconic pyramid bottle. A marriage of three vintages – 1999, 2006 and 2007 – the second edition of Bally Art Déco demonstrates remarkable balance and freshness of expression.

Tasting Notes

Nose: full, rich. Evoking an apricot tart, a marmalade or even a quince jelly, the first nose reveals a salty (flower), sweet (cane), bitter (chocolate) and acid (orange peel) balance of great elegance. . When aired, its fruitiness gains in intensity, blood oranges replace the zest and exotic fruits (mango, passion, persimmon) alongside black and red fruits (blackberry, raspberry). Sublime scents of petunia and honeysuckle punctuate the first stage of the tasting beautifully.

Palate: soft, balanced. Full of freshness, the attack on the palate spreads cane sugar over the taste buds with floral (mimosa, geranium), spicy (ginger) and liquorice accents. On the mid-palate, notes of tobacco, caramel and lime blossom honey capture the entire palate. Gradually, candied ginger, dried fruits (date, fig) and cinnamon rise to the surface of the taste palette.

Finish: remarkable chocolate and floral freshness (hyacinth, rose). Overall: long, tasty. In line with the end of the palate, the start of the finish gradually shows itself more and more pastry (cane sugar pie, rum baba). The very end of the palate is a melting pot of ripe fruits (reinette apple, pineapple, banana, lemon) on a background of liquorice and roasted flavors (coffee). In retro-olfaction, ginger and cocoa powder constitute a remarkably silky olfactory and taste duo. The empty glass is slightly empyreumatic (tar, pipe tobacco oil) and vegetable (sugar cane).

Key Information

Serving Suggestions
First things first, be comfortable, relaxed and free from distractions. Pour a healthy amount (15-25ml) into a nosing glass (e.g., glencairn) and let it sit for a while. We recommend a minute of resting in the glass for every year in the cask. Otherwise, let it settle down for 5-10 minutes at least.

Help yourself to a 'warm up dram' in the meantime - something simple to open up the palate. When ready, start nosing the spirit, followed by sipping it (noting how it arrives on your palate and its development), and finally the finish. Take your time to get to know the spirit, noting its expression, character, depth, complexity and flavours. These can all change with adding drops of water so play around to find different sides of the spirit and identity a personal sweet spot for yourself!

But always remember, the best way to drink it is the way you like it!