Scotch Whisky: The Topic

[Jurges]

Thanks for the information guys. The recommended article is phenomenal.

[Hassouni]

damn, Laphroaig cocktails. I presume as a main ingredient?

Here's my sub $60 list (some of these have to be on sale, but do appear regularly on sale for under that)

Bruichladdich the Laddie 10

Caol Ila 12

Glenmorangie 10

Talisker 10

Old Pulteney 12

Highland Park 12

Ardbeg 10 and Lagavulin 16 (those are both usually over 60 but can be found for less) for an intense but less medicinal smoke.

Bruichladdich is very interesting as it's an easily available unpeated Islay, something not otherwise easy to find. It's also a real banger, and often found for $40. Highland Park 12 or Talisker 10 probably are my desert island scotches - very complex, endlessly fascinating and delicious, without any single aspect being in your face - and also fairly reasonably priced. Caol Ila is a subtle, autumnal smokiness, Glenmorangie a great value Highland malt, and Old Pulteney a more complex, briney one.

[ChrisTaylor]

Notscotch. But most Australian notscotch is made in the style of scotch.

 

 

The double (port/bourbon) cask expression of Sullivan's Cove. SC have picked up a few awards and a lot of attention in recent years. This bottle is a few years old. I opened it when I got it, poured a small dram and then set it aside--not because it was bad but because I kind of forgot about it. Time to have another shot at it.

 

 

On the nose you get the oak and the 'mustiness' I associate with whiskies that have spent some time in a wine cask (this is most obvious in the pinot edition of Hellyer's Road, another Tasmanian whisky). It tastes young. No age statement on the bottle, as you can see. Most Australian whisky is sold really young, although that's starting to change. I don't know much about the expressions of SC that have been collecting awards. Sweet entry. Oak. Floral. Butterscotch. Not bad.

[ChrisTaylor]

Picked up a mini of Ardbeg Blasda. I was forewarned that it's an oddball drop. On the nose it's young and there's smoke/peat. Yeah, it's lightly peated--not unpeated. On the palate it's young. Oak. Wood. A certain creaminess. Then a bit of fruitness. It's okay. Perhaps it's even good. Can't see myself coughing up for a full-sized bottle, though.

[donk79]

Resurrecting this thread, because I am curious.  When the last post was made in this thread, my Scotch sampling was confined to a few mini's of JW that I bought out of curiosity.  My spirit of choice for a long time has been bourbon, and I was unimpressed. 

However, in the past year, I developed a desire to find something different, something that grabbed my attention more.  So I bought a bottle of Mccallan double cask, and was blown away by the nose.  The palate was missing imo ( I may have a different opinion now) so I continued searching.  I shied away from Islay, because it had a REPUTATION, and I thought I was unprepared for it.  But as I tasted different Highlands, Speysides, and other Island Scotches, I kept wanting a little more, backbone, a little more bite.  Then, about a month ago, I saw Ardbeg Uigedahl on sale.  I had heard of it, and decided it might be a good introduction to Islay.

 

Wow!  It is everything that I had been looking for!  I am looking forward to exploring further.  I am curious to hear what others are currently enjoying and exploring.  This is really still a new frontier for me!

[Hassouni]

Uigedail is fantastic, so is the standard run Ardbeg 10. In Islay I'm also a big fan of the Lagavulin 8 (and the special game of Thrones release 9 year), as well as the cask-strength Laphroaig 10, though that's a different beast entirely.

[EvergreenDan]

I've not had the 8, but Lagavulin 16 is a standard that others are compared against (as is Laphroaig 10). I'm not saying they are the best, but that they are well known and respected for what they are. I like Laphroaig 10 in cocktails because it's super heavy peat stands up. I find it a bit one dimensional all by itself. Lagavulin gives you some nice wet bandaids with your campfire.

 

[donk79]

1 hour ago, EvergreenDan said:

I've not had the 8, but Lagavulin 16 is a standard that others are compared against (as is Laphroaig 10). I'm not saying they are the best, but that they are well known and respected for what they are. I like Laphroaig 10 in cocktails because it's super heavy peat stands up. I find it a bit one dimensional all by itself. Lagavulin gives you some nice wet bandaids with your campfire.

 

Picked up a bottle of Oban 14 last night.  Have to say, bandaids are not my thing, at least not yet.  It wasn't unpleasant, but I cannot say it was something I am seeking either.

 

I did see some Lagavulin 9 that caught my eye.  The 16 will have to wait for a special occasion purchase.  Is the 9 substantially different than the 8?

[scubadoo97]

Agreed the bandAid thing is not mind as well.  I tend to gravitate to the Highlands selections

 

mostly drinking bourbon and real rum these days  

[EvergreenDan]

On 10/14/2019 at 8:50 PM, scubadoo97 said:

mostly drinking ... real rum these days  

Previously drinking fake brews?

[scubadoo97]

Yes no fake rum like Bambu et al.  Rum without additives like sugar, glycerin, flavorings etc.  no cocktails in a bottle.  

[paulraphael]

On 10/1/2019 at 4:25 PM, Hassouni said:

Uigedail is fantastic, so is the standard run Ardbeg 10. In Islay I'm also a big fan of the Lagavulin 8 (and the special game of Thrones release 9 year), as well as the cask-strength Laphroaig 10, though that's a different beast entirely.

 

I had Uigeadail for the first time over the holidays this winter and absolutely loved it. My dad got two bottles of nice scotch as presents and so we did a very informal blind tasting. I knew one was a special bottling of Lagavulin, and one was the Uigeadail. I liked one of them and was floored by the other. I'd assumed the winner would be the Lagavulin, since I like plain-old Lagavulin more than I like plain-old Ardbeg. But damn if my fave wasn't the Ardbeg. 

 

This was especially good news because the special Lagavulin was a really expensive bottle. The Uigeadail is pretty reasonable, and is available every year. I haven't treated myself to a bottle yet. For pandemic season I've been drinking cocktails, not fancy scotch. Maybe in the fall or winter.

Edited May 23, 2020 by paulraphael (log)

[rotuts]

Id appreciate some input on the Lagavulin ' progression ' :

 

Im not a Whisky connoisseur .

 

but Ive come to enjoy two versions , over the last few years :

 

 

and 

 

 

Ive found for my taste these two are very complementary .

 

once a few years ago in a rush , I grabbed this one :

 

 

probably semi-seduced by the price , thinking this was a Sale    the packaging was very similar 

 

Ill add in my defense.   I found it significantly less interesting than the Rum cask .

 

Ive also found that in my area ( why I added pics w the Total Wine price , the lowest in my area )

 

that prices less than lets say $ 70  for less are disappointing experiences for my tastes .  I do not drink a

 

lot of whisky.   I add very cold water to the whisky , 50 % or a little ore

 

to cut the alcohol burn.  but still have a very full rich flavored drink

 

TJ's ' Costal ' wines are more every day for me these days.

 

Ive found that whisky prices over $ 90 go up exponentially , and I doubt the experience of drinking them

 

follows those price differentials .

 

this Lagavulin caught my eye :

 

 

I am ab0ut to go back to TW and restock for the Winter , and Beyond.

 

I can afford the $ 35 difference for this bottle.  but Id like to not be disappointed .

 

has anyone had this version of Lagavulin ?     Id like to have a similar amount of Peat

 

not overpowering , medicinal lii as in the Laphroaig series:

 

 

thank you for your input.

 

P.S.:  I know that BigBooze has purchase many traditional labels , both whisky , cognac etc 

 

and  counting their Beans , ave pushed into marketing far more than' traditional development.'

 

that's where my $ 90 inflection point come in .

 

thanks again 

 

 

 

 

[paulraphael]

I recently finished the bottle of Uigedail I was so enamored with. By the end I'd gotten kind of tired of it. I love the smoke and peat, but started to find it a bit too sweet, almost like a gingerbread house. Something cookie / biscuity about it. I then had a sip from an old bottle of Lagavulin 16, and thought, hello old friend. 

 

I'm intrigued by the special editions of Lagavulin but don't have the budget. 

 

Has anyone tried the other no-age-statement Ardbegs, like Corryvreckan?

[Duvel]

19 hours ago, paulraphael said:

I recently finished the bottle of Uigedail I was so enamored with. By the end I'd gotten kind of tired of it. I love the smoke and peat, but started to find it a bit too sweet, almost like a gingerbread house. Something cookie / biscuity about it. I then had a sip from an old bottle of Lagavulin 16, and thought, hello old friend. 

 

I'm intrigued by the special editions of Lagavulin but don't have the budget. 

 

Has anyone tried the other no-age-statement Ardbegs, like Corryvreckan?

I had a bottle of Corryvreckan some years ago. It was good - dense, sweet, mineral and quite peaty. At 57% the experience of course depends heavily how you dilute it - I tend to enjoy at slightly higher abv’s, so that’s when you get above notes.

[rotuts]

@Duvel

 

what does abv's mean ?

 

alcohol content of the diluted beverage , in this case whisky ?

 

Happy New Year's Drinking !

[Kerry Beal]

Pretty sure it's Alcohol by Volume - a lot of standard blends are sold at 40% 

Edited January 2 by Kerry Beal (log)

[rotuts]

I checked the two whisky's I have 

 

Lagulavin and Balvenie  , both are 43.5 or so .

 

Ive been watching   Slow Horses 

 

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5875444/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

 

and they do polish off a bit of whisky , always ' neat '

 

I tried to follow along , but found the straight up alcohol content simply burned the ( my ) palate .

 

I dilute mine , and the result , in the appropriate glass 

 

 

I don't think Im missing anything re : the straight up drinking 

 

and , not really a spoiler for SH'es

 

in the final eps of season 3 

 

there appears a Macallan 18 yo

 

 

there seem to be two versions , different cask-ings

 

the exact version was obscured by a hand :

 

 

I looked into it @ Total Wine :

 

 

I do like to ' drink along ' w various British  Drama's

 

but its not going to be Macallan 18.

 

however , the bottle was cast well :  two characters 

 

with image conciseness 

 

 

 

 

 

[Kerry Beal]

28 minutes ago, rotuts said:

I checked the two whisky's I have 

 

Lagulavin and Balvenie  , both are 43.5 or so .

 

Ive been watching   Slow Horses 

 

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5875444/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

 

and they do polish off a bit of whisky , always ' neat '

 

I tried to follow along , but found the straight up alcohol content simply burned the ( my ) palate .

 

I dilute mine , and the result , in the appropriate glass 

 

 

I don't think Im missing anything re : the straight up drinking 

 

and , not really a spoiler for SH'es

 

in the final eps of season 3 

 

there appears a Macallan 18 yo

 

 

there seem to be two versions , different cask-ings

 

the exact version was obscured by a hand :

 

 

I looked into it @ Total Wine :

 

 

I do like to ' drink along ' w various British  Drama's

 

but its not going to be Macallan 18.

 

however , the bottle was cast well :  two characters 

 

with image conciseness 

 

 

 

 

 

think there might be a bottle of that on my very dusty sideboard 

[gfweb]

1 hour ago, Kerry Beal said:

Pretty sure it's Alcohol by Volume - a lot of standard blends are sold at 40% 

 Yup.

 

And Proof is simply 2xABV

[rotuts]

@Kerry Beal

 

wow.  hopefully 

 

not a recent purchase in Canada 

 

ive always enjoyed my trips to Canada 

 

in a nice French restaurant in Montreal 

 

nice = prix fix  menu , a la France itself 

 

3 to 4 couses 

 

2 to 3 choices // courses 

 

a bottle of wine , french of course 

 

w/o extravagance 

 

cost the same as the meal.

 

Taxes being what they are N of th B.

 

 

[Kerry Beal]

Some from Scotland - some from LCBO - some from duty free I think. Not seeing some of the ones I know my dad and Gary used to enjoy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[rotuts]

fine collection.

[Kerry Beal]

1 minute ago, rotuts said:

fine collection.

Bit dusty!

[rotuts]

@Kerry Beal

 

I wouldn't mind a taste of the Lagavulin ' 1994 '

 

on the other hand , maybe not

 

Id probably like it

 

and its probably not available  

 

Got suggested it was 400 Pounds Sterling

 

several years ago.