London Spirits Run

[tanstaafl2]

Unfortunately the link was as I had recalled. There appeared to be only 65 bottles available for this program and almost all were scotch whisky, not surprising from a store called World of Whiskies I suppose. Most were over 30 pounds and a few of them were over 2000 pounds a bottle!

Looks like a possible good deal for someone looking for a specific scotch though!

[Sunny&Rummy]

If you are a rum fan, you can get Pussers 95.5 proof in England but you can o ly get the 84 proof in the US. The 95.5 is well worth having around if you can find it.

[tanstaafl2]

If you are a rum fan, you can get Pussers 95.5 proof in England but you can only get the 84 proof in the US. The 95.5 is well worth having around if you can find it.

As a bit of a side note and also drawing on the brief discussion about the Dark 'n' Stormy in the rum thread which also get's a mention in the article, has Pusser's been forgiven in the cocktail/spirits world for it's recent trademark dispute with PKNY over the use of the word Painkiller? Or is it more of a New York-centric thing? Or just a tempest in a teapot as was suggested at the end of this interesting thread.

[ScoopKW]

tanstaafl2 -- you live in America. Your friend is buying liquor in London. If your friend comes back with ANYTHING besides Havana Club rum, you should be very, very, VERY upset.

Yeah, that has been considered. They are traveling on government business using an official passport and on the off chance somebody checks and cares I was just concerned it might be embarrassing (or worse) for them. I just don't know how big a deal it would be. If it were me traveling I could take the gamble myself.

Never been truly convinced that Cuban products are as good anymore as the hype and mystic that surrounds them because they are such taboo these days. I think that has been the case for cigars for a long time now. While they may still make good ones few of those see export and other countries now make ones that are as good or better for the same or less money. At least that was my impression of the few very expensive ones I have had in the past ten years or so. All show and no go!

Maybe rum is different. Will have to give it some thought. And although I enjoy rum since I am not a big rum drinker wouldn't know which one to tell them to look for! If I am going to go that route would probably prefer a decent sipper than one for mixing. 7yo? Anejo Especial? Anejo Reserva? The 15yo is probably a little too much to spend on something that might not make it home!

It could be a VERY big deal, depending on what your friend does for the government.

But me, I don't care about the embargo. I've lived 90 miles away from Cuba for most of my adult life. The Cuban people are not my enemy. And you haven't lived until you've mixed a daiquiri with HC Blanco Añejo.

Have your friend sneak in some Romeo y Juliettas or Montecristos as well. Cuban rum and cigars are on par with parma ham and Napa cabs.

[tanstaafl2]

Linie and Aalborg aquavits are readily available in US. I can get them at almost any South Jersey shop, tho sometimes I may have to place a special order; it's usually filled the next business day.

You were absolutely right! Both Linie and Aalborg taffel were just sitting there on the shelf at my favorite store taunting me! Picked up a bottle of the Linie today I added it to the series of pics on the thread about recent liquor store purchases.

[tanstaafl2]

Well, it looks like London is out. My friend was rerouted and now goes through Amsterdam both going and returning. I have even less idea what might be available there but we did decide not to take a chance on Cuban rum given the circumstances under which they are traveling.

I suppose it would be too much to ask of the liquor gods for their to be a bottle of Swedish Punsch and/or van Wees Roggenaer in the duty free shop...

Edited October 4, 2011 by tanstaafl2 (log)

[thirtyoneknots]

Well, it looks like London is out. My friend was rerouted and now goes through Amsterdam both going and returning. I have even less idea what might be available there but we did decide not to take a chance on Cuban rum given the circumstances under which they are traveling.

I suppose it would be too much to ask of the liquor gods for their to be a bottle of Swedish Punsch and/or van Wees Roggenaer in the duty free shop...

Amsterdam?! Genever should be the order of the day! Swedish Punsch will be available to you in short order, but anything other than Bols or the forgettable Boomsma are unlikely to be imported anytime soon. And it's rather more versatile anyway.

[tanstaafl2]

Well, it looks like London is out. My friend was rerouted and now goes through Amsterdam both going and returning. I have even less idea what might be available there but we did decide not to take a chance on Cuban rum given the circumstances under which they are traveling.

I suppose it would be too much to ask of the liquor gods for their to be a bottle of Swedish Punsch and/or van Wees Roggenaer in the duty free shop...

Amsterdam?! Genever should be the order of the day! Swedish Punsch will be available to you in short order, but anything other than Bols or the forgettable Boomsma are unlikely to be imported anytime soon. And it's rather more versatile anyway.

Yes, they passed through Amsterdam this morning on the outbound leg and did a bit of reconnaissance in duty free. No Roggenaer to be found (or any van Wees products it would seem which seems odd) but a lot of different Bols genevers. You would think there might be some other brands of genever to be had besides Bols! But I may not have all the details.

Options they reported seeing include:

Bols Corenwyn (corn wine)

Bols Corenwyn 6 jaar gelagerd

Bols Corenwyn 10 jaar gelagerd

And possibly the Bols zeer oude Genever

I don't know much about them yet but have a little time to decide if I want to try one. Leaning towards the 10yo Corenwyn since the older it is probably the less likely I am to find it here.

Older isn't neccesarily always better but in this case it is my fall back position when buying a pig in a poke!

Anybody ever have something called Coeburgh Classic? Apparently a Bols Dutch market only blackberry flavored spirit of some sort. Also a cranberry, cherry and raspberry flavor. I am always willing to take a gamble on something out of the ordinary although I have no idea if it would be found in the airport duty free stores.

[rlibkind]

You were absolutely right! Both Linie and Aalborg taffel were just sitting there on the shelf at my favorite store taunting me! Picked up a bottle of the Linie today I added it to the series of pics on the thread about recent liquor store purchases.

Enjoy the Linie. And drink it like the Norwegians do: room temp. Fuller flavor for sipping.

[tanstaafl2]

You were absolutely right! Both Linie and Aalborg taffel were just sitting there on the shelf at my favorite store taunting me! Picked up a bottle of the Linie today I added it to the series of pics on the thread about recent liquor store purchases.

Enjoy the Linie. And drink it like the Norwegians do: room temp. Fuller flavor for sipping.

And so I shall! And have. Although I suspect the rooms in Norway might be a tad cooler on the average!

Has been a while since I had aquavit but this was definitely smoother than I expected thanks to it is long journey there and back again no doubt.

[ChrisTaylor]

Sadly, I'm not in London. I'm not going to London any time soon. My partner is, however, about to go. I'm considering asking her to pick up something nice, whisky-wise, while she's there.

Some points:

• Duty free at the airport is pretty much out as she isn't getting a direct flight home.
• I already have, er, more than a few whiskies and can easily find many others. If I'm to get something brought over it has be something special--that is, you probably won't find it overseas. Cost isn't a motivator for importing, either. Whereas American whiskies are much cheaper in their country of origin I've found that whiskies listed on, say, the UK-based Whisky Exchange are only marginally cheap than those here. We're talking $20 off a bottle that is $170AUD, for instance (Glenfarclas 25).
• If anyone has a store in mind it has to be in London itself. I'm not asking my partner to make a special trip. In a similar fashion, the service has to be helpful enough that they can help a non-whisky drinker find the product. If I was there myself I'd probably be quite happy to provide someone who knows a lot more than me a list of what I like and let them do the choosing but I'd rather provide my partner with a list of malts and have her be handed one of the bottles directly.

I guess what I'm looking for, really, is an expression of a malt I already like that typically isn't exported or, better still, a malt released by a small distillery that doesn't export in any great quantity. As an aside, if Japanese whisky is readily avaliable in such stores then I might be inclined to pick up something like a Yoichi 15: Japanese whisky, aside from Yamazaki, is very hard to find here and very expensive.

Any recommendations?

If relevant, here are some things I already like:

• On the smokier side of things: Talisker, Lagavulin and Ardbeg. Of the latter I've sampled and enjoyed the standard 10-year-old expression and Uigeadail. Given I have a couple of Ardbegs on the go at the moment I'm leaning away from yet another Ardbeg expression unless, like the Uigeadail, it's something truly special.
• Aberlour (well, I've only tried a'Bunadh) and Glenfarclas (I sampled the 25 and really enjoyed that).
• The Glenfiddich 21 y/o I'm currently sipping on is very nice.
• Spirits beyond Scotch: bourbon, rye (moreso than bourbon, actually), cognac, darker rums such as Diplomatico and Ron Zacapa.

Things that haven't worked for me, that I'd steer away from:

• Isle of Jura Superstition
• The Glen Livet, altho' I've only tried a couple of the expressions (including the entry-level)
• Glenmorangie's Nectar d'Or

[liuzhou]

Send your partner to Milroy's. London's top whisky shop.

[pacman1978]

http://www.thewhiskyexchange.com/vinopolis.aspx

That place is considered great by some of my whiskey drinking friends. It is part of the wine shop vinnopolis which is absolutely amazing if you are into wine (http://vinopolis.co.uk/)

This is another smaller shop http://www.uncorked.co.uk/.

I have purchased a couple of single barrel whiskey from there as presents for people and it is located near liverpool street in the heart of the financial district (what we call confusingly the city).

Hope that helps somewhat.

Regards,

Paul

[Plantes Vertes]

The Whiskey Exchange also stocks the Yoichi 15. I've bought it online but you should check that it's available in the shop, as not all of their stock is on display.

[Hassouni]

Cadenhead's shop might be a good place to stop in

[tanstaafl2]

Since you like rye I will put in a plug for the Zuidam Millstone 100 rye which I just had brought back from the Netherlands for me. Delightful stuff and met with very favorable reviews from my group of bourbon/rye drinking friends this past weekend. I am already in search of a way to get more if I can without having to have it shipped to me.

Quite unique in taste, probably the pot still influence, with a bit of sweetness up front (faintly banana) with plenty of rye spiciness to follow but easy drinking considering it is 100 proof. Number 3 on the Whisky Advocate Summer list for 2013.

Pricey but available at Whisky Exchange.

Edited July 1, 2013 by tanstaafl2 (log)

[Adam George]

http://www.thewhiskyexchange.com/twesearchresult.aspx?q=port+askaig

http://www.thewhiskyexchange.com/P-18100.aspx

http://www.thewhiskyexchange.com/P-15057.aspx

Edited July 2, 2013 by Adam George (log)

[mkayahara]

I wasn't sure which of these various threads to revive, but... I'll be heading to London next week, and looking to do some spirits shopping while there. (Unlike the OP, I'll have access to more than just the airport.) Generally when I travel, I like to buy products that are not available at home, especially if they're local specialties; for this trip, I'm leaning toward a Navy strength gin, though I'm certainly open to other suggestions. Where should I be doing my shopping?

[Plantes Vertes]

For off licences, you could try Amathus or Gerry's, both general spirits retailers with gigantic stocks in Soho, or the Whisky Exchange on the Southbank, which sells things other than whisk(e)y, but also a hell of a lot of whisk(e)y. None of them are very cheap, but you can get everything you want in one place.

[lesliec]

Not sure what you'd be looking for, but I have a colleague in the UK at the moment and I'm hoping he'll bring me some Smith & Cross.  Whisky Exchange lists it on their website; Amathus and Gerry's don't.

[Hassouni]

I wasn't sure which of these various threads to revive, but... I'll be heading to London next week, and looking to do some spirits shopping while there. (Unlike the OP, I'll have access to more than just the airport.) Generally when I travel, I like to buy products that are not available at home, especially if they're local specialties; for this trip, I'm leaning toward a Navy strength gin, though I'm certainly open to other suggestions. Where should I be doing my shopping?

 

Take advantage of greater availability of Demerara rums in general, and indie bottlings of whisky and rum in particular. Heathrow as of last summer was selling Litres of Woods 100 (100 sykes, so 57% ABV) for some comically cheap price, like £13 or something. It beats the pants off the younger El Dorados for cocktails.

 

Soho would be a good starting point - you have Gerry's, Amathus, and also Milroy's. You're also not a long walk from the Cadenhead (Marylebone) and Berry Bros & Rudd (St James's) shops

Edited April 17, 2014 by Hassouni (log)

[Plantes Vertes]

Leslie, they do have S+C at Gerry's.

[lesliec]

Thanks, PV.  Their search box didn't find it immediately, so I gave up.

[Plantes Vertes]

It's evolution at work. The most persistent obtain the rum. Then they drink it, feel frisky and reproduce.

[mkayahara]

Thanks, all, for the replies. That's got me off to a great start! I see that Whisky Exchange carries Jade Perique liqueur de tabac, so that might have part of my allotment taken care of right there.