Thanks for the link. I'm starting to look also into blends anyway. I will not be one of those paying for the boom more than necessary.

Agreed, got a bottle a few years back as a present and it is strong but quite good. In general you get a good bang for your buck with knob creek.

Got Jim Murray's Whisky Bible 2016. He promotes also blended whisky. Will take up that as a regular part of the tasting. Will also cut costs, and you get to taste what a master blender achieves.

Jim Murray also says about whisky in general: "Less is more". So the more subtle nuances of for example blends can be a point.

Had Islay Mist Deluxe. It contains a great deal of Laphroaig. I feel peat-smoke, malty, floral-fruity. Rating: Murray gave it 85/100, I give ++/+++. Will try to switch to the scale of Nose, Palate/Taste, Finish, Overall Impression/Balance and Complexity of 25 max points each (=max 100)

What is the deal with NAS whiskys? I'm seeing them lining the shelves at the local Total Wine, some commanding a premium over the aged bottles. However, I've read that they are considered lower quality and frowned upon. Is the shortage hitting the distillers that hard? And are NAS a marketing gimmick? The only NAS I've had his Talisker Storm and it wasn't very good.

They don't have to wait many years for getting their whisky out when skipping the age statement (NAS = No Age Statement). Demand has increased that much. Wonder how old the whisky in the NAS bottles are? On the other hand they get greater freedom to blend in some younger whiskies in their older stock, for taste reasons, because with the age statement you tell how old the youngest part is in your single distillery malt blend (=single malt). Generally though, don't think age as such increases the quality of a whisky after a loosely draw point. The age statement has prob been used as a marketing gimmick also.

FYI, for New Englanders or anyone in the area on 4/1


Mohegan Sun Whiskey Fest

The NAS blowback is mostly about transparency. People complain that distilleries are charging a premium for whiskies that are usually young and they are not being straightforward about it. Also, quality in a lot of these whiskies is suspect, although there are some exceptions like Ardberg Uigeadail to name a popular one.

Some distilleries are going against the grain though, making a point of disclosing the age of their whiskies. For example, Lagavulin is releasing an 8 year old bottle for their 200th Anniversary, and they are going to charge $65 for it in the USA. They could have easily released the same bottle as a "200th Anniversary <insert fancy name>" and change $100 extra. Also, early reviews for that bottle are excellent. Kudos to them.

I'm sure the success of the lagavulin 12 encouraged them to keep on that path. It was excellent as well and maybe better than the 16.

They'll be at least 3, since before that it's not whisky but malt spirit.

My guess is its likely to be in the 6-10 region, and if they are good at blending they may even offload some crummy older stuff which didn't work as a blend or single cask.

Best,
Pete

Looking into distilling processes, bourbon is for example made in column (Coffey) stills. This article was quite good, imo:

http://drinks.seriouseats.com/2014/0...umn-still.html

Aultmore 12:



On my second glass now and it might be in the running for best bang for buck; category: Single Malt Scotch.

It is the best value for a Speyside whisky imo; CAD 80, I'd say it ranks above Macallan, Balvenie, and the Glen's. It tastes more like an Islay than a Speyside, imo.

Anyone try it?

Haven't had Aultmore 12, but at the Exchange it was €55, in my price range. Have thought about becoming "The Connoisseur of the Low End". So €60 will be my max for whole bottles, tastings naturally come in for the higher end. Going in for the project seriously. Just got the Aroma Academy's 24 nosing set, learned the 12 in the basic set. Maybe in a year I'll get https://www.winearomas.com/whisky.html. $400 will hurt though.

You may see a review of Glen Parker and Naked Grouse on these pages any time soon, finishing off my last expensive whisky, Hibiki, a blended malt.

Hibiki Japanese Harmony, mild disappointment, +(+)/+++. Maybe too harmonious.

Still super-annoyed with myself that I bought a bottle of this for ~$25 in Tokyo rather than a bottle of Hibiki 17 for ~$70.

They sell it for $25? Nice, I paid €80 in the local store...

It was last August, when the dollar was particularly strong against the yen. But yeah, it usually goes for ~$100 in stores near me. (And the Hibiki 17, if you can find it, goes for $175+. The Harmony was a better bargain, but the 17 is so much more worth it.)

Springbank 10 is really, really good; I always forget

If I like that, what else should I try that I might not know about?

Gadarene, just starting to explore the more budget ones, in the style of http://www.seriouseats.com/2014/10/b...pigs-nose.html

The ones overall that have got my best rating so far are: Ardbeg 10, Bruichladdich Classic Laddie, Four Roses Small Batch, Glenfarclas 10, Johnny Drum 15, Lagavulin 16, Laphroaig 10, Mackmyra Svensk Rök, Noah's Mill, Penderyn Madeira, Talisker 10, Tobermory 10. But it's all subjective...for example, I have several others which have got my highest rating at one occasion, but not at another.

OMG, I gave Monkey Shoulder the lowest possible rating once...


Edit: Sry, Gadarene, missed your "If I like that", maybe better go with ET below, haven't had Springbank 10...

Have you tried the Springbank 12yo cask strength? A bit more expensive but well worth the money.

Maybe this could be used: masterofmalt.com/whiskies/springbank-10-year-old-whisky/
Longrow Peated (gave it full +++/+++ once, ++/+++ last time) is a good whisky from the same distillery, and bought by the same customers as Springbank 10. Bunnahabhain 12 and Caol Ila 12 are excellent choices too, If believing me and other customers...

I have not.

And thanks, plaaynde; the Bunna 12 is one of my favorites as well

+1
great whisky!
by the way the lagavulin 8y is great as well!(more like the 12y cs)
just had it at a tasting in Rome and already pre ordered 2 from my supplier at home .

Great to know! I was debating whether to order one once it starts selling in Europe. I'm pretty sure I'll be able to get one in the US later in the year, but better be safe than sorry.

whats the price difference between the 8 and standard 16?

Presently Drinking 1776 rye neat at blind elephant in Wilmington NC