Would be interested to know how the Bowmore 17 compares to the 12yo. Also, how is the Talisker 25 Cask Strength, and do you know how that compares to the normal 10yo?

it depends on the person, in general it will be hard to taste the subtleties when its such high proof.

the "correct" method is to dilute it down to typical alcohol levels gradually via very nice water. Some go as far as calculating the volume of water required to reach ~80-90 proof and measuring. Me, i prefer a spoon.

This is my current Scotch Collection: (Left to Right) Lombard 12, Johnnie Walker Green, Laphroaig Quarter Cask, Glenlivet 15 French Oak, Glenlivet Nadura, Macallan 12 and 18, Glenmorangie Nectar d'Or, Glenfiddich 18, Balvenie 15 Single Barrel, Oban 14, Dalwhinnie 15, Stronachie 12, Singleton of Glendullan 12, and Aberlour 12.

I still feel ridiculously under qualified and unskilled at properly describing these, so you have been warned how bad my pallet is....but in order to start contributing to the thread beyond my yammering and questions--here goes a few.

Dalwhinnie 15
This is a bottle my friend pointed me to several years ago (so a slightly older bottling) when I first thought about getting into single malts. It's labeled "The Gentle Spirit" for a reason and is pretty smooth and a hint of sweetness, but almost lacking in depth compared with my more recent experiences. That probably does make it a perfect starter bottle for someone looking to get into trying stuff out though. It's a highland/speyside type location (not sure what region it would typically go under) with the relatively standard base flavors you'd find there.

Singleton of Glendullan 12
I just recently picked up this bottle on a whim, at the recommendation of the shop owner. Normally I'm skeptical of such recommendations, but I am in need of finding a cheaper bottling of scotch I can drink regularly. The drink was pretty smooth start to finish, with a touch of warming in the middle. It was mildly sweet and smokey, although it smelled sweeter than it ended up being. Not overly complex, although that's probably to be expected given the age. It's a Speyside distillery.

Now both of these are owned by Diagio, along with several others. Not quite sure if I should make anything of that corporate ownership or not.

Glenfiddich 18
Quite a warming glass of whiskey I must say. It proved interesting how it seemed to grow slightly sweeter as it breathed. Need to have this one a time or two again before I can describe it appropriately.

PR: Anyone I serve the 70% whiskies to generally takes them with a few drops of water. What makes the George T Stagg and especially the Willett so incredible is how smooth they are for that proof. They will still be way too harsh for lots of people. I just give them other whiskey.

AA: "On a side note, I bought a bottle of this the other day, and will be sure to post in here once I try it" You were topping my list of favorite posters in this thread due to your Willett recommendation. You have plummeted to the bottom of the list based on this comment! WERE YOU KIDNAPPED RIGHT AFTER BUYING IT!?!?!!?!?!!! Can't wait to hear your review - I suspect you'll convince me to shell out for a bottle.

inya: That is a really nice selection of scotches to cover a wide range of styles/tastes. I bet that Talisker 25 Cask is incredible.

Was given a small 20cl bottle of this Balvenie 12yo Double Wood today...



It's a Speyside whisky that's been matured in Bourbon casks for ten years then sherry casks for another two. Just trying it now for the first time. On first pouring it smelt very creamy and like butterscotch, but five minutes on and that's mellowed out into a sweet and citrussy fruit. It tastes slightly of orange and honey, and also slightly spicy, with a nice warming finish.

I wasn't sure what to expect as I've been mostly drinking peaty Islay Scotches recently, and the last sweet whiskies I tried, I didn't really get on with, but this is actually really nice. Would definitely recommend.

Ron,
I have had the talisker 10 which I remember enjoying but not much else. I'll try to get around to doing a comparison of the Bowmore 12 and 17.

I've never done a write up and probably don't have as sophisticated a palate as others but I'm bored on a Monday and Ron/El D wanted to know what this was all about.



Talisker 25 Cask Strength

For a while this has been my favorite scotch. I have tried to keep it around as long as possible and when I finally go through the last few glasses I'll be sure to get another bottle.

Appearance: Light Gold

Nose: Sweetness with tones of light fruits and vanilla. Something about the smell makes me think of the wood of a cottage.

Taste: Not quite harsh at first but the alcohol is very prominent. There taste is very spicy and peppery with hints of fruits.

Finish: Amazingly smooth and sweet. The alcohol drifts away with no harshness at all and has an almost chocolaty sweetness in the finish.

Agreed, I like it with a few DROPS, but would never dilute it down to 80-90 proof. I still drink the stagg/willett neat most of the time, and employ the method I posted a few days ago.

LOL, I had a feeling I was gonna get this from you. I actually went to buy the Uigeadail, per your suggestion, and the guy talked me into buying the supernova since they only had 4 bottles left, and they were selling pretty fast. I finally got into it last night with my father and it's probably the most insane/strange/mind boggling whiiskey I have ever tasted and I am still trying to get my head around it.

Color: Very pale, straw like color
Nose: HUGE amounts of peat, but not in the lagavulin "campfire smoke" smoke way. It's got some citrus, pepper, SEA WATER.

Palate: The first sip of of this stuff is akin to your palate getting slapped with a brick. Just EXPLODES on your tongue....HUGE onsluaght of peat and an extraordinary number of secondary flavors that I have never experienced in a whiskey. The way the flavors develop on your tongue in a matter of seconds is really astounding. It starts off with a touch of sweetness/maltiness, chocolate?, espresso followed by citrus/SALT/tar/smoke/chilli peppers

I really need to revisit this one in the next few days because I still don't know how I feel about it. It's totally amazing stuff, but certainly not something I'd want to drink more than maaaaybe once every few weeks. I have a feeling this bottle is gonna last me a loooong time, but I am very happy I have it. EL D you gotta try this stuff, it'll make your head explode

I really want to try the Supernova now, but £80 is just too much for me to spend on one bottle atm. Need to get better at the poker.

A lot of my bottles are running low now so I'll hopefully be making some new purchases soon.

My current wish list:

Caol Ila 18yo
Ardbeg Supernova
Lagavulin 16yo
And I also need to expand my collection away from Islay and the Western Isles, so would be nice to get a selection of good Highland/Speyside whiskies. The sampler of Balvenie seems pretty nice so that might be a starting point.

so what's everyone been drinking lately? its not lent, so i know no ones been dry. ive been drinking black label all year, currently waiting for my brother to visit so i can restock on some balvenie, glenmorangie and laphroaig.

Haven't drank much whiskey lately.....been drinking lots of these 2



Ron Zacapa Rum.....ridiculously good, sells for around $40/bottle



Jean Fillioux Tres Vieux Cognac.....Sells for around $120, got it for $80....best cognac I have ever had at this price point.....100% grande champagne....too tired to give tasting notes, but could do so later if people are curious.

I have been drinking this by the case for 5 years now, and cannot recommend it highly enough. Even if you don't consider yourself a rum man, you owe it to yourself to try a bottle.

please do, i've never really 'gotten into' cognac, not yet anyway. with all the whisky out there its hard enough to stay on this side of 'alcoholic'.

also, rum is ridiculously undervalued, similar to bourbon in some ways i think. you can get unbelievably good rum for next to nothing.

Zacapa 23 is the BEST, easily purchased rum bottle. Also some Venezuelan rum is great treat.

But, this is what you're looking for rum-wise:



Best I've ever tasted.

Just been finishing off most of my bottles rather than buying new ones for the last few months due to lack of space (I think there's plenty of room in the kitchen for more whisky, my gf disagrees). Probably going to start building the collection up with some new bottles now. As a start, I was given a bottle of this:



Penderyn Madeira Welsh Single Malt - Penderyn is the only distillery in Wales so I was interested to try something a bit different. They've got a really good website with loads of info about the distillery and the different whisky they produce and how they produce it. I've only had a quick look through, but it looks like the main difference between this distillery and Scottish distilleries is that they use just one still rather than two. The whisky itself doesn't have an age statment, but I believe the distillery has only been bottling for about 5-6 years. It comes bottled at 46% and when neat has a slightly harsh alcohol smell which gives away it's age, but this is smoothed down with a touch of water, and gives way to honey and wine. The taste is of honey and apricots and is definitely young and fresh, but not in a bad way as some cheap Scotch malts can be. I think that they have realised that they will be judged on their young product until a few years down the line when they are selling fully matured whiskey, so have put a lot of effort into maturing it as well as possible and they've pulled it off imo.

To the rum drinkers, how do you drink your rum? I've never been able to stomach it neat and have always had it with Coke, which I love but kinda feel like a bit of a noob, although I've never been aware of anybody drinking it straight like you would with whisky or Cognac.

I was told the Bowmore 17 has been discontinued and replaced by Bowmore 18. Maybe that's only in this market (Canada), and not USA.

Can't make the comparison because I haven't had Bowmore 12, but I've been really enjoying the 18 lately. It's not cheap, but not unreasonably expensive, so I'd be surprised if you ended up disappointed with the purchase. I found a review where the guy prefers the 18 but not to the point where the price difference is justified for him : http://scotchhobbyist.com/2009/05/03...ore-12-and-18/

I assume it's ok to also discuss cognac a little in this thread. I really don't know much about it and have never had good cognac, so I would appreciate suggestions. The Jean Fillioux isn't available here.

Ron, The Ron Zacapa is a whole different ballgame in regards to rum. You will not have a problem stomaching it neat. It's like drinking candy.

The only other bottles I have are Kelt XO (amazing, but around $160), a Chateau Laubade XO Armagnac, and a Laubade 1970. I doubt you can find the Laubade if you cannot find the Fillioux, but the Kelt should be available.

Wow. Did not know this existed, will try to get my hands on it immediately.

+1

All,

A thank you drink in honor of everyone contributing to this thread, inspired by a few of the latest posts.

All,

OK, back to scotch. Here's a question I've been asked a few times recently: What are good scotches to try if I like a little bit of peat/smoke, but find Laphroaig/Lagavulin to be overwhelming?

Dalwhinnie is a good starting point for just a tiny hint of peat smokiness. If people like Dalwhinnie, Oban is a good next step to get a little stronger flavor, but still not overly peaty. If you like Oban, Talisker and Caol Ila are a couple more to move onto that get a little more peat/smoke/seaweed flavor in them. This is a pretty good progression to move along the flavor spectrum from things like Macallan and Balvenie to things like Lagavulin and Laphroaig.

As for Laphroaig, sometimes I want a little smoother version of the classic Laphroaig flavor. Here are two bottles I really love for that:



The Laphroaig Quarter Cask is easy to find all over the place. It finishes aging in smaller barrels, resulting in more wood contact during aging that sort of smooths/mellows out the flavor. I love it.
http://www.klwines.com/detail.asp?sku=1015776

Occasionally you'll see a Laphroaig w/ a special finish by some bottler like Murray McDavid, Signatory, etc. This Chateau Margaux finish adds a sweetness/fruitiness to the Laphroaig that is just incredible. I highly recommend this one, though it's probably pretty tough to find - looks like K&L has a handful of bottles left.
http://www.klwines.com/detail.asp?sku=1050681

On a related note, this was posted in the OOT "Find a $150 Scotch" thread - very good chart:

EDF Whiskey Lovers,

F all y'all. Dude posts a review of a ****ing WELSH SINGLE MALT and I immediately follow up with a picture of a PENDERYN WELSH SINGLE MALT GLASS and none of you mofos notices? HATE

Leveled.....

El D - Good answer to the "I want to try a smokey whisky" question, I tend to reccommend the same ones. I think that Oban is perfect as a transition whisky, then Talisker. One to try for people that like really fruity whiskies is Jura Superstition, it's peated but still sweet and quite rich. I wasn't too keen on it when I first tried, but it's really grown on me, shame I've only got a couple of glasses left of it.

Sorry man, only just revisiting the thread after my post. That's pretty impressive, and the question has to be asked, how did you get hold of a glass? Have you been to the distillery? It looks like the 'free gift' you get at every distillery visit. I'm actually planning on visiting the distillery early next year as it's only about 4 hours drive from me.

Was clearing out the kitchen yesterday and found a bottle of this:


I inherited it years ago before I got into whisky and had completely forgotten about it. Will give it a try later maybe, but not holding out too much hope as a bottle of the stuff costs <£20, but who knows?

Diablo,

have you tried this?



it is peaty of course, as the name suggests, but not punch you in the face peaty like Lagavulin 16. my local Thai restaurant has it, and the bartender thinks I'm cute, so she gives it to me obv

PRon: "how did you get hold of a glass?" TRADE SECRET!

KBZ: I've had that. It's pretty good, and Compass Box does some good, interesting stuff. But in this case I don't think the blend really adds much. Caol Ila is already very well balanced imo and not overly peaty, so in this case I don't think blending to make it sweeter and less peaty is all that interesting an idea. I think this would be a very interesting blend if they started w/ something w/ a little more punch like Laphroaig.