What Wee Dram Are You Enjoying Now - Fall 2013/Winter 2014

[LostBottle]

The Flora &Fauna Mortlach 16 is doing well with a week of air. Some of the alcohol notes have dissipated, the sherry is a bit richer, and the savory meat character is a bit stronger. I absolutely love this distillery.

[MtnDew]

I started last night off with a small pour of the basic Caol Ila. I need more time with this but I found the initial peat to be pretty close to a Talisker character though with a much stronger peat finish. After that I decided to be somewhat silly (I did just return back after a day of travel) and opened some of the super cheap Sheildag whiskies from Total Wine I picked up months ago.

The classic on the left was... in one word... TERRIBLE. I've had whiskeys I did not enjoy before but none tasted truly bad, bad enough that after a sip I had to dump the glass. I don't know how to accurately describe it but it was just gross. The highlands on the right however was not bad. Not very complex but had some nice peat to it, similar to a Bowmore Legend but not quite as good. My wife enjoyed it as well so we will likely continue to stock this one at $26 after tax in WA.

After the classic I wanted a basic speyside that did not taste horrible so I broke out a Glenfiddich 12. Man, I know many turn their noses up at this but it really is a refreshing single malt. Nice, crisp, clean, with a great sweetness to it. One I don't feel bad about dropping in an ice cube and enjoying on a hot day though last night was straight. It won't win any awards for complexity but it really is quite satisfying, especially after 5 min in the glass.

[ChainWhip]

Working my way through a couple samples, Macallan 18 (1984) and an older botting of HP 18. The HP 18 is an incredibly easy drinking pour, I could see myself getting lost in it!!

Poured some of the same and it is an excellent malt!

[MtnDew]

Poured some of the same and it is an excellent malt!

I look forward to opening my newly acquired bottle

[AaronWF]

Interested to hear that Aaron as there is a couple Independents at a store near me that I am pretty sure are CS, given a very low CS, and about 41 or 42 year old. I think they are Lonach labeled and Glendarroch or something like that, you know anything about them?

Never heard of it. I know that Blackadder calls it Blairfindy and it looks like Ballindalloch is another name that pops up under a few bottlers. The oldest I had was 31yo - the 1974 vintage - but that was an OB. It's the stuff of dreams.

[Megawatt]

Ledaig 10 year old. One of my new favourite Scotches! I'll take this over those overpriced Islays any day.

[AaronWF]

Ledaig 10 year old. One of my new favourite Scotches! I'll take this over those overpriced Islays any day.

I never hear of anyone actually drinking this. I tasted it when the rep was pouring at a liquor store and thought it was actually quite good, especially for the price. Haven't picked up a bottle though...

[Old Lamplighter]

Starting with wee dram from the lowland, Auchentoshan 10....soon to be followed by Balvenie FR....maybe close the night with just a wee bit of that Redbreast 12CS that I can't seem to leave alone right now. :toast:

[LostBottle]

I decided to skip the peat and sherry bombs this evening and go with a ladylike lowlander, Rosebank 21. This one is stunning for its delicacy, despite being 53.8%. Don't mistake delicate for lack of flavor and nuance though, there is so much going on here. It is a very, very floral whisky with notes of lemony goodness wafting in and out and the tiniest bit of pepper spice. The finish is surprisingly long.

if you like to be smacked in the mouth by boldness, this one is not for you. If you enjoy a truly complex whisky and can devote some time to it, this one delivers in spades.

Edited November 17, 2013 by LostBottle

[ChainWhip]

Oh man... That's got me salivating!

[Max Power]

Oh man... That's got me salivating!

[Max Power]

Oh, and after doing some tequila reviewing, I've so far enjoyed:

Glendronach Revival 15 - Super, duper awesome

Powers John's Lane - Superb

Next up:

My first taste of Redbreast CS.

And go Stanford...the online wallet is rooting for the Cardinal!

[ChainWhip]

Hakushu 12 to close out the evening

[MtnDew]

Oban 14 followed up with some Kirkland Signature 15 year Macallan.

[Trey Manthey]

I brought a bottle of Macallan CS to a dinner party last night. This was partially an experiment on my end. I've been toying with the idea of doing "mobile whiskey tastings". I took a discrete poll of 11 people (mostly women) before the tasting and asked how many of them liked scotch. One women and two men answered yes. At the end of the dinner, I gave them an quick 1 minute intro about the basics of whiskey and single malt, and lead them in a brief diluting, nosing, and tasting of the Macallan. After the tasting, I polled everyone discretely, and 10 out of 11 said they enjoyed the tasting very much, and would consider ordering a sherried single malt as an after dinner drink. This was with assurance that they wouldn't hurt my feelings in the least if they didn't enjoy themselves, rather I would appreciate their candor. The one that didn't enjoy the tasting said that she didn't enjoy the burn of the whiskey when she swallowed and would not consider ordering it herself.

I did my best to keep this fun, casual, and unpretentious. I offered suggestions on how to enjoy the spirit, but wasn't pedagogical. All and all, very rewarding for me to introduce so many people to one of my favorite things.

[Max Power]

I brought a bottle of Macallan CS to a dinner party last night. This was partially an experiment on my end. I've been toying with the idea of doing "mobile whiskey tastings". I took a discrete poll of 11 people (mostly women) before the tasting and asked how many of them liked scotch. One women and two men answered yes. At the end of the dinner, I gave them an quick 1 minute intro about the basics of whiskey and single malt, and lead them in a brief diluting, nosing, and tasting of the Macallan. After the tasting, I polled everyone discretely, and 10 out of 11 said they enjoyed the tasting very much, and would consider ordering a sherried single malt as an after dinner drink. This was with assurance that they wouldn't hurt my feelings in the least if they didn't enjoy themselves, rather I would appreciate their candor. The one that didn't enjoy the tasting said that she didn't enjoy the burn of the whiskey when she swallowed and would not consider ordering it herself.

I did my best to keep this fun, casual, and unpretentious. I offered suggestions on how to enjoy the spirit, but wasn't pedagogical. All and all, very rewarding for me to introduce so many people to one of my favorite things.

I've actually found that I really enjoy hosting tastings (although it's tequila for me). People are often eager to learn about things and I always assure people of 2 things:

1. I had no hand in crafting the drink, so if you think that it sucks, it's not going to hurt my feelings. Everyone's tastes are different.

2. There's no "wrong" way to drink something. If you like it cold, on ice, etc. that's how you like it. So long as you are enjoying it, I don't see any reason why I should tell you otherwise.

[chrisg]

I opened my first ever bottle of Lag 16 a few weeks ago, and I'm not finding much to love with it. I get the sherry, I get the Lag peat, but it's all quite tired and faded. I had a bottle of the CS 12yo last Spring that I really enjoyed, and that will be the one I go back to in the Laga line. I see no reason to spend $80 on the 16 (though I got the one I have for $60, so I can't complain too much).

The 16 I have been drinking has also been quite thin. I find it difficult to go back to after the 12.

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[sutton]

Jameson's 15 - I've been hot and cold on this dram - today though it is just right. Fruit, grain and malt are like breakfast in a glass today.

[Clavius]

Some more Glenmorangie Original 10yr tonight. Such a great dram for the money.

[ChainWhip]

A short pour of Glenmorangie Ealanta to kick off the evening while watching the Broncos vs Chiefs.

Thanks for the sample yo!

Edit:

Followed by a small pour of Talisker 25 / 2004 - 57.8% (another big thank you to the generous SB'r for scoring me this bottle!)

Edited November 18, 2013 by ChainWhip

[Max Power]

What did you think of the Ealanta?

And your photos are scotch porn worthy.

[ChainWhip]

What did you think of the Ealanta?

And your photos are scotch porn worthy.

Thanks! (& thanks again!)

The Ealanta is good. Great bourbonesque nose and smoke to counterbalance the vanilla sweetness on the palate. The things that annoy me though are Jim Murray, the price, and ABV.

That Tali15 CS though is absolutely scrumptious - even has some tequila notes you'd appreciate

Edited November 18, 2013 by ChainWhip

[Max Power]

Thanks! (& thanks again!)

The Ealanta is good. Great bourbonesque nose and smoke to counterbalance the vanilla sweetness on the palate. The things that annoy me though are Jim Murray, the price, and ABV.

That Tali15 CS though is absolutely scrumptious - even has some tequila notes you'd appreciate

I'd love to try the Tali 25 some time. All in due time. And the Ealanta's price is a little, but it's a 19 year malt so $100 isn't too far out of whack. The fact that it's now highly regarded by orgasm man is just going to make it scarce...being a limited edition and all.

[ChainWhip]

Didn't know it was a 19yr... "O"-Boy really must've been trying to make a point against the scourge of sulphur.

But... I'm closing out the night with a small pour of Balvenie TUN 1401 Batch 5 (from sample).

Edited November 18, 2013 by ChainWhip

[MtnDew]

Had my first try of Glendronach with the 12 year expression and really enjoyed it. I caught all the sherry notes I enjoy from Macallan without all the stuff I do not (can't put my finger on it, Macallan just tastes off to me). Going to have to explore this distiller more!