Scotch drinkers unite!

[bigchillcar]

i've always stuck with sour mash or gin..never could get a taste for scotch. wonder why that is? i've tried a couple good single-malts? i have a friend who's a dedicated scotch man.
ryan

[fastpat]

Originally posted by Peterfrans
Nothing wrong with irish whiskey

Bushmill has a 21 year old that is very good.

[fastpat]

Originally posted by bigchillcar
i've always stuck with sour mash or gin..never could get a taste for scotch. wonder why that is? i've tried a couple good single-malts? i have a friend who's a dedicated scotch man.
ryan

Try some Iraish whiskey, it's like scotch that's been mirror polished.

[}{arlequin]

Originally posted by svandamme
came to the right place.

yeah no kidding... peter just post something along the lines of: i hate macs/pc's/religion/democrats and get ready to type

[svandamme]

Originally posted by }{arlequin
yeah no kidding... peter just post something along the lines of: i hate macs/pc's/religion/democrats and get ready to type

don't forget the asshats

[Rick Lee]

Just got me a bottle of Balvenie 15 yr. over Thanksgiving and have barely touched it. I love it though! Second favorite is Talisker. Tastes like bbq smoke smells - really amazing.

[fastpat]

Originally posted by Rick Lee
Just got me a bottle of Balvenie 15 yr. over Thanksgiving and have barely touched it. I love it though! Second favorite is Talisker. Tastes like bbq smoke smells - really amazing.

I had a bottle of the 15yo, and truth be told I liked the 12 or the 21 better. I think it's because the 15yo wasn't aged in a cask that had held either brandy or port before the scotch was put in it, while the other two are done that way. It was clearly a flavor thing rather than a smoothness issue.

[Spede]

[Jeff Higgins]

Balvenie Double Wood, Lagavulin, and cask strength McCallan are staples in my house. Talisker and Laphroigh are favorites as well.

[Dottore]

Originally posted by Jeff Higgins
Balvenie Double Wood, Lagavulin, and cask strength McCallan are staples in my house. Talisker and Laphroigh are favorites as well.

Finally. Something we can agree on!

[TheMentat]

Originally posted by LeRoux Strydom
I always thought that I knew good scotch from bad. I thought tipple like Laphroaig and Glenmorangie were good.

That is, until I opened a bottle of this stuff earlier tonight.....





So, what's your favourite?

+1 again... I keep coming back to that one!

[bigchillcar]

irish whiskey, pat? you spelled it a little differently.. anyway, i don't think i've tried that since college (20-odd years ago). i didn't like it then, really..but i was a kid..i actually used to coke in bourbon! (don't tell)
ryan

[gassy]

I'm a bourbon guy but couldn't help from posting--I'm in!
Christian

[alf]

Originally posted by Jeff Higgins
Balvenie Double Wood, Lagavulin, and cask strength McCallan are staples in my house. Talisker and Laphroigh are favorites as well.

Some of my favs. I am partial to Islay Malts. Had some 25 Year Lagavulin a couple of months ago. Amazing, but could not find another bottle.

Try Coal Ila if you like above. Its the Islay that is not as easy to find but very balanced.

[arcsine]

I found the cask strength Lagavulin 25 online for about $300. A bit beyond my means though. Sad that the State of Washington does not carry much selection and get pissy if you wanted to have one of them shipped to you.

[Aerkuld]

I can offer some opinion here. I organized a whisky tasting club when I lived in SoCal with a bunch of ex-pats and a couple of the locals. The format was pretty simple; once a month we'd meet at someones house and they provided the food for after the tasting. Each person was to bring along a bottle of single malt scotch from a pre-determined theme - either price range, region, distillery etc. Then we'd sample each of them in turn, talk about them, and allocate a point score of 1-10. It was fairly serious, but also a lot of fun. The winning bottle from each month was selected to return the following month to stack-up against the competition.

I am a devout Ardbeg fan, but even after trying a significant number of single malts I find it very difficult to pick a single favorite as I find it depends upon the mood.

Islay whisky is great in the winter, especially the 'big hitters' - hard choice between Ardbeg, Lagavulin, Caol Ila, and Laphroaig.

Some of the lighter lowland scotch is good on a hot summer evening - not a whole lot to choose from, but I find Littlemill is enjoyable.

Macallan 18 (pre 1984 distillations seem slightly better) is a 'special occasion' drink as I can't afford to drink this too often. Glendronach 15 - if you can still find any - is nearly as good IMO and about half the price.

I haven't tried anything over about $180 a bottle, with the exception of an Ardbeg Provenance, so I can't comment on the 25 yo Macallan unfortunately.
The rest are pretty much anytime drinkers -
Springbank seem to be recovering to it's former glory recently. The Balvenie 12 Double Wood is the ideal introduction scotch for anyone new to scotch and probably the tasting club favorite. The Macallan 12 is another staple favorite - you just can't go wrong with it.
Even some of the cheaper single malts are well worth trying. The only thing that I have found is that the cheaper ones seem to suffer from varying quality from batch to batch. This was noticed on a Speyburn 10 when one bottle tested quite good and the next was pretty rough.

Who was it that mentioned Bruichladdich? Another belter! Not quite as peaty as some of the other Islay's but very, very good (I will confess to a few bottles of the 20, and 15 stashed away).

Believe me this is a topic I have researched extensively and I can safely say that I can't think of a single scotch that I wouldn't drink again!

[mjohnson]

Love the Islay (and a few others, though the Glen Esk has a bit too much "ass essence" for me -- ick). Below is our current stock, recently missing the Talisker and the Laphroaig 10yo Cask Strength (mildly burly!).






Per Aerkuld, we now seriously looking for some Bruidladdich.

mike
'78SC

[fastpat]

Originally posted by fastpat
The Balvenie distills very good scotch, particularly their 21 year old. I used to think there was little that could top Balvenie's 21 yo until I tried Bruichladdich the Twenty, second edition which unfortunately is no longer available. So gooooood! The XXII is probably similar.

I beg your pardon, Mr. Johnson. T'was I. Early last summer two friends and I sat on the deck and consumed every drop of that 20 year old Bruichladdich. I do need to check the store where I acquired it, they might have another bottle stuck behind others.

[Aerkuld]

Originally posted by fastpat
I beg your pardon, Mr. Johnson. T'was I. Early last summer two friends and I sat on the deck and consumed every drop of that 20 year old Bruichladdich. I do need to check the store where I acquired it, they might have another bottle stuck behind others.

Pat - quite right ! It was you that brought it up. I did see some in Frugal McDougal's when I was up near Charlotte this last weekend, but the price was at least $120, maybe even $140 a bottle, but it is still about.
That's the problem with scotch, especially the older ages, as it gets in short supply the price climbs. Let me know if you have difficulty finding any, you're not too far away and I could check the stores down here (any excuse!). I may even be able to find a spare bottle if you're really interested, although mine is the first edition of the Twenty.

[cstreit]

Originally posted by Isabo
Springbank cask strength comes to mind, though I have a personal preference for the 20+ Balvenie just now.

Now you're talking... There is also a cask-strength Macallans that is phenomenal! (sp)

My favorites (in order)

Expensive glass at a time stuff:
- Springbank 33.
- Macallans cask-strength
- Macallans 18

More approachable price-wise:
- Oban
- Macallans 12
- Springbank (unknown vintage)


I'm very fond of the Speyside malts, like them peaty, but all the Speysides have a really nice finish and spectacular body.