If you like malt whisky and the only Glenfiddich you've had is the light bodied common version then be sure to try the 21 year old if the opportunity presents itself. It's a different ball game, full bodied and rich.

Of course don't pollute it with ice.

Signing off, my glass is dry.

No water, no soda, no ice, they would only serve to rust the pure flavour....

Lynn

I enjoy sippin some while tying flies. Might have to tie a couple tonight......

Oldest I've had is 30 year Laphroig.... wow!

Right now, I've got Lagavulin 16, Glen Garioch 15 and Talisker 10. Normally I'm lucky to have even one bottle around, but my brother hosted a Burns Supper last month and there were a lot of leftovers!

A spot of Nadurra 16 cask strength with a few drops of water right now... It is not as assertive as I usually opt for, but subtle, smooth, and refined. It brings a whole parade of different flavors as it moves across the tongue and develops itself.
art

I would highly recommend the Glen Ord. Superb.

Currently have a bottle of Dalwinnie on tap. I had a bottle of the Glenfiddich (black is it not) and would agree, quite good compared to the pedestrian green bottle.

More of a dark amber than black, certainly not green.

Have got 2 on the go since Christmas & liking them both.

Highland Park 12yo & Macallan Sherry Cask 18 yo.

Quite different styles, but both yummy.

I'm a coupla drops of springwater, to open up, kinda guy.

Paul.

Some whisky does better with, some without. For example when I drink cask strength Laphroaig it's straight, but sherry matured Aberlour goes nicely with a small addition of still spring water. Not chilled of course.

Ingwe

I think your aversion to ice stems from a traumatic incident earlier in life....

Yeah really. Just shoot me now because I have a bottle of each of the following aging -- I mean waiting--in the celler:

Makers Mark
Wild Turkey 101 Reserve
Woodford Reserve
Pendleton
Jim Beam

I would not hesitate to put an ice cube in any of them.

BTW what would a bottle of say Makers Mark that was allowed to sit for maybe 20 years taste like after 20 years? I'm guessing the same because it's already removed from the barrel.

I have no aversion to ice. I use it in tea and soft drinks all the time.

What's traumatic is watching someone with more money than sense pour some Van Winkle Lot B or Highland Park 18 over a bunch of ice and think they really have something.

There are basic bourbons I'll have with spring water on ice, or basic blended scotches I'll have with soda on the rocks but using premium whisk(e)y for such purposes is like buying prime beef and cooking it well done.

In my best Thurston Howell III voice: Egads Lovey, he's probably a Yale man.

laffin!

Ingwe

Whisk(e)y generally doesn't age in the bottle. If it's been opened and there's a lot more air space you may get oxidation effects.

Dats why I like to drink it all once I toss the cork...

Ingwe

So if I leave a bottle closed and store it for 20 years there is no aging effect or improvement in taste? Figured not---may as well go ahead and drink it now..

I'll even try the first glass with NO ice. Who knows!!

Talisker is excellent, but I don't think I'd spring it on a newcomer to malt whisky. It's a little aggressive for the uninitiated.

So you buy that stuff that comes in a jug? With a cork?

You are to easy to get going.... ..you can have my share of scotch. I'm told it is an acquired taste....I never want to drink enough to acquire a taste for it. I have tried it....I don't care for it ...ice or not.

I'm just a preacher trying to get the message out about a certain kind of sin.

Good one!

Dang, I thought Blanton's and Woodford were good.
Y'all are waaaaaaay over my head.

I've got some stuff from NC that is in a wide mouth mason jar...

They are good, I'd even say excellent.

I keep a bottle of scotch under the kitchen counter, comes in handy when the sink gets plugged up.

Sissy.

How much does a bottle of that stuff cost...? (From the Famous Grouse Dept)

Fortunately for me I don't know. I secured a sample from a friend in the business.

Singin the praises of freebee booze, that takes nerve...LOL

the truth comes out!

Nah, I call it like I taste it. If it's good I'll say so be it free, cheap or expensive. Likewise for stuff I've paid dearly for.

Check my original post. I didn't say skip the kid's doctor visit and buy a fifth on my recommendation, I said if the opportunity presents itself (like it did to me) then try it.


Troglodytes.

Fixed it.

This one's gonna haunt me forever, looks like. I might have to re-register under an alias (but I'd probably trip up somewhere and suffer scandal).

Don't sweat it, we're all just having fun here. I really am smiling when I post that kind of stuff.

scotch ale tonite tomorow will prob be jack and pepsi

What's a good liquor to start on, for someone that's only been a beer drinker? I've got some Jack Daniels of some sort but don't really like the taste. I see rave reviews of various things but I wonder if those are an acquired taste....

How do you intend to drink it?

Straight, like the cowboys at the Longbranch on Gunsmoke, which is where all my experience comes from

Sipping, or shooters? I don't do shots.

For sipping whiskey Woodford Reserve would be an excellent start.

Hmmm... Sipping I guess, shooters always seem to grimace and shake their head which doesn't look pleasant...

Yeah, shots are often used to get drunk rather than enjoy the whiskey.

Woodfords alright.


But nothing beats Jigger shots of Black Label Jack....(grin)

Woodford Reserve, good man, thx

Sam, you're trying to ambush a whiskey newcomer.

Powers whisky - any good?

That's one whose taste escapes my memory.

Jiggers might not be the best idea right off the bat.


Jack on the other hand remains my personal favorite. I've tried a few more expenive brands(including Woodford's, Buffalo Trace, Makers, JD Single Barrel and a few I can't remember), but have always liked regular ol' JD.
I must have crude tastes because black label Beam is my second fave...(grin)

Ok, some good sippin' Whiskey/Bourbon - Not Single Malts.

Knob Creek
Bookers
Bakers
Woodford Reserve
Basil Heydens
Bulleit

These are all good.

Paul.

OK I was wrong, my whiskey I didn't like was EVAN WILLIAMS, "Sour Mash", not JD.

FEEL REALLY BAD FOR U AS IT SIT HERE WITH GLASS FO JOHNNY WALKER BLACK LABEL, ENVY FOR THE REALLY GOOD STUFF

Johnny Walker Black is a fine whisky, but my salesman buddy will never admit it since it's the competition.

I'd agree, JW Black is as good as blended scotch gets. Haven't tried their blue or green label, but think they may (?) be malts.

Paul.

Blue is a blend, a very high end one.

Gold is their 18 year old blend.

Green is all malt, but not a single. It is a vatted whisky.

Not much of a Scotch person.

I still say dollar for dollar Makers Mark is right up there for everyday bliss.

Jefferson's Reserve is also a good find that often goes on sale. I believe it's a 15 year single barrel or very small batch.

What would you suggest for a smokey/peat flavor? I had some Ardbeg 10 last year that has kind of got me wanting more.

I'd say three thumbs up if I had three thumbs.

I have had all of them...for my money I'll take a finger per cube of ice of Makers

Maker's is good. Leave out the ice and you'll have something.

Laphroaig

Lagavulin

more Ardbeg

Makers without ice....can do it....after about 6 fingers with.

While not a bourbon or scotch....Pendleton is a very smooth blended Canadian whisky.

Love Pendleton and EVERY bar I been in - not a single one serves it.

Do you ice guys really find the full aroma and taste that overwhelming? All ice does is dampen both.

No, I take that back. It also negatively impacts the balance of flavors as well.

AKA sweet kid stuff.

For me I just prefer chilled drinks. Maybe I'll try putting the bottle in the fridge. Better yet I'll do boiler-makers!!!!!

Now you're just trying to get me preaching.

Once made boiler makers from Sapporo beer and Sake. Legit Sake at a fine Japanese place in California.

Was a VERY rough and VERY expensive night for this E-3 (at the time)

Whatever...You got a first time whisky drinker posting above that may just like it. I personally like most whisky except that cough syrup you call scotch... and sometimes I drink it neat but sometimes I enjoy an ice cube in it. I do not however mix it with pop or soda whatever you may want to call it. I sir am not an alcohol swab ....er I mean snob.

I am not sure what it is...I can do Blantons straight...but with the cost of a few cubes of ice I can make a bottle of makers last alot longer....all about money. Ice is cheap...and doesn't take away from the effect or taste(of makers) for me. If I spend +$50 for a fifth, I will not soil it with Ice....but most under that need a little spoiling.

If a man's going to put ice in it, it might as well be cheap whiskey.

- Tom

Yeah, but I didn't want to corrupt them.

I don't hate or even really dislike Canadian, it's usually just not very interesting.

I don't recall, have you tried Forty Creek Barrel Select?

That would be your opinion. Everyone is entitled to their own.

No but I will try any whisky once.

It's pretty much everywhere out here.

Slight shift of gears----

Tito's Vodka? Can I add ice??

I have a bottle of Ketelone in my cabinet unopened...it is to make the trip to Saratoga.

Vodka is a realm where I have little expertise, so (unbelievably to some ) I'll not comment.

Titos rocks(from Texas)...no problem with ice...aint like your spending that much.

Used to be a vodka hound but that was an "anything and everything" phase. I couldn't tell you what's good or not. Grey Goose is fine for me but I've no floor or ceiling of vodkas to compare it with.

Ketel One is good!

I have enjoyed a number of vodkas, but I actually was a serious hobbyist and "studied" whisk(e)y for a while.

Equate Grey Goose to Makers...and you have your floor and ceiling.

I've not done much whiskey other than Jack, Single Barrel Jack, Jameson and Pendleton. Makers will have to be tried first for me to know.

lol...

Yeah - caught your edit...

I've been working on a bottle of 12 yr old Tullamore Dew. Takes the edge off the day and puts a smile back on my face.

Try Evan Williams Single Barrel...a whole nother breed. Very good.

Allergic to Vodka, throat swells up. Like someone with a bad bee sting and they are allergic....

Freebie bottle of J&B tasting just fine right now. Funny how free tends to enhance flavor...

Not a vodka fan myself but occasionally it makes a nice bloody mary. The Ketel One I have is a fluke...sent the wife to the sotre for vodka to make bloody marys with and she bought that. I had to explain you don't buy top of the line for bloody marys.

OK---Go back and read your post in conjunction with that avatar. I look at that and read the post at the same time and LMAO.

I think Vodka might help the situation.

Having a little Jamesons as we speak!

Snake River Stampede.

There is that.

But the Laphroigh and Bowmore I have in line at the moment are even less so.

I like all three.

This thread forced me to the kitchen for a glass. I must say it was the appropriate amount over a cube or two. Now if you pour Scotch whiskey over a glass full of ice, it is indeed a sin. If you pour a finger or so over a cube or two and drink it in a timely manner, no sin in my mind.

For the inquirer about peat flavored whiskey, generally lowland whiskey. Here is a link that under regions will tell the various regions of production, and flavors go with regions. Just a quick google for that info, much more to be learned.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scotch_whisky

For the vodka lover, put that stuff in the freezer.

I like this thread and the other Whisky thread.

Thanks MM and everyone!

Repent ye blasphemer!

Hard to beat the Famous Grouse for an everyday, affordable blended Scotch.

My choice for smoke &/or peat flavours would tend towards the Islay Malts.

Paul.

Is Glenlivet 12 considered a "good" scotch? That was the one I had, no ice mind you, that tasted like a nasty cough medicine.

Glenlivet is relatively mild, though not particularly soft tasting. You may have a delicate palate.

Stay far away from Ardbeg, Talisker, Laphroaig and Lagavulin.

Elk, I think the term "good" is purely subjective.

Bit like trying to judge ice skating / ice dancing at the Olympics !!

To the OP - Mathman, how about you start a new thread.

We can't all afford to keep "top shelf" in our cabinets, so why not start a thread on "If you had to choose one Scotch / Bourbon / Rye to drink everyday, what would it be & why".

Paul.

I like Makers Mark, Evan Williams Single Barrel, Buffalo Trace, Knob Creek, Jamesons and several others with or without ice. No water, no soda. I just wondered if all scotch tasted like that.

elk - Then you're just going to have to break out those benjamins that have been hibernating in yer wallet (go slowly, Ben will be squinting from exposure to light...LOL), and go to a purveyor (not the one that sells produce, or sporting goods, two aisles over) to pull a bottle off the shelf...LOL!!

There's a wide world of malt whisky flavor.

If you want to try something complex and interesting but not edgy there's Cragganmore. Very nice.

Bruichladdich 10 may be to your taste. Don't let its Islay origin fool you, this one isn't full of peat smoke. Very mellow.

Glengoyne is not peated either. The 17 is outstanding.

You may not care for the core flavor of malt whisky. If you don't like it then you just don't like it. If that's the case keep exploring bourbon, that's what I'm concentrating on these days.

Some of the very finest spirits in my collection are bourbon and rye, and especially in the last two or three years they have become the better value in quality and enjoyment per dollar.

I'm going to get mine today. I sure hope I don't like it cos last thing I need is another expensive habit. . Elk I'll send ya' some of whet I get in a wide mouth. Should make you feel right at home.

Maybe the cheap but good whiskey thread suggestion was a good un.

Glenfidditch and a Macanudo Duke of Windsor, mild and creamy with a hint of peat, cedar and roasted nuts. Do not follow with lime Jello if you're dining at the managed care facility.

Famous Grouse! That has to be some of worst scotch on the planet. My brother had a bottle given to him for his birthday which he brought along on our blacktail hunt this fall. It was god awful, but we managed to power our way through it, hopefully that will be the last time.

What's a reasonable price constraint for a "middle shelf" everyday spirit?

How do you consume your everyday drink? Remember I've tuned my palate to whisk(e)y sipped straight which definitely reveals flaws. But since the flavor is concentrated and intense I don't drink a whole bunch of it. Since I drink less I can afford to drink better. I'm nowhere close to wealthy.

There are some very good whiskeys out there that are not expensive. BTW I have some of that stuff that comes in a wide mouth mason jar. A friend from NC brought it out. You gotta be careful with that stuff pretty high octane and will eat the finish off your counter if you spill it...

Someone mentioned Basil Hayden bourbon which is very good. As is Bookers. Right now in my cabinet there are Bookers, Knob Creek, Buffalo Trace, 8 Seconds, Pendleton, Makers Mark, Maple Creek, Crown Special Reserve, Jamesons, Koltiska...that come to mind.

Someone here mentioned Old Forester as being a good one for the money. I have not tried that yet.

Compared to what?

How were you drinking it?

What do you usually drink?

Mathman,

"What's a reasonable price constraint for a "middle shelf" everyday spirit?"

Subjective to the individual.

"How do you consume your everyday drink?"

Subjective to the individual.

"Remember I've tuned my palate to whisk(e)y sipped straight which definitely reveals flaws. But since the flavor is concentrated and intense I don't drink a whole bunch of it. Since I drink less I can afford to drink better. I'm nowhere close to wealthy."

This is good, it's the how & why of your choices.

Some background on my situation.

I was a City "yuppie" in Australia. Really high disposable income. One of my favourite things was playing sommelier, even studied some subjects part time & consumed vast amounts of courses reading material.

Over the period, "sans children", or often referred to as B.C., I built up an exquisite wine cellar.

Jumping forward to 2005, when we emigrated to Canada, had to sell the entire collection. Was going to be taxed beyond my comprehension to bring it here, was going to cost me upwards of $3K a year to store it in a climate controlled environment. So off it went to either good friends, who knew what they were buying, & the balance to an auction house, were I basically received less than 50 cents on the dollar.

My tastes have not changed, I still long to be able to walk downstairs, pull a $50+ bottle of Australian Shiraz or Cabernet, a delicate vintage port, mouth filling Muscat or Tokay, whenever I wanted to.

But I can't.

Here in a small NW Ontario town, my choices are very limited. Not to mention that the entire liquor industry is govt run !!

Also betting that, because of same, I would be paying upwards of 50% more than you are.

Now I can only buy "anything exotic" when I travel. Duty free where possible.

Paul.

A buddy showed up the other night with a couple of bottles from a wooden case of twelve he found in a basement belonging to an old guy who was paying him to do some remodeling work. When asked if he could buy it, the guy gave it to him as a tip! Ballantine Scotch, and according to the tax stamps, bottled in 1953. Now, like the rest of y'all, I'm a single malt guy (make mine Laphroiag, please, or anything else from the Isle of Islay) but this stuff is smoooooth, aged in the bottle since the year I was born! Bless his heart, he "forgot" to take one of the bottles home with him. It was the same whisky Richard Burton drank all the time in the movie "The Spy Who Came In From the Cold"- same squat, square bottle with a white diamond-shaped label.

I know, supposedly bottle aging doesn't do a thing for whisky but something happened to this stuff as it's nothing like any blended whisky I ever drank.

gnoahhh:

Do you suppose Ballentine simply blended a better scotch in 1953?

- Tom

From the post it's also unclear if he's familiar with the current version, which may suit his palate just as well.

You're right. He need to buy a bottle of the new stuff.

- Tom

I'm hooked on Lagavuin now but Talisker 18 remains my favorite. It's almost impossible to find stateside anymore, almost their entire production goes to the Middle East and the Orient. Go figure. jorge

Famous Grouse , Dewar's , Dewar's 12 year , Chivas Regal ,

Wild Turkey (tough) , Knob Creek , Maker's Mark,

Old #7 , GentlemanJack, Single barrel

good to better, little ice - like my beer cold also.

slip over to New Hampshire and buy BIG BOTTLES ON SALE.

MM I went with the Glenlivet 15 SMSW French Oak Reserve. Just had 2 fingers in the Waterford with NO ice. Pretty dang good. Actually, I like it! Thanks for the newest expensive habit.. .

The celler also has several new bottles of various bourbon/whisky's...

Twas a good day!

Having a little Ron Zacapa Solara 23 here

Little rum bum action huh? I really do appreciate Caribbean and Latin American rums! They know how to make it real good!

I find that one fuller bodied and "chewy" compared to the usual Glenlivet. Do you agree?

Never had rum this good before this bottle. Makes that other stuff they call rum pale in comparison. This is best served in a glass neat. It is sooo good. Had to get the liquor store to order it. They never heard of it.

Bunnahabhain, is incredible.

"chewy" ??? spit it out, you got into the scotch tape man!

Have you tried Diplomatico?

I have it on my bar. It's good, but it doesn't send me the way it does for you and TLee.

No but I have a bottle of Ron Anejo Aniversario Pampero which I received as a gift.

That's pretty good stuff to my relatively untrained run palate. I haven't sipped rum in a long time.

Never had the usual/other but I do like the full body of the reserve. Heck the fact that I did not throw in an ice cube speaks volumes. There's hope.

Also grabbed a mini of MACALLAN 12 Highland. BTW the mini's are a great way to have a taste before taking the plunge into a larger investment.

Forgive my newness to the descriptive language. "Chewy" would mean what?

That might be my favorite. I bought as many bottles as I could carry back from my last trip to Caracas. However, don't tell Sam as he'll think you're friends with Chavez.

A heavier, more substantial feeling on the palate.

Yup but I like it. I'll have to try the usual for comparison.

I did notice that my local distributor had some stuff on the shelf that exceeded the $2K mark. I had to wonder for a second what that must taste like. She said mostly higher end restaurants bought it and sold it for upwards of $150 per glass. Maybe in my next life!

BTW I also bought a 6 of Schlitz today. The garden spot clerk just looked at me and shook his head...like no way dood.

Noting like the [bleep] you get from drinking Schlitz! Seriously though I heard they went back to the original recipe and it is supposed to be good.

Like the old bumper stickers used to state:

Only love is better than Schlitz!

Then Strohs released their bumper sticker to state:

Strohs is love!

I don't believe that's in general distribution.

My favorites...

Upper end of what I like (older isn't better, just tastes more like what it was casked in.) Nadurra is a very good highland that is delicate and sophisticated. This is what single malt Highlands are all about. Its "Cask Strength" meaning it is NOT fortfied to make specific gravity. This is pure whisky, as God intended you to drink.



My daily sippin whiskey

Sometimes also called French Oak Finish. A little fuller bodied, goes damn good over ice, and its not so expensive that if you accidentally drink half a fifth you won't hate yourself in the morning.


Then there's the "my Irish family is coming over for dinner" whiskey. We're Scotch Irish BTW

Which is a very well blended younger whiskey that makes a fabulous 'Ditch' Its about 5 bucks more than Johnny Black, and lightyears better. I think its primarily blended with Highlands, but you can detect a hint of maybe 12YO Islay in there too. Definately fuller bodied, and an easy one for poser whiskey drinkers to love (You know the type, they drink 35 doller/fifth Hoser whiskey or bourbon and think they're 'well rounded')

Actually it means its strength isn't cut with water before bottling.



That is a sin.

Hmm.. Can it go both ways?



And there is nothing wrong with putting Scotch thats less than 60 bucks a bottle over ice (or even adding a little water)



However, soda is only something a blasphemous heathen bastard would put in Scotch

No. Single malt whisky isn't fortified.




Yes there is.

Lowering the temperature of the whisky reduces the efficacy of the volatile aromatics which deliver the olfactory experience that comes with good whisky.

Furthermore very cold liquid, which alcohol (antifreeze) quickly becomes when ice is added, numbs the palate.



Adding a small quantity of still spring water, not chilled of course, does benefit some whiskys.

Dang heathen scotch purists anyway......

The real heathens will be easy to find in Saratoga...


I'll be sitting over by the ice bucket..numbing my palate, and a number of neuronal connections to boot....

Ingwe

I'll be sitting on the other side of the ice bucket buddy!

I dunno----for my first time at a quality Scotch last night (the Glenlivet-FOR) without ice was pretty darned different---and good. Not saying I will eliminate ice but.....

Guess I need to try it again tonight... This ole dawg is learning new tricks daily.

I still have to lick my ass to get the taste out of my mouth after drinking Scotch. The most horrid thing known to mankind.

Scott I gotta to admit it took me a bit longer to crawl out of bed this morning than a traditional Makers night. Still some head throbbing going on too.

Just remembered --- might have been the Schlitz beer I had beforehand.

What year version?

I own the 12 and have recently sampled the 18.

Mathman: I too am a single malt scotch noviate, and I too desire that smoky/peaty taste. Since you've warned us off of LaPhroaig (sp?) and others, can you make a positive recommendation? Delicate palate syndrome is a likely affliction here.

Your post has me a bit confused.

If smoke and peat are what you want then Laphroaig, Lagavulin and Ardbeg are tops. They can be a bit dominating if you're not into what they deliver so much of.

For an excellent whisky where smoke and peat are present but not dominating try Highland Park, particularly the 18 or for less money the 12. Their more recent 15 year old release is good but doesn't quite fit right with the 12 and 18.