finally went out and got my alco-haul fifth of Beefeater (recommended to me by a friend- $23) fifth of Tullamore Dew (my go-to irish whiskey at the bars- $19) Glenlivet 12 ($43) i didnt go for the Bowmore Legend since I wanted to keep it under $100 but I will give it a try if i want something rougher later on.
Make sure you try the Fine Oak before you buy it. It's good, but it's not what I think of when I think of Macallan. It's aged in bourbon rather than the sherry barrels that Mac became famous on.
Scotch is aged in second-hand barrels. Most of them are bourbon barrels broken down and shipped from America, then reassembled into a larger barrel in Scotland. Then they are filled with fresh whisky and aged for at least 8 years. Some distilleries use sherry barrels from Spain, which impart a drier taste and a darker color. Distilleries will use barrels a couple of times and mark it each time used with an "X," hence "XXX" on the side of whisky in cartoons. Most distilleries use some sort of combination of them, say 90% bourbon (some first fill, some second fill, some third) and 10% sherry, but Macallan has historically used 100% sherry barrels which leads to its dark color and its characteristic taste. The Fine Oak series is an attempt from them to find a way around the high costs of sherry barrels and still make whisky. That doesn't make it a bad whisky at all, it's just fine, but it's not what people think of when they think of classic Macallan.
oh i was ing at the price discrepancy. interesting nevertheless. I learned that different barrels were used when I once tried Backwoods Bastard and was quite surprised at having a beer which tasted much like whiskey.
It seems I forgot to post about buying a bottle of Laphroaig 10 a couple weeks back. Really great. But goddamn is it heavy duty. It's like drinking meat. And I think I may go back for that Macallan 15 Fine Oak on the way home tonight. I read about it this evening and enjoyed the descriptions. I also told a friend about it and he recommended it based on having a few glasses a while back. Plus, our tastes in scotch are mostly similar and I trust him.
im at about my 4th or 5th glass of glenlivet on the rocks and im really starting to crave the taste instead of starting out enthusiastic but ending up nursing it to the finish. im pretty excited to try out other scotches and that Bowmore Legend once my funds build back up. anyone ever been to The Whiskey Priest in Boston? Ive a few friends who visited there on a weeknight (its a frat fest on weekends i guess) when they were in the area and sampled some scotches. I hear they have quite a range.
Got a bottle of Macallan Cask Strength. hellyeah.jpg On Tuesday I had some Oban 14 and Dalwhinnie 15. Both very nice, and the Dalwhinnie was great as a finisher.
I'm sure this has been discussed, but what's the general consensus of blended vs. single malt stuff? Obv. blended stuff is generally cheaper, but as I've never had any blends, I'm not sure what the big differences are.
I'm open to blends, I used to be firmly against them. It really depends upon the brand. I will try anything, but I found Chivas to be an ok drink. Haven't had any Johnnie Walker besides Red Label, which was gross and I've been told to forget unless I was mixing.
I'm fine with blends, I just prefer to buy single malts. I'm sure there are great blends out there. I had JW Blue once right before I had Macallan 18, and the 18 blew the Blue out of the water. Of the blends that I've had, they're almost universally smooth to a fault. People like smooth alcohol, but part of what makes scotch so good to me is that it's not smooth, it's not always refined. Sometimes there are ultra-aggressive characteristics that take getting used to. The first glass of Laphroaig I had, I hated it. Two days later, the taste came back and I started to see the appeal. It's been a love affair ever since. It's just like with beers, there are any number of great ambers and pale ales, and those are fine to drink, but sometimes nothing will do but an enamel-ripping double IPA or a huge roasted Russian Imperial Stout. Scotch is too expensive to keep a ton of bottles around, so if I have three open at a time, I'll go with a lighter and complex highland, a big, sweet Spey, and a fire breathing Islay. Between those, my needs are met.
I just tried some Chivas, and....eh. Had a little tame taste, and the finish was just nonexistent. Wasn't really expecting something so...bland.
Was gonna save up to buy a Highland Park 18, but I am impatient and cheap. So I bought the 12yr which I love anyway. I really want to try the 18yr though.
Got Dalwhinnie 15 for $43. Never seen it that low before. Last Sunday I went out with my family for some nice steak [ http://www.donovanssteakhouse.com/ ] to celebrate my birthday and my parents' anniversary. After our meal I talked to our waiter about scotch a bit and ordered a glass of Macallan 18. When he brought it to the table, he also surprised me with another glass of Macallan Fine Oak 15. I've been dying to try that for a while and I was very surprised by it. Liked it a lot. I never did get that bottle that a local shop had on sale, so I may have to go back for it.
Just opened a bottle of Glenlivet French Oak Reserve 15. The palate is surprisingly "dessert-y" but unfortunately the finish is really brief.
Haha, I just bought this tonight as well. I chose it over the MacCallan 12 (which I enjoy). Had two glasses while watching a movie. I found the nose to be very sweet and was a little surprised at the somewhat nutty/cinnamon spice palate. I actually thought it had a long finish given the smoothness to it, left a slight bitterness on the tongue at the very end though. The only other Glenlivet I've tried was the12yr which was, from what I can remember, just ok..if a little harsh. This French Oak Reserve was much smoother than I was expecting. I would buy it again.
Holy shit I'm not the only one. I've been drinking Scotch more lately after taking a good two years off of it. I had a bad, bad new year's experience and didn't touch the stuff until late Fall this season. I don't have near the exposure to it as you kids do but Glenlivet 12 is delicious/my main bar Scotch.
Sure, it's no scotch, but I'm sipping on some Knob Creek bourbon before work because I don't give a fuck. I'm feeling some scotch on Christmas Eve, though.
Macallan 12 was my main until I found a store that sells Dalwhinnie 15 for only $3 more. But still I haven't been repeating a lot. Been having fun exploring and buying a lot of different stuff.
Also I had some Lagavulin 16 at a pub last month. That was great. This bottle of Laphroaig Quarter Cask is treating me great but I dunno if it's worth the ~$20 premium over the regular 10 year.
seeing this thread bumped reminded me that i got to have some Johnnie Walker Blue, and it made me happy
lagavulin 16 is, no joke, $110 a bottle round these parts. why must i have the tastes of a much richer man?
I have a Ardbeg 10 years now, and honestly, I have a hard deciding which one I like the most between this one and the Laphroaig Quarter Cask; which has always been my fav, They cost about the same here as well.
yeah i bought a bottle of ardberg 10 the other day (because it was only $70 down from the usual $90). saving it for new year's, though
I bought a Talisker 10 (was hoping to find an 18) which I plan to open first thing when I get home. I have been on an exponential curve with whisky lately; J&B -> Chivas regal -> Chardu 12 -> Glenfiddich 12 -> Talisker 10 -> ? Maybe I'll work myself up to Mccallan 30.
Been sitting on this Glenfiddich 12 for what seems like ages. Breaking it out for tonight. Gonna enjoy that with a cigar in a few. 8-)
I bought my first bottle of scotch a while back... just a Glenfiddich 12, and i am finishing it right now. What should I look at next?
Bought a bottle of Balvenie Doublewood. Haven't tried it before so it'll be interesting to see if I like it. Anyone had any experience with it? I've practically finished my Talisker 10. Probably try and find another if it's cheap, or a Macallan.
awesome, thanks. glad i bought a 1L bottle then at the airport duty free instead of the usual 700mL at the local.
my sister got me a bottle of Speyburn 10 year for Christmas. it's not an expensive scotch ($20-25), and while it didn't have much depth, it was still quite satisfying, and if i can find it around here it'll become a staple goto. last night i had a few fingers of Glenlivet 15 and it was quite excellent. it's good to have generous friends with disposable income.
