The Scotch Thread

[Clever]

I’m new to scotch and was gifted bottle of Suntory this Christmas and opened it tonight. It’s quite different from what I usually have but I don’t mind it at all.

[adamc]

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I love pretty much all the Ardbeg offerings! I currently have a Corryvrekan and the 10yo and both are.excellent. I really want to add the Kelpie and the OA to my collection as well! I finally finished off my Ardbog not too long ago and always have my eye out for another but it seems to be a tough find being a disco'd limited edition.

try ardbeg uigeadail if you like the other offerings.

I helped open a bar last year here in Toronto, and part of my job was to procure the scotch (we had a few hundred labels). Nothing like walking down the aisle of a liquor store putting 20k worth of scotch in my cart at a time.

[adamc]

Also I just went back and read this thread from the beginning..
SO much disinformation and unnecessary whisky snobbery, hahaha!

my .02

- single malts are not necessarily superior to blended whisky, and should not be looked at that way but judged individually
- the idea of selling single malts to be enjoyed by themselves was a revelation for the distilleries much later down the line
- the idea of drinking single malts neat is a relatively new thought
- whisky, including single malts were originally enjoyed by the masses in the form of highballs, punches, and other mixed drinks
- some whiskies, including both blended and single malts are greatly enhanced with the addition of mixers (club soda, ginger ale, coke, coconut water, even green tea)

want a great intro to whisky book? Start with Dave Broom:





drink 'em the way you want!

[tirebob]

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Also I just went back and read this thread from the beginning..
SO much disinformation and unnecessary whisky snobbery, hahaha!

my .02

- single malts are not necessarily superior to blended whisky, and should not be looked at that way but judged individually
- the idea of selling single malts to be enjoyed by themselves was a revelation for the distilleries much later down the line
- the idea of drinking single malts neat is a relatively new thought
- whisky, including single malts were originally enjoyed by the masses in the form of highballs, punches, and other mixed drinks
- some whiskies, including both blended and single malts are greatly enhanced with the addition of mixers (club soda, ginger ale, coke, coconut water, even green tea)

want a great intro to whisky book? Start with Dave Broom:





drink 'em the way you want!

Agreed... I like to tease but I am the first guy to tell people to drink whisky however you enjoy it. Personally I always start out a new whisky neat. From there I like to add a few drops of water to see what complexities open up to both the nose and taste. Other than cask strength whiskies, I usually go back to neat, but cask strengths I often add a little water.

You bought it so nobody can tell you how to enjoy it, but most of us will use any excuse to rib a bit! Lol

[ercchry]

Fuck that! I give someone a dram of $200+ scotch and they add ginger ale?! Yeah, you get crown now... FOREVER

[Sorath]

Crowfoot liquor in douglasdale has Macallan Sienna for $140 if anyone is interested! i am not sure if all crowfoot liquors are doing this. They might!

[tirebob]

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Fuck that! I give someone a dram of $200+ scotch and they add ginger ale?! Yeah, you get crown now... FOREVER

That's a given, but if someone buys a $200 scotch and they like it with mix, more power to them... They just won't get MY $200 scotch for mixing!

[tirebob]

Speaking of scotch, I just opened a new bottle of Glenmorangie Bacalta last night. If you like a nice sweet dram with lots of apricot, honeycomb and hints of almond and pear you won't be disappointed. It is quite complex but I need to have a few more drams to sort it all out.

[RX_EVOLV]

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Speaking of scotch, I just opened a new bottle of Glenmorangie Bacalta last night. If you like a nice sweet dram with lots of apricot, honeycomb and hints of almond and pear you won't be disappointed. It is quite complex but I need to have a few more drams to sort it all out.

Worth the price tag? Although I've enjoyed the previous releases (Tusail and Milsean), they taste almost too young to be worth $120+, so i've been hesitant in picking up the Bacalta this year.

[tirebob]

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Worth the price tag? Although I've enjoyed the previous releases (Tusail and Milsean), they taste almost too young to be worth $120+, so i've been hesitant in picking up the Bacalta this year.

I have had some absolutely stellar young scotches as well as some shitty old scotches so I no longer buy into that line of thinking, but that said I do not find this particular bottle to be lacking. Reading some forums and talking with some peeps much more in the know than I, it seems fairly widely accepted that most of these Glenorangie Private Editions start life as their original 10 year old and are finished for an extra couple years in their distinctive casks, and I have no reason to doubt that, but even if that was not the case, after taking a couple tasting classes in Edinburgh last year with a wide variety of offerings, it woke me up to what I thought vs what I now accept in regards to age being the end all-be all when it comes to flavour.

I have the Milsean previous to this one as well and I enjoy it too, but just one dram in and I will say I think the Bacalta is a bit more complex and a tad less sweet which is nice. Would I have bought it if I had tasted it first? I am going to say yes, absolutely! It is fair to say though, while I am a fan of all the varieties of taste profiles throughout all the regions, I am a sucker for many of the Glenmorangie offerings. I think maybe it is because theirs were some of the very first good quality scotches I was exposed to so I always have a bit of a sweet tooth for them.

[Eride]

I recently started a new Instagram account focused on capturing unique photos of Whisky I enjoy. Been shooting shots here in Calgary and out in the mountains. Really just getting started with it but here are a few recent shots from the past couple weeks. Mostly of the Rare Cask and the Balvenie Caribbean Cask, 2 current favorites.

The Balvenie Caribbean Cask
DSC_4023 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr
DSC_4056 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr
DSC_4258 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr
DSC_4541 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr

The Macallan Rare Cask-My Christmas Dram of choice.
DSC_4283 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr
DSC_4244 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr
DSC_4393 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr
DSC_4621 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr
DSC_4720 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr
DSC_3726 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr

And a couple random other images.
Winter Storm by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr
DSC_5149 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr
DSC_7539 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr

[OTown]

Those are some unreal shots. Nice work. Have they ever wanted some for ads?

[Eride]

Thanks man, thats sort of what I'm working on. I have sold some images to The Macallan and currently chatting with a couple other distilleries, hoping it will pan out for some future partnerships. Either way I'm having a ton of fun with it!

[tirebob]

Those are some great shots! You should be trying some more popular Canadian rye whiskies with your Canuck oriented shots like with the skates etc. I could see the Canadian companies totally utilizing those in targeted advertising. Hell you could even do beer and the like.

[RX_EVOLV]

That's fair. I too have a soft spot for Glenmorangie and used to have a bit of a selection at home (Lasanta, Milsean, Tusail, Quinta Ruban, 18, Nectar D'or, Original). Now that I'm thinking about it, I'm surprised I haven't been replenishing any. I only have the Milsean left now. Hopefully one day I'll get to try the Bacalta and possibly take one home. The latest Glenmorangie Astar release is actually really tempting me... Possible 2018 pick up..

[RX_EVOLV]

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That's a given, but if someone buys a $200 scotch and they like it with mix, more power to them... They just won't get MY $200 scotch for mixing!

Yeah. I used to not mind sharing my nice whiskies with guests as they are so much better shared. However one time I poured someone my 1984 Aultmore, they took a sip, says it's too much wood, and immediately poured it down the drain. That's when i knew it's not worth it. Now I have 3 sections of whisky at home: 1 for daily drinking, 1 for occasional indulgence, and 1 for guests.

[tirebob]

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That's fair. I too have a soft spot for Glenmorangie and used to have a bit of a selection at home (Lasanta, Milsean, Tusail, Quinta Ruban, 18, Nectar D'or, Original). Now that I'm thinking about it, I'm surprised I haven't been replenishing any. I only have the Milsean left now. Hopefully one day I'll get to try the Bacalta and possibly take one home. The latest Glenmorangie Astar release is actually really tempting me... Possible 2018 pick up..

The Necor d'or is one of my favourite regular drinking scotches for sure. I also seem to be hitting the Ancnoc Cutter every week or so these days. I am quite pleased with it for a sub-$100 bottle. The Lag 16 is on my pretty regular list as well.
For my more occasionals I would have to say my Old Pulteney 21 is right up there and a Macallan #2 while not being particulary out there, I seem to slowly work on it and savour a dram here and there.
I find the are many in the middle I like to go back to now and again but these always stay a little more consistently at the front of the shelves.

So many to enjoy!

[RX_EVOLV]

Yep too many to enjoy indeed. Rarely buy the same bottle again as there's always next one on the list to try. My latest obsession is Bruichladdich (Laddie, Port Charlotte and Octomore) and all the independent bottlings (Cooper's Choice, Rattray, G&M, DT). Also getting alot more accustom to Cask Strength stuff and find almost all 40% bottling too diluted. Prefer at least 46%.

[topher91]

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I recently started a new Instagram account focused on capturing unique photos of Whisky I enjoy. Been shooting shots here in Calgary and out in the mountains. Really just getting started with it but here are a few recent shots from the past couple weeks. Mostly of the Rare Cask and the Balvenie Caribbean Cask, 2 current favorites.

The Balvenie Caribbean Cask
DSC_4023 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr
DSC_4056 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr
DSC_4258 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr
DSC_4541 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr

The Macallan Rare Cask-My Christmas Dram of choice.
DSC_4283 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr
DSC_4244 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr
DSC_4393 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr
DSC_4621 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr
DSC_4720 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr
DSC_3726 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr

And a couple random other images.
Winter Storm by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr
DSC_5149 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr
DSC_7539 by Erik McRitchie, on Flickr

That Balvenie Carribean cask is great! These are great pics btw.

Also got a some of the other Glenfiddich experiment line, the IPA experiment. Was also very good.

[coldmind]

Are the events offer by Kensington Wine market worth going? Thinking of going to the Burns Bash.