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Best ever whisky? on 09:58 - Jun 14 by Pinewoodblue
Brother in law is a Scot, taking a wee dram is obligatory if you visit. He will pour one for my wife and always says you know where the lemonade is I will not do it for you.
If you like your whisky chilled,as I do, use granite rocks kept in the freezer. Small cubes shaped. If I'm offered Bells I take ice but only to dilute it and take the sharpness away.
Yes I have heard the granite rocks work well. I am not overly keen on chilled whisky myself.
My mother used to add a little orange squash to hers, which I could never get my head round
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Best ever whisky? on 10:41 - Jun 14 with 2273 views
No such thing, as with anything pretentious it's all a matter of taste and self-importance - as amply illustrated by the answers above. One good thing about the pre-gin buzz surrounding whisky was that it became a pretty good investment and a fun thing to collect.... not an easy investment though as you tend to drink it. Limited edition casks are the way to go and avoid short-term pretensions around madeira, sherry, american oak etc. And if you want to test your willpower there is a Game of Thrones 'limited edition' from Distillers. Nice to look at and unlikely to ever be worth anything. Most discerning whisky drinkers eventually move towards glenlivet. Peaty islay malts are a bit like masturbation - fun for a while - but you should really grow out of it.
No such thing, as with anything pretentious it's all a matter of taste and self-importance - as amply illustrated by the answers above. One good thing about the pre-gin buzz surrounding whisky was that it became a pretty good investment and a fun thing to collect.... not an easy investment though as you tend to drink it. Limited edition casks are the way to go and avoid short-term pretensions around madeira, sherry, american oak etc. And if you want to test your willpower there is a Game of Thrones 'limited edition' from Distillers. Nice to look at and unlikely to ever be worth anything. Most discerning whisky drinkers eventually move towards glenlivet. Peaty islay malts are a bit like masturbation - fun for a while - but you should really grow out of it.
This is wrong, the cask can be a very important part of the taste, especially for blends. So much depends on your palette and for those with a sweet tooth the use of Madeira casks for the ageing can make the difference between liking whisky and never drinking it again after the first one.
Best ever whisky? on 09:58 - Jun 14 by Pinewoodblue
Brother in law is a Scot, taking a wee dram is obligatory if you visit. He will pour one for my wife and always says you know where the lemonade is I will not do it for you.
If you like your whisky chilled,as I do, use granite rocks kept in the freezer. Small cubes shaped. If I'm offered Bells I take ice but only to dilute it and take the sharpness away.
If you add anything to whisky which reduces the temperature, it has the effect of shutting down the activity of the chemicals which produce the aromas and stimulate the taste buds. To get the best out of the whisky, drink it out of a nosing glass, which allows the aromas to concentrate in the glass and wait until it is warmed, as with brandy.
Only two things may be added to malt, water from the burn which feeds the distillery and/or more whisky. My preference is for the latter, except for the higher proof whiskies.
Any Islay malts are good, Oban or HP sauce for smoothness, but the best by far is any whisky bought for you by someone else!
Blended whisky is for medicinal purposes only, ie for hot toddies in the winter.
Best ever whisky? on 11:13 - Jun 14 by MedwayTractor
If you add anything to whisky which reduces the temperature, it has the effect of shutting down the activity of the chemicals which produce the aromas and stimulate the taste buds. To get the best out of the whisky, drink it out of a nosing glass, which allows the aromas to concentrate in the glass and wait until it is warmed, as with brandy.
Only two things may be added to malt, water from the burn which feeds the distillery and/or more whisky. My preference is for the latter, except for the higher proof whiskies.
Any Islay malts are good, Oban or HP sauce for smoothness, but the best by far is any whisky bought for you by someone else!
Blended whisky is for medicinal purposes only, ie for hot toddies in the winter.
You were going well until the suggested spelling moved you away from Heinz there...
No such thing, as with anything pretentious it's all a matter of taste and self-importance - as amply illustrated by the answers above. One good thing about the pre-gin buzz surrounding whisky was that it became a pretty good investment and a fun thing to collect.... not an easy investment though as you tend to drink it. Limited edition casks are the way to go and avoid short-term pretensions around madeira, sherry, american oak etc. And if you want to test your willpower there is a Game of Thrones 'limited edition' from Distillers. Nice to look at and unlikely to ever be worth anything. Most discerning whisky drinkers eventually move towards glenlivet. Peaty islay malts are a bit like masturbation - fun for a while - but you should really grow out of it.
I've had more than a few whiskies and whiskeys and I keep coming back to 10 yo Laphroaig "ruff-stuff" rather than their more esoteric, older, single-cask offerings. Glenlivets are a good staple, I agree, but only if you're wanting a smooth evening in rather than a rousty evening about. I enjoy all the Glenlivets, but the best was a 1972 or '74 special anniversary bottling (from the time when Glenlivet had its own maltings). Dalwhinnies are excellent to me, and the island malts pretty well all.
But if I had to recommend a single one, it'd be an Ardbeg. I like the phenols (and don't like too much sherry influence - I find it too cloying, especially when it's not very cold).
For a lighter one, I'd suggest Tullibardine. Love the "envelope gum" hints on the palate.
And VAT69 is my personal "cooking whisky" of choice.
Aldi malts are always good value, and good for a "ooh, what have they got this time ?" as the malt varies. Most entertaining.
Japanese whiskies and Irish whiskies are excellent, those I've tried, but a bit bland for me. Very smoooooth. Bit bland.
As for adding water, or mixers, it's down to personal choice - I'd always suggest adding water to open up the flavours. These days, I usually drown the whiskies to slow me down. Adding chillies to the bottle also slows down progress through the bottle without impeding the quality overly in the cooking whiskies section (especially smokier blends, which are my prefertence in any case - now I'll need to try a be-chillied Glenlivet ...)
Don't need to add water to blends or Japanese or Irish whiskies, really, but I do.
Ice ? Yes, in Summer. I like my whiskies colder. Or drink beer in Summer, whisky in Winter.
My grandad always added ginger ale. But he could tell a malt and its region from a blended, so he got malts when visiting. He could add his own ginger :-)
I think I'm discerning, so I'll keep my "w**ky" Islas, thanks Elephant. Maybe my tastes will change in another thirty years, if I'm not pickled, but I've not grown out of Islas yet. Jura, yes, as I got "scunnered" in 2006.
Mortlach. Forgot to mention Mortlach. And The Singleton. Tomintoul, Tamnavulin.
I'm light on Speysides, sorry - not tried more than half the distilleries, I don't think. (Checks: 27 from 49 - from memory)
I agree with all the other suggestions, too.
Never got on with Glenfiddichs and Crawford's 3* (blend - but I really like Crawford's 5*). Macallans and Glemorangies tend mostly to be less desireable to me, too.
Mortlach. Forgot to mention Mortlach. And The Singleton. Tomintoul, Tamnavulin.
I'm light on Speysides, sorry - not tried more than half the distilleries, I don't think. (Checks: 27 from 49 - from memory)
I agree with all the other suggestions, too.
Never got on with Glenfiddichs and Crawford's 3* (blend - but I really like Crawford's 5*). Macallans and Glemorangies tend mostly to be less desireable to me, too.
Mortlach. Forgot to mention Mortlach. And The Singleton. Tomintoul, Tamnavulin.
I'm light on Speysides, sorry - not tried more than half the distilleries, I don't think. (Checks: 27 from 49 - from memory)
I agree with all the other suggestions, too.
Never got on with Glenfiddichs and Crawford's 3* (blend - but I really like Crawford's 5*). Macallans and Glemorangies tend mostly to be less desireable to me, too.
Trying a bottle The Singleton for the first time at the moment. Really good. I like Them all tbh not least for the variety. Talisker is probably the ‘go to’ if I’m pushed to name it.
Great thread!
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Best ever whisky? on 08:24 - Jun 18 with 2034 views
Usually go for something at the peatier end of the spectrum, so Ardbeg or Bowmore for me. Like a Speyside too, haven't tried enough to properly comment though. However, I was once lucky enough to try a Glenfarclas 24 year old (I think, it was a long night), that is a fine dram.
There is a plausible theory that the best ever whisky is even now maturing in barrels, ready to be opened shortly after a 10 year wait. Scotland, as you know is a miserable rainy place, infested with midges and grim people - most unsuited to growing decent malting barley. Hence until relatively recent more pretentious times their rough and ready malts were blended to make a drinkable tipple. The best malting barley comes from eastern England - so it follows that the best quality whisky will soon be being marketed by nouveau distilleries in East Anglia - perhaps even by the good folk of Adnams
There is a plausible theory that the best ever whisky is even now maturing in barrels, ready to be opened shortly after a 10 year wait. Scotland, as you know is a miserable rainy place, infested with midges and grim people - most unsuited to growing decent malting barley. Hence until relatively recent more pretentious times their rough and ready malts were blended to make a drinkable tipple. The best malting barley comes from eastern England - so it follows that the best quality whisky will soon be being marketed by nouveau distilleries in East Anglia - perhaps even by the good folk of Adnams
The English Whiskey Co. do some nice ones, when they're not trying too hard.
Think this is Adnam's problem with spirits and new beers (except the copper house and the stout) - everything tastes a bit like a gimmick, which is frustrating when they clearly have the setup to produce very, very good spirits in a more traditional style.
The English Whiskey Co. do some nice ones, when they're not trying too hard.
Think this is Adnam's problem with spirits and new beers (except the copper house and the stout) - everything tastes a bit like a gimmick, which is frustrating when they clearly have the setup to produce very, very good spirits in a more traditional style.
Agree with you there. Adnams are suffering from the race to the bottom in ludicrous gin and bespoke here today gone tomorrow beers. Sooner or later they will realize where their heritage and future is. Maybe
A quicker way, if you live anywhere near St Ives is to pop into the off licence in St Ives. Not quite as well stocked as in its heyday - but still has dozens and dozens of different malts to try. Highly recommended - especially if you've few hours unsuccessful fishing to recover from.
The English Whiskey Co. do some nice ones, when they're not trying too hard.
Think this is Adnam's problem with spirits and new beers (except the copper house and the stout) - everything tastes a bit like a gimmick, which is frustrating when they clearly have the setup to produce very, very good spirits in a more traditional style.
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