Single Malt

[slofox]

Got me some Macallan 12yo "Fine Oak" single malt at the moment. Very nice.

But one serious drawback. It evaporates (in my house anyway...:Oi:)

[Oakie]

At the risk of my Scottish grandfather coming back to haunt me ... I prefer Canadian whisky.
Great old fella. He reckoned putting water in whiskey was polluting it. He had shares in Wilsons Distillery in Dunedin so drank their 45 South (?) to help improve his share prices. He used to pour it into a Johnnie Walker bottle though for show.

[Akzle]

the scottish make SCOTCH damn you. the canadians make hooch.
the irish were doing whiskey long before those heathens, and whilst a good single malt is a fine drop, i do tend to prefer blended whiskeys.
for the price, tullamore dew cannae be beaten.
walker blue is also quite good. and chevas 12.

[gsxr]

Got me some Macallan 12yo "Fine Oak" single malt at the moment. Very nice.

But one serious drawback. It evaporates (in my house anyway...:Oi:)

I also have the evaporation problem with both single malt and blended. The biggest problem though is the faster it evaporates policeman tend to look like midgets.
I tend to study the evaporation rate of Jack Daniels or Appletons of late.

[fuknK1W1]

Damn you too I can spell whisky and I can spell whiskey.:devil2:

[Brian d marge]

that McClellan isn’t that bad , good for the price too,,

I make me own , drinking one of me own brandys , and I have to say its pretty good ...even if I do say so my self


Stephen

[YellowDog]

At the risk of my Scottish grandfather coming back to haunt me ... I prefer Canadian whisky.
Great old fella. He reckoned putting water in whiskey was polluting it. He had shares in Wilsons Distillery in Dunedin so drank their 45 South (?) to help improve his share prices. He used to pour it into a Johnnie Walker bottle though for show.

Yep, he was right :yes:

CONSIDER YOURSELF HAUNTED !!!

[LBD]

I seem to recall....just....watchin one evaporate in front of my eyes after the last Grand challange....

[LBD]

the scottish make SCOTCH damn you. the canadians make hooch.
the irish were doing whiskey long before those heathens, and whilst a good single malt is a fine drop, i do tend to prefer blended whiskeys.
for the price, tullamore dew cannae be beaten.
walker blue is also quite good. and chevas 12.

Jura prophesy ...or Laguvallen, Caolila, Ardberg heavily peated, double barrelled and about 16 yo

[unstuck]

Get some of this http://www.hokonuiwhiskey.com/hokonui.html in ya. :devil2:

[Akzle]

I make me own , drinking one of me own brandys , and I have to say its pretty good ...even if I do say so my self
o nice.
i was going to give corn mash a go... TBA.
never much been one for brandy. particularly the africa stuff... does a good job degreasing carbourettors though...

[Flip]

Quite like Bushmills myself.

[BoristheBiter]

Jura prophesy ...or Laguvallen, Caolila, Ardberg heavily peated, double barrelled and about 16 yo

I preferred the highland malts as i don't like dirt in my booze.

Problems is after drinking it every day while working up there I just can't drink it anymore.
I have had two bottles of Macallan Elegancia 12 y sitting in the cupboard for over 2 years.

[dangerous]

the scottish make SCOTCH damn you. the canadians make hooch.
the irish were doing whiskey long before those heathens,OHHHH fark off man, Irish make potato's


At the risk of my Scottish grandfather coming back to haunt me ... I prefer Canadian whisky.Canadian Club, wouldnt call it a whisky but it was ok, stilled from Rye



Got me some Macallan 12yo "Fine Oak" single malt at the moment. Very nice.
But one serious drawback. It evaporates (in my house anyway...:Oi:)Called the angels share... well from a sealed bottle anyways... Macallan, yeah not bad

Anyway... got me 264356 264357

[SMOKEU]

A bit off topic, but I make a very nice whiskey by using Jack Daniels oak barrel chips. I add 10L of neutral spirit to 500g of oak chips and leave it for a few weeks before filtering it off through a funnel with some cotton to remove the small pieces of oak. Makes a very tasty drink indeed.

SMOKEUs tip of the day: Dissolve 1 tbsp of honey in a very small amount of water, then add it to a litre of whiskey. Leave for a week, then drink. You can thank me later.

[Oakie]

Yep, he was right :yes:

CONSIDER YOURSELF HAUNTED !!!

You're my grandad's ghost?!

[Brian d marge]

A bit off topic, but I make a very nice whiskey by using Jack Daniels oak barrel chips. I add 10L of neutral spirit to 500g of oak chips and leave it for a few weeks before filtering it off through a funnel with some cotton to remove the small pieces of oak. Makes a very tasty drink indeed.

SMOKEUs tip of the day: Dissolve 1 tbsp of honey in a very small amount of water, then add it to a litre of whiskey. Leave for a week, then drink. You can thank me later.

ok Im going to try that...what happening then?

Stephen

[Voltaire]

Every so often I drag out a Tipperary Mineral Water bottle of Poteen and knock one back in memory of the old man.
I think he got it on one trip back home years ago.
It has no colour and takes the lining off your mouth.....I like to give it to my Scottish BIL.....:rolleyes:

[SMOKEU]

ok Im going to try that...what happening then?

Stephen

Are you asking about the oak or the honey?

[Brian d marge]

Are you asking about the oak or the honey?

about the honey....I to make my own ..but have never heard of the honey...

Stephen

[jasonu]

walker blue is also quite good.

You must be really rich...
http://www.ryebrookwines.com/r/products/johnnie-walker-blue-label-blended-scotch-whisky?utm_source=Google&utm_medium=Feed

[dangerous]

You must be really rich...
http://www.ryebrookwines.com/r/products/johnnie-walker-blue-label-blended-scotch-whisky?utm_source=Google&utm_medium=Feedummm... duno what curancy that site is but the last blue lable I saw was $500, last time I brought a nip it was $20... but by fuck it was nice, in the cask for 50yrs is that there shit.

[Akzle]

i used to have a thing for spending a lot of money on alcohol. i've tried all the labels, green,blue , gold, single malt. the only thing i missed out on was some white label. a bottle came up for auction many moons ago...

as a weekly drinker black label has good flavour, but still, prefer tullamore dew.

again, walker is scotch not whiskey and blended not single malt.

but yes. the good ole days (before having children) XSOP french brandy, whiskeys older than me (glenfarclas, some macallans that someone's mentioned..), perignon,
arr. gettin thirsty just thinking about it....

[SMOKEU]

about the honey....I to make my own ..but have never heard of the honey...

Stephen

The honey mellows the whiskey out significantly, and can turn an ordinary brew into a delightfully easy to drink alternative to a more traditional whiskey. The drink will become very cloudy, and it pays to shake the bottle every couple of days, and just before you pour the drink. Try it and let me know how it goes.

SMOKEUs tip of the day: Cut a chilli in half lengthwise and add it to your favourite bottle of vodka. Leave for at least 3 days, and enjoy.

[short-circuit]

but still, prefer tullamore dew.


Irish aint scotch

[dangerous]

[color=#139922]again, walker is scotch not whiskey and blended not single malt.Ya right Walker aint whiskey... its farking whisky :cool:

[Rockbuddy]

check out this website http://www.whiskyandmore.co.nz

[BoristheBiter]

i used to have a thing for spending a lot of money on alcohol. i've tried all the labels, green,blue , gold, single malt. the only thing i missed out on was some white label. a bottle came up for auction many moons ago...

as a weekly drinker black label has good flavour, but still, prefer tullamore dew.

again, walker is scotch not whiskey and blended not single malt.

but yes. the good ole days (before having children) XSOP french brandy, whiskeys older than me (glenfarclas, some macallans that someone's mentioned..), perignon,
arr. gettin thirsty just thinking about it....


I used to work here:

http://www.booking.com/hotel/gb/craigellachie-of-speyside.en-gb.html?aid=306395;label=gb-craigellachie-q8HuIN_RZK0PtmJskKB2jAS8164904429;sid=fba3a969f62c baca7655416eaf03347b;dcid=1

With over 700 different whiskys I got to try a few.

[SMOKEU]

I used to work here:

http://www.booking.com/hotel/gb/craigellachie-of-speyside.en-gb.html?aid=306395;label=gb-craigellachie-q8HuIN_RZK0PtmJskKB2jAS8164904429;sid=fba3a969f62c baca7655416eaf03347b;dcid=1

With over 700 different whiskys I got to try a few.

Lucky cunt. I'm surprised you managed to get any work done with that much whiskey.

[BoristheBiter]

Lucky cunt. I'm surprised you managed to get any work done with that much whiskey.

They would have tasting's. 12 different whiskeys and we would pour tasting glasses for each person. most would have one maybe two, the rest, as you can't put it back in the bottle, went into a bottle for us to drink later.

I think that's why i can't drink it now, well straight anyway, and I could never put anything into a good scotch.

[dangerous]

Lucky cunt. I'm surprised you managed to get any work done with that much whiskey.Shit man.. I doubt there was SFA 'whiskey' there.

[SMOKEU]

They would have tasting's. 12 different whiskeys and we would pour tasting glasses for each person. most would have one maybe two, the rest, as you can't put it back in the bottle, went into a bottle for us to drink later.

I think that's why i can't drink it now, well straight anyway, and I could never put anything into a good scotch.

Yeah, a good whiskey must be had straight. It's a crime to mix it.

[St_Gabriel]

A bit off topic, but I make a very nice whiskey by using Jack Daniels oak barrel chips. I add 10L of neutral spirit to 500g of oak chips and leave it for a few weeks before filtering it off through a funnel with some cotton to remove the small pieces of oak. Makes a very tasty drink indeed.



Try it after its been on oak chips for 3.5 YEARS then you will know what smooth is. It takes a while to build sufficient stock so that it can last that long but it is was worth the effort.

[SMOKEU]

Try it after its been on oak chips for 3.5 YEARS then you will know what smooth is. It takes a while to build sufficient stock so that it can last that long but it is was worth the effort.

I'm keen! I would probably end up drinking it all well before then unfortunately. :weep:

[Indiana_Jones]

Another booze thread lol.

I enjoy whiskey, but I prefer rum :)

-Indy

[slofox]

Try it after its been on oak chips for 3.5 YEARS then you will know what smooth is. It takes a while to build sufficient stock so that it can last that long but it is was worth the effort.

I just recently finished my last home distilled whisky - 6 years old by the time I got through it.

I age it on toasted french oak chips. I call it "mid-atlantic" whisky since it tastes somewhere between scotch and bourbon. I don't use flavour sachets of any sort - after a while they taste synthetic - to me anyway.

Since that was the last of my stocks, I have fired up the still today - being as how it's the first entire day home I have had in several years. At present we have one litre of spirit at 90%. Bit lower than usual - I usually get the first litre at 92%. But then I haven't done this for quite a few years. Head temperature is 75C - just about right. I should end up with 4 -5 litres all up at around 80%. Dilute to 40 - 45% and there's about 8 litres of whatever you like to call it. Which lasts me for ages, since I am not supposed to drink ANY alcomohol at all...(we won't go into that).

This is the first still run I have done in my latest dwelling. Last place I lived, I had an entire subgarage/basement/workshop under the house which had power and water so was ideal for an alchemist's workshop. In the current poky little hole I have to commandeer the kitchen and rig stuff all over the goddam room...

Funny thing - last jar of whisky I had from previous batches sat in my cupboard for several years, untouched. Eventually I put it through a carbon filter and then hurfed in some oak chips. I thought it odd that it coloured up so quuickly since I was light on the chips anyway. Tried it eventually and ended up pissed real quick...got suspicious and tested it with the alcohol hydrometer. Turned out I hadn't ever diluted it - it was 80%.

When I tried diluting a sample of the finished product, it went cloudy. So I just had to drink it at 80%. Sigh...

[fuknK1W1]

Ya right Walker aint whiskey... its farking whisky :cool:
Too true good to see a man who can spell...sometimes:msn-wink:

[Akzle]

Too true good to see a man who can spell...sometimes:msn-wink:
whisk-E-y generally denotes irish whiskey. (and yank stuff. but really. what the hell does america make that isn't shit, they were all reject irish anyway.)
whiskY generally for the drink from anywhere else
and scotch for "whiskey" from scotland...

[dino3310]

:lol: ive just lately discovered the missus stash of cooking sherry:apint: not to bad when only $6 a bottle:facepalm:

[dangerous]

whisk-E-y generally denotes irish whiskey. (and yank stuff. but really. what the hell does america make that isn't shit, they were all reject irish anyway.)
whiskY generally for the drink from anywhere else
and scotch for "whiskey" from scotland...
WRONG... ya not a good listener are ya mate, the Scottish, Japanese, Kiwi's and Canadians are the only nations that spell the word less the 'e'
Im telling ya now 'scotch' as you put it does not have a 'e' in whisky.

[Akzle]

WRONG... ya not a good listener are ya mate, the Scottish, Japanese, Kiwi's and Canadians are the only nations that spell the word less the 'e'
Im telling ya now 'scotch' as you put it does not have a 'e' in whisky.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whisky#Names_and_spellings
the internet doesn't entirely agree with you.
the aforesaid is MY interpretation of teh spellings.
scotch≠whiskey

[scumdog]

WRONG... ya not a good listener are ya mate, the Scottish, Japanese, Kiwi's and Canadians are the only nations that spell the word less the 'e'
Im telling ya now 'scotch' as you put it does not have a 'e' in whisky.

I'm with him on this.

And with the 'Irish make spuds' thing...

[dangerous]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whisky#Names_and_spellings
the internet doesn't entirely agree with you.
the aforesaid is MY interpretation of teh spellings.
scotch≠whiskey... interesting reading ta, however the attached is from your wiki site scotch=whisky

264509

[Akzle]

... interesting reading ta, however the attached is from your wiki site scotch=whisky

264509my wiki. lolz.
SCOTCH it's not whiskey and it's not whisky. it's fkn scotch. i dont care what they call it in scotland, who the hell would listen to a scotsman anyway... ( i have welsh heritage)

[Berries]

( i have welsh heritage)
That answers so many questions you wouldn't believe it.

As someone who was forced to live north of the border for a number of years and built up quite a taste for the stuff I have to say it is Scotch Whisky. Or Scotch. Or Whisky. You won't find a decent bottle that doesn't have the word whisky on it but you'll find many that don't have the word scotch. That's what the English call the locals to piss them off.

[Akzle]

That answers so many questions you wouldn't believe it.:lol:
have i mentioned that you shouldn't listen to southerners:lol:

[dangerous]

my wiki. lolz.
SCOTCH it's not whiskey and it's not whisky. it's fkn scotch. i dont care what they call it in scotland, who the hell would listen to a scotsman anyway... ( i have welsh heritage)


OHHHHHhhhhhhhhhhhhh... we are arguing over the use of the word 'scotch' sorry I thought we were sorting out the wisky spelling for scotland, I have always thought 'scotch' to be a slang word as such only bottle of hand I think uses the word is Teachers...
As for your Welsh statment WELLlllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll... ya cant even speak or spell whats with ya draggoch?

[Oscar]

Aqua vitae - water of life.

[Maha]

I have some Talisker here (thanks to Grant) which is probably the first real Whiskey I have ever tasted...

[sgtp]

The girlfriend once made me a whisky/lemon/ginger/honey/tea concoction to help me with my cold I was trying to get over. I took one sip and was "damn woman, this tastes amazing! What whisky did you use?" .......


......she used my yamazake 12yr :mad::nono:

[Berries]

......she used my yamazake 12yr :mad::nono:
Don't worry, once you get your licence you can get something bigger.

[240]

I just got a bottle of 12 year old Glennfidich:cool: I challenge any heterosexual man to say they don't like that!:headbang:

If anyone dare reply that they don't like it .....(well we know what that means don't we):rolleyes:

[dangerous]

I have some Talisker here (thanks to Grant) which is probably the first real Whiskey I have ever tasted...good shit man, a decent Island dram... if ya like that salty, peaty tast you will like most

[scumdog]

I have some Talisker here (thanks to Grant) which is probably the first real Whiskey I have ever tasted...


That and Laphoraigh (sp?) are my fav. - I love that kind of taste.:cool:

[Geeen]

Speaking of Laphroig, I have a bottle of quarter cask and some Bowmore 10yo I need help with......

Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 2

[slofox]

Speaking of Laphroig, I have a bottle of quarter cask and some Bowmore 10yo I need help with......

Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 2

Laphroaig Quarter Cask is my favourite expression of Laphroaig.

Oh and Glenfiddich is for beginners. :whistle:

[MisterD]

expression

There are some little clues that indicated someone might know what they're talking about...


Oh and Glenfiddich is for beginners. :whistle:

...and then there are some things that make it obvious!

[BoristheBiter]

There are some little clues that indicated someone might know what they're talking about...



...and then there are some things that make it obvious!

They think bourbon is whisky.
they think what they like is the best.

Like wine, art, music, it all comes down to individual taste.

[MisterD]

Like wine, art, music, it all comes down to individual taste.

...to a point, yes, but then if Laphroaig is Nirvana, then Glenfiddich is probably the Stone Temple Pilots...

[BoristheBiter]

...to a point, yes, but then if Laphroaig is Nirvana, then Glenfiddich is probably the Stone Temple Pilots...

No, not to a point.
I think that Laphroiag tastes like sheep piss watered down with sea water and think Macallan is the nectar of the gods.

It doesn't mean that either of these is better than the other it just means my taste is different than yours.

I spent months listening to CEO's of the different distillery's wank on about how there whisky was better than the rest.
The funny thing was when we used to do blind tasting only the locals were likely to get it right no one else had a clue what they were drinking.
Mind you some one said the sherry was Macallan (they only use used sherry casks).

[MisterD]

No, not to a point.

Yes to a point. You could argue about whether Penfolds Grange or Stoneyridge Larose was the better wine, both are demonstrably better than any other bottle of red you cared to grab from your local Glengarry.




I think that Laphroiag tastes like sheep piss watered down with sea water and think Macallan is the nectar of the gods.

It doesn't mean that either of these is better than the other it just means my taste is different than yours.



Well they're both regulars in my cupboard, and I'll usually have two or three single malts on the go at any one time (usually an Islay, a Speyside and maybe a different wood finish job) none of which alters the fact that Glenfiddich is the easily-accessible single malt for beginners.

[ellipsis]

...my heritage is Hebridean and one of the first born that didn't use gaelic as his first language... uisge beatha wasn't so much an acquired taste, more a fact of life...but I ended up choosing rum as my choice of poison...my last gaelic speaking cousin in this country left the planet only recently, but I remember him telling me once that Ardhbeg wouldn't get a look in as a preferred dram in our Islands, like someone mentioned earlier in this thread, 'made with dirt in it'...yet I liked it...pure palate and preference...I had the pleasure of attending a kiwi mate's wedding in the Trossachs in the early '80s...his betrothed family were bordering on 'rich'. Upon arrival at a hotel that had been hired for the guests, all rooms paid for, we were asked to meet in the bar for cigars and a dram...we were expected to drink from the very top shelf, and whatever we drank was on the bride's family's tab...and we were encouraged to drink the best. I dont remember the name of the ancient whisky that an acquaintance from Aberdeen and I were given, but it was worth one hundred and five pounds a nip...I told Dougey, a teacher and pisshead that it would be wasted on me, his reply, ' gae it doon yer, the bottles coming back this way'...

[slofox]

No, not to a point.
I think that Laphroiag tastes like sheep piss watered down with sea water and think Macallan is the nectar of the gods.

It doesn't mean that either of these is better than the other it just means my taste is different than yours.

I spent months listening to CEO's of the different distillery's wank on about how there whisky was better than the rest.
The funny thing was when we used to do blind tasting only the locals were likely to get it right no one else had a clue what they were drinking.
Mind you some one said the sherry was Macallan (they only use used sherry casks).

I like most single malt styles - but on different occasions. In the middle of winter, with a stinking head cold, I might opt for Laphroaig Quarter Cask. On a balmy summer's evening I might go for the Macallan Fine Oak. It just depends on the mood and the surroundings. Having said that, there is the odd example that, for whatever reason, I just plain don't like much. Knockando being one and Glengoyne another - at least those expressions of each that I have tasted.

Exactly the same with wine. And with beer too come to that. Because I have been directly involved in selling all of the above products for the past seven years, I have had to maintain an unbiassed opinion of what is "good" and what is "bad". I could not afford to stock only things that I liked. I had to develop a "commercial" palate to cater for the huge range of preferences that I would encounter in my daily work life. So even though I choose never to drink Sauvignon Blanc for example, I had to know the difference between a good and bad example of that variety. And so with all other products as well.

Like the man says, it's a matter of taste.

[BoristheBiter]

Yes to a point. You could argue about whether Penfolds Grange or Stoneyridge Larose was the better wine, both are demonstrably better than any other bottle of red you cared to grab from your local Glengarry.



Well they're both regulars in my cupboard, and I'll usually have two or three single malts on the go at any one time (usually an Islay, a Speyside and maybe a different wood finish job) none of which alters the fact that Glenfiddich is the easily-accessible single malt for beginners.

But what makes a better whisky? Is it the fact that more people drink it? or that it says so in a book?
my old man has a 25y Laphroig but i think the standard 3y Glenfiddich is better. It doesn't make either better it just makes my tastes different.

Same with your wine I would thank you more for a bottle of Pelorus than Moet. In fact i would sell 2:1 in the restaurant and they were both priced the same.

I get your point on beginners but then a beginner is just someone that hasn't tasted a lot.

[Berries]

One of the two advantages* that Dunedin has due to its Scottish heritage is the selection of whiskies you can get in the shops. One particular store, Meenans, has an excellent selection and I have been methodically working through some of the Connoisseurs Choice range from Gordon and McPhail, amongst others. Worth a Google if you like your whisky, their website even uses the word 'expression' so they know what they are on about.

*Obviously this has to be weighed up against the disadvantages that the same heritage brings, like bagpipes, tartan, ginger hair, bagpipes, burglary and bagpipes. And bagpipes.

[Brian d marge]

I make the best whiskey ( spelt with an "E" because Im British and what we say goes. )

so there

Stephen

[Geeen]

Ok, for all you Single Malt drinkers, I have some Laphroig Quarter cask (about 1/2 bottle) and some Bowmore 12yo (about 3/4 bottle) free to a good home. All you have to do is pick it up. Have come to the conclusion I no longer have any desire to drink alcohol. PM me if you want it, I would rather it went to someone who will enjoy it rather than down the sink.

[fuknK1W1]

:lol:
have i mentioned that you shouldn't listen to southerners:lol:
That depends entirely on which side of the equator you are on...Downunder southerners have all the cred...but not on t'other side.
You read this on the net so it must be true:crazy:

Back to the subject I beleive Wilsons was a single malt as there wasn't really anything else to blend it with...I was once involved in a promotion which included; Islay, Talisker, Lagavulin. & Dalwhinnie...can't remeber what else.
To argue which is the best is purely subjective they were all good in their own way a lot of variables in the mix peat or no peat highland or lowland etc...as long as you now what you like is all that matters...these days I drink SFA spirits & the world is a better place for that
__________________________________________________ __________________________:beer:

[scumdog]

Ok, for all you Single Malt drinkers, I have some Laphroig Quarter cask (about 1/2 bottle) and some Bowmore 12yo (about 3/4 bottle) free to a good home. All you have to do is pick it up. Have come to the conclusion I no longer have any desire to drink alcohol. PM me if you want it, I would rather it went to someone who will enjoy it rather than down the sink.


Cue drooling noise....

PM sent.

[Brian d marge]

g a program about whisk(e)y ...you should see how much those angels drink ( the angels share)


Stephen

[vifferman]

This thread could be the ruin of me.:(
I'd never tasted single malts until a few years ago when I hosted a (very annoying) guy from Scotland, who gave me a bottle of Highland Park (possibly the only decent thing he's ever done in his whole entire life), and showed me how to appreciate it. Since then, I've bought many different single malts (Cragganmore, Glenfiddich, Glenmorangie, Knockando, The Balvenie, The Glenlivet, and some others I can't remember. Some were tasty, but I kept coming back to Highland Park, as it suited me best. Then, last week I went to Cairns, and thought I'd better get some duty-free goods on the way in and out. I looked at the single malts, and recalled people on here mentioning Laphroaig and Talisker, neither of which I'd tasted. So.... I went "eeny-meeny..." and picked the Talisker.
Last night, I tasted it.
:eek5:

OMFG!!
:drool:
If it wasn't a work night, I might've drunk most of the bottle, instead of limiting myself to two modest drams. Worryingly, it was all I could think about before I went to sleep...

Coincidentally, last night Glengarry Ponsonby had a Scotch/Irish whisky tasting last night, which I wanted to check out, but couldn't because I was on my bike. Told the vifferbabe, and she said, "You should've gone - you could have left your bike at work and phoned me to pick you up!"
D'Oh!!
It sounds like a pretty good deal: you pay $10, taste whatever takes your fancy, then if you decide to buy something, they'll take $10 off your purchase price. Must check out the next one (and drink / tip out some of the bottles in the booze cupboard, as it's rather full, especially of half-finished single malts, and weird rums, which I don't like - tastes like Uhu glue, courtesy of the ketones in it).

[Naki Rat]

Talisker is my personal favourite. Just the right balance of peat/smokeyness and the 10 year old is reasonably priced (duty free). Another one worth its price is Smokehead (http://www.smokehead.com/). We were introduced to it by a bar manager in Perth (the one south of Edinburgh) and were suitably impressed. Think 42 Degrees of the whisky world :yes:

We did a road trip up into the Scottish highlands a year ago and did a tour of the Delwhinnie (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dalwhinnie_distillery) distillery on our travels. Highest altitude distillery in Scotland, high water quality, peat bogs, etc. Nice drop with light and slightly sweet 'honey' tones...

The real turn-up of our trip though was Harviestoun Brewery in the SW of Scotland. They do a porter named 'Old Engine Oil' which they also then age in 12, 16 or 18 year old Highland Park Whisky barrels. The result is 'Ola Dubh' :niceone: Available online from The Beer Cellar (http://www.beercellar.co.nz/Search/Brewery/50/Harviestoun) but it's not cheap :(. Harviestoun's Schiehallion lager is also worth a taste!

On our way to the UK we had a 6:30am check-in at Singapore airport. After check-in and a curry breakfast we're off to the whisky shop :yes:
They were out of stock of Talisker so we had to do a tasting to find a suitable substitute under the recommendations of the salesman using a chart similar to the one below. It took 6 or 8 samples to settle on a Glenlivet Master Distiller's Reserve (http://www.theglenlivet.com/the-whisky/travel-retail). 'Christmas cake' flavours but only available duty free.... Also worth noting that like a good red wine this whisky benefits from breathing so expect it to give its best a day or two after opening the bottle. And the flight from Singapore to Heathrow - relaxed ;)
http://dvlb.ca/assets/images/whisky%20flavour%20map-revised5.png

[vifferman]

Interesting (and useful) chart (now saved to my laptop :msn-wink:).

I thought I had a pretty sensitive palate (inherited from my mother, who was both a super-taster and had a very keen sense of smell), but I wouldn't have picked that Highland Park and Talisker would be as close as they are.
My eldest son shares my love for good whiskies, but he prefers rums, which is tricky as his favourite ones aren't readily available in NZ stores or duty free.

[slofox]

Highland Park is indeed one of the very bestest in my book.