whiskey

i live within walking distance of the local greek orthodox church that has a greek food fair every year. they have shots of ouzo! no whiskey, though.

too lazy and don't trust google but how long does whisky last?

it's taking me forever to finish this yamazaki single malt

Doesn't go bad. Likewise, doesn't age.

so my don draper routine was without purpose afterall

Thinking about cracking this open for some post-Finals/pre-work R'n'R
https://dl.dropbox.com/s/64q5safnspp2fmf/20160619_225943-1.jpg?dl=0

who should say no to such a winsome thought?

apparently not me, good stuff!

The Uigeadail was running low, so I picked up a bottle of Laphroaig 10 year today. It's much lighter and smoother than I expected after the intensity of the Ardbeg. A glass of scotch and Moodymann on the stereo are just the right combo at the moment.

this years writers tears (no age statement but very decent cheap pot still) is the irishman.

How do you mean darraghmac? The same company make The Irishman and Writers Tears brands, don't they? I've never tried any of The Irishman line, is it good as well?

I had Writers Tears a year or two ago and really liked it. I keep meaning to pick it up again. I see there's a variant called Writers Tears Red Head which is matured in Oloroso sherry butts, which sounds very intriguing indeed. Marks & Spencer used to stock the standard version here.

what do people think of the app distiller?

beer has been taking up most of my time when drinking but these last two weeks i've switched to whisky and was curious to check some of the distilleries on an untappd-like app

XP sorry Krakow missed that til now

Seems that every year now there's a good no-age statement whiskey launched to get a brand off the ground, presumably worldwide demand is the driver.

I'd been of the habit of avoiding anything that looked gimmicky along these lines until my local whiskey shop - which btw is the best shop of any type anywhere in the world imo- recommended the writers tears as a very worthy cut-price green spot alternative and yep pleasant surprise.

Course, a year later and it's seventy quid a bottle.

This year, so, get on Irishman. Founders reserve is setting me back thirty odd euro and it's worth twice that in the current market.

there's some cheaper "irish whiskey" brand called "2 gingers" that is palatable I've bought on sale. local store must have bought it as an incentive or has leftover stock from the holiday. not bad at $16/bottle

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/15/dining/jack-daniels-whiskey-slave-nearest-green.html

Just tried glenfiddichs india pale ale single malt scotch

Anyone have opinions on this?

my opinion is that you ought to share it.

(waggles empty glass)

Cheers aimless 🥃

I’m game for experiments, kind of pricey forays usually

I’m about to finish my yamazaki 18 yr old single malt so this glenfiddich bottle was just something to hold me up while i decide on a better buy

Was feeling adventurous

Recs are appreciated good sirs

(raises glass to ∞)

Elijah Craig

Would've tended to avoid those no-age new-age chancer blends but as things get tighter it's inevitable I spose

I have tried the three jameson masters series (Cooper's croze etc) and was pleasantly surprised (my pref is for the distillers safe which might be both high and sweet for American tastes)

If have really enjoyed the Nikka Coffey Grain and Coffey Malt, whiskeys, both very well rounded. I’m going to visit one of the the Nikka distilleries in January which I’m pretty excited about.

I was at a nikka tasting last Christmas and some of it was pretty tough for me to take but when they get that caramel feel right then I'm in and I'm in deep

There’s a bottle of the Coffey grain calling to me across the room, but it’s a birthday present for someone who bought me a very nice bottle of Suntory Hakushu for mine so I can touch it.

The hakushu was pretty nice, mildly peaty.

I had a bottle of the Glenfiddich IPA experimental series and really enjoyed it myself, though general reports are somewhat "meh" I believe. I found it a good one for summer - quite light and fresh. I wouldn't go so far as to buy a second bottle, but I am glad I had one.

ie thursdays

My glennie ipa cost me $70 usd on sale so I thought it was a decent price?

Wanted to buy hibiki but also wanted to try something new

Do you guys make cocktails w cheap stuff or go for the 12yr+ bottles or what

Also it’s about 30 something degrees centigrades in los angeles right now so it’s p much summer

Depends on context and cocktail but tbh I'd focus more on the fit than the price if mixing.

making an Irish coffee or hot toddy, for instance, a peaty or a rye or bourbon is not going to work and you can spend thousands for all I care. Maybe within a clean pot still there's grades of difference between throwing a Midleton Vs a twenty quid Paddy's into the mix but I'd be dubious

An old fashioned otoh put something good into it

i've never had a japanese whiskey! what should i start with?

yesterday i bought a standard 10-y-o laphroaig opened it up and was like "ahhhh my old friend"

Nikka from the barrel was a good intro iirc. Like, an intro typical enough of the style imo?

Suntory 18 year yamazaki is great

There are so few bourbons with age statements left on the shelf, let alone with 12 years on them, that mixing with those bourbons would be insane. Weller 12 ... allocated. Elijah Craig 12 ... gone. Even Knob Creek dropped the age statement. I guess there's McKenna 10 still hanging around? Anyway, for mixing choose something cheaper but high proof, like Wild Turkey 101 or Old Grand Dad 114. The alcohol helps the flavor cut through the other ingredients. But even something simple like an Old Fashioned, I wouldn't go beyond a commonly acquired rye, like Rittenhouse. Save the good stuff to sip neat. And honestly there aren't that many cocktails that call for bourbon or rye to begin with, even fewer that call for scotch. (Though tis the season for the Penicillin, one of my fave cocktails, that calls for blended scotch, a float of peaty scotch, and honey-ginger syrup.)

The other day I lucked into a bottle of Four Roses' Limited Edition Small Batch. I love Four Roses in pretty much all its iterations.

I brought a bottle of Henry McKenna (the cheap blended not the bottled in bond) to a whisky weekend at a cabin with some guys where everyone brought a bottle then we did a NCAA style tournament of blind tasting matchups.

my $11 bottle emerged as champion, sending several fancy pants $50-$70 bottles packing

the artisanal experimental cocktails at fancy bars that use expensive whiskey feel acceptable but I feel guilty using something that cost over $35 per bottle (adjust for your local currency and regional inflation) with anything more than a splash of water or a single ice cube at home

Agreed, at home my cocktail whiskey standbys are Rittenhouse rye, which is unfortunately expensive in oz, Suntory Kakubin, which is cheap and cheerful, Wild turkey and whatever is on special at the Greek supermarket across the way.

I’m sure there’s a name for a Manhattan made with Scotch and Johnny walker makes a good base for it. It’s alll about the vermouth anyway.

scotch manhattan is called a rob roy

Rittenhouse expensive? How much we talking?

I make my old fashioneds with that and it’s about 20 something usd here

Im playing bartender tonight and thinking what to do w this glenfiddich bottle

They recommend running a twist of blood orange to the rim then adding it into the glass but i cldnt find bloody blood oranges

there are....lots of cocktails that use a rye base.

$75 Australian, it used to be $100 so it’s improved a bit. I feel like I wasn’t paying more than $35 in the PLCB store in Pittsburgh.

Xp

Mentioned this upthread but it’s the glenfiddich ipa — their experimental series one?

Tastes different than a regular scotch tho surprisingly not hoppy at all

P smooth tho

Ed that is very expensive

I feel for you

Pricing is weird, I can by a bottle of Talisker for less.

CAD, rye cocktails are far less common than gin, rum, etc.

Rittenhouse here is less than $30, though price has been going up.

Hmm, thinking about it: Old Fashioned, Manhattan, Vieux Carre, Sazerac, boulevardier ... what common rye cocktails am I missing?

Friend gave me a bottle of Laphroaig Triple Wood - had a couple of drinks and when I burped the next day it was still peaty

because of current trends I see a lot more whiskey cocktails on restaurant menus than gin ones!

ah missed the restriction to rye... if you open it up to bourbon cocktails where rye is fine, you end up with a lot

I'm thinking of traditional/classic drinks. Buy if you're talking about contemporary concoctions, the permutations are endless.

Laphroaig Triple Wood is what I currently have at home. I don't hate it, but it suffers a bit from an identity crisis, the different flavors don't seem to know how to exist with each other, with the sweet sherry overtones butting heads with the smokey base. I miss the light medicinal tang of the 10 year.