3 SPIRITS you'd take on an desert island?

@Victor What about three that you always have on hand and always replace as soon as they are gone; your three must haves at all times?

@BlueNote, I take all of these "Desert Island" scenario questions extremely seriously, which is why I asked for more specificity of the question from @Georgy . My answers would be multiple according to the details of the desert island scenario. I will give you a relatively thorough and complete answer to a seemingly simple and straightforward question.

As my own whisky preference goes, the thing I like most is VARIETY, which is precisely why any limiting question about just a few bottles feels to me like entering the Black Hole of Calcutta within which I will soon suffocate to death.

To answer your question about three 'must haves' and 'will always quickly replace', 'must always have around' bottles, there are currently at least 20 of those. I am not married to any single bottles, but if I were limited to three options, then there would be three types of whisky which I would choose. And they be:

1) for one bottle only, a top quality rye whisk(e)y, Thomas H. Handy, Abraham Bowman private barrel, Wiser's Legacy from 2010-2012, a 21-25 yo Rittenhouse Rye, or a Willett Rye (I've never owned a bottle of a 20+ yo Willett Rye, but I have tasted them.) Just about any age of Willett Family Estate Rye would do. I have only tasted one European rye so far, but what I have tasted I have liked. There might be some of those which would also suffice.

2) for two bottles only, the rye, plus an intensely peaty smokey briny malt, preferably but not necessarily with sherry, Ardbeg Uigeadail, Ardbeg Supernova, most of the Octomores, Lagavulin 12 or DE, Bruichladdich Black Art, Laphroaig 10 CS, Talisker 57 Degrees North or other Cask Strength Talisker, most of the Bruichladdich PC releases, Port Charlotte, most Kilchomans

3) for three bottles only, # 1 and # 2, plus a good high proof edgy standard (i.e. rye-containing) bourbon: Wild Turkey Rare Breed, Elijah Craig 12 yo Barrel Proof, Knob Creek Single Barrel Reserve, George T. Stagg, any Four Roses Limited Edition Barrel Strength release, any 7+ yo Willett Family Estate Bottle

4) add to the first 3 above, a Cask Strength heavily sherried malt whisky: Amrut Intermediate Sherry, Macallan Cask Strength, Glendronach Cask Strength, Aberlour A'bunadh, Kavalan Solist Sherry Cask

5) add to the first 4 above, a top of the line wheated bourbon, 2010 release or prior Pappy Van Winkle 15 yo, Pappy Van Winkle 23 yo, William Larue Weller, or Parker's Heritage Collection 10 yo wheated bourbon. That completes the core. But I would want more

6) something really good Irish, probably mellow, but could also be intense: Jameson 12 yo, Jameson Rarest Vintage releases, Tullamore DEW Phoenix, Redbreast 12 regular or Cask Strength, Bushmills 21 yo malt

7) a briny malt, other than Islay, probably Old Pulteney 17 or 21, or Springbank/Longrow. Number 1 from Springbank for me would probably be that Longrow 11 yo Rundlets and Kilderkins

Does anybody really want to know all of that detail about my tastes in whisk(e)y?

And, one more wrinkle, for now: if I were choosing for the Desert Island three easily obtained and relatively inexpensive (here) whiskies, they would be: Ardbeg Uigeadail, Wild Turkey Rare Breed, and High West Double Rye.

@Victor "Does anybody want to know all that detail about my tastes in whisk(e)y?"

Absolutely. It's quite fascinating to see how eclectic your tastes are. There are probably quite a few of us who would invade your desert island. We would let you remain in charge and in return you would have to conduct daily tasting sessions. Of course as @Nozinan points out, your island would no longer be deserted. But your island sounds way better than most of ours so prepare to be boarded.

@BlueNote, you are welcome to stop by my island (or house) and taste all week.

@Victor That is high on my bucket list.

@BlueNote, excellent! Whisky is good by itself, but it is even better when drunk with others who appreciate it.

@Victor boy, you did take this question much more seriously than I expected. I've never even heard about your holy trinity, but I might seek them out tomorrow at a whisky festival. So, to narrow it down and make your choice more specific, these three desert island whiskies should be 1) available, 2) affordable, 3) delicious in your opinion. And yes, you'll get an unlimited supply of only one of them!) What 3 would you then pick, given the criteria?

@Georgy, I am taking 'available' to be 'available for most whisky drinkers', and not 'available currently in my cabinet'. My choices would be very different if I could have unlimited supplies of anything I either own or have sampled to date.

'Available, affordable, and delicious', then, would be the last three I mentioned: Ardbeg Uigeadail, Wild Turkey Rare Breed, and High West Double Rye. With unlimited quantities of only one of them available, I would likely choose the Rye, because that is the single taste profile which I like to drink the most frequently: dry, spicy, and fruity together. Put another way, in this scenario with unlimited Rye, my supplies of Uigeadail and Rare Breed would last a considerable length of time because I could be satisfied with only the occasional dram of them. If I had unlimited Uigeadail, a very close second choice for this decision, then I would likely run out of the Rye whiskey pretty quickly and then have my available variety greatly curtailed. As I mentioned in the prior post, having variety available for me to drink is a first priority for me.

@Victor Reading through all of your favorites is like reading a bibliography of some old scientific whisky book - there are a lot of references all of which are absolutely unknown to me (and some of which I dont even know how to pronounce) and thank you!! now, when somebody tries to judge me for having more than 10 opened bottles of whisky at home, I'll tell them about you so as to give them a point of reference )))

@Victor thank you for such an extensive answer!

@Georgy, thank you very much for your very kind words to me.

I think that the current obscurity of many of the whiskeys which are favourites of mine reflects how much availability and price of the premium products has changed over just a few short years. In the US I would date **the madness* as having completely set in by mid-late 2012. Third quarter 2012 is when the prices of the top US products (e.g. Van Winkles and Buffalo Trace Antique Collection Whiskeys) went into a vertical climb on the price graphs. Prior to that the top products were scarce and you really had to hustle to get some, but you had a good chance if you really put in the effort. After late 2012 availability has been much diminished, unless you go to pay a scalper's price on the secondary market.

Prices for Scottish and Irish whiskies have of course continued to climb greatly during this period also. I used to be able to get an under $ 100 price on Bushmills 21 yo, Highland Park 18 yo, etc. Not any more. Most 15+ yo age stated whiskies are getting expensive now.

@Georgy, another big factor is that distribution of whiskies worldwide has always been pretty screwy. I am sure that there are a lot of premium products from various countries that you never see in Russia, for example. (although I suspect that some wealthy individuals there do own a few of them somehow.)

@Victor that's true. Some collectors, however, are gracious enough to sell samples of their collections at whisky events. Thanks to those guys, I was fortunate to try one old Irish and Scottish blend from the 1920s. It was tainted, unfortunately and smelled a lot like nail polish with some fruitiness ) but it's just something to remember) there's gonna be Cask Strength 30 Year old Brora this time...but is like 50$ for a dram. Not sure I'm willing to invest, though

Somebody is paying the secondary market prices for whisky, or they would have to drop. A lot of big money people the world over decided that they liked whisky a few years ago, and the prices were bid up greatly as a result. Clearly it will by the laws of nature take many years before it will even be possible for there to be another glut of 25+ yo whisky.

Sadly to say, I think that for most people one's best bet for trying some of the old, scarce and/or expensive whisky is to become friends with the people who actually own some of it.

@Victor I was lucky enough to get some less than legal bottles last year which were nicely priced (Ardbeg 10 was around 40$), but then those guys disappeared and now...it's difficult to find bargains like that.

@Georgy, oh, I think that you might 'get lucky' again in the future. It is a big world, and things are continuously changing.

...but, you know, prior preparation is key. You have to have done your advanced study to know the relative values of things. Otherwise when the bargain presents itself you do not recognize it for what it is. It comes and goes and you do not act.

Four years ago a liquor store manager for whom I was a good customer flagged me down in his store. He showed me some Elijah Craig 12 yo Barrel Proof which he had just gotten into stock. I looked at the bottle and saw that it was 140.2 proof/70.1% ABV. He asked me, how many would you like? Price? At that time, about $ 37.50 each (twice that now, IF you can ever find any). I asked him back, how many do you have? The answer, "Nine". "OK", I replied, "I'll take nine". Bottom line: I knew the price was (very) right, I knew the whiskey was scarce, and I knew that I had never met a 70% ABV bourbon which I did not like. So I bought them. I have never for a millisecond regretted that decision.

This man speaks truth. @Victor recently gave me similar encouragement to stock up on Laphroaig 10 CS at $50, and I'm feeling good about my shelf now groaning under the weight of that bargain-priced supply of peaty goodness that I'll enjoy for years to come.

@Victor you're a true whisky hunter )

@Victor Some of my friends consider me the friend with the expensive whisky. And I'm sure it's the same for you. It's a bit like boats. It's better to have a friend with a boat rather than owning a boat. You just bring along the booze and food and throw in some gas money. He looks after the moorage, the maintenance, the insurance etc. etc.

My sister who has a few years on me loves to entertain. She cooks well, and throws great parties, but she considers tastings of whiskies or other spirits to be the ultimate simple way to entertain with relatively little fuss. Sure, she did shell out for the whiskies, but the simplicity of the execution leaves her free to greatly enjoy the spirits parties she throws..

@Victor Our group always used to have full dinners at our tasting sessions. We would rotate the hosting duties and all chip in for the main course food, such as a big prime rib roast or some good steaks. We would usually be rolling home around 1 am. Lately we have simplified things by starting mid to late afternoon and only having a bunch of appies to go along with the drams. We are usually done by around 7 pm or so and home in time for dinner. The wives are much happier with this arrangement. Where we previously had to drag at least one of them out late at night to drive us all home, they are now in a much better mood when they get the call well before their bedtimes.

@BlueNote simple is good for tastings. Elaborate is also good for tastings!

OK, Unlimited supply?

George T. Stagg 2010

Aberlour A'Bunadh batch 33

Amrut Peated CS

Now that I think about it, might want Lemon Hart 151 as well...which one to give up?

@Victor,

Wiser's Legacy from 2010-2012 is indeed a spectacular whisky. The 2013 releases are also incredible. I've yet to see a 2014 Legacy.

The label changed in 2015 and that is where the flavour shifted more heavily towards star anice. The L16008 has the heaviest black licorice notes of all the Legacy releases...of course, Corby's Lot No 40 with similar bottling dates would have similar rye notes (L16042), because Lot No 40 is the flavouring whisky in Legacy.

@paddockjudge I hear the Legacy production is currently on hold... Would you say the newer stuff is as good but different or simply inferior?

@Nozinan, the "newer stuff" Legacy is spectacular, but it may not be to everyone's liking. The older versions are drier, spicier and not quite as sweet as the newer versions which are chewier and bigger on anise notes...and yes, on hold ... because all of the Lot 40 was used for Dissertation and Lot No 40 Cask Strength.