Happy Birthday!!

@RianC wait till you hit 50....

@markjedi1 - All is forgiven! Cheers, mate.

I've just opened a Glenfarclas 25 but it's a bit underwhelming to be honest. Not bad at all just a bit, well, thin. Still, early days! About to open some Flaming Heart now . . .

@RianC happy birthday mate! All the best and continued health and happiness. I'll raise a suitable dram this evening!

Happy birthday @RianC

(Spoiler alert: 40 isn’t so bad)

@RianC people often feel old at 40, then young at 50. At 60? Well, that starts to get scary for many people. I didn't really notice the aging process much until age 62. At that point you better have a physical exercise program or disuse atrophy will likely take you down.

@RianC Happy B-Day

@OdysseusUnbound 40 WASN'T so bad

"Isn't" is a long time ago...

@Victor

When you are young you don't get hurt

In your 20s if you're hurt you bounce back quickly

In your 30s you're more likely to get hurt

In your 40s when you get hurt it takes longer to heal

In your 50s the hurt doesn't heal

In your 60s you get surgery for the hurt and recover slowly

In your 70s you redo the surgery but it takes longer to recover

In your 80s you are too old for surgery

In your 90s - congratulations on making it to 90

In my 100s -

I'd better start planning what to do with the whisky I bought in my 40s and 50s...

Happy birthday @RianC! Hope it’s a good one.

@cricklewood @fiddich1980 @CanadianNinja @OdysseusUnbound - Many thanks for the birthday wishes gentlemen!

@Victor - id always been lucky and, dare I say, managed to look younger than my age through most of my 30s, but as soon as we had kids ... Boom! It feels like they're tapping in direct to my life force ha ha!

@Nozinan - I like that age timeline I'm quite happy to acquiesce to getting older, it seems a waste of energy to fight it, but it is rather disconcerting when a little bump here or there niggles for weeks not days and old injuries suddenly decide to say hello again

Again, thanks to all for the well-wishes and apologies if I missed anyone. Obviously I've come down with Man Flu over the weekend and now ache all over, but a good day was had. Flaming Heart was exceptionally good on first impressions - one of those that make you grin from ear to ear.

@RyanC Happy Belated Birthday!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, @Nozinan! I wish you the best in the year to come.

@Nozinan - Happy Birthday! Hope your day is filled with your favorite drams!

@bwmccoy you are up late! I am up very early!

Happy birthday @Nozinan!

@Nozinan, Happy Birthday!! Wishing a special day filled with love and happiness for you and your family.

Tonight we will raise our glasses in celebration of your anniversary.

Happy birthday to @Nozinan ! May your day be filled with happiness....and maybe some Amrut later on.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Hope you have many more my friend.

Happy Birthday @Nozinan !

Happy Birthday @Nozinan! All the best but most importantly health in this current time.

We will raise a dram tonight.

Happy birthday! @Nozinan

@Nozinan I'm sorry I didn't get you a 50 year old Cognac for your birthday, but I will toast you later with a dram of G & M 15 year old Linkwood, a dram I am positive you would love. Happy isolated birthday.

Happy Birthday @Nozinan and congratulations on another successful lap around the sun. Here's to your health and happiness. Cheers

Happy Birthday @Nozinan!! Excited to hear what you are opening and sipping for the occasion

Thank everyone for your birthday wishes!

It only occurred to me this morning that I didn't visit Connosr all day yesterday so I'm only seeing this now. I can't remember the last time I didn't even glance at the site!

I should clarify...@Paddockjudge gave me the 50 YO cognac on my 50th birthday. This one was 51.

To celebrate, or simply as an excuse (you'll have to ask the participants to be sure), we had a Zoom tasting hosted by @cricklewood yesterday evening. Once again, there was some overlap in what we sipped but it was pretty much a free for all.

The tasting started shortly after 7 pm EDST. I chose my whiskies so that the combined stated ages were 51 years (all pours 5-10 cc). Anything NAS counted as zero (my birthday, my line-up, my rules):

• I started with a small measure of the last of my open bottle of G&M Mortlach, a Calgary CO-OP exclusive. Still great after so many years open (and decanted). 13 Years

• Next, inspired by @paddockjudge, who said (I believe) that this was my favourite Canadian (I've not ranked it against other distilleries but it's my favourite Forty Creek), a small taste of Heart of Gold. NAS - 0 Years

• Next up, Milk and Honey Classic Single Malt. A sixth of this is gone now. I'd better make it less accessible in my cabinet if I want to save it to share with some of my local Connosr friends. I received confirmation on my Birthday from my "contact at the distillery that this is in fact the same expression I tried during my tour in December, and although not explicitly stated on the bottle, it was confirmed that it has a specific age (my rules...). 3 Years

• Lot 40 CS 12 YO - The original CS release. I could easily have gone with the 11 YO as well, I like them both, bit the math would not have worked. On Saturday night I listened to an Instagram conversation with the good doctor and he was discussing the pickle juice flavour as if it were a flaw in the whisky. Well, if this is flawed whisky.... 12 Years

• Wiser's 23 YO CS - Much was said about a recent review of this in which it received a shamefully low score - probably related to the proximity to gingerale. This is definitely one of my favourite Canadians. I have a spare and I wonder if I should consider a back-up. One of the more expensive whiskies I have bought for myself, but worth it for sure.- 23 Years

• Little Book Chapter 2. We were talking about it so I added it on at the spur of the moment. NAS - 0 Years.

• It was my birthday and Aberlour A-Bunadh was one of my first loves in the whisky world so I poured a small measure of batch #49. Delicious - 0 Years

• Finally, for reasons I can't explain, as the conversation continued, and I was putting away some of my bottles, I was drawn to a bottle I rarely reach for. Old Grand-Dad Bottled in bond. Having an open bottle of its 114 proof sibling means it is often neglected. Tonight, maybe in contrast to the sherried A'Bunadh, it was delicious.

I had to leave the tasting just after 10 pm to get my kids and my dog settled to bed (it was a school night...) but after that was taken care of I came back to see if anyone was still there and the tasting was still going strong. I didn't drink anymore but the conversation was great and we all (I think) said goodnight around 1145 pm.

Thanks @cricklewood for hosting, and thanks @paddockjudge, @Astroke, @Hewie, @fiddich1980, @OdysseusUnbound for joining. I rarely drink alcohol on my birthday and this was a fun exception!

Happy Birthday @Victor!!! I am toasting your health with a dram of Ardbeg Supernova SN2015. I shall likely follow it up with a dram of Thomas H. Handy 2016. I know you approve of both.

It has been too long since we drammed together my friend.

Happy Birthday @Victor!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY @Victor!!

You are the glue that keeps us all together my friend!

Take care of yourself.

@Victor Happy Birthday! Slainte!