Importance of Bottle

NilG's magically appearing drams are a great idea to consider. In our minds, I think we'd all say that an endless supply of magically appearing drams would be far superior to bottles that you have to go out and buy. And yet -- yet -- I think some inner irrational craving machine inside us would still be better satisfied by obtaining a bottle.

Humans want to possess things. A bottle lets you possess the thing even when you're not consuming its contents. Where are the Buddists when you need them?

Personally, I feel like I want to buy the Dalmore just so I can keep the bottle, but I also don't know that it's worth the money. Its reviews are very luke-warm and it seems to be more expensive than it should be for the sorts of scores it seems to get.

So in the sense that I still have some desire to purchase it in spite of its mediocre reviews, I suppose bottle does have a draw for me.

However, what I really like in a bottle is a lot of information. I like the Laphroaig QC and Glenfarclas 105 packaging because they have little stories about the distilleries and expressions that are fun to read and informative. Learning little pieces about whisky history can be quite fun.

I also like it when they have keywords that tell you a little something about the distilling process. Non-chill filtered, the type of cask used, even the age of the whisky (which, of course, isn't on all - it is absent from the QC expression, in fact), all add to the presentation for me because they allow you to look forward to what the experience of the dram will actually be like, but of course you can never know exactly what it will be like until you experience the whisky itself.

@HughesDePayens I agree that the Dalmore bottles are great scotch eye candy, however some reviews are as you say Luke- warm. That said you should still take a chance, I'm thinking of the road less traveled saying. I have had lots of fun with the Dalmore and although not one I go to first it's still always in my cabinet. Hope this was helpful. :)

@OlJas magically appearing bottles, Gandalfiddich

@HughesDePayens I recommend the dalmore. the first reason is that u are always going to eye it until u purchase it, and the second reason is that it is a quality dram. It often gets a bad reputation for the coloring it adds, but to me it's all about the flavor which is good in the dalmore.

I've never bought a whisky due to the bottle, the box, or the campaigns/photography/etc. I would buy an excellent craft whisky in a Hamm's beer bottle if it tasted great.

In fact, I would rather save myself $$ at the liquor store and take a generic bottle and have the clerk fill up my whisky of choice from big casks behind the counter if that was possible. I would buy a superior made whisky out of a boot if it was between that or some gimmicky junk like Dalmore in its super cool bottle.

This said, I do like interesting bottles but never at the expense of the whisky inside. I've never knowingly bought a subpar whisky in a cool bottle. The last time I did that (out of ignorance) was when I purchased a bottle of Dalmore 15. Never again.

Fool me once, shame on you . . . fool me twice . . . you can't get fooled again. www.youtube.com/watch

@Nolinske Good point, I know I'll get the bottle sooner or later, might as well be sooner so it can look impressive in the eyes if visitors. It's not a bad whisky either, I'll enjoy drinking from it too.

@PMessinger @Nolinske Oh yeah, I'm sure that down the line I will buy it. It's just unfortunate that the product has such beautiful packaging but allegedly doesn't have the taste to back it up. I did notice that there's a pretty sharp divide, though. People seem to really enjoy it, or really hate it. I'm 100% sure that one day I will buy it, though.

At the moment, though, I have 4 bottles that are about 85-90% full so I've got to get through those first!

@HughesDePayens You are right Dalmore is one of those that people either like or not like, just have to try for your self when you get the chance. I to have more opened than I like to have at one time. :)

@PMessinger I think my best bet might be to give it a try at a pub at some point then decide whether or not I want to pick it up. :)

Okay, I have to admit to one whisky I would purchase purely for the bottle! While I may try to come across as a sophisticated connoisseur of gentlemanly pleasures, including good cigars, well made whiskies, and fine wines, some times I just have to let my geek flag fly. Back in the 1960s, George Dickel had special limited edition bottles that featured a wide bottom, a long gently curving neck, and a leather sheath that had a heavy base and a carrying handle. It is often better known to Sci-Fi nerds and Trekkers, as a Saurian Brandy bottle, that Bones was often seen pouring "for medicinal purposes only" for Captain Kirk! I'm no big fan of Sour Mash Whisky, but I would buy this one simply for the bottle!

Gandalf said it best, "Use the force Scotty!"

@MacBaker62 Awesome to bring that one in. Love the original with Bones and Spock going at it and Scotty always pulling a rabbit out of his hat. You let that Geek Flag fly all you want brother. :)

The bottle shape doesn't influence my purchase decision or impressions of taste, but I do find myself leaving bottles inside the canisters or wooden boxes in which they are sometimes packaged. It makes no sense to do so other than it seems to help me drink the good stuff more slowly!

The shape of the bottle changing the experience...as a psychology major, I love this perspective. I would have to say initially it does have have an effect. How the whisky is viewed?, I don't think it changes the experience after the first drink. As a marketig strategy it will encourage people to atleast try the whisky, but the actual quality of the dram will keep people coming back. Yes, the bottle does convince people to try it....but, keeping them coming back may be a different story.

Here's an exercise: Try to imagine a bottle of Coca-Cola. You know, that shape they have.

Can you see it in your mind's eye?

You sure?

Coke wins. And big bonus points to them if contemplating their bottle shape generated any positive feelings in you.

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That's not intended to make you feel silly. I'm just sure that I'm not the only one has internalized the shape of a Coke bottle—to Coke's benefit. So yeah, the bottle matters to us in some ways that we'd like to deny.

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I love esoteric-looking bottles, like the Signatory white labels dominated by all the geeky detail. They look like I got some real serious business going on over there.

I love tall skinny bottles. The Diago ones or those same Signatory ones are great. Very classy. Lagavulin is probalby the classiest of all with that shape plus their timeless label design. And I know the pull of their excellent bottle affects me, as described elsewhere on Connosr where I've debated shelling out for the Lagavulin 12 despite my believe that it's probably not significantly better than the Laphroaig 10 CS.

On the other side of things, I hate Connemara bottles. They're bad squatty (as opposed to Bruichladdich bottles, which are somehow "good squatty"). And I especially hate those Connemara cork caps. They're like plastic toys somehow. Not classy. And yet I still really like Connemara and will continue to buy it.

@OlJas I take it you're no fan of Bunnahabhain bottles, then? :P

The bottle in no way affects my decision to buy whisky for drinking. I did buy a bottle of JW Swing but that was because someone said the contents were decent to drink, and also because it was not too expensive and I thought the bottle shape itself was interesting.

What is important to me is the utility of the bottle. For instance, if I can get 4 x 200 cc bottles of a malt instead of a 750 cc bottle at the same price, I would do it, because at the rate I drink this would help preserve the contents.

The other issue is size and shape. I hesitate to buy 1 L bottles unless it's a great value and I want the contents because I have difficulty storing them on the correct shelf in my cabinet.

Similarly, I find some of the bottles are significantly taller than others (Macallan 25 and CS as well as forty creek special releases are examples). These also pose a problem . And short fat bottles take up more surface area on the shelf, but I can live with that.

Ultimately though, the contents of the bottle determine whether it is worth the trouble or inconvenience.

@Fiberfar, sorry to be dense, but I think I'm missing your joke. Are the Bunnahabhain bottles Coke-like or something? Or just "bad squatty"?

I've only had one bottle of Bunnahabain and it was an IB, so I'm a bit out of the loop on this one. Sorry.

@OlJas I figured bad squatty meant low profiled and thick, in an ugly way. OB Bunahabhains are sort of like Connemara, but with a longer bottle neck.

@Fiberfar, yeah, that's what I meant by squatty. To figure out the difference in my mind between "bad squatty" and "good squatty,' I should pull out a Connemara and a Bruichladdich to compare them side-by-side. (I don't have them to hand at the moment.) It might be the Bruichladdich is somehow sturdier or cleaner. Or it might just be the labels.

And yes, I would call Bunnahabhain squatty—but again, without having owned a bottle before, I'm not sure whether I'd call it good or bad. I know the label's ugly, so maybe bad?

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This is the kind of "way deep" conversion that only a small number of people worldwide would be interested in. Thanks be to Connosr for drawing us together!

Squat on,

You can't judge a book by its cover but the cover can sure do a lot towards selling it. ;)

@sengjc

That may have been true in the era of BC (Before Connosr), but I would say now I make at least 90% of my book (and whisky) choices based on reviews BEFORE even seeing the cover or the bottle.

I have recently discovered a small bottle problem in my whisky cabinet. Some of the bottles are not playing nicely with others. Mainly bottles like Haig Dimple, Crown Royal, and other wider brandy type bottles are making it difficult for the taller or regular shaped bottles to fit. The profile photo is a snap shot of my very cabinet. (:

@PMessinger, I can imagine that's an annoyance if you have an actual cabinet. (I just have a big ol' shelf under my bar.) And that's a cool idea for your profile pic to be your cabinet.

By the way, your cabinet appears to be either awesomely mirrored or deeper than Professor Kirke's wardrobe. Impressive.

My whisky shelf has three tiers for different sized bottles. The top level is for shorter squat bottles. The middle for average, and the bottom can accommodate an extra inch or so. That said, some bottles are just too stubborn to fit on my shelf. Eagle rare, BTAC, and 1942 tequila come to mind. I once finished a bottle of Rowan's Creek, removed the labels, transferred the contents of my Willet 6yr rye into the clean bottle, removed the labels off the 6yr bottle, and finally applied them to the old Rowan Creek bottle all so I could have the Willet on the shelf instead of buried in a cabinet.

I am guilty of buying a few items specifically for the bottle like Texano Tequila. www.thewhiskyexchange.com/P-26475.aspx

@newreverie The Texano Reposado boot is awesome. But can see how it can be a space problem when set next to other bottles.

The Balvenie for some time has had the nicest presentation IMHO...The recently released 15 yr Sherry Cask is no exception; elaborate etched information graces the cardboard cylinder, and the bottles themselves are ruggedly handsome with quality, and heft.

@Nozinan, Totally agree with your comment regarding utility of the bottle. I recently bought a four pack of 200ml Talisker DE 92-05 for less than the cost of a single 750ml. Considering how slowly I consume my bottles, I would have even paid a few dollars more than the single bottle price.

The bottle is not a decisive factor for me. I'd buy a great whisky in a butt-ugly bottle but I would prefer it in one that I found handsome. I enjoy classic "bottle" shape with a twist. Like an ardbeg or aberlour that widens at the top.

@newreverie, that boot is awesome.