Poor whisky reporting

Here's one I just saw:

euronews.com/2017/08/…

I identified 3 things that irked me (only 2 related to the content of the article):

1. I can't believe that bottle is so inexpensive in today's market. A 27 YO Macallan bottled in 1905 would easily get 6 figures at auction.

2. The reason stated for the drop in value once opened is inaccurate. For a bottle like that I'm not worried about oxidation. I'm worried about authenticity. Once unsealed, you can't prove the contents are the original juice.

3. That is not the glass I would use for a dram like that. If I had to go with a Glencairn I'd use a full size, not mini one. But I'd probably opt for a snifter.

Thoughts?

The statement that struck me was: "Waldhaus Hotel, which has the largest selection of whiskies in the world, told Swiss media the bottle had been opened especially for the occasion." The occasion being ? Opening a bottle of Macallan from 1878 (bottled in 1905) with an estimated cost of around 50,000 Swiss Francs (43,670 euros) inorder to sell a single glass of it for 8,700 euros ? It would not surprise me to learn there are more than a few individuals in the world (let alone those whom visit St. Moritz) with the inclination and desire to exchange 8,700 euros for the opportunity to taste a 1878/1905 Macallan.

I've quoted this before, but it's always relevant to a discussion about shoddy reporting on a subject you're very familiar with:

"Everything you read in the newspapers is absolutely true except for the rare story of which you happen to have firsthand knowledge" (Erwin Knoll)

As far as whisky articles go, that one actually looks pretty decent to me. If we've reached the point where we complain that a mass-market article about a little whisky-related curiousity shows them using THE WRONG SIZE glencairn, then it's time we step back and re-examine our priorities in life.

All that said, the "point" of the article, if there is one, is probably to announce to the world that this place exists, and you can go there to spend huge sums on whisky if you want—i.e., the hotel probably arranged for this article to exist. And if they really are the bee's knees of high-end whisky hotels, they're probably as trustworthy as anyone to have the right whisky in the right bottle.

@Nozinan , I just noticed that Serge commented on the same story today. Did you find it through him or from elsewhere?

In any case, he says this about it: "The only problem is that all serious whisky aficionados and bottle merchants know that this very bottle is 'most probably' (ahem) a fake made in Emilia-Romagna, Italy (love you, friends), the same-ish very rare bottles being to be found in almost all old Italian collections, quite bizarrely. And we know that the hotelier and staff are very friendly and honest, and that they most probably got caught themselves."

whiskyfun.com

@MadSingleMalt @Nosebleed sent me an email with the link.

I'm tickled that Serge commented on it too.

Lots more chatter about the likelihood of that whisky being a fake is on Reddit today:

reddit.com/r/Scotch/…

@ MadSingleMalt: I did not know about the Emilia-Romagna, Italy connection to "fake" vintage bottles of whisky. Thank you so much for sharing that tidbit of knowledge and information. That is what I love about this community; always lots to share that is a benefit to some, if not all of us.

@cherylnifer , thanks, but please don't give me any credit for that! This was all the first time I'd heard of any of this. I was just passing on links to stuff I happened to come across in yesterday's whisky wanderings.

Interesting stuff, though—especially the idea of an "acknowledged fake."

If the guy can afford that kind of money for whisky, he should get himself a manicure. The whole thing has a whiff of horseshit about it.

The always-hilarious Whisky Sponge has connected the dots for us between this story and the other recent story about Macallan's new distillery:

whiskysponge.com/2017/08/…

Hah! Great stuff!

@MadSingleMalt Long live the Sponge. I see Ralfy is getting more and more blatant about asking for money. Too bad because he generally has something interesting to say, except when he starts playing doctor.

@BlueNote Yes.... I really do not appreciate his waxing on alcoholism screening, cancer treatment and self checking for prostate cancer... OY!

@Nozinan Agreed. I have a very good doctor who knows exactly how to check me out for prostate cancer. And I sure as hell wouldn't be looking to a whisky blogger to tell me about wacky cancer treatments. The conventional treatments are not perfect, but I think they still give you your best chance. Prevention (diet, quit drinking Coke all day; environment, get out of it if it's toxic; exercise, shut down the computer and get off your ass) is still the best proactive treatment. The only thing you can't control is the genes. Some of us (like me) probably shouldn't drink quite so much.

You can not control your genes but you Can greatly influence their expression with diet and exercise. Something to keep in mind!