So, what are you drinking now?

A glass of Knockando 12. It was opened back in June and has got better each time I revisit the bottle.

Forty Creek Double Barrel Reserve - a 50cl mini "Value-Added Promotion" from when I bought my bottle of Copper Pot Reserve - definitely better than Barrel Select, but not as good as the Copper Pot.

@YakLord Interesting to see that you enjoy the Copper Pot Reserve as do I, and that you prefer the Copper Pot to the Double Barrel Reserve. These are NAS drams and I am having a tough time figuring how here in Manitoba Copper Pot sells for $26.99, Double Barrel $59.99 and Confederation Oak is $70.55(all plus applicable taxes) Was wondering if you had tried the Confederation Oak and what your take was on it. Would like to try some other Forty Creek products as I think the Copper Pot Reserve is a bargain but am having trouble justifying the additional $43. per bottle to jump up to Confederation Oak unless it is really worth the extra money. Any thoughts?

@Jonesz - apparently drinking Forty Creek gets me a -1 rating...oh well, not my problem...anyway, in answer to your question, at the LCBO, Barrel Select is $26.45, Copper Pot is $28.45, Double Barrel is $59.95, and both Confederation Oak and the new Heart of Gold are $69.95.

I've never been overly fond of Barrel Select (give me Centennial 10 any day), but the Copper Pot Reserve was amazing, and given the price differential, I would definitely pick it over the Double Barrel (you can get two for less than the price of one...). As for the Confederation Oak, I've never tried it, so I can't tell you whether it justifies the price increase... I have, however, picked up a bottle of the most recent release, "The Starship that Zaphod Beeblebrox Stole"...but I haven't opened it yet; it is just sitting there on my shelf.

Balvenie 21 YO Portwood.

Ledaig peated sherry finish; the Dark Lord of Mull

@Victor Any good? ;)

@PeatyZealot, yes, indeed!

@YakLord "The Starship that Zaphod Beeblebrox Stole" - haha! I really need to read that entire series some time.

Finlaggavulin The Original Peaty. I like it, great bang for the buck and very peaty indeed:) I got this 70cl for €17,50 (!)

Van Winkle 12 and Wyoming Whiskey

second to last dram of A'Bunadh 44. Last time I didn't gas it with the intention of finishing the bottle in the next week or so, and it was ready to sip almost from pouring, but, an hour and a half later, is still developing in the glass. It will be a shame to finish the bottle.

I still think back to #33 as my favourite, but that's possibly because it was my first. I did put aside a 120cc bottle of the 44. One day... when I crack one of my reserve 33s, I'll compare more easily. But I still have a backlog of A'Bunadh batches to try, and I have a 45 waiting for my 45th birthday in half a year... so it will be a while. And by that time I'll have at least 10 batch samples so although technically it may be a vertical tasting, it may well leave me horizontal...

Glenfiddich 15 Distillery Edition followed by Kentucky Vintage bourbon.

Grangestone 12yr. I'm really knocked out at what a great value it is.

Stagg Jr.

Watching playoff baseball with a little Glenlivet 18. Have a great weekend, guys.

in a totally unrelated circumstance to @Victor I am also drinking Stagg Jr. at the moment. However, I am also trying to balance out the power with Old Grand Dad 114 and Elijah Craig Barrel Proof (67.1% ABV). I must say the Elijah Craig Barrel Proof has really grown on me (especially the nose: it is fantastic!), but the Stagg Jr. just edges it out for me. It is actually less complex, but it has a certain something I love in a bourbon.

@Victor I hope you are enjoying your Stagg Jr. We all look forward to reading your review!

@Victor - What @Nock said.

Glenlivet 18. One of my favorite non-peated non-sherried whiskies. Very easy sipping. This has grown on me a lot recently. On to some A'bunadh 45 in a bit...

Hancock's President's Reserve while watching Barclay's Premier League Manchester City over Everton. :)

Old Charter 10 yr - great nose butterscotch for days

Just had some samples of Clynelish this morning, pretty good stuff. Later today, however, I'll be back to the 'beg as I go through the process of working on a few mid-fill bottles.

Settled on Isle of Skye 12yr old while watching NAVY 28 Air Force 10. Favorite blend for my favorite team. GO Navy. :)

Stagg Jr., and returning to an old friend Russell's Reserve 6 yo Rye by Wild Turkey. This bottle of Russell's Reserve has been open 4 or 5 years now and still tastes good.

Second to last dram of confederation oak. I think I'll wait some time before opening the next bottle. I have a spare and two with special numbers....for the kids maybe? Meanwhile, though I think I got it in 2010 or something, for a limited release there are still lots of bottles floating around. I'm thinking should I get another? Or is he going to do another Canadian oak release (like repeating the Portwood)?

Well, "one thing led to another" and now I am drinking some Old Potrero 18th Century Style Whiskey, batch K...intense grain silos and rye-spice reset of the computer...@numen, I am ready for your 2 bottles of Batch K if they don't 'float your boat'...

I've had a couple of drams of Springbank tonight - the first the standard 10 year, and the second the 18 year version. I'm much more impressed with these than I'd remembered. Both have an interesting mix of salty and sweet (even fruity, as I'm detecting cherry notes here) and a smoky finish that really sneaks up on you. Springbank could end up becoming a favorite distillery of mine.

I am on a BenRiach run night tonight. I really like this distillery. I wish I could buy it in Virginia . . .

@Nock Did you try the 21 Authenticus?

@systemdown - it seems that many people just don't get the joke...and I'm not sure why...I had a brief twitter exchange with John Hall after I asked someone here whether HoG was improbably better than earlier Forty Creek releases...and he didn't seem to get the joke either, just referred to it meaning the centre of the spirit cut...oh well, we can't all be comic geniuses...