So, what are you drinking now?

@paddockjudge,

Thanks for the kind offer! The Bulleit Bourbon is quite different here than in the U.S. and not very exciting at 40% ABV.

Slainte!

@OlJas

If those are the only 2 you're super keen on trying you must be near the end of your dramming career ;) Come to Toronto and I'll introduce you to some stuff you didn't even know you were super keen on, and send you home with more stuff to try...

@Nozinan :)

I've still got a mile-long "want to buy" list, but I think if I made a Venn diagram of [sure to knock my socks off] + [not tried before] + [known to me] + [reasonably available] + [not OBSCENELY priced], the overlap zone would be pretty small: Lagavulin 12, Talisker 57N, and maybe this year's Laphroaig Cairdeas.

I know I'm getting off-topic here, but those bottles got me thinking about how much I'd love to do a Peat Battle Royale for my birthday in a couple weeks. From my open bottles, I'd line up a peated English Whisky Company CS single cask and the BenRiach Solstice 17. From my under-bar stash I'd open the PC7, Corryvreckan, Longrow CV, Longrow Red, Edradour Ballechin Port, and Connemara Turf Mor. And finally from my favorite local retailers I'd somehow swing new bottles of Laphroaig 10 CS and Connemara CS.

Then I'd be laid out until about my next birthday.

Back on topic, last night I drank Laddie 10, my own solera bottle to make room for a measure of the English Whisky Co peated stuff I alluded to above, and then Port Charlotte Scottish Barley.

•The Laddie 10 was the final pour. I was finally getting into it there at the end, but I don't mourn its loss from the general marketplace too much. It was good but nothing special.

•The solera bottle pour was good as always. I've bored the collective Connosr population elsewhere with a rundown of all that's in there. Here I'll just say that I love how opening a new bottle always gives me TWO new whiskies to taste: the one I'm opening and the current state of the solera bottle as I pour a dram to make room for the newcomer.

•The PC Scottish Barley was good but I don't think I hit quite the heights that @talexander did in his recent review, which was my inspiration for taking a glass with a healthy dollop of water.

Doing another blend tonight. Glenlivet 15 and Balvenie 12 Single Barrel. 50-50. Big time spice, vanilla, apples, cinnamon. This is a good one.

Benriach 12 yr...Vanilla bomb bottled at 46%...Wonderful Speysider!

Dutch Courage Gin with Thomas Henry Tonic and a fresh vanilla stick, excellent:) Ofcourse just to get to know the herbal flavors better for the whisky reviews ;)

@OlJas @OlJas Locality can be so annoying... there is a shop closeby that still has 4 liter bottles of the Talisker 57 and Octomore 6.1 but no trace whatsoever of a George T Stagg or a Balcones here :( Laga 12, I think its not thát special so very overpriced

@PeatyZealot, you're in the Netherlands, right? I can imagine how we have very different selections between there and here (midwestern USA for me). A liter bottle of Talisker 57N here would be a major find.

And thanks for the note on Lagavulin 12. I have it on good authority that the typical recent regional price should be around $75 USD. If that happens around here, I might bite. For the $100 being asked at the one local store that currently has it, I'm passing. I'll just get another Laphroaig 10 CS instead.

First dram of Scotch in weeks. Only thing my uncle had open was Balvenie 12 YO single cask. It was much better than I remember it.

Bulleit 95 Rye: Freshly opened, this shows promise without, at this stage climbing the dizzy heights - I suspect (hope) that time in a large glass Decanter will lift the nose of this otherwise fine Rye. It is weightier than I had expected, rather spicy and quite delicious with a silky, spotlessly clean mouth-feel which finishes spicy and persistent; it's just the nose that is a bit timid (for want of a better word) at this stage: A single drop on the back of the hand, allowed to warm and then very gently blown over reveals a rather sophisticated perfume ditto nosing the glass with the hand cupped over the top of the glass - It may never be a huge aroma but it is there, is certainly engaging and I'm hoping time and air will weave their magic, (with hoping, the operative word).

Cheers.

@A'bunadhman, no one on earth knows more about giving a whisk(e)y air than you do!

Four Roses 2011 Limited Edition, 57.5% abv. I rely on my sister for most of my Four Roses experiences, since she has quite a few Four Roses expressions on hand. Her overall whisky collection is about as large as ours is, and she will buy a lot of stuff I would tend to avoid. She has been wonderful to my whisk(e)y education...as a Big Sister should be.

My Florida friend came over tonight. Earlier today he had delivered a 12 year old Bladnoch (only 6 more Bladnoch and 2 Booker's to go).

I introduced him to my G&M IB 13 year old Mortlach from the tired cask, then we both had a tiny pour of Forty Creek Evolution (which blew him away).

We finished with Bowmore Laimrig (2013 I think). Definitely the most complex of the three. It's the one we spent the most time on.

@Nozinan, I would have zeroed in on that Bowmore too.

Right now, I'm drinking the final dram of a Binny's CS bottling of peated stuff from the English Whisky Co. Sharp, nice, zippy, fun, but a little sour. In my tasting journal, I just wrote "nice but no fireworks--84."

Balcones True Blue 61.8% abv corn whiskey. Righteous. This just got better and better with air time. This bottle is 3 years old and tastes fantastic.

@Victor What do you think is going to happen to Balcones now that Tate is gone?

@talexander, I wish I knew...whether there is enough residual smarts/institutional memory in Balcones for it to keep up artistic standards. Time will tell. Certainly Tate's mind will no longer be on hand for further innovation.

Not exactly now, but Friday night we had our group's Blind [Single] Grain Whisky Tasting:

1) Dry Fly Washington Wheat Whiskey (100% wheat)

2) Greenore 8yr Small Batch Single Grain Irish Whiskey (95% Corn, 5% Malted Barley)

3) English Whisky Co. Chapter 6, 3yr Single Malt (100% Malted Barley)

4) Koval Dark Millet Whiskey (100% Millet)

5) Alberta Premium Canadian Rye Whisky (100% Rye)

6) Compass Box Hedonism (Blended Grain Scotch Whisky)

Followed by two additional whiskies that were not tasted blind:

1) Clan Denny Strathclyde 1974/2012 Single Grain Scotch Whisky (Cask Strength, Single Cask)

2) Mellow Corn Straight Corn Whiskey (at least 80% Corn)

There were 14 of us, and the only whisky that people were able to consistently identify was the Chapter 6 (that it was a single malt), otherwise, the guesses were all over the map. To be fair, though, the Dry Fly is aged in new barrels, so it had more oak influence that one would expect, and tasted more like a rye than I thought it would. A few people identified the Greenore as being the corn whiskey, but otherwise, that was the extent of our accuracy.

Kavalan Sherry Oak.... bought a bottle and it wasn't cheap but it's proving a worthwhile purchase...great dram.

@YakLord: What an interesting line-up! How did the CB. Hedonism compare with these fine Whiskies & which was the most popular 'drop' of the night? The full Compass Box !range is available here in Australia, not so most of the others!

Cheers!

@A'bunadhman Interestingly, tasted blind, a lot of people weren't that fond of the Hedonism, and were very surprised to find out that it was a Compass Box whisky (although it certainly wasn't the worst whisky of the evening...most of the invitees were not overly fond of the Alberta Premium, either, but as it was their first experience with a 100% rye whisky, I can see why it was off-putting). Personally, I didn't mind it, although I think I prefer the Asyla.

Of all the whiskies sampled that evening, the hit was without a doubt the Strathclyde 1974 (of course, it wasn't part of the blind tasting)...it was my birthday whisky, and a chance to drink something that was older than I was (I turned 38 a few days later).

@YakLord Strathclyde could be my favourite grain - had an SMWS bottling some years ago and I'll never forget it.

@YakLord: Thanks for the info. They don't issue Whisky as old as me; the best I've come up with is a Macallan 1949 Millennium Edn. at a special tasting - It was not at the issue strength of 43% ABV. but at cask 44.7% and in a Distillery sample bot., not that gorgeous Decanter. A lovely Whisky the Macallan @ 50 years but to be honest, I enjoyed a 22yo. Port Ellen from Douglas Lang @ 61.1% more. On the tasting night I thought that the best Whisky we tasted was from Macallan; A 12 yo. @ Proof (57.2% ABV.), those 12 years in a single Oloroso cask (a rather special cask, though)! Others were totally in awe of the 50 yo. and it was as smooth as silk!

Cheers!

Yesterday I drank something very enjoyable. Closing in on Christmas gives us the chance to branch out and drink other things aswell as whisky. In Sweden we're keen on drinking glüwhein, mulled wine or "glögg" as we say. Not to worry, it's still a whisky related post..

This particular glögg is released by Swedish independent bottlers "svenska eldvatten". It is a very classic red wine glögg but here the kicker; it's jazzed up with whisky. Adding a healthy amount of bruichladdich 2003 really makes this whisky sing. The taste is a very classic red wine and traditional spices but the finish is where this bottle shines. Long, sweet, round and smooth. I could drink this everyday!

Happy holidays to all of you!

@Alexsweden A;ex - interestingly enough, I tried a similar type of drink at a resto called Portland Variety this week. Would take some getting used to but willing to give it another go before passing final judgement. It is important to finish while warm though.

Agreed, much better when warm.

For my four year anniversary on Connosr today Dec 10 (locally), I'm planning to have some Glenfarclas 15, some 1991 Lagavulin Distillers Edition with maybe some Casa Noble Anejo tequila first.

@Victor,nice lineup. Cheers to many more years of your invaluable participation here.

Balvenie 14 Caribbean Cask. This one never disappoints.

Homemade egg nog with 1-1/2 oz of Knob Creek Rye per serving. Amazing. I've never had homemade eggnog, so much better than the stuff out of the carton. I've had it with bourbon, brandy, coffee tequila, the Rye was amazingly good with the dusting of nutmeg.