So, what are you drinking now?

@Nozinan it's true I forgot the Judge's oat allergy.

@Nozinan, cream of wheat or polenta/grits

Linkwood 15 Year Old / Gordon & Macphail

Followed by Croftengea SMWS 122.23 (7 year - Feb. 11th, 2011) "Highly a-musing" from a second-fill ex-bourbon hogshead - 57.7% ABV

Not too much this week other than some Cadenhead's rum. Tonight I've had a JW black and am now enjoying a Talisker 18. I think this bottle's starting to show itself a bit more now, but it's definitely a bit different to the last. Tonight I'm getting more of an over-ripe fruit note and a lovely sourness towards the finish. The way this whisky reveals itself is a delight.

Glendronach 12 year old original double cask - 43% ABV

Laphroaig SMWS 29.226 (18 year - Mar. 1999) - "Seaside surprise" - Refill ex-Oloroso sherry butt - 56.8% ABV. Whisky perfection!

Glenturret SMWS 16.33 (8 year - Dec. 2009) "Melville’s other monster" - Re-charred hogshead - 62.0% ABV. Heavily peated Highlander.

Ended the night with Pikesville rye. Really felt like my taste buds were on form yesterday and having it after the Tali 18 was interesting. It seemed to show more of a floral side that I hadn't noticed as much before. Both whiskys have lots of those sweet baking spices going on.

MoM's tasting notes give Norwegian hand cream. Well, I happened to use some of my partner's Norwegian hand-cream yesterday as my poor little hands are getting absurdly dry and cracking, (I don't use it often, honest ) and, yes, I'd have to agree.

Manhattan made with 1.5 oz High West American Prairie Bourbon Batch No. 18B14, 1.5 oz Old Grandad 114, 3/4 oz sweet vermouth, 3/4 oz dry vermouth, 4 dashes of Angostura bitters and a Luxardo maraschino cherry.

@bwmccoy, take a step back, you are now entering the danger zone!

My brother in law is visiting from NB for a couple of weeks (before leaving his daughter here till September). We shared quite a few whiskies last year so I’m looking forward to a few evenings of dramming.

Tonight a small pour of Amrut Naarangi.

Followed up with a very small pour of Chateau de Montifaud L50 Cognac. What a nose!

I was able to stay a bit later at the golf club yesterday and took the opportunity to sample some silver tequila - a Jose Cuervo Especial. I liked it. Fresh and without any oak influence (duh!) but a similar peppery and 'aloe' profile to the El Jimador Reposado.

After, I had a Courvoisier (Which I think qualifies as brandy, or cognac, aren't they the same? Ah who cares!?). I usually find brandy too sweet but I enjoyed this. I could imagine a heavily peated whisky working well in brandy casks.

Finished the night with a few pours of the El Jimador at home. Bottle's almost gone now and I think I'll be replacing it with a more 'upmarket' tequila. I'm just not sure whether to go silver or reposado . . .

@RianC

Cognac is to Brandy as Scotch is to whisky

Cognac is brandy produced in the cognac region of France. In contrast, I have tasted Brandy made by a Frenchman in China, and it is fabulous. But it’s not cognac.

And tonight my BIL wanted something peated, so I opened the Corryvreckin. Just under half full now and quite delicious.

Caol Ila SMWS 53.241 (6 year - April 2011) - "Dense smoke over a tarry deck" - Refill ex-bourbon hogshead - 60.3.% ABV. So good!

@Nozinan 2/3 of a Corry between the two of you just like that....?

@RikS Yeah, Sure. And I would be able to type a post after that?

No. The bottle was opened in January. I provided a 60 cc sample for someone in April. It IS draining more rapidly than my usual rate, but we each only had about 25 cc last night. That itself took a few hours. Enjoyable hours.

I had a Pacifico Clara beer (with lime) with a Mexican inspired dinner. Very refreshing.

I'm now sitting down to a 20 ml pour of JW Black with a teaspoon or so of Ben Nevis 10 in there. Instantly more gingery and malty on the nose. Sweeter on the palate too with little to no grain. Much richer mouthfeel. Hmm . . . I quite like this combo.

Opened Balblair 1991 (3rd edition) for my girlfriend's birthday last night. Only had a tiny pour as it was late. It was rich, a delight to nose, buttercream,a touch of tobacco,dried fruit and slightly waxy with a surprisingly zippy palate.

@Nozinan I though you were a sherry head! In any case, do you detect any red wine influence (like Burgundy) in the Corry? I don't have a bottle at hand, but I remember detecting that (along with the diesel, etc.) I'm think I'm due for a bottle...

Having a dram of Kilkerran 8 CS after a crap day of work. It turns out that my wife likes it too. Win win, because she's only mixing it with a few drops of water. And she's picking out flavors.

I'm starting to find the Campbelltown stuff more interesting than Talisker (the 10 at least). I might have to buy a Tali DE to test that theory...

@Jonathan "I thought" not "I thought" and " I think I'm due for a bottle." Not sure if I like the new Mac Air book keyboard or not...I'm making more typos than ever before....

Springbank 12 CS (thanks to recommendations from Whisky Conn): These Campbelltown whiskies , and especially this one, are difficult fo me to describe . "Funk" doesn't say a lot to me (unless we are talking about George Clinton), and "fruity" doesn't quite work either. Until I acquire more experience with these, I have to stick to "complex." Nose: ripe melon. Palate: berries, apples--but all ripe or overripe. A sour finish that I happen to really like. Having spent quite a bit off time tasting Peated and sherried malts--and bourbon casks with no manipulation---the Campbelltown whiskies are something new for me.

My regret: I don't feel comfortable paying 128 $ for the newest Longrow Red, , as enticing as the description may be. Enthusiasm is one thing---that that price verges on the irresponsible. I'd be happy to hear a counter-argument from someone who has tasted the newest Pinot Noir release.

I’m celebrating being home by sipping some single malt. First up is Springbank 15. This is a challenging, different malt, but I’m really enjoying it. The nose and first part of the palate/development are akin to a classic sherried malt with plenty of grapiness and toffee, with a hint of smoke. The palate then develops a little funky, earthy peat, a wet hay vegetal note, and some minerality, dare I call it....chalkiness but in a very pleasant way. The finish is dry and just a little bitter, like ripe blackberries. This is not a background whisky. It demands your full attention, and I’m glad I have a second “backup” bottle.

Next up is a pour of Ardbeg Corryvreckan. After the Springbank, this one isn’t nosing as “fruity” under the peat...lots of smoke and barley.

Started with Glendronach 12 Year Old - Original Double Cask

Finished with Nikka Yoichi Single Malt

@OdysseusUnbound I've considered this. Read that some batches are sulfured.Looks like you got a. good one.

Westland night tonight:

Westland Distillery (Seattle, WA) Single Cask #3824 (Rum Cask Finish) Bottle #62 of 168

Westland SMWS 133.1 (5 year - October 2011) - "Speakeasy sneaky peeky" Virgin oak barrell/Heavy char - 57.0% ABV

Friday night and a few cask strength drams. The latest Springbank 12 CS - man this is a different beast. Onto Longrow Red 11 Pinot Noir - wonderful savoury meets sweet. Benromach 10 100 proof - surprisingly sweet on the heels of the Longrow. Suitably relaxed and ready for bed.

@Hewie you got the LG Red! I'm still struggling with that $129 price....

@Hewie Can you compare the LG. Red to a whisky I might be familiar with?

@Jonathan Hmm that's a tough one. It obviously shares it's DNA with Springbank and has that dunnage warehouse thing going on (dank, earthy, musty, funky). The wine influence comes across as red berries but not on the sweet side, with spice and nuttiness like walnuts. Some tannic, savoury aspects with leather and tobacco leaf. Obviously underlying all this is the Longrow smoke which isn't the main feature here. The peat is beautifully integrated. I'm struggling to liken it to anything else I've had, sorry. Did you watch the Whisky Whistle review on You Tube that @ajjarrett sugested? He does a good review of it. Yes, I was happy to pick it up here in NZ for $130 NZD ($86USD, $113 CAD).