So, what are you drinking now?

As part of the Scotch Malt Whisky Society's annual "Gathering" celebration, this afternoon, I had the pleasure of attending a small private zoom event with the Director of the US chapter of the Society and two other Society members from around the country. This was an informal chat and chance to get to know other Society members that you might not otherwise meet.

While attending the zoom gathering, I drank the following;

Teaninich SMWS 59.51 (30 year - November 1983) "A refined cocktail" - Refill hogshead - 51.5% ABV

BenRiach SMWS 12.43 (28 year - Nov.1991) "Desire lines" - 2nd-fill ex-sherry butt - 54.8% ABV

Caol Ila SMWS 53.320 (12 year - Sep. 2007) "Raiders of the flossed ark" from a refill ex-bourbon hogshead - 58.2% ABV

@bwmccoy I still have not knowingly teased my tastebuds with a Teaninich. How is this one?

Tonight I’m doing Ben Nevis. Started with the Signatory 9 year old at 46% and finished with the Roger’s Vintage Selection heavily peated, sherry cask matured 6 year old. I can’t get enough Ben Nevis lately.

@BlueNote - This Teaninich is a special dram. They just don’t make whisky like this anymore. Notes of Calvados, burnt orange, cloves, maraschino Cherry and Turkish Delight with a creamy texture. Not an easy whisky to find as a single malt, but I highly recommend. Underrated distillery in my opinion.

Tonight, before dinner, I’m having a Black Irish Coffee Manhattan (@yaklord recipe) in order to finish up my bottle of standard Jameson. Bring on the Teeling.

@bwmccoy I've seen a Cadenhead bottling of Teaninich that I have passed on a couple of times in favour of other sure things. Next time I see it I'll pull the trigger.

I had another Black Irish Coffee Manhattan before dinner, but this one was made with Teeling instead of Jameson. The Teeling version is lacking a harshness that was present with the Jameson version

Later, while playing on-line poker with my brother-in-law and friends,

Bruichladdich Islay Barley 2010 - 50% ABV

After that, I opened up a unique bottle. Copperworks Distilling Company Special Release 34 WA state peated malt (Skagit Valley Maltings) aged for 49 months in 8 new American oak casks (1,934 total bottles) - 52% ABV. This is the first whisky ever released by any distillery that is made with Washington State peat. I bought this mainly for its uniqueness and to support a local distillery. While it is not bad, there is no peat or smoke at all. If tasted blind, I would guess that it was a young, overly oaked bourbon, even though it is a single malt. The closest that I can find to peat or smoke is the tiniest hint of ash in the finish. I did add some water, but didn't notice much difference. It will be interesting to see how this develops over time with air exposure. Do I regret buying it? No, for the reasons I stated above, but I wouldn't buy another bottle.

We went to my late mother-in-law’s last night to start cleaning out some cupboards and whatnot. Afterwards, I had a few drams from a bottle of Glendronach 12 I left over there. It wasn’t as good as I remember GD12 being. Low and behold, it’s one of the more recent bottlings that doesn’t have “Non Chill-Filtered” on the packaging. That said, it wasn’t so much the texture as the character that seemed different. There seems to be far less typical sherry character (raisins, dates, walnuts) than I expected. Maybe it’s an off batch. Maybe my tastebuds were off. Maybe grief is affecting my enjoyment of whisky. Hopefully the issue is with me and not with Glendronach.

It’s finally Friday! Starting off the evening with a couple of cocktails. My wife is having a Watermelon martini and I am having one called Smoke in the Orchard.

I have moved onto my Bourbon Manhattan. I know rye tends to be more popular in a Manhattan but I prefer bourbon. I make my Old Fashioned cocktails with rye. I have a good friend that does the exact opposite.

Starting with the fall themed cocktails. Wife is having a Gold and Delicious.

Behind in my posting;

Friday: a couple of Black Manhattan's (Maker's Mark 46) for happy hour. Later, a dram of Ben Nevis 6 year (Dec. 2013). Full maturation in a 1st Fill Amontillado Gorda. 67.6% ABV. Single Cask Nation bottling.

Saturday: Again, a couple of Black Manhattan's.

Last night (Sunday): a couple of Jerry Thomas Manhattan's for happy hour. Later, a dram of Bruichladdich Islay Barley 2010 - 50% ABV.

Hope everyone had a great weekend!

Tonight we had an impromptu zoom session. Just a few Canadian Connosrs who were available. We all started with a Milk & Honey expression, though they were not all the same, and then we had some APCS, though not all the same batch. Then the others had some bourbon or rum.

What was great was the conversation, which ran the gamut of specific tasting notes to an establishment that sells beef, and much in between.

Last night, a dram of Glenmorangie Dornoch, followed by a dram of Penderyn Legend.

Last night, I finished off my bottle of Glenallachie SMWS 107.21 (8 year - May 2012) "Bounty on the galleon" - 1st-fill ex-sherry butt" - 63.3% ABV. I'm really going to miss this one because it was one of the most unique sherried whiskies that I have ever had. It had a wonderful (to me) dry, grape (skin) note in the finish.

Tonight, a couple of Black Irish Coffee Manhattan cocktails before dinner made with Teeling Small Batch Rum Cask Finish.

Tonight, rated my last two open, unrated bottles.

Teeling Small Batch Rum Cask Finish bottled 06/2020. Rating:81

Copperworks Distilling Company Special Release 34 WA state peated malt (Skagit Valley Maltings) aged for 49 months in 8 new American oak - 52% ABV. Rating: 85.

The opportunity to drink whisky is a rare bird these days, for various reasons, but last night was a goer so I treated myself to a large pour of Glendronach 15. Such a shame they went and messed with this as I would have bought more bottles. Hey ho!

This is really good sherried whisky though that offers the spicy, tobacco side of that style to a tee and it's my go-to of the moment.

Last night, Glenmorangie 14 year The Quinta Ruban Port Wood Finish. This is the first time I’ve had this one since it was a 12 year. It tasted really good! I’ve always like Quinta and this is even better, in my opinion.

Tonight, Bend Distilling (Bend, Oregon) Black Butte Whiskey 3 year. Release #5. 47% ABV.

Copperworks Distilling Company Special Release 34 WA state peated malt (Skagit Valley Maltings) aged for 49 months in 8 new American oak - 52% ABV

Glenmorangie 14 year The Quinta Ruban Port Wood Finish.

Ardbeg 5 year Wee Beastie

Saturday after the Oktoberfest beer(s), we cracked a Bruchladdich Islay Barley 2011. Not a bad unpeated Islay. Not the best but enjoyable.

Last night, Bend Distilling (Bend, Oregon) Black Butte Whiskey 3 year. Release #5. 47% ABV.

Last night (Monday), aged traditional Manhattan (Rittenhouse Rye BiB, sweet vermouth and Angostura bitters).

Tonight, Teaninich SMWS 59.51 (30 year - November 1983) "A refined cocktail" - Refill hogshead - 51.5% ABV.

Finishing with Ardbeg 5 year Wee Beastie.

Last night, a new to me cocktail; Teeling Irish Cold Brew. 1.5oz Teeling Irish Whiskey (Rum Cask Finish). 3oz LaColombe vanilla draft latte nitrous infused cold brew. Combine in cocktail shaker with ice. Shake until cold. Strain into a Collins glass over ice. Garnish with grated nutmeg.

Just finished an Arran 10. Tastes absolute gorgeous this evening - less of the white wine and grassy notes I mentioned in my review but more tropical fruits, especially pineapple and coconut. It can sometimes come across as a touch nippy on first contact but not a big of that tonight either. Sweet then dry and mouth-wateringly moreish.

I'll end my wee evening flight with a Springbank 10. I had planned on reviewing this after the Glenlivet but I don't think my palate would do this justice now - that syrupy sweetness has my palate swamped!

What I'm noticing is that the rubber and twiggy, peat-smoke notes are much more prominent - I'm guessing it's to do with the stark contrast in flavours? - and I'm getting much less of the lemon cheesecake notes. Funny how our taste buds are affected like that, isn't it?

@RianC Arran 10, perhaps the best bang for the buck in recent memory.

Last Feather Rye Whiskey, 45% ABV, from Journeyman Distillery in Three Oaks, Michigan. This is a newly opened 200 ml bottle as part of a Journeyman Distillery sampler 3-pack which my dear sister gave me about 4 years ago. This is a very delicious rye, with piercing spice, at mostly high and medium pitches, some strong dark fruitiness in the mouth, and some flowers in the nose. Sharp, shrill, and edgy, leaving the taste buds quivering, and begging for relief. Texture is medium to slightly thin though. A very aggressive whiskey. I am very pleased to have this 200 ml of it.

One I very much hope one day to enjoy is the new Denver Colorado based Leopold Brothers Distillery's Three Chamber Rye. Chuck Cowdery, the only American Whiskey blogger whom I read with any frequency, declares in the Fall 2021 Whisky Advocate Magazine that the advent of this whiskey is "The Year's Biggest Whiskey News". Why? Leopold Brothers has successfully resurrected/reproduced an extinct but noteworthy still design from mostly prior to the US Prohibition, which is basically a series of 3 pot stills acting in a columnar way to one another. Cowdery's comment: "It is not for everyone. But if you love new and big ("richly vegetal") flavors, you should give it a go. There is nothing else like it. If you already love rye whiskey, this will be a revelation. This is the rye you've been looking for." The bad news? The average price per 4.5 yo BIB bottle of Leopold Brothers Three Chamber Rye is $ 250.

Cowdery is not a man given to exaggeration. I want some of this.

Another bottle kill. This was a fantastic bottle which was shared with friends. It was only half a dram so followed this up with Kilkerran Heavily Peated batch 3. This is developing nicely and would rival Octomore - so I put it to the test against a sample of 11.1. It kicked that Octomores pants in the flavour department

Last night (Friday), a couple of Black Manhattan’s for my wife and I before dinner.

Later, I had a couple of drams of Ardbeg Wee Beastie while watching a movie.

Tonight, a couple of Jerry Thomas Manhattan’s for my wife and I before dinner.

A couple of Black Manhattan’s for my wife and I before dinner.

Later, rated my last, open, unrated bottle; Glenmorangie 14 year Port Cask Finish "The Quinta Ruban" - 46% ABV. Rating: 88.

Finished with the next to last dram of Caol Ila SMWS 53.320 (12 year - Sep. 2007) "Raiders of the flossed ark" from a refill ex-bourbon hogshead - 58.2% ABV. Going to miss this one!

Wiser's Red Letter 2015, Bottle # 2899, 45% ABV. Thank you, my very good friend @paddockjudge for this and for the many other samples you have given me over the last 8.7 years since we first met.

This Red Letter is one of the greats of Canadian whisky which predated the 2017 advent of the Northern Border Collection. The flavours are crisp, medium and high-pitched and quite delicious. This sample currently is one of those whiskies which leaves your tongue all aquiver in a good way. Good times, and good memories of my Canadian friends! Cheers, @paddockjudge!