So, what are you drinking now?

@Victor My BNJ went from 76 points at opening, to 87 after 1.5 months. It needs breathing time. I was not particularly impressed on first contact but now I see why it's held in such high esteem. I'll post a full review in about 2.5 months' time, I suppose!

@Victor Hope you find it better on first opening than I did.. cheers.

Ballantine's 12 Years Old Special Reserve Gold seal 43abv. IMO it's better that BNJ 8

W/T 101 Bourbon and is really working for me in a 100mm. Highland Nosing Glass by Villeroy & Boch - Lovely 'drop' in a great glass... All is well!

@systemdown, and @Reyzar, thanks for the heads ups.

Maybe I'll defer a bit on the BNJ and just open the Talisker 57 Degrees North.

Compass Box Great King Street - lovely little blend.

Compass Box Oak Cross. Also a lovely little blend

The Hive 12 Year Old Wemyss another lovely blend

@Jean-Luc I agree, Compass Box Great King Street is a good drink.

A bit of Arbeg Beist...Hate to polish it off, but i has to go some time. Also some Glenfiddich 15 and 14YO Chieftain's bottling of Laphroaig.

Just finished a 50ml sample of White Owl Whisky, produced by Highwood Distillers in Calgary, AB...actually, I just finished pouring it down the drain. I hope it was the fact that the bottle was a plastic PET mini, because that has to have been the most vile tasting stuff I've ever tried. Will post a full review later.

loving the laddie ten.....

@Wodha @Jean-Luc Try pairing Great King Street with some vintage cheddar cheese - just divine!

I open a second airport purchase the other evening, this time a Glen Garioch 1797 Founders Reserve. I'd not tried anything from Glen Garioch before, This initially came across has having a strange oriental nose - something you might notice in a Chinese Herbal Medicine shop - however given time in the glass it does develop and the sweet vanilla and butterscotch notes come out. It's #216 of my journey and recently updated my blog too: whisky-discovery.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/…

A triple toast to, and with, my wonderful wife, Dramlette, on her birthday: Pappy Van Winkle 15, Willett Barrel #79 "Sopressata" Bourbon, and 2011 Thomas H. Handy Sazerac Rye. Happy Birthday, Dramlette!

@Victor These 3 are hard to find. Cheers and happy birthday to Dramlette!

@Reyzar, we drank the ones the Birthday Girl asked for!

Ah, such blessings of goodness! Thank you!

@Dramlette Happy Birthday!! May you enjoy many many more!

Thank you, @SquidgyAsh!

@Victor. Great wives are like great whiskies: they are at their best when they have aquired a little age. Congratulations on having great taste in whisk(e)y and women. And a very happy birthday to you @Dramlette.

Yesterday afternoon, just prior to the Hurricane Sandy brouhaha here, I sat on a tasting panel for Virginia whiskeys, to assist a journalist in an article he will be writing.

We consumed Reservoir brand Wheat Whiskey, Rye Whiskey, and Bourbon made in Richmond, Virginia; Copper Fox Rye, Catoctin Creek Roundstone Rye, and John J. Bowman Bourbon. We finished up with a contrast of a non-Virginia Willett 18 yo Bourbon, Dug'z 'N Willy'z.

The Reservoir products were all new to me. Everyone found the Reservoir Rye Whiskey to be outstanding. The nose needs water though. The palate and finish are amazingly strong and excellent for a mere 50% ABV whiskey. No wonder it won a double gold in San Francisco.

The John J. Bowman Bourbon is still excellent also, and an 18 yo Willett is a rare treat.

I stopped in to Shojo in Chinatown last night after attending a banquet. We had the same bartender as the last time I visited. He's very enthusiastic and knows his stuff, whisky and otherwise. I had a dram of James E. Pepper 1776 Bourbon. I believe it's a 15yo sourced bourbon. From the taste I think it's a high rye content mashbill, very enjoyable.

@Victor I toasted Dramlette's birthday Saturday morning with a Gold Bowmore, as promised!

@Dramlette Happy (Belated) Birthday! I did know beforehand that your birthday was Saturday (thanks to @Victor) so I toasted to you with a Gold Bowmore (at the WhiskyFest NY seminars). Hope it was a great day!

Trying 4 Glenburgie which you don't see to often as single malt since most of it goes into blends like Ballantine's and Teacher's. Not bad in its own right, though.

Enjoying a hearty dram of Talisker 10 yr.

@FMichael Nice. Love the "Daddy Pig" profile pic ;-) I think I get more excited than my son when Peppa Pig is on.. especially when they do 4 episodes back-to-back!

@systemdown lol - as a stay @ home dad Tues thru Fri - Peppa Pig is a favorite to watch with my boys just before nap time...Daddy Pig cracks me up.

Enjoying a healthy pour of a freshly opened bottle of W.L. Weller 12 yr. old...lots of fruit & oak. Very nice!