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Thoughts on starting a Solera bottle?

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@OdysseusUnbound
OdysseusUnbound started a discussion

Does anyone here have a Solera/Infinity bottle? A part of me thinks it would be interesting, and another part fears it might end up being a big ol’ swampy mess. I currently have about 25-30ml left in my Glenfarclas 105, so I could use the ‘farclas as a Solera bottle, though getting the label off with whisky still in the bottle might prove problematic.

If you do have a Solera bottle, do you stick to one type of provenance per bottle or do you mix scotch, bourbon, rye, Canadian, Irish, etc.?

5 years ago

21 replies

@paddockjudge
paddockjudge replied

@OdysseusUnbound, it is a monumental challenge to create a whisky solera that is greater than the sum of the parts...unless you stick to one distillery and use excellent judgement when adding the next dose. Things can change quickly, and when they do ....

5 years ago 3Who liked this?

@Nozinan
Nozinan replied

Your other option is to decant into a sample bottle and enjoy it in its individuality until the last drop.

Vattings can be interesting. Soleras are a bigger risk.

5 years ago 1Who liked this?

@Hewie
Hewie replied

I've never attempted one before due to the reasons stated by the two learned fellows before me. I like the idea but it would be an experiment with potentially disappointing results. On the other hand, that is precisely how many of our greatest inventions have been stumbled across. As for me, I think I'll continue to enjoy each bottle individually (or blended on a small scale in the glass). I'll be interested to read how you get on.

5 years ago 1Who liked this?

@OdysseusUnbound

It will have to wait until next time. I decided to have another dram, and thereby finish my Glenfarclas 105. Sad day...I will need to replace this one...

5 years ago 0

@paddockjudge
paddockjudge replied

@OdysseusUnbound, coincidentally, I too was enjoying Glenfarclas 105 (10 YO purchased in 2014), as well as Hazelburn 10 YO, and Laphroaig Lore. each was sampled in turn and then a vatting of 25:15:2.5 made for an enjoyable, but short-lived solera...it sat for 15 minutes.

5 years ago 2Who liked this?

@BlueNote
BlueNote replied

@paddockjudge Man, are we ever getting ripped for Lore here. I could have bought a bottle at the distillery for 60 pounds, but opted for the 10 CS at the same price. Had a taste of Lore, though, and was tempted. Love that Hazelburn 10.

5 years ago 2Who liked this?

@BlueNote
BlueNote replied

Forgot to mention: Lore is over $200 here on the Wet Coast.

5 years ago 1Who liked this?

@paddockjudge
paddockjudge replied

@BlueNote, ain't that the truth! Almost $200 in Ontario. I picked up a bottle for $100 in Maryland. The LCBO adds 143% on top of the vendor's price, as a tariff, then adds the markup and HST.

5 years ago 0

@Victor
Victor replied

@paddockjudge and happily you were charming enough at the Canadian border not to have to pay a second $ 100 for that Laphroaig Lore.

5 years ago 2Who liked this?

@Nozinan
Nozinan replied

@Victor that and 13 other bottles.... And all legally...The man is a master....

5 years ago 2Who liked this?

@MadSingleMalt

Solera bottles are fun. Go for it! It's just whisky.

I used to have an "everything" bottle. It got messy, and I decided to put it out of its misery, dram by dram. I don't miss it. But it was fun.

When I saw that one was losing steam, I started an "Islay only" bottle. That's one's still going strong years later. I always look forward to cracking a new Islay bottle because it gives me an excuse to have a dram from the solera & make room for the newcomer. And I can still recall the delight I felt on that night years ago when I added its first dollop of Kilchoman to round out the team of all the Islay distilleries operating today. (And I eventually added some Big Peat, so the solera now contains some homeopathic portion of Port Ellen too.) The bottle itself is a classic de-labeled Lagavulin with the "ISLA" stamp in the glass.

Because I found the "Islay only" bottle so fun, I did the same with Campbeltown. The team there is smaller, and they meld perfectly as a harmonious whole. I'll admit to assigning no small amount of sentimental value to this one, as it contains fading wisps of some very cracking Springbanks I otherwise said good-bye to years ago. I only wish that I had started this one earlier so that it could contain a memory of my all-time favorite bottle, the Cadenhead's Campbeltown Malt that the Edinburgh shop fills from their barrel behind the counter.

5 years ago 5Who liked this?

@RianC
RianC replied

@OdysseusUnbound - I made a vatting earlier this year (not a solera per se) of some mostly decent, if not stellar, Scots malts and some Irish. It was done mainly to use up the dregs of a few bottles I had and empty some less than desirable ones.

I had a dram the other day and it wasn't too bad at all. I've been thinking about whether to top it up or just let it go then start a more themed vatting like @MadSingleMalt . I really like the sound of that Islay one and am 'wel jel' of the Cadenheads behind the counter offering.

One day . . . soon, I hope relaxed

5 years ago 2Who liked this?

@Nozinan
Nozinan replied

@MadSingleMalt That Islay Solera is awesome. If you go by the "spirit" of homeopathy, the more you dilute that Port Ellen, the stronger it will get...

5 years ago 3Who liked this?

@OdysseusUnbound

@paddockjudge I don’t see a link....But I’m familiar with WV. I used to be a member or their inner circle (I was a Magnificent Bastard) but there was too much nonsense with other members, so I totally disconnected myself from Rex and Daniel.

5 years ago 0

@paddockjudge
paddockjudge replied

A Solera of Sorts.

Tucked away at the back of a shelf in my whisky resource center were two quarter-fill bottles of Booker's Barrel Proof Bourbon, conveniently located beside one half-fill Booker's. I noticed the complementary ratios as I was putting away a couple of new acquisitions. It quickly occurred to me that a marriage of convenience would yield two vacant spots on the shelf and a newly filled bottle of Booker's, solera style.

I combined three Booker's in a ratio of 1:1:2 and the result was something that looked, smelled, and tasted like Booker's. Approximately 775 mls of Booker's now populate one bottle and 40 mls populate my gut.

4 years ago 2Who liked this?

@Nozinan
Nozinan replied

@paddockjudge are you willing to provide us with the batch numbers? I'm curious as to whether you adulterated a 2015-01, which is the best Booker's I have had since I opened my first bottle of it.

4 years ago 0

@paddockjudge
paddockjudge replied

@Nozinan, 2015-01, the batch that was "Matured in a warehouse located somewhere near the centre of the sun, one assumes". (J. M Whisky Bible 2016). It was awarded the lowest score for a Booker's of all the scores I have seen from Murray, 89.5.

This somewhat inferior Booker's has been proclaimed by @Victor, @Nozinan, and @paddockjudge to be the best, or nearly the best, or most favourite Booker's...period

@Nozinan, the contents of the Solera Booker's is (from bottles that were possibly deteriorating at the back of a shelf, or not) 2015-2, 2015-4, and 2015-6. The sum of the parts is very, very good. It tastes a lot like Booker's.

4 years ago 3Who liked this?

@Nozinan
Nozinan replied

@paddockjudge While I think this topic is better suited to the "Getting Creative - Vattings" thread, I must disclose that I attempted to recreate this very vatting this evening in a 200 cc bottle. Because I only had a sample of the 06, I was only able to about 160 cc total using the same ratios, so I shook the heck out of it and left it to marry untilmy EMR went down for upgrades.

I've tasted it. I think the sum of these three batches is definitely better than each of them individually.

4 years ago 4Who liked this?

@Nock
Nock replied

Here is my spread sheet with a formula for tracking my Great Bastard Pure Malt Reserve (or GBPMR). I don't drink from the bottle except for when I am going to begin again (like this weekend). I take my base spirit from the last bottle with the average age and ABV. Then I keep track of ever mL I add to the bottle. I usually add the dregs of a bottle or what ever doesn't fit nicely into a decanted bottle. Honestly, this last version I just tried was really nice. I would love to put it into a blind tasting some time and see how it scores.

4 years ago 2Who liked this?

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