What is the next bottle you purchase or open?

@KRB80

Very nice. I have had the privilege to enjoyed some of the Kilchoman’s that you have mentioned. You will be in for a treat.

If you find that you like the Springbank 18 Year Old, see if you come across the Campbeltown Loch 21 Year Old which is a malt heavy blended scotch produced by the same makers of Springbank & Longrow.

@sengjc I've had the Springbank 18 and it's one of the best drams I've ever had. Just gotta grab myself my own bottle. I'm not completely sure that I've even heard of the Campbeltown Loch 21yr. I'll keep an eye out! Thanks. :)

Picked up a couple of 21 year olds - Scotch whisky that is: - An old bottle of Grant’s 21 Years Old “Castle Grant”. I’ll be honest, I got it mainly for the bottle. - Another bottle of the Campbeltown Loch 21 Years Old. Springbank & nicely aged, what’s not to like.

@sengjc, it looks like you have finished buying out all of the Scottish malt whisky in Australia, and now it is time for you to move on to the blended Scotch. :-)

@sengjc I am curious about your impression of the Cambeltown Loch. I have an opened bottle of it and would like to confirm my own impression of it.

I'll be buying bourbon (outside of my local jurisdiction) in an attempt to get ahead of a potential trade war. The game of chicken surrounding NAFTA negotiations has (temporarily?) allowed Canada a reprieve. The long term prospects for affordable bourbon in Canada are uncertain as retaliation in a trade war will inevitably target bourbon; however, it may already be too late. Jefferson's has a huge premium attached. JR Very Old is listed locally at $105.20 and Jefferson's Very Small Batch carries a tag of $88.10 for 750 ml, and this is without trade war tariffs.

@paddockjudge Bourbon may be safe. Kentucky isn't a swing state.

But if there's a "Prohibition" on alcohol crossing the border maybe that will mean better choices of Canadian whisky here at home...

@Nozinan, Kentucky = whiskey. With one broad stroke bourbon/whiskey will be hit with a retaliatory tariff and the already exorbitant prices will ...'nuff said.

@paddockjudge I read an analyst who said any retaliatory tariffs will target products produced by states that would swing to the Democrats. Apparently Kentucky is firmly Republican.

But what do I know? The people I vote for always lose... until today! I campaigned for the winning candidate for President elect of the Canadian Medical Association! If I wasn't coming down with a cold and headed for bed, I'd probably celebrate with something awesome and cask strength.

Of course, wasn't Laphroaig classified as a medicine during prohibition?

I'd be shocked if a trade war actually occurred, and even more shocked if it affected bourbon, of all things.

@talexander, why not?

@Nozinan, the thing about Laphroaig being permitted as "medicine" during US Prohibition is, as I understand, a myth that Laphroaig likes to perpetuate but which has zero documented evidence to support it. There was an excellent thread of crowd-research on this subject on Reddit a year or so ago. Good stuff, and I could maybe dig it up if you're interested. (The historical anecdote about individuals being granted prescriptions for alcohol during Prohibition is true, though. It just wasn't ever specific to any brand or type.)

@paddockjudge, put this in the Connosr annals: I agree with you. I've heard bourbon included on every list of potential retaliatory tariff targets, and it makes sense to me that America's trading partners would target products that have symbolic power (and publicity power) in addition to economic weight. On the other hand, Canada is supposedly going to be exempt from these new tariffs, so maybe it's only our friends elsewhere in the world who need to worry.

@MadSingleMalt Well, for one thing, I think cooler heads will prevail - Trump says all sorts of stupid shit and at the end of the day, a trade war with Canada will cost the US more jobs than it will save. Also, tariffs will likely apply to products and industries that have many more dollars at stake - resources such as steel, softwood lumber, automotive/airline, etc etc. In the drinks category, bourbon couldn't be singled out specifically so they would have to include other US wine and spirits, which would cause a big consumer uproar and cause more harm to the US beverage industry than good. Plus the US lost the battle with Bombardier when it went to the WTO, so when push comes to shove they will likely back down.

@talexander, so the part you doubt is that the US will impose tariffs to begin with, not that other countries would retaliate?

@MadSingleMalt I think they may impose some tariffs, like they tried to do with Bombardier, and like they are trying to do now with steel and aluminum. This administration is so unpredictable, it's hard to know what they will actually follow through on, but if/when they do impose tariffs, other countries will retaliate and it will not go well for them.

@talexander, if you do think the US might impose tariffs and that other countries would retaliate, then why do you say you'd be shocked if a trade war occurred?

And to keep this somewhat topical— —can you explain more about why you think bourbon is an unlikely target?

@MadSingleMalt well, the answer to the second question is easy. If they tax bourbon, @talexander won't vote for them...

@MadSingleMalt My wording wasn't good - I should have said that the US might try to impose them. I just think the most likely scenario is that they would blink and not escalate things to a full trade war. But of course, I'm no economist so what do I know.... and if it did happen, I'm guessing that it won't affect every single good that crosses the border, but focus more on resources and manufacturing. Again, I could be wrong (and usually am).

I read somewhere that the EU would definitely target bourbon if we levied tariffs on steel and aluminum (aluminium for the Brits). I don't understand the benefits of tariffs on global free trade but to me it seems like a lose-lose. The EU wants to target goods specifically from Red states like Kentucky.

@KRB80 - & @Robert99 - Me too! I've eyed up that SB blend for a while. How did you find it @Robert99 ?

@RianC You have to know that I am not a big fan of the funky side of SB and it's been a while since I pay a visit to that one. So if I remember correctly it is a very tame SB in an elegant way that really works for me, it reminds me of some Taketsuru. I will not say more before I taste it again.

@Victor

Hehe, not really. Just coincidence that these happen to be blends.

@Robert99

Based on the bottle that was finished mid-last year, I recall it being quite similar to the older bottlings of the Springbank 10 Year Old in terms of flavour profile: balanced wood & peat that doesn’t overpower the sweetish dried fruit (pear, apricot) and the malty-cocoa vein. Spice complexity (ginger and a little aniseed, maybe?).

Starts of gentle as expected for a well matured malt then builds up in intensity of flavour: certainly more complex and concentrated than the 10 Year Old. A really long finish that lingers for minutes, a thoroughly enjoyable experience and excellent value for the price.

I remembered the freshly opened bottle was shared between a couple of friends, along with various other bottles of malt whisky that one evening last year. Suffice to say that only a third remained the next morning.

Canadian Rockies 21 YO Batch 001, 46% abv has been opened. I've managed to save a couple of 60 ml minis for the reference library. The little bottles are great for tasting sessions and are much easier to transport than standard 700 - 750 ml bottles.

@paddockjudge I don't think I've tried that one yet - can't quite justify the price.

@talexander, our good friend and excellent dusty bottle hunter, @Nozinan, rescued this one from the whisky wranglers out west...for less than $70. I had previously received a couple of bottles from Alberta Tim at a similar price. There is no way I was willing to pay $113 for this baby. I would buy a pair of Highwood Ninety 20 YOs at $58 each before forking over that kind of cash for the Can Rock 21 YO...same distillery and likely the same bond lot...originally bottled for the Asian Market (Taiwan, I think) at 40%, this was released two or three years ago at 46% for the Canadian market by the nice people at Fontana Bev. Co.

@paddockjudge might be worth trying one day...Maybe I can convince my brother in law to pick one up for himself (and for me to try).

I’m currently trying to hold off on any new purchases until April...but there are a few I’m considering.

• Lagavulin 8 Year Old because...Lagavulin
• Laphroaig Triple Wood, because I’ve heard rumours of it being discontinued.
• Kilchoman Machir Bay because it’s an Islay I haven’t tried yet
• Laphroaig Quarter Cask because I like it.
• Forty Creek Double Barrel Reserve
• Crown Royal Blender’s Select

We’ll see what happens.

@OdysseusUnbound Machir Bay gets better every year. Just sayin'.

@OdysseusUnbound have you had 40 creek confederation oak? Good stuff.

@nooch Have not tried the Confederation Oak yet.