Whisky That Drinks Bigger Than It Scores...

@two-bit-cowboy

What's your favorite Edradour? Any of these (below) any good?

2002 Edradour 11 year old Single Cask Chateauneuf du Pape Cask

2000 Edradour 13 year old Single Cask Sauternes Cask Finish

Ballechin 3rd Edition Port Casks

Ballechin 1st Edition Burgundy Casks

Ballechin 2nd Edition Madeira Casks

1997 Edradour Straight From the Cask 10 Year Old Sassicaia Finish

I got a cask strength Edradour indie bottling that was terrible a year ago but I'm willing to try again.

Never tasted the regular 10. Michael Jackson seems to like it. . . . as do you. Nice comments, Cowboy. maybe I should save my hard earn scratch and just try a 10 year. . . .

Bowmore 12 .... never does well in conversation amoungst connaisseurs, but I think it's a lovely little malt.

@Jules I totally agree on the Bowmore 12 - very underrated.

Springbank 10 Year

Aberfeldy 12. I've met only a few who understood.

@Wodha, yes, you are the Aberfeldy Voice crying out in the Wilderness. There continues a deafening silence about Aberfeldy 12, except for you, of course.

@Victor @Wodha - good call! Yes, I really enjoyed the Aberfeldy 12 - I scored it an 86 when I reviewed it here.

Great thread...some random comments about some of the posts:

@WhiskyJoe and I tried Ardmore Trad Cask and Bunnahabhain 12 yesterday at a pub (Morrissey House on Dundas Street in London, ON...probably the best all around pub in the city...good whisky list, good craft beer rotation, and good/great food!!).

We both felt the Ardmore does present some of the 'good' Laphroaig notes (i.e. the medicinal notes that might be off putting to some are not there, but a very nice peat/smoke combination is present)...good call @Abunad'hman. The Ardmore may actually suffer in perception due to its amazing price point. Can't wait for it to come back to Ontario!!

Bunna 12 has a lot going on in a very nice way...a very noticeable (thick/syrupy, but not too sweetj) sherry presence that to my mind is balanced wonderfully by the mild peat and smoke, with just a slight saltiness...with you there @lifewaterforce. Great stuff! Also can't wait to see it back in Ontario.

Old Grand Dad 114 = "Tentacles of Wood!!" = awesome...enough said. (that's for you, @Victor, @cpstecroix, and others) ;)

I have yet to try either, but Bowmore Darkest 15 may not get the love as (at least in Ontario) it is a very similar price to the Laimrig 15, which appears to be the cask strength version of the Darkest. For a similar price, most will go with the higher abv.

I would add McCarthy's Oregon Single Malt to the list. It is a fun bottle (BBQ sauce with your smoked peat, anyone?) that definitely hides the rough edges of it's youth (3-4 years old typically, if I am not mistaken...please correct me if I am) while presenting a solid Islay-like profile.

The perfect topic for me. And a very nice discussion has unravelled since it has started! Wow! Well, my twopence of worth here would be: 1. Isle Of Jura Superstition: it combines almost everything: sweetness on the nose and palate, a hint of peat, a sip of intrigue, warmth, thick body. Yes, the finish is funky, being too "bittery-soapy" for my taste and there is this sneaky, stupid caramel coloring. It is not even too complex (if at all) so it will never score where my heart would put it (higher 80's, lower 90). But It just needs to be loved. And I do love it. For its' price Isle Of Jura Superstition is one of the precious few so called "perfect everyday drams". 2. Glenmorangie Quinta Ruban. I honestly cannot see why they hate it so much. How stripped off any adventure seeking, how close-minded has one have to be, in order to deny this gem? It is a divider for sure. I would rate it in the middle 90, because of its' versatility, elegance and sheer wine-taste-gob-smacking power. At 46% ABV it is not weak either. It really puzzles me, why it is so underrated? The whisky-lover, as I get it, has to keep his mind open, needs to keep experimenting and finding new, exciting whiskies. And for me the QR is one of these bold, new and palate-conquering new things in the not-too-eventful whisky world. The only negative to the QR has to be the price, which, being around EUR 42 for a bottle, I guess prevents it from a high bang-for-your-buck score. But I still love it very much and always tend t ohave a bottle of this expression.

@two-bit-cowboy , about the Edradour: I have a lot of affection for this distillery. However, I have recently bought a bottle of 2000 11 Year Old Burgundy Finish (Straight From The Cask) and it has tasted so vile, that it scored 60 in my book. Gasoline taste all over the place. Awful stuff. And a litre of gasoline here is 1 EUR, not 90 EUR, as much as a litre of this Edradour would have costed me. I was lucky it was only available in 500 ml. I would never buy this abomination of a liquid again.