/whiskey/ general

[Anonymous No.6847588]

Hey /ck/, I was drinking some serious whisky for the first time in my life, it went like this:
Glenfarclas 12yo
Glen Moray 12yo
BenRiach 10yo
Laphroaig 10yo
some speyside aged in wine barrels, can't recall the name
Highland Park 12yo

And man, the peatiness in BenRiach and Laphroaig… Didn't expect it to be that rough. Great experience, but I can't say I liked it, even in the Highland Park, where there's just a little.

For those who like peaty whiskey - was it love on the first sight, or did it grow on you? I'm surely gonna try it again, but it just doesn't seem like the type of taste you want in your beverage.

Glen Moray seemed too sweet, so I liked the Glenfarclas and the unknown wine barrel aged the best.

So, what whiskey do you like? What are you drinking right now? /whiskey/ general

[Xenos No.6849317]

What's some good entry level shit to get my palette more edumacated?

What about peated Scotch? Too smokey and gimmicky or a nice robust flavor for those that like it?

[Xenos No.6849321]

btw, once tried a shot of Marker's Mark on top of a glass of Dogfishhead 90 Min IPA and it was pretty damn good

[Anonymous No.6849506]

What do you think of Glencairn glasses?

[Anonymous No.6849587]

>>6849506
A bit euphoric, but they really do work
I prefer the copita, easier to grip and I don't have to tip my head as far back

[Anonymous No.6850157]

>>6849506
I've got 2, mainly for guests.

I'm saving for a trip to 'Murica so I haven't bought any bottles recently but I've got an unopened Glengoyne 10yo saved for a rainy day.

[Anonymous No.6850170]

>>6849317
First off if you want to get educated stop calling it scotch, the rest of the world will laugh at you.
The best way is to organise a tasting for yourself and like minded friends. Most decent merchants will be happy to do this pretty cheaply. Most are also happy to offer advice if they think you'll become a serious customer.

[Anonymous No.6850765]

I've discovered the best thing you can do with some cheap whiskey.

Get some Canadian Club and mix it with vanilla Coke. Mixing it with vanilla Coke is better than anything else, and other whiskeys I've used just haven't been as good.

[Anonymous No.6850805]

> Laphroaig

Fucking profound. I bought myself a bottle of this a year or two back. Never had anything like it before.

[Anonymous No.6850822]

>>6850805
I've still some of Laphroaig left over that I've been drinking the past few months.

It's pretty unique. At first I hated it but now I love it. Funny how that happens.

[Anonymous No.6850835]

>>6850822
Yeah, I had it for the first time last week, and didn't like it at all, but the smoky taste is all I can think about now. I'll probably buy a bottle, have a shot now and then, and try to kjinda force myself into it.

[Anonymous No.6850844]

>>6850835
It's strange. At first the smokey, peat taste was all I could taste, so I hated it at first. Then a while later I came back to it and it was just better somehow. Then I came back again and suddenly I was craving the smokey flavors that the other single malts I was drinking couldn't give me.

[Anonymous No.6850851]

>>6850844
On my first tasting, I found those flavours very interesting, but not really enjoyable. I hope that will change with time too.

[Anonymous No.6850864]

>>6847588
Ive been drinking whiskey for quite a few years now (although I don't drink a lot) and I still can't stand peat or smoky flavours.

Pic related is my favourite.

[Anonymous No.6851246]

>>6847588
Love peat. Love at first drink. Lagavulin, caol ila, ardbeg... All good.

[Anonymous No.6851277]

I opened a bottle of Glenfiddich 12 today, having not tasted it for years. I don't remember it being this boring. Has it actually lost complexity over the years, or have I simply been spoiled by wider experience?

[Anonymous No.6851314]

>>6851277
Little bit of both most likely. With more experience you'll start finding stuff like that boring but big distillers like Glenfiddich keep expanding production in order to meet global demand which tends to mean less older whisky in the bottle and fewer good casks for use.

[Anonymous No.6852090]

>>6850844
After you get used to the smoke, you start to notice the details. Laphroaig and ardbeg have some vanilla and honey from the oak, chocolate, citrus, licorice/anise/clove, iodine and a seaweedyness particularly in laphroaig, and the smoke adds savoriness which can resemble smoked meat, on top of the mossy mineraly peat which has its own characteristic sort of spice. There's a lot to notice once you get used to the heavy smoke and can perceive the details.

[Anonymous No.6852258]

When do you drink your whisky?

[Anonymous No.6852706]

>>6850765
Or just dry ginger ale.

[Anonymous No.6852739]

Went up to monterey with my freinds and spent twelve bucks on three shots of 12yo scotch. Glenfiddich and two others. Glenfiddich was rough but tasty. I drank the other two shots super quick like a pleb.Then a beer. A whiskey sour with wild turkey. Extra sour. Then another beer and one more whiskey sour. I then cried the rest of the night for me dead dad. So...all in all good times.

>mfw massive hangover next day.
>mfw going back to same bar later...

[Anonymous No.6852768]

Wild Turkey 81's bretty good.

[Anonymous No.6854502]

Which country produces the best whiskey?

[Anonymous No.6854784]

>>6854502
Debatable and depends on what type of whisky. Many would say Scotland but others might prefer Bourbon from the States. Really depends on your palate.

[Anonymous No.6854810]

just started drinking whiskey last week. I've been drinking jameson. Is there anything in particular I should be focusing on or pay attention to? Suggestions for the next bottle I get?

[Anonymous No.6854934]

Someone needs to come into these Islay scotch threads and explain to the new folk that phenol sensitivity can be burned right out of you by constant low level intake, or abusive high level intake. By 4 bottles of laphroaig and drink them like you do vodka, all of the iodine/toner cartridge flavours will almost disappear and you'll taste what you're meant to taste. It's really like night and day.

[Anonymous No.6855136]

>>6854810
I wouldn't venture too deep into the malty depths too early, instead focus on really entry level whisky. Buy an affordable blended scotch, an affordable single malt scotch and possibly a bourbon.

My suggestions are either Chivas 12yo or Johnnie Walker Black Label for the blended scotch. Both are affordable and available around the world. For the single malt, try Aberlour 12/Glenfiddich 12. Both are relatively inexpensive and taste fantastic and lastly a bourbon like Maker's Mark is not bad to drink neat.

Enjoy neat for the first couple glasses, try and identify one or two distinctions, through smell and taste. Your sense of taste and smell will improve over time so don't be annoyed if all you can smell is the alcohol. Look at the colour of the whisky, is it a dark amber or light yellow. After that, try adding a teaspoon or two of water. This is not to "water it down", but to simply dilute the alcohol and can coax complexity out of the spirit. Add ice if you wish to cool it down, but it can numb your taste buds. Try and get yourself a proper whisky glass, such as a Glencairn. They're like $10 and provide a lot better concentration of aroma than a regular tumbler. Plus, they look kinda cool, albeit a bit fedora-core.

After that, research into the various whisky regions of scotland and their respective malts. Journey into the peated realm with something like Teachers Highland Cream or Talisker. Identify which region you really dig and pursue brands and bottles from there. Try and avoid "limited edition bottles" and the like. They're usually just a scam to take an extra $10 or $20 off you. Just do your research before buying a bottle, because it's a lot of money to spend on something you may end up hating, e.g. don't fucking buy a bottle of Ardbeg for your first peated whisky.

Also, a great resource on various whisky is a youtube channel by the name of "Ralfystuff". He has over 500 reviews on whisky and the like.

Good luck on your malty journey.

[Anonymous No.6855484]

>>6855136
>albeit a bit fedora-core.
How so?
Not that guy, but noting your advice.

[Anonymous No.6855531]

>>6855136
If I want to start with peaty whiskeys, and I'm choosing between Laphroaig 10yo and quarter cask, which one should I go for?

[Anonymous No.6855670]

>>6855484
It's real easy to look like a try hard/le wrong generation when getting into scotch, seeing as it's predominantly a middle age person sort of drink. But eh, they're cool glasses.

>>6855531
Probably the 10yo. It's a bit less expensive than the quarter cask I think. You may end up hating peated whisky so best to not spend a large amount initially. Many people dislike the sea salty taste of many peat infused whiskies like Lagavulin or Laphroaig, so you might like to opt for something even less smoky/salty like Caol Ila or even as I mentioned before, Teacher's Highland Cream. It's a blend but it uses predominantly Ardmore single malt, around 45% or so. In my country it's literally half of what the Laphroaig will cost you and it might give you an indication whether you enjoy the gingery/peppery/ Vinegary taste that accompanies peated whiskies.

Also advice I didn't mention about, if you're seriously into it, keep some tasting notes for each bottle & the price you paid for it. Even if it's in a word document or whatever, always good to revisit what you tasted 3 or 4 years ago with a fresh bottle and to see how your tastebuds have changed or whether the batches from the particular distillery have been consistent or not.

[Anonymous No.6855707]

>>6855531
Don't start with laphroaig, start with lagavulin 16. No one doesn't like lagavulin 16. Some people don't like laphroaig.

[Anonymous No.6855754]

>>6855670
>it's predominantly a middle age person sort of drink

Almost everyone I know went through a scotchfag phase in their mid 20s, the only person I know who persisted with it into his 30s is a manchild whose primary recreation still consists of getting high and playing xbox

Maybe it's a regional thing, but having a 'signature drink' is something I associate more with picky eaters than with any specific age group. The only reason it's a thing with younger drinkers is that they are relatively insecure about their choice of beverage, and scotch seems to confer a desirable air of maturity and self-assuredness. Besides the xbox manchild who only drinks scotch, the only other person I associate with who has a 'signature drink' is a girl who only drinks vodka tonics and has a long list of made up food allergies

[Anonymous No.6855835]

>>6852739
Ew you look like a typical cheap American bucket head. Kill yourself and join your inbred dad.

[Anonymous No.6856783]

>>6852739
Hope you died after leaving the bar motherfucker

[Anonymous No.6857398]

Got two of these lads today - Redbreast Mano A Lamh, a ltd ed. 46% all-sherry cask expression released earlier in the year exclusively to Stillmen. Only 2000 of these and people are already bidding mad money on em so I bought one for drinking and one for selling

Absolutely no bourbon barrel influence here so it's a pure red fruits explosion on the palate

[Anonymous No.6857893]

>>6847588
First time I had a smoky whiskey it was johnny walker platinum blend and it really tasted more like cigarettes than anything. Otherwise alright.
So for a while I figured peated would not be my thing but then I tried lagavulin and now I love it.

[Anonymous No.6859041]

Sup /ck/, I'm used to Jameson and Tullamore Dew, and I bought a bottle of Glenfiddich 12yo. What should I expect?

[Anonymous No.6859129]

>>6859041
Open the bottle, grab a vessel that holds liquid, preferably a saucepan or wok, pour the scotch into it. Drink. Expect it to taste like glenfiddich 12.

[Anonymous No.6859169]

>>6859129
If you can't drink out of a colander, reevaluate your life.

[Anonymous No.6859183]

>>6855754
Nobody I know ever did any of that. But I can imagine that people might start buying scotch when they presumably have jobs and money as opposed to the penniless college years, and then stop caring. Regardless scotch is still good, and they aren't obligated to care about it forever. Using it or any drink as a fashion accessory is indeed dumb, but people do that about all sorts of things. Not the thing's fault.