Talking about Whisky

[Vox Humana]

VH, that sounds very promising, though peat is something I normally reserve for the rhododendrons ... I shall sample it this evening, and report back.

They certainly promote themselves as the best malt in the world. And its 46% alcohol, stronger than my other spirits. And they make even stronger ones, Ardbeg Corryvreckan at 57% which sounds like a recipe for a very severe headache indeed.

The Ardbeg Corryvreckan is arguably even better than the 10-year-old. It's a matter of taste, of course, but generally cask-strength malts (those above 50%) are expected to have water added to bring them down to the more usual level. The great thing is that you can add as much or as little as you like. It also makes the bottle go farther. :) I have drunk Glenfarclas 105 (60%) and Aberlour a'bunadh (variable, c.59-61%) neat and enjoyed them, but the alcohol does burn and I think you miss a lot of the taste because of that. These days I always add water to malts that strong.

[umslopogaas]

I can report that the Ardbeg 10 year old was very good, and judging by the rather substantial dent I made in the bottle last night, I enjoyed it. However, I dont think it was any more enjoyable than other malts that are fifteen to twenty quid cheaper, so I probably wont buy any more. I should add that I have a very poor sense of taste, and may have missed some subtleties.

[Beef Oven!]

I have never knowingly tasted Ardbeg.

On the question of adding water, with a few exceptions e.g. JWBL, I add spring water (Highland Spring from Morrissons is excellent, IMV) to my whisky to bring it down to a highly palatable 30%.

A couple of years ago I quaffed a bottle of Aberlour a’bunadh that was 60.7%. Lovely neat, but gorgeous with water. Great value at £45 for almost 2 litres (including the water!!).

[Old Grumpy]

I have never knowingly tasted Ardbeg.

Just do it! You know it makes sense!


Declaration of interest:- one of my favourites


OG

[Beef Oven!]

Just do it! You know it makes sense!


Declaration of interest:- one of my favourites


OG

Like I need encouraging!!!!!

[Vox Humana]

A couple of years ago I quaffed a bottle of Aberlour a’bunadh that was 60.7%. Lovely neat, but gorgeous with water. Great value at £45 for almost 2 litres (including the water!!).

I don't buy this one any more. It is bottled in batches and every one is different. The good ones have been truly wonderful - like drinking a highly alcoholic chocolate orange - but it seems to me that lately these have been the exception. Sadly, for me, this whisky has become too unreliable to justify the expense of the gamble.

[Beef Oven!]

I don't buy this one any more. It is bottled in batches and every one is different. The good ones have been truly wonderful - like drinking a highly alcoholic chocolate orange - but it seems to me that lately these have been the exception. Sadly, for me, this whisky has become too unreliable to justify the expense of the gamble.

Hmm. I’ve heard that before. Funnily enough, I was thinking about getting a bottle this week. I may think about something else.

[johnb]

I don't buy this one any more. It is bottled in batches and every one is different. The good ones have been truly wonderful - like drinking a highly alcoholic chocolate orange - but it seems to me that lately these have been the exception. Sadly, for me, this whisky has become too unreliable to justify the expense of the gamble.

I had a bottle a year ago. I enjoyed the intense flavours when sipped neat but, overall, the whisky was definitely on the fiery side (perhaps due to the percentage of younger spirits).

[Vox Humana]

I have just bought a bottle of Laphroaig "Select" from our local Sainsbury's. It was on offer at only £25 a bottle, so I thought I'd give it a punt. What a disappointment! I have a feeling that this bottle is going to last a very long time. It has the peat of the 10-year-old, but not the phenols, so tastes less medicinal. I don't particularly mind that, but there seems to be a lack of everything else too. The taste is thin and uninteresting. It certainly doesn't have the body I expect from an Islay malt. What were they thinking of?

[johnb]

Perhaps Select is aimed at newcomers to Laphroaig. However, I do like Laphroaig Quarter Cask.

[Vox Humana]

Yes, the Quarter Cask is excellent.

[Beef Oven!]

Jura Superstition single malt bottled at 43% is delicious and one of the best from Whyte & Mackay, IMV.

Amazon are selling it at a very good £25 at the moment. Well worth a punt at that price (normally £35).

[johnb]

Jura Superstition single malt bottled at 43% is delicious and one of the best from Whyte & Mackay, IMV.

Amazon are selling it at a very good £25 at the moment. Well worth a punt at that price (normally £35).

Congratulations.

Incidentally, people have often talked about Aldi's Highland Black blend but I've also seen Lidl's Glen Orchy 5 Yr Malt Blend praised as good value indeed - worth a punt. (It is produced for Lidl by an offshoot of Whyte & Mackay.)

(I see that Highland Park 12 is currently on special offer for £25 at Amazon, Tesco, ASDA, Morrisons, Waitrose and that ASDA has Laphroaig 10 Yr Old for £26.50.)

[johnb]

Aldi has come up with another very interesting whisky: Glen Marnoch 28 year old Speyside (abv 43.4%) for £39.99, which was released instore yesterday (13th Nov).

"Glen Marnoch" is Aldi's own brand name but this particular whisky looks as though it might well be Mortlach - the 43.4% abv seems to be a characteristic of that distillery and the abv is unusual for a supermarket own label. (If you google "speyside 43.4%" you will see the results dominated by Mortlach.)

Until recent years most of Mortlach's whisky went into J Walker blends, etc, but there were a few distillery bottlings from time to time and there were also some independent bottlings. In recent years Diago have decided to market Mortlach as a stand alone, super-premium (i.e. very expensive), luxury brand. So, if this is Mortlach, this is to be a rare opportunity to get a bottle of 28 yr old sherried Mortlach at a very cheap price (but bear in mind that its style will be of a different to that of Mortlach's current core range). Even if you ignore the possible Mortlach connection, initial impressions are that it is a very good scotch and a real bargain.


A first impression review of the whisky by a member of a scotch whisky forum: http://www.scotchmaltwhisky.co.uk/fo...8438a49e#60046

Of course, your opinion might be very different - you might hate the stuff.

[Beef Oven!]

Hi johnb, thanks for pointing us to this. Did you get a bottle yourself?