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Anybody has a 40% bottle already and can report on taste differencies?
Incidentally I am just completing a website revamp for a Scotch whisky distillery. As part of the deal I had to research and write some copy. A labour of love!
Slainte mhath!
May I ask (as a sticky perhaps) what distillery you are doing the website for?
Isn't this normally the strength?
Personally I favour the Lagavulin (16 year old) over Laphroaig (10 year old) any day! I did, last year, have a bottle of the 1986 Lagavulin double-matured distillers edition. That didn't last very long...
Syzygy
I like Laphroaig, Oban and Talisker; but most single malts are very palatable. IMHO the strength is immaterial it is the flavour that matters.
Which Laphroaig is now 40%?
The standard 10yo.
Isn't this normally the strength?
Most general-audience Scotch whiskies get bottled at 40%. Laphroaig has bottled theirs with 43%, but obviously decided (or got forced) to met the de-facto standard.
@Old_Honky: If you want to taste something really exceptional, try the Springbank 21 year old. However it is quite expensive AND the bottle has to be consumed within 1 month, otherwise the taste will really deteriorate.
Btw: I did a Google Earth placemark showing all the Islay distilleries [googleearthhacks.com].
Btw: I did a Google Earth placemark showing all the Islay distilleries.
<action>Puts whisky bottle aside to create tourism website, based on the above, to finance the purchase of a case of 'Springbank 21 year old' :)
I am more of a de luxe blend man myself but I would agree that Springbank malts are very nice.
'can see the bottles need to be sent out with instructions on ..
And I guess the hardcore guys only use pebbles out of the river the water comes from. Gives a whole new meaning to "on the rocks".
You don't put ice in single malt ..even scottish single malt ..unless you can get the water to make the cubes with from the same stream that feeds the distillery ..
This is a fallacy. I know lots of people who put ice in their whisky here in Scotland. We tend to forget about the snobbery involved and the marketing mince fed to foreign markets and just enjoy it the way we eant to.
If you prefer your leap frog or low flyer with ice then drink it with ice. Don't let anyone try to talk you into lessening your enjoyment of the whisky. Remember that it's your enjoyment that we are talking about not that of the "experts". I drink mine with ice if I feel like it otherwise I drink it straight or with some tap water (Scottish tap water with added fluoride) and I still enjoy it.
[Spoken by someone who drinks red wine with fish. Why? Because I prefer red wine to white and I am not going to drink white because someone else says I should.] ;)
Btw: I was browsing a few Scotch Whisky sites recently and almost all of them have "doorway pages" asking for age and country of origin now. Am I right in thinking that this is some legal requirement?
And what establishments have chilled pebbles at the ready? I've seen people keep glass or acrylic ice cubes for chilling drinks without watering them down, but wouldn't putting the entire bottle in the fridge work just as well?
Good bars have chill wells for bottles of fine liquor, but I've never been to a place that keeps chilled pebbles. Chilled glassware? Yes.
but wouldn't putting the entire bottle in the fridge work just as well?
Of course. But since most people drink it at room temperature this would mean that you need to have TWO open bottles simultaneously. Which - depending on the Whisky - is quite an investment.
I believe it is the water that is in question.
>>two bottles
Or the person that wants room temperature drinks can show a little patience or pretend they're sitting in a chilly room. ;) Looks like the fake ice might be the best bet.
I believe it is the water that is in question.
As I understand it has little to do with the water. When whisky is matured it comes out of the barrel at about 55% - 60% ABV (alcohol by volume). It is then watered down to the regulation strength, often 43% for export and 40% for home markets. I believe the water used is distilled or demineralised water, which is completely neutral. The water that is used at the start of the process will have a bearing on the end product but not at this stage.
The person who says he drinks his whisky straight actually means that he drinks it at 40% ABV. The person who adds an equal measure of water just prefers it at 20% ABV - nothing wrong with that.
Oh, and if I drink Whisky, one shot is 0.02l. Hotels usually serve 0.04l. If at home I rarely drink more than two glasses, if in a hotel rarely more than one.
Clorinated, fluoridated, water, possibly with sulfur, metals and other minerals has nothing to do with the taste of the drink? Hmm...
From one of the most famous bar guides on the planet;
While you and your guests may be more interested in the varieties and qualities of the booze at the bar, the quality of your tap water and ice may be the most important ingredient in mixing successful drinks...
Clorinated, fluoridated, water, possibly with sulfur, metals and other minerals has nothing to do with the taste of the drink? Hmm...
I was referring to the water used to reduce the whisky to the required ABV. This is demineralised water which is completely neutral.
However, now that you mention it, I would defy anyone other than the most expert taster to tell me the difference between Scotch with good quality tap water and Scotch with distilled water. I have been drinking it for 39 years and I certainly can't and I am a Scot who has tried many whiskies over the years. There is too much snobbery involved in this.
I must say that even the smell of whisky and lemonade gives me the dry heaves but I would not condemn anyone who drinks it. I even know several people who drink it with *Irn Bru!
Just enjoy it as you like it! Don't look for problems.
*Irn Bru is a popular, sickly sweet Scottish soft drink that is marketed here as, "Your other national drink!"
My favourite distillery Laphroaig does an experiment like this with the "Quarter Cask" edition and actually a bottle of this is on my Christmas wishlist. But they "only" go back some 80/90 years.
So, as been stated here before: taste and drinking rituals is what you make out of them. I prefer it straight at room temperature, as a special occasion which requires a special mood. Others drink it with Soda, even with Coke. As long as you enjoy it...
I prefer it straight at room temperature, as a special occasion which requires a special mood.
... but then you already confessed to seldom having more than one or two 20ml measures. In Scotland that's just a top up :)
It gets a bit sore on the senses drinking it neat if you intend to have a few ;)
In Scotland that's just a top up
Now I reached again the limit of my English knowledge. What does that mean - "just a top up"?
I agree that there is way too much snobbery involved. Drink it as it suits you. I like mine straight - most of the time. Every now and again I'll add a few drops of water to smooth and mellow out the flavours. Sometimes this will be with tap water, at other times with mineral water. Each to their own.
"Top up". In this context Collins English Dictionary defines this as:
1. to raise the level of (a liquid, powder, etc) in (a container), usually bringing it to the brim of the container.
or...
2. an amount added to something in order to raise it to or maintain it at a desired level.
;-)
Syzygy
Just the other week I had access to a wonderful 20 yr. old bottle of Rosebank. At 60% it can have a bit of a bite to it.
