Whisky / Whiskey / Bourbon

Thanks all!

The Whisky Exchange

Could look at https://www.thewhiskyexchange.com/p/53693/aerolite-lyndsay-10-year-old - I bought a bottle during lockdown and finished it faster than I've finished anything before. It's not HEAVILY peated, though. But is in the region of Lagavulin.

Thanks for all the recs evryone!

drambusters and tyndrum whisky are my go-to. Also check out https://www.whiskybroker.co.uk/bottles-c-1 for dirt cheap cask strength releases.

big plug for https://www.thelittlewhiskyshop.co.uk for UK based, run/owned by humans etc.

Adding that to my favourites, trying not to give AB Inbev any money

Thanks for added recs.

Anyone had a chance to get the Lidl 16yo Islay single malt?
£35 a bottle.
Not bought it yet, because I just opened a Bowmore 12 and don't need another Islay just yet, but might stick it in the cupboard for the future

Purchased on a whim, bloke in the offy told me it was not dissimilar to Lagavulin 16 (which I like)

I think a few people liked Old Forester bourbon for £20 on Amazon and its currently £16

Run by very good people. The boutiquey whisky company bottles are always great. And the testing sets/ drinks by the dram are great gifts.

Also: bought out in the last few years so they are more inclined to discounting

Out of interest why is it not Japanese?

Rules regarding what makes Japanese whisky Japanese are... generous. A good deal of the malt that goes into nikkas blends is Ben Nevis.

So it’s kinda japanesish whisky.

It was just a sarcy comment aimed at Japanese whisky in general, that one probably was made in Japan but it also could have been sitting the Ben Nevis distillery for 15 years before being shipped over. There's pretty much zero legislation when it comes to what can be called 'Japanese whisky' and most of it is imported from Scotland and Canada.

I just find the price of Japanese whisky comical and the fact that most of the people that rave about how Japanese whisky is the best usually have no idea what they're drinking.

Picked up a bottle. Apparently it’s Bowmore.

Alright for £35. Nice peaty nose, bit of a weak taste. Ardbeg 10 is a better shout for a similar price, especially on sale.

& @jupiz

Fair enough, thanks for the info, I really didn’t know and I was genuinely asking. I rate nikka (from the barrel), hakushu, and hibiki, but I don’t know where they’re entirely from. Guess it doesn’t really matter as the taste is the thing but it’s good context.

Anyone saying the whisky from one place vs another is the best sounds like a dick tbh, and boring

Does also sound a bit like Swiss watches.

As a fun fact I know drinks by the dram have to a decant all their stuff into the little dram bottle in Scotland, in order to keep calling it scotch.

I don't have a problem with that method of production I'm just against the lack of transparency in all whisky production, Japan just happens to take it to a ridiculous level. The reason why it matters is because the climate of the country where a spirit is produced and matured has a massive impact on how it develops, whisky made in South Asia for example matures a lot faster than in Scotland and provenance is one of the main reasons we buy it.

If they actually put where the whisky came from on the bottle I'd be more inclined to buy it but I think I'm in the minority there.

Ha! Didn’t know that.

The yoichi you linked to above is single malt and from one of their Japanese distilleries. I’m actually a fan of Japanese blends, just not their prices, and helps that I like Ben Nevis too!

Irony is that because they use so much of Ben Nevis’ output in blends they struggle to put out an official bottling. Ended up with a weird situation where the distillery had to buy back their own stock.

Got a Love2shop voucher Christmas bonus at work. The shops you can use it on are quite limited but I managed to find a small selection of whisky hidden away on the Laithwaites website. Ordered a bottle of Glemorangie Nectar D'or Sauternes.

Same on the voucher. Asda/M&S/Sainsburys seemed more obvious places for whisky but I ended up coming across some on Next. Thanks for the tip on Laithwaites!

Port Charlotte Distillery Valinch showed up today. 13yo, 2nd fill Sherry butt.

Wonder if this is the kind of thing I’ll regret opening in a few years if the price rockets. Going to give it a go later anyway

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I'd be interested to know what you think about it. I'm tempted.

I’ve got SHC:01 open so don’t feel too bad. It’s fantastic, and better you get to enjoy it.