Whisky / Whiskey / Bourbon

go hippy, go hippy!

I had some Jura Superstition in my flask the other day - smoky as fook! Nice and mellow finish through

anyone else had money shoulder?

nah, sounds expensive

I've had tennis elbow?

its seems reasonably priced, about £25 a bottle

I really like aberlour. Is very easy to drink. These days I quite like adding a bit of water to my dram.

The monkey shoulder looks a little er, stylish. Check out what all those awards are actually for and see whether you reckon the value is in the quality of the product.

Best bet is start off with a neutral entry level drop like Glenmorangie or Glenfiddich. Buy miniatures or even better have a session somewhere with a good selection to start with, make a note of ones you like on your phone or something. A good bottle will cost a lot and hang around a long time of you're not keen on it.

I still haven't opened the Edradour I bought in the Highlands in January. Was saving it for a notable occasion but I really fancy a drop...

Go on, do it. If you died in the night, you'd never forgive yourself.

I can also vouch for the Balvenie Doublewood. I'm no great fan of the peaty islay malts and the Balvenie was lovely. If only it lasted longer.... One Christmas I bought my dad the 18yo Macallan and managed to sneak a dram - mmmm, but I wouldn't buy it for myself at the price!
If you really like your whisky then there is a London branch of the Scotch Malt Whisky Society near Farringdon tube. If you know someone who's a member, beg them to take you with them someday - members can get two guests in and they have a decent selection which the barman will help you pick through.

Oh and I see Clever Pun has the clynelish - have to say I was not a fan. Too harsh for my tender palate. I like 'em smooth.
Having said that, it lasted a long time... :)

Miniatures are a great way of trying a new whisky. I have some "sheep dip" ive been meaning to try for a while.

Love whisky.
Lagavulin 16 is a favourite, along with springbank and most of the islays.
Yamazaki is nice for a change too. Like to try more jap stuff but they're freaking expensive.

I had some Jura Superstition in my flask the other day - smoky as fook! Nice and mellow finish through

It's like drinking whisky sweeties. I'll normally plump for summat a lot more phenolic, but the Superstition makes a nice change...

Monkey Shoulder is a bit gimicky-it's basically a 'posh' blend at the price of a decent single malt. Being Scottish and having worked in the trade, if you're going for a blend the best (highest proportion of single malts for the money/tase) is Baillie Nicol Jarvie or 'BNJ'-used to be able to get it in Oddbins.

OR..

My favourite at the moment is Laphroig Quarter Cask.. Have yourself a mini tasting between this and the regular 10 year old-its' made is casks a quarter the size-the way it used to be made in order ot transport them on the back of horses-the result is more exposure to wood per volume=sweeter, smoother taste and better ageing.

or, try the Talisker 18 if you are feeling fruity-it is fucking gorgeous. Or the Bunnahabhain. It's an Islay malt so you'd expect smokey... but its not. Lush.

The monkey shoulder looks a little er, stylish. Check out what all those awards are actually for and see whether you reckon the value is in the quality of the product.

Best bet is start off with a neutral entry level drop like Glenmorangie or Glenfiddich. Buy miniatures or even better have a session somewhere with a good selection to start with, make a note of ones you like on your phone or something. A good bottle will cost a lot and hang around a long time of you're not keen on it.

just grabbed the first picture i saw, no wonder my office has it
surely the design really adds flavour?
still tastey for a blended whiskey though, would easily buy it over something like jameson

BNJ is about 14 a bottle-worth it if you like blends and pretty tasty. There's a lot of 'designer blends' kicking about pretending to be single malts-really not worth it for the money.

Unless you like the taste of the blend, of course.

True, but for £25/30 I'd always go for a single malt over a blend, but to each their own.

Another lesser known single malt which is quite light and smooth is the Springbank 10, they've got a distillers edition out which is really tasty too. yum.

What if the blend tasted nicer than the single malt?

Just make your own blends. Single malt watered down with vodka. Basically what blends are.

What if the blend tasted nicer than the single malt?

I've very rarely had a blend that tastes 'nicer' than a single malt-even the cheaper singles have more depth to them in my opinion and I enjoy discovering what different regions/distillers represent in terms of flavour so I prefer trying out something new.

Designer blends claim to have a better quality of malt in them but aren't allowed to advertise which distilleries they come from so you never really know what you are getting before you buy it too, where if you know you like Speyside, you'll probably enjoy another Speyside single. Thing about blends is that they are generally cheaper as its either for mixing, or, everyday drinking (that's an idea;) so I don't really get the idea of spending much more on a posh blend that comes in nice packaging- if you look at the Monkey Shoulder all the prizes are for graphic design, not the whisky!

Laphroaig quarter cask is also great. Its aged in smaller casks so its got an amazing soft sweetness, along with the peatiness. Its also about 48% alc so goes loads further

I'll second that, the quarter-cask is awesome - smoother, but just as smoky.

For something a little more heterodox, there are some great Japanese single malts out there - many of the mroe famous ones are really expensive, but there are still good deals to be had. Another really good one is the Welsh single malt, Penderyn. It can hold its own with the best the scots can do, and it's good value. I got one for a mate at Gerry's (on Old Compton St, isn't it?) and got a snifter glass with it, for about 20 quid, I think.

Oh and I see Clever Pun has the clynelish - have to say I was not a fan. Too harsh for my tender palate. I like 'em smooth.
Having said that, it lasted a long time... :)

yeah it was cheap and it's for very late night islay nights when people wont appr the good stuff... tactical malt. you're right it is fairly harsh