Whisky

[blipblop]

whiskey is my favorite liquid. I realy dont have any favorites but I divide them in to two groups. "the party whiskey" it´s just boils down to the one that´s cheapest and the "fancy drinking at home" one and it´s often the one that tastes like liking on a newly tared wooden boat that has just burned down

 

[Diddy_Mao]

I loves me some Whiskey.

Mainly I tend to drink Jameson. I prefer the 12 year but I don't demand it.
If I can't find Jameson I'll drink Bushmills.
I also rather enjoy Kilbeggan but I don't drink it quite as often as it seems to be difficult to find.

As you can tell I tend to prefer the Irish whiskeys. I'll drink Talisker (Signle Malt Scotch) if it's offered but won't buy it myself.

 

[The White Hunter]

I do like myself a glass of Jameson on the rocks

A man after my own heart.

I loves me some Jamesons, I'm also quite fond of bourbon whiskies and good scotch whisky, I'm not bothered if it's single malt or not so long as it tastes good.

Glenmorangie is a good single malt but rather expensive for me, Whyte & Mackay is fairly affordable and blended but oh so good.

Old Pultney is absolutely fantastic too if you can get your hands on it though I've not seen it often in England. The same distillery makes really nice liquers too.

To be honest I'll drink anything though, not fussy with my poison.

Except laphroag. That stuff is nasty.

 

[The White Hunter]

I need to drink more whisky, I prefer it to pretty much any other alcoholic drink but most pubs I know only sell Jack Daniels (which I love) and is too expensive in shops.

The nearest pub to me ahs a selection of around 40 different whiskies at any one time, as well as your generic piss water like grouse or grants.

 

[DugMachine]

Jack Daniels man myself. Not a huge drinker though so I haven't tasted a million whiskeys

 

[The Rockerfly]

Big fan of fireball. It's not got a rich taste and it isn't sophisticated but the the cinnamon taste with a nice hot kick at the end cannot be beaten for me. Also you can mix it with a lot to make some delicious drinks. For example, fireball and either apple juice for a cool drink or if you want something nice and warm, have it with hot chocolate

 

[AntiChrist]

Has any of you tried Laphroaig? It's a single malt scotch with a VERY strong smoke-like flavour.

Spoiler

 

[Legion]

I am, but not so much so that I'd say I have a favourite. The most expensive type I have drunk is Glenfiddich, which was fairly nice, but considering it's price, not nice enough.

 

[KorLeonis]

A good single malt and mumford and sons go very well together.

I like the cut of your jib sir. Cheers!

Gentlepeople, I salute your good taste.

Personally, I am all about the Highland scotches. I recently got to taste a 31-yr old from the Glenlivet distillery, it was spectacular.

 

[Fatboy_41]

Jack Daniels, Johnnie Walker, Jim Beam, Chivers Regal...

These are liquids that I wouldn't give to a prisoner on death row.

Once you have had a cask strength, single malt, single barrel bottling, nothing commercial will taste as good. The last one I had was called "Not For Wusses". And indeed, that was truthful. 69.0% with a very smokey, peaty taste. An incredibly good scotch with a touch of pure water. Unfortunately, I'll never be able to get it again. Alas, the problem with single bottlings.

If anyone is a serious scotch drinker, or wants to expand their knowledge a little, I'd say go to a tasting session with the Scotch Malt Whisky Society. Essentially, their tasting panel travels around the distilleries in Scotland and elsewhere, picking the finest whiskys the can find and buying the barrel to bottle purely for society members. Part of the deal is they don't say where the whisky came from, so they use a numbering system and give each bottling a funky name like "Not For Wusses", "Mint Humbug" or "Sugared Almonds In A Mattress Factory".

 

[Headdrivehardscrew]

There's no right answer to this one, really.

The more you know, the more complicated things seem to get.

I started out liking especially the smoky, strong flavoured ones. Oban, Talisker, the like.

I still like those, pure, or with a bit of water, or with an ice cube. Sometimes a tumbler does the trick, sometimes an oversized cognac glass or even a 'branded' glass seems to be the best fit.

http://www.design42day.com/uploads/2008/11/Cognac-Glass-Rikke-Hagen-2.jpg
fig. 1: not every glass is made equal

Sometimes the glass isn't all about nose, physics, air and the nose-mouth sensations. Sometimes a glass just adds looks and texture that make the taste (and that ice cube you couldn't resist adding) pop out.

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4070/4249508910_fe8be7baf2.jpg
fig. 2: some glasses are so awesome they haven't changed shape, size or colour in sixty years. (Iittala - Ultima Thule)

Currently, I like 'light' whiskeys.. take Glenmorangie, for example. On a hot day, it goes well with plenty of ice cubes, some Aperol and some lemon juice.

Then there's the affordable option of, say, something like Thamdu. It delivers complex fruity and spicy flavours at a low price.

Then there's the rare and strange stuff... some of which you might only bump into once in per lifetime. If you like whisky and whiskey, I suggest you go to tasting sessions, take part in any promotional event that suits your fancy and find friends that share the passion, as that makes whiskey so much more fun.

'Bourbon' - For years, we always had a gallon bottle of Jack Daniels around. When we stopped drinking Coke/Pepsi/carbonated wee, we somehow also stopped drinking Jack Daniels. Don't get me wrong - it's a good mixer. But, depending on how you drink whiskey, if you mix them or drink them pure or cook with them - you just find the ones that suit the purpose, any given purpose, better than others.

As for drinking pure - I've developed a taste for Japanese Whiskey lately. Nice bottles, good products... and a century of experience, who'd have thunk?

 

[themyrmidon]

I guess I'm just a bourbon fan.

 

[FireCoroner]

Being Irish, I am compelled to give every whiskey a shot.

But I would urge anyone who drinks J.D. neat to just try sipping on a Jameson. I know that Jack is more iconic, cooler looking bottle, etc; but it was only when I got used to the taste of whiskey that I realised that Jameson is much smoother and mellower. Jack (which used to be my staple whiskey) just seems a bit to harsh for me now. Maybe the harshness is a selling point; I don't know.

If you're willing to spend a few more quid, the aged Jamesons are quite nice. Hennessy's Cognac is delicious for sipping and I also find Jim Beam Black quite palatable.

It's all a matter of preference.
Don't simply pick one whiskey as a teenager and stick to it forever.
Your palate isn't fully developed until much later and you may not know what you're missing out on.

 

[flaming_squirrel]

Currently got a bottle of Jura 10yr open, very nice although not as good as some of their others in my opinion.
I've got an odd habit of collecting my empty whisky bottles as well, got a cupboard full of them (only keep unique ones though, so no duplicates).

Love all of the Islay distilleries, that smokey taste, so damn good.
Oh and Talisker! Especially as that's one I've visited.



Jack Daniels on the other hand is one of the most disgusting alcoholic drinks I've ever tried..

 

[Arctodus_Simus]

I'm rather a fan My particular favourite at the moment is a Balvenie signature - very smooth, goes down a treat!

EDIT: OH! And the sherry cask Glen Morangie! Almost forgot

 

[Froggy Slayer]

Being 16, I probably shouldn't drink as much Whisky as I do, but as it happens, I do enjoy a nice glass every now and then. I had a bottle of Grants in the cupboard. I drink it straight, of course.

Now, the real question is are my parents bad people for letting me have Whisky?

 

[Rumpsteak]

I usually settle on Bushmills whiskey. I am quite fond of a nice Jamesons as well though.

 

[Olyver]

There's no right answer to this one, really.

The more you know, the more complicated things seem to get.

I started out liking especially the smoky, strong flavoured ones. Oban, Talisker, the like.

I still like those, pure, or with a bit of water, or with an ice cube. Sometimes a tumbler does the trick, sometimes an oversized cognac glass or even a 'branded' glass seems to be the best fit.

http://www.design42day.com/uploads/2008/11/Cognac-Glass-Rikke-Hagen-2.jpg
fig. 1: not every glass is made equal

Sometimes the glass isn't all about nose, physics, air and the nose-mouth sensations. Sometimes a glass just adds looks and texture that make the taste (and that ice cube you couldn't resist adding) pop out.

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4070/4249508910_fe8be7baf2.jpg
fig. 2: some glasses are so awesome they haven't changed shape, size or colour in sixty years. (Iittala - Ultima Thule)

Currently, I like 'light' whiskeys.. take Glenmorangie, for example. On a hot day, it goes well with plenty of ice cubes, some Aperol and some lemon juice.

Then there's the affordable option of, say, something like Thamdu. It delivers complex fruity and spicy flavours at a low price.

Then there's the rare and strange stuff... some of which you might only bump into once in per lifetime. If you like whisky and whiskey, I suggest you go to tasting sessions, take part in any promotional event that suits your fancy and find friends that share the passion, as that makes whiskey so much more fun.

'Bourbon' - For years, we always had a gallon bottle of Jack Daniels around. When we stopped drinking Coke/Pepsi/carbonated wee, we somehow also stopped drinking Jack Daniels. Don't get me wrong - it's a good mixer. But, depending on how you drink whiskey, if you mix them or drink them pure or cook with them - you just find the ones that suit the purpose, any given purpose, better than others.

As for drinking pure - I've developed a taste for Japanese Whiskey lately. Nice bottles, good products... and a century of experience, who'd have thunk?

Well said.There aren't many single malts I won't drink and to each their own. But at the moment it is Oban 14 for special occasions, and Glennfiddich 12 for whenever I want a drink... Neat, always.

 

[karcentric]

Whiskey drinker reporting sir!

Johnny Walker Red label is my poison of choice.

That said, I'll drink anything...

You really will drink anything

As long as the end result is the same it's all good.

 

[A.A.K]

Walker Gold, Dimple 15, Chivas 12 or 18 (haven't had the chance for 21 yet) and Ardmore...
I'm looking forward to trying a Yamazaki soon....
Between me and the other Eastern Euro's, we've tried most of the spirits at Dan Murphy's, so we've got Glenlivet and Glenfiddich as well in that mix, a few others.

Yes what I drink is expensive and really really good....I save money and get good shit. I'm only a spirits drinker.