The Scotch Whisky Thread

[Muirium]

Makes me wonder how to shred a shredder.

Glug glug…

[Khers]

Too destructive! You should think about how you'd unshread a Kishsaver instead. That's more productive!

[tp4tissue]

Haha, oh wow tp4, you're just looking for reasons for everyone to hate you.

Give it time..

No one likes most liquors first try, but then you get inebriated, and eventually you like it..

[adhoc]

No thanks. My father was an alcoholic - and I am NOT saying whiskey turns you into alcoholic - so I'm afraid I could follow his steps if I'd drink, even for fun at start. So I avoid all alcohol entirely, because I hate my father and I want to be nothing like him.

[Muirium]

Yeah, alcoholism isn't fun at all. Most drinkers aren't addicts, though, by a long shot. But I get where you're coming from. Best to ignore the topic entirely!

[adhoc]

Yup, I understand you can appreciate alcohol as a ... sweet of sort, a chocolate bar. But personally, I'm afraid I could swing into it too hard like my father, so I rather avoid it entirely, to not take any chances.

[Muirium]

Good for you. Now look up at the thread title… there's a lot more on DT to explore besides the boozy bits. I mean, it's still just daytime here in Europe…

[tp4tissue]

Yup, I understand you can appreciate alcohol as a ... sweet of sort, a chocolate bar. But personally, I'm afraid I could swing into it too hard like my father, so I rather avoid it entirely, to not take any chances.

Alcoholism is indeed very slippery.. many people begin slipping and they don't see it...

Which is why I mentioned Mu's romanticization of having discovered universal truths within the act of drinking.. hahahaha.

He's already taken many steps towards potential alcholism.. Mu has begun using florid imagination to justify and glorify a primarily escapist-process which constitutes every drug which acts on the dopamine pathway.

Essentially all drugs are doing the same thing, they give you pleasure at a low cost and involvement.

Take this pill, be happy, active within 1 minute orally, 2-10 seconds intravenously.

Drink this wine, be happy, active within 30 seconds to 5 minutes


Natural stimuli of happiness (dopamine) all have lengthy time involvement or large upfront costs..

That is why we say drugs are escapist in nature. as it is an act which overrides natural reward which we were designed to run on..

Try getting a girl into bed... takes something around 5-10 hours of labor on average not including cost of food/gift/transportation


I can't opinion as to whether this is Good or Bad, only that we must remain aware of the Literal act of.. otherwise it is even easier to dive and never return.

[Muirium]

Uh huh…

To be accurate, I haven't actually drunk anything alcoholic yet this month. It's a young month, sure! But I was only out a few times in May. And I've nary a drip to choose from back at home. Mean, see. Booze is only something I like to use with friends. Ergo its daft philosophy. That's when we Scots best like to discuss the universe… in florid haze.

[Chyros]

That's when we Scots best like to discuss the universe… in florid haze.

And at knifepoint :p .

[Spikebolt]

I've never been a whisky kind of guy but I realized that was because I only drank the cheapest and crappiest whiskies the supermarket could sell.

A co-worker of mine has been introducing me to whisky brands and we're buying a bottle every 1-2 months together. We work near a whisky museum so I guess we had to do it. This is our current bottle, which is unfortunately almost over:

Spoiler:

Very strong flavor, which is great. Prior to this we bought a Nikka Red and a Talisker bottle, both pretty smooth but lighter flavored.

[Ray]

I had my first single malt whisky on an alpine cabin around new years eve. I remember a very strong peated taste that I wasn't expecting, making me exclaim "That's gross." and adding "I may want to take another one after I finish this." two seconds later

Year's later with a different group of friends, we had a similar new year celebration and I wanted to bring a nice whisky. I was sold a Coal Ila in a local shop, which doesn't taste imho like what I asked for (peated vs smoky). It is an awesome flavour nonetheless and started our group more into whiskys.
We had most of that Coal Ila in an old repurposed granary. We also smoked some cigars the same night. When cleaning up the place the next day we all were like "why is it still so smoky in here? with the wind blowing through cracks and gaps in the walls." Turned out it wasn't smoky from the cigars, but the empty glasses of Coal Ila!

That Laphroaig bottle looks familiar. To my taste as well.

Right now I am thinking of getting a bottle of Penderyn peated, the sample I have tastes quite interesting. Not an Islay whisky for sure, but I like it. Cheers.

[tp4tissue]

On the rocks, vs chilled, vs room-temp ..

what say ye.

[Khers]

Room temp.

[tp4tissue]

Room temp straight up, maybe a dash of water.

I am not strong enough personally for room temp on whisky..

vodka/ rum i can handle, things like tequila, whisky, the flavor overwhelms me..

[Chyros]

Room temp, neat. Some whiskies profit more than others from a few drops of water.

[Muirium]

Room temp, always. With rocks, usually at first. But the furious wee bars we have over here will usually melt it in a few minutes.

When I'm setting the tempo myself, in quiet surroundings, neat, from bottle straight to glass. No fuss.

[tp4tissue]

Room temp, always. With rocks, usually at first. But the furious wee bars we have over here will usually melt it in a few minutes.

When I'm setting the tempo myself, in quiet surroundings, neat, from bottle straight to glass. No fuss.

Yea that's why I mentioned I'm going to CNC an iceball maker after the machine is setup..

I think I want to go with ball bearings because they slide more easily if my milling precision is off..

[tp4tissue]

Room temp, neat. Some whiskies profit more than others from a few drops of water.

what does the water do? create texture as the liquid hits the tongue mixed unevenly ?

[Muirium]

Hmm. Ice is better for inconsistency like that. Water simply tones everything down. Which I disapprove of, myself.

[tp4tissue]

Hmm. Ice is better for inconsistency like that. Water simply tones everything down. Which I disapprove of, myself.

as soon as you put in a ball of ice, you'd get much more than a drop of water though..

[Chyros]

Room temp, neat. Some whiskies profit more than others from a few drops of water.

what does the water do? create texture as the liquid hits the tongue mixed unevenly ?

It is said that adding even just a few drops of water to whisky, especially very high-strength ones, unlocks new flavours and scents that you can otherwise not perceive. I tend to not bother with this as I find it hard to scientifically justify a significant change in what is already a 40% solution in water. I have experimented with this from time to time, but it's hard to objectively conclude something out of it.

Ice tends to just water everything down, and the colder temperatures dull your taste buds, so it gets much less flavourful. Frankly I'm shocked, Mu, that a Scotsman would ever ice their whisky :p . Especially an Islay drinker!

[fohat]

Bourbon drinkers I know sometimes employ stone or ceramic frozen cubes to cool their drinks without diluting them.

[tp4tissue]

Bourbon drinkers I know sometimes employ stone or ceramic frozen cubes to cool their drinks without diluting them.

I've tried the stones, doesn't get very cold.. and it's slow

But I've heard those beads with phase change liquid inside does work..

However, those beads are metal, which would alter the taste of the drink..

[0100010]

Bourbon or Scotch for me, normally neat, sometimes with a single ball of ice to chill it and bring out different flavors. I'm on a Texas bourbon run currently (which is seriously being hampered by all my work travel this year), last year I was on a Scotch run, mostly Islays and Highlands.

[Spikebolt]

Our Laphroaig bottle ended yesterday so today we went to buy a new bottle. We have tried Nikka Red, Talisker 10 (islands) and Laphroaig Quarter Cask (islay). Continuing the whisky tour, we went for the a Balvenie, 12 years (Speyside).

Spoiler:

I was quite disappointed with this Whisky. The Laphroaig bottle had a very intense peaty flavour and while the Balvenie is extremely smooth it really lacks flavour and feels a bit watery

My quest for the perfect whisky continues. I feel like the right whisky for me, if such thing exists, is something more intense than the Talisker and less intense than the Laphroaig. One thing is for sure: these light whiskies aren't for me.

[Muirium]

Explore Islay in detail. You're a buckling spring man, in the whisky sense, so it's time to deep dive on IBM! Linears aren't for you.

[scottc]

I've been digging into my main 3 again, in order of ka-pow: Lagavulin 16, Caol Ila 12, Ardbeg 10. They're all getting a little bit low so I'll have to find something special to replace them. I'll scan over the thread for recommendations in a while.

[Muirium]

Get some Oban. It's from the mainland, but has the soul of an island whisky. On the first taste, you'll curse me! But give it time and you might change your mind. I've a fondness for its heavy handed weirdness.

[scottc]

After your previous description, I think it might be one to taste in a pub first!

One whisky I forgot to mention before is Yamazaki Single Malt. It's very unlike the other whiskies that I like but also fantastic. Very surprising! The Japanese definitely know their whisky, which is something I didn't realise until trying it.