What Whisky/Whiskey are we drinking this month?

artanevilla

Picked up Aberfeldy 12yo Single Malt recently.

Quite a nice evening drinker, strong honey flavours.

gandalf

Just picked up a bottle of West Cork Single Malt 10 yr old today. Drinking it tonight and it's not bad, the taste is on the light side for me I prefer a richer deeper taste but it will do as a sipping whiskey and it does have a nice honeyed tone to it.

Lovely Bloke

Got a bottle of The Glenlivet Nadurra in Duty Free the other day, aged in Olorosso Sherry casks, and bottled at cask strength I'm really, really looking forward to cracking this one open.

Pinch Flat

Lovely Bloke wrote: »

Got a bottle of The Glenlivet Nadurra in Duty Free the other day, aged in Olorosso Sherry casks, and bottled at cask strength I'm really, really looking forward to cracking this one open.

Had that before it's a cracking dram

Lovely Bloke

with the state of the beer here in Cairo, I might crack the bottle tomorrow night, I was supposed to be flying home but had my stay extended by a couple more days.

intellectual dosser

kbannon wrote: »

Was in France recently - below were the costs for Jameson 1l and 750ml
1 litre = 24.95
750ml = 17.75

Unreal

I bought a litre of Jameson for 18 in a supermarket in Malaga in August.

Going back to the customs issue, a friend of mine in the US wants to ship two bottles of whiskey to me, what are the customs risks? Are there any steps she should take to avoid confiscation? Any advice is appreciated.

RebelButtMunch

I got a bottle of Connemara cask strength. It's just too strong for me to sip on. What's the best thing to do here, add a bit of water?

brinty

RebelButtMunch wrote: »

I got a bottle of Connemara cask strength. It's just too strong for me to sip on. What's the best thing to do here, add a bit of water?

I'm no expert but you could try some of the following
1) add a bit of water as you suggest
2) add an ice cube
3) have a small glass of water beside it and take a sip after each sip of whiskey

Hopefully the other more experienced guys have some tips for you too.

Slattsy

If its too strong just dilute it accordingly.

Alternatively use it in a cocktail of some sort or with a mixer?

syklops

brinty wrote: »

3) have a small glass of water beside it and take a sip after each sip of whiskey

Hopefully the other more experienced guys have some tips for you too.

Ah jaysus, I couldnt be doing with that myself. Drinking it is meant to be a pleasurable experience.

I'd say either dilute it until its drinkable or use it for cocktails or hot whiskeys. A connemara manahattan might be very nice. Red Martini, White Martini, shot of Connemara, ice and cocktail cherry. Remember most cocktails were invented to facilitate the consuming of unpalatable bootleg hooch.

beardybrewer

brinty wrote: »

I'm no expert but you could try some of the following
1) add a bit of water as you suggest
2) add an ice cube
3) have a small glass of water beside it and take a sip after each sip of whiskey

Hopefully the other more experienced guys have some tips for you too.

Oh, this is worthy of a whole thread of its own. Like yourself 90% of what I buy don't need any of the above but occasionally I'm given a Powers or something like that which benefits from an ice cube to mellow it out. One cube goes a long way even for a harsh drink. That said, I nearly always have a glass of water nearby and occasionally "drown the burn" as needed but mainly that's because the freezer is 2 flights down and I'm just lazy.

syklops

beardybrewer wrote: »

Oh, this is worthy of a whole thread of its own. Like yourself 90% of what I buy don't need any of the above but occasionally I'm given a Powers or something like that which benefits from an ice cube to mellow it out. One cube goes a long way even for a harsh drink. That said, I nearly always have a glass of water nearby and occasionally "drown the burn" as needed but mainly that's because the freezer is 2 flights down and I'm just lazy.

Theres a great line in the movie Charlie Wilsons War when Charlie Wilson played by Tom Hanks is in the Indian presidential palace and asked would he like to drink something and he goes "Sure, just fill a glass with ice and you can put just about any kind of whiskey in there". Ive paraphrased it somewhat. He is a bit miffed when he is told there is no drinking allowed in the palace.

gandalf

RebelButtMunch wrote: »

I got a bottle of Connemara cask strength. It's just too strong for me to sip on. What's the best thing to do here, add a bit of water?

I had a bottle of this, it's a lovely dram. You dilute it down with a bit of water. One of my favourite bottles that was, must try and get my hands on it again soon. Where did you get it? Celtic Whiskey Shop?

BeerNut

Anyone tried the O'Brien's own brand? Only €20 in the current sale.

Slattsy

Picked up a bottle of Writers Tears 'Red Head' today.

Wow - its superb. Irish whiskey generally well down my list but this really is something else.

syklops

gandalf wrote: »

I had a bottle of this, it's a lovely dram. You dilute it down with a bit of water. One of my favourite bottles that was, must try and get my hands on it again soon. Where did you get it? Celtic Whiskey Shop?

The Celtic Whiskey Shop would not be my first stop for something as mainstream as Connemara. Ive seen it in Dunnes Stores in Leopardstown, O'Briens and Tesco.

RebelButtMunch

gandalf wrote: »

I had a bottle of this, it's a lovely dram. You dilute it down with a bit of water. One of my favourite bottles that was, must try and get my hands on it again soon. Where did you get it? Celtic Whiskey Shop?

Pressie from the missus. Duty free she tells me.

syklops

RebelButtMunch wrote: »

Pressie from the missus. Duty free she tells me.

Why dont you sell your bottle to Gandalf at a reduced price, and then buy something you do like?

RebelButtMunch

syklops wrote: »

Why dont you sell your bottle to Gandalf at a reduced price, and then buy something you do like?

Not a bad idea, but sure I'll give it another go, with more ice or water.

beardybrewer

BeerNut wrote: »

Anyone tried the O'Brien's own brand? Only €20 in the current sale.

Grab a bottle and tell us! I'm tempted to get one along with a bottle of Connemara @ €37. Anyone remember when
Connemara was €20-ish in Dunnes? Loved it at that price, but hard to pay Islay prices for.

Seth Brundle

BeerNut wrote: »

Anyone tried the O'Brien's own brand? Only €20 in the current sale.

I was going to pick up a bottle in their Lucan shop this evening but they were out.

This review doesn't inspire value in the twenty quid spend: http://thewhiskeyjug.com/irish-whiskey/obriens-irish-whiskey-review/

beardybrewer

kbannon wrote: »

I was going to pick up a bottle in their Lucan shop this evening but they were out.

This review doesn't inspire value in the twenty quid spend: http://thewhiskeyjug.com/irish-whiskey/obriens-irish-whiskey-review/

Ouch, I just ordered a bottle. I'll be sure to let you know.

gandalf

syklops wrote: »

The Celtic Whiskey Shop would not be my first stop for something as mainstream as Connemara. Ive seen it in Dunnes Stores in Leopardstown, O'Briens and Tesco.

You'd be hard pressed to get a bottle of Cask Strength in Dunnes Stores or any Supermarket tbh. Ordinary Connemara yes but not the Cask Strength. I've seen it in Cora in Caen in France though but then again some of the French Supermarkets have a superb range of whiskeys (at incredible prices too!).

beardybrewer

BeerNut wrote: »

Anyone tried the O'Brien's own brand? Only €20 in the current sale.

So, as you asked about it I happened to throw a bottle into my order which arrived today. Just poured myself a dram and will give you my quick impressions.

Smell is sweet with a strong alcohol note. Medium bodied, simple and quite sweet with a bit of a burn going down. Finish isn't as bad as the review. I like how the alcohol wipes away the sweetness and settles into a perfectly respectable astringent grain flavour. The review also says off-balance (agree, mainly too sweet without a whole lot going on) and watery (which I didn't find... I say medium body and funny enough he did too which seems contradictory).

It's a simple whiskey worth no more than what I paid (€20). Worth a one-time punt.

mikeecho

an auld reliable

brinty

mikeecho wrote:

an auld reliable

Very nice

I've a 15yo solera to tuck into when I clear my open bottles

ankles

Picked up Balvenie Doublewood in Spain. Reasonable value, much sweeter than my usual. Lovely long taste. Inching through it as I type

irish_goat

https://shop.glenfiddich.com/experimental-series/glenfiddich-ipa-experiment

Glenfiddich have released a whiskey aged in IPA casks. Wonder if this is the start of more craft beer whiskey collaborations or is just a fad?

syklops

irish_goat wrote: »

https://shop.glenfiddich.com/experimental-series/glenfiddich-ipa-experiment

Glenfiddich have released a whiskey aged in IPA casks. Wonder if this is the start of more craft beer whiskey collaborations or is just a fad?

Grants were the first to produce Scotch which is finished in barrels which previously held ale. I remember drinking Grants Ale Cask Finish back in about 2012. Since then Jameson have jumped in with Caskmates, and various others have brought out ale finished ranges as well.

Some people think craft beer is a fad. Some people thought the internet was a fad. I think its here to stay, because it makes financial sense to the distilleries as they have a cheap source of barrels for finishing.

BeerNut

irish_goat wrote: »

in IPA casks

In what now?

Grants wrote:

bespoke craft IPA barrels

Smell of sh1te off that.

Grants wrote:

Seb Jones, an entrepreneurial Speyside brewer

Talk about a face you'd never get tired of punching.