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What is your favorite whisky or whiskey?

ThatOneGuy

Heisman Candidate
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May 29, 2001
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And it can especially be something you can't get the US. I'm looking to pick up a bottle or two (or five) of some good stuff when I'm in Ireland and would like some recommendations. Thanks you guys rule. Well, most of you rule. Ok ok. *some* of you rule. But anyway. Thanks for the recommendations.
 
  • Redbreast Irish 12
  • The Balvenie Double Wood 12
Coincidentally I just went to a whisk(e)y tasting last night with a young Irish lad from the Midleton Distillery (Jameson, Redbreast). He mentioned they have a new expression of Jameson coming out where they have finished it in used stout casks from a microbrwer there in Ireland,a nd it hasn't made it to the U.S. quite yet. Said it was unbelievably smooth. He also mentioned that Midleton is helping some micro distilleries in the area around Cork and throughout Ireland, so maybe you could look into that. Yellow Spot is hard to get in the U.S.

Also, a tip for anyone who likes to collect/trade whiskies (not me, though I've considered it): the Midleton Distillery got a new master distilller for the first time in a long time, after Barry Crockett retired in 2013 (he was literally born at the distillery). The new guy's name is Brian Nation. They had a sample of the new (2014) Midleton Very Rare. It is very smooth, but IMO not worth the extra $$$,, and actually not as good as Redbreast IMO. It's quite expensive ($100+). BUT, he said if you can find a bottle of the Midleton Barry Crockett in a liquor store you should consider buying it. Someone recently found a bottle at some mom & pop liquor store in Colorado for $80. He estimated it'd be able to fetch $500 in a couple of years.
 
I'm fairly new to scotch, but my favorite so far is Highland Park 15. Lagavulin 16 is good, but not everyone is in to the peaty stuff. Any Islay whiskey fans here? If so, what's your favorite?

Sorry, I can't help you much with the Irish stuff. I'll have to give Redbreast a try.
 
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Red Breast 15 or 21 year old Irish if you can find it. Smoothest I've ever had. Love the stuff.
 
Popinski - Some of the Ardbeg and Laphroaig are some good Islay Whiskeys. Ardbeg 10 is pretty good and affordable to give it a try...they make some special releases too.
 
Redbreast 12
Taos Lightning Rye

The Jameson Black Barrel is pretty dang good for a more budget Irish


I had the Black Barrel for the first time at the whiskey tasting Wednesday. It was good. More bourbon like than Irish typically is. The new Jameson expression I mentioned above is supposed to be about $40, so pretty reasonable.

The Redbreast 15 and 21 are pretty readily available in the U.S. The 21 is outrageously expnsive, so maybe you could get it cheaper in Ireland. I've not had it (I was hoping they'd have it at the whiskey tasting, but alas they didn't). Dchi is the first person I've seen who liked the 15 better than the 12. The 15 is a little more bourbonish or rye like even than typically (a little spice) seen in Irish whiskey.


My other favorite I failed to mention is High West's barrel aged Manhattan whiskey. If you like Manhattan's do yourself a favor and get this. You probably won't find it in Ireland though.
 
Macallan 12 is my go to. How does the Balvenie 12 compare?

Also, I have a bottle of Laphroaig collecting dust if one of Islay lovers wants it. I'm apparently not ready to drink the sweat off a mothball covered, chain smoking grandma yet.
 
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Another for Balvenie double wood. Just bought a bottle at total wine ... 15 bucks cheaper than home!!

I really like the Michter' american whiskey a lot.

Like Seabolt ... I've really gotten into Ryes as well. Love the sazerac - inexpensive and tasty.

Speaking of total wine ... Damn what a good beer store. Just got some lagunitas sucks, stone IPA, Firestone walker double jack, Lakewood temptress and a case of grapefruit sculpin ... Along with a bottle of Winchester rye that was recommended.
 
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Macallan 12 is my go to. How does the Balvenie 12 compare?

Also, I have a bottle of Laphroaig collecting dust if one of Islay lovers wants it. I'm apparently not ready to drink the sweat off a mothball covered, chain smoking grandma yet.

I've got some ardbeg uigeadail that I'm finally about to choke down. I think dts recommended that to me. I need to remind myself to punch him in the jejunum, if he ever comes off the mountain again.
 
Macallan 12 is my go to. How does the Balvenie 12 compare?

Also, I have a bottle of Laphroaig collecting dust if one of Islay lovers wants it. I'm apparently not ready to drink the sweat off a mothball covered, chain smoking grandma yet.

Balvenie 12 is incredibly smooth. I've not had the Macallan, but I understand it is also quite smooth.
 
I pretty much just focus on the beer. I'm sure its outstanding for wine, but I'm a complete wine novice.
 
I've got some ardbeg uigeadail that I'm finally about to choke down. I think dts recommended that to me. I need to remind myself to punch him in the jejunum, if he ever comes off the mountain again.

I like Ardbeg Corryvrecken even more. It's quite peaty. As in the boil peat moss and then you get to drink it. That broke my jejunum so don't worry about punching it.

Another vote for Bookers in the bourbon category.
 
I'd love to see a response from each of you. How many bottles of whisky do you drink in a year?

Guys that can compare the taste of a dozen different brands make me think they are full of shit! J/K. Sort of. I know a couple of you, and I've seen you sober, so when does this drinking like a fish happen?

I tried Redbreast, at your behest. It was OK. It took me a freakin' YEAR to drink it and I drank absolutely nothing else that year. Not even a beer.

How can you tell the difference between liquors that kill all your taste buds as soon as they pass the teeth?

It's Sunday afternoon. Surely even the Baptists are sober enough to answer.
 
In a year? I'd guess about 10-12. I have friends and I share. They do likewise. I get samplers sometimes of something I think I might like. Also, you can buy a new bottle and open it to try before finishing something different.

If you generally like whiskey, you're the first like-minded person I've known who didn't pretty much love Redbreast.
 
probably 6 - 8 in a year .. I usually have an Irish and 2 - 3 rye on hand of various price points .. I'll usually pick up a bottle or two if I am somewhere that has a few I can't get in OK and want to try even if I'm stocked up at home.
 
For bourbon, I like Blanton's. I also like Makers or Makers 46, which is what I typically have on hand.
 
I went to a rare tasting at whiskey fest in Joplin, so I got to taste a lot of different ones.

In a year at my house we will go through 8 to 10 bottles.
 
I live just north of Kentucky and have worked on several whisk(e)y brands. I've cupped Maker's Mark in my hands straight from the barrel during the dead of winter.

I've finished a few bottles in my lifetime


There is a big difference in quality sometimes. Other times people get caught up in the nice packaging or marketing people put out. There are very few bourbon bottles worth more than $30. There are a load of choices in the 20s that are worth the money.
 
I'd love to see a response from each of you. How many bottles of whisky do you drink in a year?

Guys that can compare the taste of a dozen different brands make me think they are full of shit! J/K. Sort of. I know a couple of you, and I've seen you sober, so when does this drinking like a fish happen?

I tried Redbreast, at your behest. It was OK. It took me a freakin' YEAR to drink it and I drank absolutely nothing else that year. Not even a beer.

How can you tell the difference between liquors that kill all your taste buds as soon as they pass the teeth?

It's Sunday afternoon. Surely even the Baptists are sober enough to answer.

Lots in the winter. Probably two bottles a month. In the summer I'm pretty much a beer or vodka tonic guy.


On another note - I really love the hibiki. You can't find it now. It's crazy.

On one more note - I also really like Bastille. It's very sweet. Great after dinner.
 
I like Ardbeg Corryvrecken even more. It's quite peaty. As in the boil peat moss and then you get to drink it. That broke my jejunum so don't worry about punching it.

Another vote for Bookers in the bourbon category.

60 minutes had a great piece on islay scotches called "whiskey island". I bet you can still see it on demand. Lots of characters, and man are they proud of their product!
 
I should probably add this to the white trash thread but I've grown quite fond of Larceny Bourbon. Before I switched up to only drinking socially I was drinking about 2 bottles a month in the winter. In the summer I prefer beers.
 
Went to the same tasting as Marshal Jim Duncan...and the 15-year old Redbreast was a complete disappointment. Cask strength not being available in this hilljack state is purely a matter of allocation--those Midleton boys need some round-the-clock labor and perhaps some expansion.

The 12-year Redbreast is obviously a major success--the price has exponentially gone up since MJD introduced it to me in 2012.
 
Went to the same tasting as Marshal Jim Duncan...and the 15-year old Redbreast was a complete disappointment. Cask strength not being available in this hilljack state is purely a matter of allocation--those Midleton boys need some round-the-clock labor and perhaps some expansion.

The 12-year Redbreast is obviously a major success--the price has exponentially gone up since MJD introduced it to me in 2012.
No doubt on the price .. I was in a liquor store a few months ago and they had one sitting on the shelf for 46 or so and I knocked it off the shelf picking it up so fast
 
Yeah, the price of Redbreast has jumped about 40% since I first "discovered" it about 3-4 years ago.
 
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