E-pistle #17/11 - Double Dutch
Submitted on 14/02/2006 by Martin Diekmann, Germany
Here is a report about the first Whiskyfestival Noord-Nederland at Martiniplaza in Groningen, 10-12 February, 2006. We jumped on a train (actually this should read "several trains, one after the other") early Saturday morning to arrive in
Groningen near lunchtime. The doors were supposed to open at one o`clock so we decided to go to the venue directly which took us some 20 minutes. There we waited for Johannes and Michel to arrive and at one o´clock we entered the door. The
entrance fee was 25 Euros and all we got for that was a glass, nothing else. Mmh, that`s a bit pricey, isn`t it?? Seems we weren`t the only ones to think so because there weren`t that many people around although there was room for lots of them
- the hall was spacious. Quite a good place for such an event I think. We decided to stroll around at first to see what was on offer. A nice bar, sweets, books and two or three tables with "Scottish clothing" and then of course, WHISKY!
There was Berry Bros, Adelphi, Arran, Bunnahabhain, Glenmorangie, Cadenheads, Morrison Bowmore and a couple more all with their own stands plus a large one from Diageo and an even larger one from Johnny Walker. Not just a little larger
but very VERY large instead. In fact they used approx. one quarter of the hall. While we were there almost everybody ignored the Johnnies (who were hired models, Michels charming wife Christel later told us). In fact we weren`t too impressed
either, not even by what the other companies were offering but then we are of course spoiled by now…. But even for the spoiled ones there was a real highlight: Bert and Michel from Dutch Connection. In case you don`t know these folks: They
have some of the rarest and best bottles EVER on their shelves, all open, all ready for sampling. Oh what a joy. We quickly decided that this was the ideal place to stay for the next couple of hours and that`s exactly what we did. We treated
ourselves to old Ardbegs, Glen Gariochs, Glen Ord, Tormore and Miltonduff, all bottled a long time ago and simply excellent. Very very satisfying. At half past four it was time to leave because the organisers announced a break. Come back at six was the parole and that`s what we intended to do. So we headed out with Johannes, Michel and Christel who then lead
us to one of the finest restaurants in the whole of Groningen (or was that the whole of the Netherlands, Michel?) Anyway, we were treated to a big bunch of local specialities and chatted about world politics like the differences between the
first and the second batch of the Bruichladdich Full Strength First Release. At six o`clock we went back for a couple of final drams (we had to leave at half past seven to catch the latest (!) bus. So we approached the entrance and wanted
to get in, not knowing what was to come. We were stopped. No, the organisators said. You have to buy a new ticket. No we replied, we were here this morning, the tickets are okay. No, they said again. These tickets are only valid for one
session. If you want to get back in buy a new ticket. We were stunned. They are forcing us out three and a half hours after we were allowed to go in and upon our return they want us to pay the entrance fee again? That means 50 Euros if you
want to stay the whole day and you get nothing in return except for one glass worth one Euro? That will really help you to establish your Whiskyfestival guys… We decided to leave when the house manager (who didn`t have anything to do with the
festival`s organisers I believe) told us he could live perfectly with four guys being unhappy as long as the rest was fully satisfied. The problem might be that there wasn`t that much of a rest: While we were at the entrance and standing in
the hall later on (approx. one hour altogether) there were not more than ten people passing. But anyway. We moved back into the hall and Hans-Jürgen saved the whole situation gloriously when he pulled out a bottle of Ardbeg DL 1975, 702
bottles and poured Johannes, Thomas, myself and himself a nice glass of the spirit Jim Murray once called the best Whisky in the world. Whether it really is that or "only" one of the best doesn`t really matter, does it? We all loved it and we
cheered up again. After we finished we started our long way home. We`ve had our fun at the festival, especially because we met some of the Maniacs and had excellent Whiskies at Berts and Michels but we won`t come back next year. There`s better
places to go. And they are a lot cheaper as well.
Not that much going on here festival-wise in the north of Germany – at least at the moment. So three of us (Malt Maniac
Thomas, Hans-Jürgen and I) decided to attend the first Whiskyfestival in Groningen instead. We
didn`t know what to expect (how could we) but what we got was a day full of surprises. Here`s what happened….
We did try what other people offered though. The new 25 year old Bunnahabhain, for example
(very nice wooden box…) The whisky unfortunately wasn`t that much of a stunner. Rather good but definetely not worth the 260 Euros they want for it. Keep the money and buy an Auld Acquaintance instead is my advice (although that one does not
come with a wooden box).
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E-pistle #17/12 - Martini Meets Whisky
Submitted on 25/02/2006 by Michel van Meersbergen
, Holland
Before you get the impression the Malt Maniacs have invented a nifty cocktail of vermouth
and a ghastly blend they will force you to drink in yet another attempt to gain world control it's better to explain the myth of Martini. As you might have guessed, our Martini has nothing to do with that girly drink from Italy. No… It's about
Saint Martinus. Martinus of Tours to be precise and lived from 316 – 397. The myth tells us that he cut his cape in half and gave one piece to a beggar who was suffering from the extreme cold. Ahh, the morality of share and enjoy. Something
the Malt Maniacs
can't be accused of. We drink the great whiskies on this planet as if it was lemonade, we write about it, and share our writing with you, my dear reader.
As terrorised grown-ups our only hope lies in the fact that the same evening not so little anymore punks are roaming the same
neighbourhoods looking for their younger counterparts and rob them of their sweets. Lets say they keep each other in 'workable' harmony. To most people outside the Netherlands this may sound very much like Halloween.
Right, erm.. whisky. It was just before the Limburg festival 2005 that I heard from Erik Vanfrachum of Usquebach Society he had plans
to organise a festival somewhere up north. It had to be good and great. Not the boozing party Leiden had become. Special treats for
Distillery Societies, high-end master classes and so on. It sounded great, yet a bit over ambitious at that time. Few weeks later,
during the Limburg festival Erik and I had a very long conversation about the fact he had green lights to put things in action. It was
not exactly a conversation, more a monologue from his side and I had to listen saying yes or no to all kinds of plans he had. The fact I
was in such state that even saying yes or no proofed to be a challenge didn't seem to bother him at all. The fact that we were asked
several times to keep our voices down in typical German commanding way: Maul zu!, because it was 3:30 AM didn't seem to bother
him either. Ambitious energy. Every time Erik and I met he had new plans for the festival, the happiness about companies that were willing to spend a few bucks on a few meters of expo space. Everything was going great!
In the meanwhile I realised Groningen was not that far from Germany so I emailed fellow maniac
So, next Saturday morning Christel and I waited at a crappy gas station in the Bijlmer area for Johannes to arrive. Once he was there
we quickly turned north. The drive would take about 3 hours, including a coffee break on the only recognised Landmark we have: The
Afsluitdijk. 20 miles of sea, left-hand and right-hand, grass, sheep, sea birds and tarmac. According to some the longest legal racing
circuit our country has. During the coffee break we enjoyed the views of flocks of sea birds flying in incredible patterns at level zero
over the water. A mixture of relaxation and fascination. At least it gives me satisfaction. As Johannes told me, I'm not the only person of Malt Maniacs to enjoy a little ornithology.
Discussing Maniacal issues we reached Groningen way to early. Luckily we got lost and it took us one hour the reach the spot we
were one hour before. Some idiot chanced the name from Martini Hal (which we remember as the most northernly outpost a crappy
band whished to go and play a gig) to Martini Plaza. In front of the building, also way to early, we met with Nico Meijboom and Jos van
den Putten, later joined by Gert Ekkelenkamp of Het Genietschap. We decided to do some scouting in the building. Christel walked in
front, opening doors that were not to be opened by us - and suddenly she finds herself in front of a huge black curtain. Now what
would be behind that black curtain? Oh my, it looks like the festival hall, let's go in guys. As a blond she might have excuses, Johannes
and I are in the process of loosing our beloved hair, thus blond being not very convincing, being partially bold doesn't count at all, so lets act as natural as possible. This worked out perfectly well.
Moët/Vuitton also went for the lounge look. 1999 cutting edge interior design for a obligate Ardbeg/Glenmorangie line-up. Exception:
Glenmo 30yo oloroso finish for just 5 euros. A steal for this great dram! There were quite some more stands, however some bottles I
saw at Dutch Connection saturated my attention. At the central booth, made up of high tech aluminium and supposed to look like an Irish Pub we met fellow maniac Springbank 8yo (43%, OB for Japan, pear shaped, 1960's) - way past it prime. Glenugie 1966/1986
(55%, Samaroli, 480bts) Loads of tropical fruits after eating you way thru vanilla sauce. Nice vegetal finish.
That sudden soft spot I grew for this distillery last year grows to a feeling of obsession. Why oh why does this seldom happens with the more obscure distilleries that actually produces these days… 92pts Rosebank 30yo 1974/2004
(55.8%, DL OMC for Whisky Fair, D 03/'74 - B 11/'04, 220bts) Good whisky, very good indeed, although I do prefer bourbon matured Rosebank. In this case the sherry cask overshadowed the spirit to quite some extend… 89pts Ardbeg 10yo
(40%, OB, black label, clear glass, 75cl, mid 1980's) Even at 40% ABV this is very much in line with the 2003 version of Uighedail. The mouth feel was truly unique! 92pts Ardbeg 1975/1987
(57%, Samaroli) I understand why Bert Vuijk likes this one, lots of character… Not my cup of tea, not very much maturing here. Reminded me of a young Caol Ila because of olives in the nose… 83pts
After this streak it was time to have a little snack. The six of us went outside and tried to find some place to have a small dinner. As
luck would have it we found something very close to the festival hall. The best of Dutch cuisine, high-end ingredients, preparing and
hygiene. Now, the interior was something special. The absolute groundbreaking new 'abatoiresque' style tiling, the streetwise
neon-tube lighting, tastefully decorated with the kind of chairs our grandparents got rid of during the 1970's... oh no... I'm wrong
here, they're 'vintage', yes, that's what it was, 'vintage'. Anyway, we ordered our food in a very interesting way, kind of fusion
between a sushi-bar and a car boot-sale. Some of us choose to have a crafty variation on the single item that have put German
cooking on the food-map of this planet: Schnitzel! The 'crafty' about it was that it ended on our plates in a deep-fried state. Very
creative! Some dared to go further and decided to hava a go at a 'Pikanto'. It's impossible to describle the looks of it, as it is open for
so many interpretations, it would be an insult to imagination in general to give you my view. One of us was really in an adventurous
mood and ordered a 'Half Kippetje' -A Half Chicken- the Dutch answer to the Japanese Fugu, or blowfish if you like. It was very
interesting because it contained more bones than even a whole chicken anatomically can have. How delightfully inventive.
Our conversation was of modest calibre in contrast. The wine obsession at Bruichladdich for example, the newly released Full Strength
edition and Links IV. Was the port-pipe brought down to Oporto by a late 19th century Barcos Rabelos or a early 20th century
remake? You know, small talk, just to pay tribute for the genius of the chef that composed our meals and to show him we're the kind
of food discriminators that 'dig' this kind of protein art. My God, Thomas, Martin and Hans-Jürgen, please, please forgive me... I feel so
ashamed!! How could I know? If you dare to come over here again, I'll take you to something decent!!! Remember, it doesn't mean I pay your bills, I am Dutch after all!
Feeling slightly at un-ease with ourselves we left that s****-hole and went back for the festival. Conversations we light and
frivolous, everyone trying like hell to block any memory of this food-frenzy as soon as possible. Once past the ticket booth I run into
Govert van Bodegom and didn't pay attention to what happened behind my back because he offered me to have a go at the Port Ellen
bottled for this festival. Few minutes underway in the hall I realised I was missing some people. Few moments later Johannes told me
Thomas, Martin and Hans-Jürgen were not allowed to go in anymore and decided to go back to Germany. It surprised me, I assumed the free tickets were for both sessions that day... Too bad I didn't had the chance for a proper Auf Wiedersehen! Whisky fairs in combination with some of the Bonnie life style, fair enough, but GI's
Right ho, back to whisky again. On our way to Dutch Connection Ronald Wuyster Macallan 17yo 1965/1984
(43%, OB for Spain, 75cl) Rounded and complete. Is this the 'Macallan Feeling' advertised? 90pts I shared this dram with Joep from Whikybay.com and both agreed on its roundness. Well done Macallan. Time to go to Ronald. First we had to
try something more down to earth. I had the Bruichladdich 12yo 1993/2005 (55.1%, Dewar Rattray, D 29/04/'93 - B 28/09/'05,
cask #1558, 329bts) that appeared to be coming from a bleach out cask. Sulphury and jumpy. 79pts. Okay, time for something special: Tomatin 1965/2006
(50.7%, JWWW Cross Hill, 82bts). Colour: Dark amber. Nose: Mayonnaise, dill sauce, wood glue, honey, raisins, baklava, almonds, caramel, figs, dates. All sort of sweet sour sauces from Asia. Pistachio nuts, walnuts, hashish… Extreme and
intriguing. Palate: This where it goes totally wrong… streak of cinnamon, sliver polish, wood glue, very dry indeed… Finish: Sulphury
and ultra dry, almost undrinkable. The kind of malt you keep in your glass and spend an evening just sniffing it's nose. Points for the
nose: 81. Three cokes later my mouth was clean enough to try something new. At the stand of Bresser and Timmer I tried a OMC Caol Ila I was very interested in because I tried it's two sister casks earlier. One in Scotland and one in Germany.
Caol Ila 25yo 1979/2005 (50%, DL OMC, D 05/'79 - B 04/'05, cask #1358, 296bts) Big wave of peat and coffee and some humus playing around 91 deserved points
Three marvellous Caol Ila's in a row from the Laing Brothers! These are the points for the two sisters: Time to go for another three hours drive back home. Groningen 2006 created Anyway, Kudos to the people behind the Groningen Festival!
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Anyway. One of the most powerful dioceses of The Low Countries, the city
of Utrecht, had very close connections with the city of Groningen. In fact,
they were so close it would be more appropriate to say they owned Groningen.
In a way of saying thank you for sharing while we do the enjoying, Utrecht
allowed Groningen to use their patron and that's why you see the name of
saint Martini pop up at every Catholic corner of the city that hosted the first
Whisky Festival of the Northern Netherlands. The Martini Church, the Martini
Tower, The Martini Hospital and the Martini Plaza - location of the festival.
One more thing on Martinus, or Sint Maarten as we call him over here, his
remembrance day is November 11th and is celebrated in the North-western
and Northern parts of the Netherlands. During early evening you see children
with lampoons roaming the neighbourhoods, ringing doorbells and chanting
songs which deal with terrible accuses if people won't give them sweets.
In the olden days, oranges and apples were accepted a standard gifts.
Nowadays you have to give the little punks around 2 pounds of chocolate
before even considering to leave you alone for the rest of the evening. 
We did a quick tour to seek out the interesting bottles, but got stuck at
the table of Dutch Connection managed by Michiel Wigman and Bert Vuijk.
In case you don't know Dutch Connection, it's like a micro scale Lindores
Festival, if you don't know the Lindores Festival, it's a Limburg festival
without the unnecessarily ballast, if you don't know the Limburg Festival,
make sure you go one day! Feeling like little punks that were going to sing
terrible songs to Michiel & Bert in a few moments we went on. A very nice
line-up on the stand of Ronald Wuijster. Lots of interesting Jack Wieber stuff.
Cadenhead 'New Style' was present to. A renewed deal with headquarters in
Scotland made sure stocks are up to high standards again! Diageo covered
about a whole wall. Ranges from hidden, to classic, to the Super Premiums.
Always a nice treat. Big D also got out of their way with a lounch-like stand
dedicated to Johnny Black Label populated with hired young (male) models.
Not sure why they took this attraction to Groningen…
Hob nobbing along with coffee and beer enjoying eachother's company
the festival opened, to bad the audience came in so soon… People
immediately zoomed in on Charlie, he had to attend. Finally meeting
Maniac Thomas, Hans-Jürgen and Martin Diekmann brought us back in
higher spirits. Let's go to Cadenhead's for the first dram and to meet
the host Andries Visser and new business companion André van der Zwet.
Quite crowed over there as some of the Amsterdam gang decided to help
out in case things would get busy. A chat with Jeroen Kloppenburg from
Peatfreak.com as well. As enthusiastic as ever! Carefully nipping from an
anonymous Lowlander I decided to go on. Yeah, you guessed it, Dutch
Connection. Time to have some of the drams I wanted to have at Lindores
on Sunday but a nasty salmonella infected egg prevented… I whispered the
evil songs I sung on Sint Maarten when I was young, with success.
I managed to get the following:
Too bad this bottle was a dud… At this moment a fierce discussion about bottle ageing is going on at Malt Maniacs.
This is one of those bottles proofing to me it exists and doesn't always turn out well…
Again, to bad, there was some energy left from what was once a very good malt. 50pts
(Editor's note: Read 
To keep things in the German language…
I heard the familiar notes of 'Bei Mir Bist Du Schön' and saw a huge camouflaged
podium that failed to get my attention earlier on. On the podium there were three
women, supposedly dressed as GI's playbacking their hearts out.
in re-enactment pose playbacking the Andrew Sisters or Vera Lyn - I dunno…
I'm open-minded, can handle bizarreness to quite a level, but this was, to quote
Charlie, soo surreal. Have a look at the picture and you will understand where our
bewilderment was coming from. Please note their German caps. Perhaps this evening
they were re-enacting the German soldiers who dressed as American GI's caused so
much havoc during the Battle of The Bulge. Therefor I think that evening the Sgt.
Wilson's Army Show was actually a performance of Hauptman Weicheche Und
Seine Blitzmädel. You decide!
intercepted us and asked If we had a decent dram already. We answered neutral and
Ronald invited us from something special. We would come in a few moments, at least
I had my eye on a Macallan.
[90] Caol Ila 26yo 1979/2005 (57.2%, DL OMC for Whisky Fair, cask #1356, 212bts) being more oily
[90] Caol Ila 25yo 1979/2004 (50%, DL OMC, D 02/'79 - B 09/'04, cask #1357, 385bts) being more austere
It took me another three cokes to clean my palate from the Coal Ila and it
was about time to round up the evening. After buying 20 samples at Dutch
Connection I turned to Cadenhead. Balvenie 29yo 1974/2004 (48%,
Cadenhead, 180bts) Burnt malts, melted plastics, on top of quite some oak.
Lots of oak. I will never be friends with Balvenie… 73pts.
some mixed feeling amongst people. Lots of them wanted it to be more crowdy.
I had no problem with that. It was easy to move around, have a chat here and
there. Most of the stand holders shared this opinion. In contrast to Leiden they
had the opportunity to actually do some promotion for the whiskies they sell.
Worth every penny they invested. Also good was the fact that the majority of
the crowd were behaving very good. Hardly any drunk idiots screaming around.
I know what some of you have done to get it off the ground and I think you did a marvellous job!
E-pistle #17/13 - Convalmore Distillery Profile
Submitted on 05/03/2006 by Luc Timmermans, Belgium
The Convalmore distillery is now completely dismantled and is now being
Convalmore was part of the "Seven Stills of Dufftown.
In 1964-1965 they installed an extra 2 stills, making Convalmore a 4 still (2 wash stills and 2 spirit stills) distillery. The company was in
this same period renamed to W & P Lowrie & Co Ltd, Distillers Company Ltd before being bought in 1987 by United Distillers Ltd.
Unfortunately just before this take-over the Convalmore distillery was silenced (in 1985). In the seventies the Convalmore distillery
expanded its bonded warehouses and built a dark-grains plant. In 1975 they even built a new mash house. The Convalmore
spirit/whisky contributed mainly for blending purposes, being part of the "Lowrie's" and "Black & White" blends. Convalmore is rarely seen as a single malt and only two official Convalmore's have ever hit the market;
- Convalmore 24yo 1978 (59,4%, Rare Malts Selection) Below are my personal notes of this latest Convalmore that Diageo has launched to the market. Convalmore is not regarded as a top-single malt. It has never been produced to be seen as a single malt on the market neither, but
this latest release has pleased me a lot. Most likely Convalmore will remain silent forever.....
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Operational: 1893 - 1985
Region: Speyside (Dufftown)
Neighbours
: Balvenie, Dufftown, Glendullan, Glenfiddich, Mortlach.
Address: Unknown
Last Owner: DCL/SMD/Diageo)
used as warehouses for William Grant & Sons. The distillery established on
24th june 1893 was first owned by Convalmore-Glenlivet Distillery Co Ltd.
and construction took until 1894. It was architect Donald Mackay from
Dufftown who initially designed the distillery. Convalmore was the 4th
distillery to be established in Dufftown.
The others were Balvenie, Dufftown, Glendullan, Glenfiddich, Mortlach and Parkmore.
In March 1904 the distillery was purchased for £ 6000 by W&P Lowrie & Co Ltd. After the fire incident on 29th October 1909, which
practically demoslished the distillery, they owners decided to add continuous stills with a capacity of 2273 litres an hour. This
expirement with a column still for continuous distillation of spirit lasted until 1916, after which pot still distillation was resumed.
- Convalmore 28yo 1977/2005 (57,9%, OB, 3900 Bottles)
Nose: Slightly smoked bacon at the start with a fine layer of malt, some apricotskin, apple, touch of turpentine.
Alcohol, fine sherry and syrup (sirop de Liège). But altogether clean and austere malt, nice (22)
Taste: Mouthfilling, cake, sour apples, creamy butter, spicy, peppery, even some salt, quite Taliskerish, nice taste (23)
Finish: Deliciously long on malt with a fine touch of wood, great (23)
Balance/complexity: I like this Convalmore a lot (22)
Total score: 90 points.
E-pistle #17/14 - Ask an Anorak; 'Bottle Storage'
Submitted on 15/03/2006 by Johannes van den Heuvel, Holland
Rick
- Johannes, I have been a single malt whisky drinker since 1997 but only found your website last January. You are to be
commended in your work (mixed with fun, of course!). I find maltmadness / maltmaniacs to be the best website, ever, regarding
Scotch whisky. I have recommended them to several friends. Although I don't drink every night, I always sample a bottle from my
small single malt collection maybe twice a week. I only maintain maybe 10-12 bottles at a time. I have Islay malts (Ardberg 17, Lagavulin 16 and Laphroaig 15 and 30) as well as Highland malts (Macallan, Aberlour, Dalmore, Balvenie, etc...).
I have a couple of reasons for writing to you. First, is to thank you and to wish you well, at all times. The second reason is more of a
question. I have been going back to your site so many times and noticed your precious collection are all standing upright. In my
basement where I store my scotch whisky, the cork starts to dry out when the bottles are left upright for a few months. In most
of the liquor stores I have visited, I noticed that there high end whiskies are all laid flat on the cabinet, just like wine. So what I do
with my collection is to lay them flat for 24 hours, at least once a month and this seems to work. Since I believe that the character
of the whisky may slightly diminish if the cork dries up, I wonder if this is something that you have discussed before or have a concern with. Rick, New Jersey, USA
Johannes
- Hi there, Rick. Thanks for your kind comments - we aim to please (maily ourselves, BTW ;-)
Your question about bottle storage is actually one I've been wondering about myself. I've recently experienced dry corks on a few
bottles in my reserve stock as well - and a few even broke when I tried to open the bottle. All my bottles are stored in my living room
(of course) and with central heating the air is usually pretty dry. Now, I've always been told that storing whisky bottles horizontally
like wine bottles damages the cork, but maybe storing bottles 'too dry' could be a problem as well? I've never seen whisky bottles
stored horizontally here in Holland and I don't think it's customary in many other European countries either. But my own experience is
limited, so I've just forwarded your question to the other maniacs to see what insights they might have to offer.
Rick - Thanks for the reply. I will definitely wait and see what the other "maniacs" have to say.
On a side note, I also drink one type of blended scotch whisky, once in a while - JW Blue label. However, my friends couldn't
understand why I keep telling them that single malt is far better that the Blue Label. They probably think that the high-end price
makes it a good whisky. For me, JW Blue label is a good drink with no character and single malts like Laphroaig or Lagavulin are
excellent drinks, with plenty of character and history. So, I keep the Blue label for them and my stash of single malts for myself. Happy nosing! Drink for our health.
It seems like your words are becoming gospel to a lot of single malt lovers. Rghtly so, because of your honesty and artistic freedom
(no commercial influence). Of course, a good discriminating palate and taste buds also are big factors. I can only wish I could
recognize a few tasting notes and nosing character on some of these single malts. It will greatly enhance my appreciation and
pleasure for the drink. Whenever I taste a single malt, it feels like the liquid is talking to me about its character. Unfortunately, I can only understand about 5% of the language. I guess I have to drink more. Good excuse, eh?
Johannes
- Our words are gospel? Wow, we'd better start taking ourselves a bit more seriously then, eh?
As for the Johnnie Walker Blue Label: I personally think it is a rather good whisky - at least the batches I tried.
Well, maybe not... There's quite enough of that going on in the whisky world as it is, if you as me. And you really shouldn't take
individual tasting notes TOO seriously. Nosing a whisky is very personal in the sense that it tends to trigger specific memories
associated with a certain smell. When you smell 'rubber bands' in a whisky it (usually) doesn't mean that actual rubber bands were
used in the production of that whisky, just that some of the complex molecules in the aroma remind you of some of the complex
aroma's you've smelled in the past when you were doing something with rubber bands. Maybe somebody else smelled similar aroma's
when he was handling bicycle tires or condoms, and would therefor put these 'smells' in his tasting notes. So, tasting notes are very
'personal' by definition. That being said, you can definitely 'train' your nose and brain to pick up as much as they can, and over time it becomes easier to look beyound the alcohol and most obvious aroma's like 'fruit' or 'peat'.
In fact, I would actually argue that it is 'better' (read: overall more pleasing to me personally; you can rarely use this phrase in an
'absolute' sense when you're discussing whisky) than about a third of all the single malts I've ever tried. And you should keep in mind
that thanks to past experiences and guidance of the other maniacs I'm able to avoid most of the relatively underwhelming single malts
that are available. So, I think that my score of 75 points for the Blue Label indeed puts it in the 'average' single malt bracket. For
example, if I had to choose between a JW Blue or a Glenkinchie 10yo I'd choose the Bue Label. Well, not if I had to pay for it myself, obviously - when we take the
But wait, I'm just getting the first 'household tips' on the bottle storage question;
Luca - I simply try to remember to wet the cork by tilting each bottle for a few seconds every few months: many swear by this method... We'll see if it works in a few years! On the other hand I have had problems with overly damp corks, breaking at first opening because they were damn wet and had become soft.
Davin - Hi Luca, I try to avoid contact between whisky and cork as I've heard the strong alcohol can dissolve flavour from cork. I tasted cork when I was a kid and it does have some flavour in it.
Michel - Hi All, I do about the same as Rick does. Every two months I lay down the bottles for an hour to wet the cork. No problem ever accured so far. Perhaps helped by the fact my house has a good moist level. Some people say with horizontal storage oh higer ABV liquids the glue that hold the cap of the stopper will dissolve... As if the cap closes the bottle. In all, best is to store your bottles in a cool, not so dry place.
Ulf
- Hello Michel, The 'wetting-the-cork-scheme' is fine but cumbersome if one does have a large amount of bottles to tilt. Also to
consider: Bottles stored laying down (even for a short period) runs the risk to get cork affected by the strong alcohol, hence, partial
dissolving/softening of the cork over time (especially if made from pressed/glued cork pieces) which may led to broken corks at
opening occasion, but also leakage. 'Modern' corks used for i,e. whisky, opposed to wine, is no longer a singular, pressed/glued, piece
of cork bark. The risk to get the fluid 'tainted' by the contact with a cork, in general, is nil. The 'cork disease' is a different issue. An issue which has been up here before, I believe. If not let us start a thred on this one too.
Why not use the proven method by wrapping laboratory quality of cling wrap around the top of the bottle. It guarantees near
hermetic enclosure, even if the cork dries out, and liberate you from labour and the risk to have the alcohol dissolving the glue that
keeps the cork crumbs together. More about 'Parafilm' at http://www.floratape.com/markets_products.htm#mkt_medical. The ones I know who used to 'parafine' the top of their bottles have abandoned this method of enclosure in favour of cling wrap.
Michel - Hi Ulf, I'm not the type to carry some 10.000 bottles in my cellar. I recall saying you've got some friends who do... :-)) So treating a mere 150bts is not that bad. The wrap method is something I consider. Some of the older bottles comming from a Italian collector I bought recently are treated this way and filling levels are near perfect for 30 yo bottles. (tough all have screw caps). The subject of cork disease has surfaced on MM about a year ago, if I remember correctely, but sadly it never became an issue... After a streak of corked Ardbegs I'm a huge promotor of screw caps!!!
Mark
- Hi all ~ I do as Luca wrt bottle/cork maintenance. Just a gentle tip of the bottle now and then.
The back half of Rick's remarks is nigglesome for me too. Many shops here have their high-end whiskies lying horizontally. I usually try
to discuss the issue with the shop manager or owner, and have gained some ground there, but I can see their dilemma. Shelf space is
prime, and designed for the storage of mostly uniform bottle shapes and sizes. Many high-end whiskies come in casket boxes or are in
some fashion of a different size or shape than a standard 70cl/750ml bottle. Sometimes the only space the purveyor can find requires
the whisky to be stored on its side. Sad but true. Here in California the use of screw caps for wine has risen sharply, and with great
success and public acceptance. I heard a few years ago that there would be some single malts being issued with screwcaps, but I have not yet seen an increase. Glenfiddich uses screws ... any others? And, blends too, of course.
Robert - Just my 2cents on this =].
I am no huge collector but have a small amount of "reserve stock" (about 50btls) and some 30btls open all the time, turnover time for
these vary but can in very unfortunate cases span a year or three. Most of my "whisky-friends" (sounds a bit suspicious that word)
are in a similar situation. None of us has to my knowledge ever experienced any problems with corks drying out on us. Except in one
case were several bottles of Glenlivet 21 had this problem, kindly enough the state monopoly of the Swedish alcohol distribution
replaces these without discussion (even if they are not close to full when returned!). Anyway. Perhaps it's due to our climate and lack
of central heating a la Amsterdam? Who knows, but meanwhile I wont' go about tipping my bottles or sealing them I think.
Ulf - Perhaps there is climatic difference between the Swedish provinces of Skåne and Småland...
Here in Skåne corks may dry out. And bottles as well. . . (;-)
Davin - Yes, Ulf, I've had about six bottles go dry since Christmas! (;-)
Johannes - Well, it seems there's no 'definitive' concensus among the maniacs about the best way to store your bottles. Most seem to agree that storing them horizontally is probably not the brightest idea, though. Simply tilting them occasionally every few months to moisten the cork seems to be a better alternative - and/or use the cling wrap that Ulf mentioned. During the 2004 Eurotrip I noticed that Mr. Begnoni from Whisky Paradise in Bologna uses the cling wrap on many of his bottles. Needless to say, it's not likely that your average liquorist takes the trouble of 'profilacting' each bottle or handle them regularly, so old and dusty bottles that have been standing or lying about in the store for a while could have either dried out or dissolving corks. I don't expect this to be a major problem, though - especially if you plan to open and finish the bottle in the forseeable future.
And here's a little tip: it's always smart to save up the corks from bottles you've finished.
If a cork on a fresh or unfinished bottle should break or crumble you'll have a few fitting spares. If you're lucky the top of the cork will
just break off and you're able to remove the bottom part of the damaged cork with a corkscrew without polluting the whisky with the
cork. If a significant number of cork crumbles end up in the bottle you could filter the whisky (a handkerchief in a siphon works for me) and decant it into another bottle, but I imagine that could cause the whisky to oxidise much more rapidly than it would otherwise have. After all, that's the whole purpose of 'decanting' when it comes to wine. Since I haven't noticed any significant effect of a few
cork crumbs in a bottle of whisky until now, it seems to respond differently to cork than wine and I wonder if the 'cure' might be worse than the 'sickness' in this case.
Of course, we have mainly discussed corks until now - but other seals are used for single malts as well.
First of all, there are the tin screwcaps used by Gordon & MacPhail. I've mentioned on many occasions that I'm not a fan of those
myself because they tend to 'unwind' by themselves, allowing the whisky to oxidise more rapidly. Personally I feel that the plastic
screwcaps (with a plastic 'countercap' around the neck of the bottle) seen on some USA bottlings work brilliantly when it comes to closing a bottle 100%. They don't look attractive but they do seem to offer a perfect seal.
Anyway, that's all we have on 'bottle storage' until now.
But Olivier has just informed me that he's writing a more extensive piece about all the different seal types found on whisky bottles. That should be an interesting read...
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E-pistle #17/15 - Natural Corks vs Other Seals
Submitted on 18/03/2006 by
Olivier Humbrecht, France
While visiting the huge Torres wine operation (75 million bottles of Cava-Spanish bottle fermented sparkling wine alone) in Spain in
2005 with the local oenologist association, we eventually ended up in their huge laboratory. I say huge, because I could count at
least 30 researchers working in a building bigger than my own winery. I couldn't understand the need for such an investment before
we were told that they specialize in analysing corks, both for the wine industry and cork manufacturers. Why? Well, it is today well
known that an insidious molecule 'TCA' is responsible for a very disagreeable cork taint. Torres lab reckons that an average of 6% of
the corks has a detectable TCA level, and some 'poorer' batches up to 30%. Is this the same for whisky or other spirits with cork
seals? Only once have I been able to detect with absolute certainty a cork taint in a whisky, so it would seem that it isn't as much of a problem regarding TCA in spirits. But is natural cork still the best seal for higher strength spirits?
What is TCA?
Chloroanisoles have been shown to be capable of imparting a musty taint to a variety of foods and beverages, including wine. The
most potent of the chloroanisoles is 2,4,6-trichloroanisole (TCA). The aroma detection threshold of TCA in wine has been determined
as ranging from 1.4 ng/L to 4 ng/L depending on wine type, while 2,3,4,6-tetrachloroanisole (TeCA) has a somewhat higher aroma
detection threshold than TCA (reported as 14 ng/L in a Pinot Noir wine). These two compounds are responsible for most incidences of
musty taint in wines encountered by the Institute. Unfortunately, each person has a different detection level. One wine –or whisky- could be perfect for me an awfully tainted for another person with a lower detection level!
Recently, 2,4,6-tribromoanisole (TBA) has been reported in wine with an aroma threshold similar to that of TCA.
The most common causes of musty taint in wine are generally the cork seal or contaminated oak products. In virtually every case of
cork taint investigated, TCA has been shown to be the compound responsible for the musty odour. When musty taint in wines has
been derived from contaminated oak products (both barrels and chips, but also from any wood surface, roof, beams…), both TCA and TeCA, sometimes in combination, have been shown to be responsible for the taint.
What is the origin of TCA?
My chemistry knowledge isn't strong enough to explain the correct reactions involved.
It appears that now the barks are directly contaminated in the forests.
Lastly, I am not convinced that TCA is the only faulty aroma one can find from the corks.
In short, a chlorine molecule gets in contact with some mould and/or bacteria and ends up in a TCA molecule. I theory, if no chlorine
gets in contact with bark, there should be no TCA produced. Chlorinated water, even pure chlorine, was used in the past to rinse,
sterilize the barks. Today, this isn't the case anymore of course. Bark planks used to be piled up for months in humid warm rooms, with
no surveillance, allowing for massive mould development… and again such practices are now from the past! Peroxyde (oxygenated
water), ultra waves, micro waves… and god know whatever other techniques have replaced the use of chlorine. Even fresh spring
water is now used in the manufacturing of corks. Freshly cut barks are now quickly dried up in ovens and stored in sterilized rooms… but the problem of TCA still remains and is actually getting worse.
The chlorine comes from air and rain pollution (acid rain), and there is little that the industry can do against this!
So, what about the mould? Well, in the past, forest used to be cleaned naturally by wild pigs (ever tried Patanegra ham?) or wild grass
growing between trees. Today, most forests see herbicides. The rains hit harder the ground and spills earth on the trees… and
bacteria and mould… In the past (source: my own cork supplier), trees were cropped only every 15 to 25 years, and only 3 to 4 feet
above ground. Today, for more productivity, the trees are cropped down to the roots, which are guaranteed to be soiled, every 8 years. See the connection with more TCA in corks today?
Again, in the past, natural barks used to be left in the rain and sun for over a year so they would be perfectly dry. This would lower a
lot the risk to find 'green' phenolic components in the barks, and certainly help to reduce (by evaporation?) thent of TCA. Today,
barks are immediately artificially dried in ovens. They remove the water, but do not allow a further maturation of the bark in order to lower the 'green' components. I think that some TCA taints are in fact green sap left in the corks.
Natural cork or alternative seals?
I am not trying to find any excuse for a wine or whisky which is tainted: it is always an unpleasant If in general I find that screw caps show less evaporation and are definitely less fragile, I also
experience and sad moment, but is it reasonable to switch to alternative seals? Jamie Goode gives
us all the right reasons why one should be careful at www.wineanorak.com/alternativeclosures.htm.
Regarding higher strength spirits, I would be more careful and perhaps consider some more
aspects: spirits are kept standing up, so there should be less transfer from the cork to the spirit.
Being lucky enough to have opened a few older whiskies, I have to admit that in general levels
are less good in natural cork seals (evaporation) and often corks would crumble badly. My worst
memory was when trying to open a bottle of Highland Park 18yo 1960 43% dumpy green bottle
from J. Grant: the cork literally disintegrated and I had to filter the whisky in order to be able to
drink it without spitting bits of corks at each sip! Thank god the whisky was absolutely perfect.
I do believe that there is a bottle age effect on spirits, especially for higher quality single malts
worth ageing (i.e my previous example) and I always wonder if this effect is not accentuated
with a natural cork seal. How? More oxygen?
had a few bad experiences with faulty screw caps, often not tight enough, that would allow an
abnormal evaporation. I would sometimes go through a few older bottles and check the caps to
see if they are tight enough. It is not rare that it is possible to tighten some of them of a quarter
turn once a while. It appears that either the join or the metal 'gives' with age. Hardly good news!
Alternative seals
Sadly, TCA can give a bad taste to the wine and spirit. Question: has the whisky industry thought about this? Early examples showed actually even more odd aromas (due to
There is little experience on their resistance to higher strength Stelvin (Pechiney) is perhaps today the leader in the screw cap segment.
This tin layer means that it is much less permeable than the Saranex liner and less oxygen Glass corks
- Is this the end of all our worries, no more TCA or green Zork
- This is what Captain Kirk used to seal his bottles on starship Enterprise! In conclusion, I would say that it would be highly informative to be able to
Natural Cork
- A cork seal is a cylinder of cork cut from the bark
of Portuguese oak trees, which after treating, is inserted into the
neck of the bottle to prevent excessive interaction of the wine
with air, which leads to a gentle oxidation of wine.
Technically, natural cork creates a perfect seal that would allow
only a very small amount of O2 in the bottle, but also has a 'limited'
life and might have to be replaced after a certain numbers of years.
How would the people at Highland Park distillery react if I would go
and see them with an old bottle whose cork need to be changed?
I imagine they would be quite surprised to see me at the door...
Synthetic Cork - A synthetic cork seal is a porous product,
man-made from polymers, designed to emulate the qualities of
a natural cork, without imparting traces of product. This seal is
also lodged into the neck of the bottle, as per a natural cork.
the action of acid/alcohol/sugar on the polymers) problems and
even more oxidation. Today, such seals are only used for quick
drinking wines (less than 5 years). In the spirit industry, they
are made to look like corks.
alcohol for a long period of time (over 30 years).
Screw Cap
- The Screw cap seal is fitted to the outside of the wine bottle, to provide
an air tight seal between the wine and the outside environment. The screw cap consists
of a piece of wadding that is compressed onto the lip of the bottle and held in place by
the metal lined screw cap.
They propose two types of liner in order to give customers an element of control over
the desired permeability of the seal. The Saranex liner is made from layers of polyethylene,
PVDC (polyvinylidene chloride) and expanded polyethylene, whereas the Saran film etain
has a layer of tin sandwiched between PVDC, white kraft and expanded polyethylene.
is allowed to enter the bottle. Pechiney's customers tend to use the Saran film etain liner for
wines stored for longer periods of up to 10 years, with the Saranex intended for storage of
between two and five years. So, which one do you have on your much beloved bottles?
If it is the Saran etain, will your bottle develop a much looked after bottle age character?
Crown Seal
- The crown seal seal is an alternative to cork that is used
for sparkling wines and other carbonated beverages such as beer or cola.
The metal caps are applied to the top of the bottles, and the lining within
the cap provides a seal against both the carbonation escaping from the
bottle and outside air entering the bottle. An excellent alternative to the
screw cap, never seen it on a whisky though!
tannins, no difficulties in opening the bottles, ageless, pretty… the glass
cork is slowly starting to replace some more conventional seal systems.
Learn more: http://www.vino-lok.de/
IMHO: glass is fragile! Glass on glass isn't airtight, so there is again a rubber (?) 
seal to guarantee that the bottle is perfectly closed. What are the characteristic
of this seal? How long will it be efficient? The fact is that no one knows today.
See http://www.zork.com.au/ Very easy to use: you just pull the bottom part
and the whole thing unwraps. How efficient? I've seen some, it looks weird but
the bottle is properly closed. How will react to 92.8% Bruichladdich, no idea!
compare a similar whisky aged in a screw cap bottle and natural cork.
Both have advantages and drawbacks. There is only one thing to do:
check your bottles regularly, open them and then call me!
The Industry View - Part 1 (Nick Morgan)
Maybe the best way to know more about corks and seals on whiskies is to ask Olivier: Do you use natural corks, synthetic cork and/or screw caps? Olivier: what are the reasons for your choice: quality, image, simplicity? Olivier
: What are the drawbacks/advantages of each system? Do you feel that one system is better? Olivier
: Does whisky continue to develop/change in the bottle, and if so, how do the seals participate? Olivier
: Are you concerned with TCA in natural corks? If yes, what are the statistics? Olivier
: Even if those bottles were tainted, it is an amazing low percentage compared to the wine trade!
Olivier: Yeah yeah… ;-) Thank you for taking the time to answer those questions!
the people who use them! Dr Nick Morgan, Global Marketing Director for the
Classic Malts, was kind enough to answer my questions. Here are his answers:
Which type of seals if you use screw caps - and in which proportions?
Nick: Natural corks - of a higher specification than winemakers would use. We don't use any screw cap seals on our single malts,
'though we do of course on many of the blends. We will trial a synthetic cork on a blended product as a test later this year.
Nick:
Well, I prefer them, which is always a good starting point. But consumers do too - as we hear time after time in research
groups. The cork denotes quality, and 'premiumness', it says that the people who made the whisky care about it. And taking the
cork out of the bottle is a significant ritual for consumers - there seems to be something about this that is very special - particularly when you're opening a bottle with a group of friends.
Which one is the best for the collectors who want to keep their bottles a long time?
Nick:
I am told by packaging experts that one of the best seals we ever used was the old 'cork n seal' seal - used on blends such as
Dewar's. But the corks we use are of a quality that should keep whisky as long as anyone might reasonably expect to. But remember, we do produce whisky for drinking. Olivier: that's for sure!
Nick:
The seal should be neutral at all times. Of course whisky 'develops' once a bottle is opened (I guess you didn't mean that). It
really 'shouldn't' change in the bottle if it remains sealed, unless it's subject to extreme temperature changes, sunlight etc. You know all this stuff.
Nick: Yes, it's something we look at on a regular basis, and of course we monitor what we call 'customer concerns' very closely.
But having said that the real problem I've found here is trying to get some feel for the likely scale of TCA in spirit corks. I tried to set
up a robust study about five years ago but it was hideously complex and very costly - the business, as we say, walked away from it.
And probably rightly so - that was in 2001, and between 1997 (Guinness merges with Grand Met) and 2001 we had 246 'customer
concerns' about taste or smell, a proportion of which might have been TCA related. (You have to remember that the majority of
taste complaints we get relate to Lagavulin, normally from consumers who have never tasted it before. We actually decided that we
would use a consistent level of complaints as a benchmark of Lagavulin quality). So it's not that many who actually complain. But -
do many consumers complain - or do they simply vote with their feet and decide not to buy a product they dislike again? (which of
course is potentially hugely damaging). And can they actually notice TCA in whiskies - and does TCA appear in the same way in every
whisky (our hypotheses is that the same level of taint would be more evident in Cragganmore than Lagavulin)? Many questions - and not many good answers.
But I imagine that it is true that a 'full flavoured' single malt like Lagavulin should in fact hide more such 'faults'.
Nick:
To be honest we did have a minor problem with a batch of corks about five or six years ago which we traced back to a
supplier problem. At the time we looked at a number of alternatives but were focussing on a natural cork alternative - we did a lot
of work on the Altop cork, which according to our tests certainly had a reduced risk of cork taint, by as much as 60% as I recall.
But there were a number of issues with it, one of which was cost. So then I decided that we needed to understand the scale of the
problem, and we scoped the very expensive research .......etc etc. Since then we don't seem to have had any noticeable problems,
partly I think because I know we have improved our supply lines and are getting a more consistent quality of cork to work with. But I do get worried when I read about the 10% plus occurrence of TCA in wine ...
We will ask somebody who actually likes wine next ;-)
The Industry View - Part 2 (Mark Reynier)
Olivier
: Mark Reynier, (managing director of Bruichladdich distillery), we all know that you 'estate' or 'Château' bottle Bruichladdich
single malts. While installing your bottling line, were you concerned by various seal systems? Did you have many options when you bought your equipment or did you ask for a specific method? Olivier
: Which system did you choose? Natural cork, screw caps? Why? Olivier
: Mark, you know that more and more whisky lovers develop a passion for older bottlings. Olivier
: OK, maybe I should have specified: 'drinking collectors'! Olivier: Thank's Mark and good luck with your new plant.
Mark:
We actually have a new bottling system going in next week (mid March 2006). Up to now, putting the corks on the bottles has been done by hand. Next week it will be automatic with a dedicated machine adapted to our cork seal.
Mark: We exclusively use cork for tradition, quality, image and simplicity reasons – and I like the sound it makes! We have no screw
caps. I am concerned about TCA in general but I have never encountered TCA in our type of enseal nor have I heard of any in the
whisky trade; why not? I cannot say unless the type of cork is treated differently, or a different part, or does not react with higher alcohol?
That's for their quality but also because there seems to be a certain evolution of whisky in the bottle over time.
Do you agree? Would the seal system influence the evolution of the bottle?
Mark: We have no actual evidence of a change in our whisky in bottle apart from the recovery from bottle shock and transportation.
I have an open mind on it and do not see why it cannot occur bearing in mind the permeability of cork/wood albeit under a capsule.
It would be great if it did – but hard to prove. As far as collectors are concerned – I would not have thought the enclose would have
mattered one jot as long as the bottle is sealed, has not leaked and is un-tampered with, the value of the bottle will be retained –
assuming the rest of the presentation is correct. A collector, I would have thought, is primarily interested in the presentation
aspect, and is less interested in the taste/quality of the spirit, or whether it has actually changed for better or for worse in bottle. I
doubt the collector's market is sophisticated or large enough to mimic the fine wine trade by embracing the concept that whisky
could improve in bottle and consequently improve in value. The better a fine wine gets, the more people drink it, the less there is on
the market, the higher the price of the remaining stock. The value peaks when the wine starts to deteriorate and the value falls.
You could argue that for fine Burgundy this appreciation does not apply owing to miniscule quantities and thus the lack of a true
market. Top Burgundy, rarer than Bordeaux, is bought for consumption – there is not enough for speculation – so surplus does not
feed a market. For whisky collecting, in my view, it is more a kin to stamps, The value will be affected by original rarity – not
primarily because someone shorts the market by starting to send letters after 20 years! But who knows, it could become more like
the Burgundy market if it was demonstrably provable that whisky improved over years in bottle. But how could you show that bearing in mind the variables over time?
Have you done experimentation with different systems or will you?
Mark:
We have never done any experimentation with alternative seals and are not inclined to do so – unless something startling turns up...
I know very well what it means to have new machine that allows you to work more smoothly…
No problem. We are very excited indeed! New toys….
The (final?) analysis
Mark kindly showed me the result of TCA analysis from their cork supplier (Amorim), and out of over 250 samples, only one reached
3.3ng/l, which still is under human detection possibility. Apparently, according to the manufacturer, the level needed to detect TCA in a whisky is much higher than for wine. So TCA should not be a concern.
[Influence of the seal on the amount of Oxygen in the bottle]
Amount of oxygen that enter the bottle (microL/day)
The university of oenology of Bordeaux is comparing 9 different seals techniques on wines for now 2 years. I thought that it would be
informative to present the results of their experimentations. The screw cap systems are similar in wines and whisky, but the natural cork is different: shorter for whisky and almost always heavily coated with old style paraffin.
(Saucier & Lopes, University of Bordeaux, Average measures on a 12 months study)
Screw caps: |
0.1 to 0.7 |
Technical corks (Twin top, agglomerated cork, neutrocork): |
0.1 to 1 |
Natural cork: |
1 to 6 |
Synthetic cork (Nomacorc): |
6 |
Synthetic cork (Supremecorc): |
13 |
What does those measures mean?
Well, it takes only 4 months for a Supremecorc to completely saturate a 75cl bottle with oxygen, Frightening!
And for a Nomacork the period is only 10 months...
Total amount of O2 in a bottle of red wine
(75cl, lying horizontal, after 20 months)
Screw cap (Saran seal): |
1 to 1.5 mg/l |
Screw cap (Saranex seal): |
3.5 to 4.5 mg/l |
Natural cork: |
3.5 to 4.5 mg/l |
Synthetic cork (Nomacorc): |
9 mg/l |
The least O2 will penetrate in the bottle with screwcaps, when the bottle is lying horizontal.
Natural corks perform also very well. In 2005, a new study introduced a new parameter, and some bottles were kept upright and other horizontal. It only took one month to saturate a bottle of 75cl in O2 with an agglomerated cork, when the same cork performed quite well on a horizontal bottle. It seems that screw caps also allow O2 to enter the bottle quite steadily, but with no indication of quantity/time.
In conclusion: if horizontal, screw caps (saran seal) are the most airtight seals, vertical: natural corks could be the most airtight. Of course, for wines, some O2 is necessary for a certain 'evolution' with time. Wine should also be less aggressive than a cask strength whisky (?) on a seal, technical cork or natural cork. This is why whiskies are kept standing up, and in this case, natural corks seems to be the best choice in terms of O2 entering the bottle, or, in alcohol vapours coming out of the bottle?
Personally, I have seen old bottles in poor condition with both screw caps (low levels/evaporation and caps that become loose) and natural corks (again low levels and corks that fall apart when opened). I have never seen whisky bottles kept horizontal for a long time and would not encourage people to do so unless for an experiment. It seems that there is only one good solution: open up the bottles before it's too late!
Olivier Humbrecht, Certified Malt Maniac
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E-pistle #17/16 - An Illicit Malt
Submitted on 19/03/2006 by Lex Kraaijeveld
, England
I got in contact with them at a recent whisky event. "I know this group of people," he started to explain, "they wanted to make their own beer."
So, what's Ardbeg stout (bottled at 8.5%) like? Well, first of all, it's almost black! Tastewise, it's velvety-rich, very smooth and soft.
Notes of dark chocolate and liquorice. The peat is not very obvious, but in the finish I definitely get some dry-peaty notes. A stout I really enjoyed. Guys, you know who you are: job well done!
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We're the 'Malt Maniacs', right?
But nowhere in the MM constitution is it written that 'Malt' must mean 'malt whisky', right?
It could just as well mean 'whisky malt', right? Well, in this e-pistle it does; read on …..
One of the standholders, I shall call him 'M' for reasons that will become clear very soon,
called me behind his stand. "Look at this," he said with a hushed voice as he put his hand
in a cardboard box which was covered with some packaging material. As his hand came out
of the box, it held two small brown bottles - they were beer bottles by the looks of it.
Well, nothing too extraordinary about that, I thought. But 'M' clearly had more to say on the
matter, as he quickly looked around to make sure we weren't overheard. To cut a long story
short, this 'group of people' got in touch with Stuart Thompson at Ardbeg and convinced him
to send them some malted barley from Ardbeg. Peated malt of course, at 54 ppm, and the intention
was use that peated malt in making beer, an Ardbeg stout, a peated stout. Now why the furtive looks and hushed voice? And why am
I being so secretive in referring to this standholder by the letter 'M'? For the very simple reason that this group of peated beer
brewers did not have a licence to brew. And because I've known 'M' for several years, I don't want to get him into any kind of trouble.
'Peatreek' is a term often used for illicitly distilled Scotch whisky, so what 'M' showed me was genuine 'pre-peatreek'! Needless to say
'M' handed me one of the bottles of Arbeg stout, which quickly disappeared in my goodie bag to be taken home and tasted.
E-pistle #17/17 - Dallas Dhu Distillery Profile
Submitted on 21/03/2006 by Lawrence Graham, Canada
The original meaning of the name "Dai leas dubh" means "Field In 1921 after one other owner (JP O'Brian & Co) the distillery was sold to Benmore Distillers Ltd, an English consortium who also owned
Benmore and Lochhead distilleries in Campbeltown and Lochindaal distillery on Islay and in 1929 DCL took over Benmore Distillers. On
April 9th, 1939 a fire destroyed the still house and much of the equipment however later in 1939 the still house was rebuilt. The
distillery was extended in the 1950's and 1960's. Electricity did not reach Dallas Dhu until the 1950's and the water wheel still
contributed to the power pool into the 1970's. (The water source for the distillery was the Altyre Burn which is known locally as the
Scourie Burn.) At the same time that Dallas Dhu was closed by the Distillers Company Limited in 1983, they also closed Banff, Brora, Glen Albyn, Glen Mhor, Knockdhu, North Port and St. Magdalene.
Dallas Dhu has been operated as a non working distillery museum by Historic Scotland since 1988. Lawrence
Operational: 1899-1983 (Silent from 1929-36 and from 1939-47)
Region:
Speyside (Findhorn)
Neigbours: Benromach, Glenburgie, Glencraig
Address: Mannachie Road, Forres, Morayshire, IV36 2RR
Last Owner: Scottish Malt Distillers (subsidiary of the DCL)
by the Black Water fall" or "Black Water Valley", although some
accounts list the Gaelic name as "Dalais Dubh". William de Ripley
(1165-1215) was given lands on Dallas, Scotland by King William
the Lion. The distillery was briefly known as "Dallasmore" and it
was for a time served by the now defunct Forres to Aviemore
rail line. In it's time the output from the Dunnage warehouses
contributed to the blends of Roderick Dhu and Benmore.
The construction of the distillery was commenced in 1898 on
the estate of Alexander Edward of Sanquhar who was a prominent
Speyside distiller. Early on (sometime in 1898 or 99) Edward sold
the rights to the distillery to the blending firm Wright & Greig Ltd.
of Glasgow and the architect was the famed Charles Doig.
Sadly, the license to distill was returned in 1992. However, visitors comment that the distillery looks like it could start production
anytime as all the plant and equipment are in place. Today the visitor centre includes a shop, picnic area and refreshments. The tour
is in the self guided audio-visual style and full details including open times can seen at: www.historic-scotland.gov.uk.
Sources; Scotch Missed by Brian Townsend, The Scottish Whisky Distilleries by Misako Udo, The Scotch Whisky Industry Record by Charles Craig, The Whisky Trails by Brian
Townsend and our very own Charles Mclean writing in the Mitchell Beazley Pocket Guide "Scotch Whisky". - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
E-pistle #17/18 - Some New Signatories & A Regensburger Newsflash
Submitted on 24/03/2006 by Thomas Lipka, Germany
A few weeks ago Ingo Kirchhoff, owner of the Whisk(e)y-and-more shop in Spaden near my hometown Bremerhaven held another
tasting. Usually these tastings are sold out quickly and for good reason. Although most of the time you don't know exactly what you're going to get, except for a general topic, his choice of whiskies is usually very good.
I once asked him why he never states in advance what bottlings are going to be served. He answered that he sometimes chooses the
bottles on a whim just a few hours before the tasting, depending on new deliveries during the preceding week and sometimes … his
mood. Well, most of the time I can't complain about the malts on hand. And at 25 EUR (sometimes 30 EUR if old and rare bottles are
poured) for six whiskies you really can't complain, compared to what others are charging these days. Also, you get coffee before the
tasting and during the break cookies and bread are at hand. In addition to that there's usually a cool Guiness or even a whisky encore
to be had after the tasting. Not a bad deal altogether. But the best part for me is, weather permitting, I get there in about five to ten minutes on my bicycle instead of having to use a car, obviously a big advantage. Anyway, enough talking about procedures. Here's what we got to drink this Friday night.
Rosebank 13yo 1991/2005 (43%, SigV, bourbon barrel #4739, 27.11.1991/20.10.2005, 326 bottles) Next up was a Strathisla 18yo 1987/2005 (46%, Signatory UCF, hogshead #2378, 18.03.1987/23.11.2005, 281 bottles)
Now, it promised to get better with an Islay whisky at bat: Caol Ila 11yo 1994/2005 (46%, Signatory UCF, Port Wood finish,
hogshead # 05/291/1, 13.01.1994/02.12.2005, 1138 bottles). Aaaah! Finally, smoke, ham, peat, beautiful malty sweetness (enhanced
by the port?) which lets the new make shine through. Typical Caol Ila hints of juniper, even if only very faint. The taste mirrors what
the nose offers you. Succulent, mouth-watering, warm and long finish with hints of wood and bitter tea, getting a bit dry before the ham returns. I couldn't resist and bought a bottle the next day. At 39 EUR it's a candidate for Johannes'
After a fifteen minute coffee break we commenced with a Clynelish 21yo 1983/2004 (43%, SigV, oak cask #2697, 11.05.1983/10.09.2004, 302 bottles). Lovely Northern Highland notes: seaweed, seaspray, then developing on pears, getting sweet
and creamy and later on waxy. Taste: salty and woody, followed by a warm and medium long finish. Another very good Clynelish that was rewarded with a well deserved score of 85 points.
Now on to another "problem child" distillery of mine: Edradour 22yo 1983/2005 (52,8%, SigV, Port Finish, cask #05/0722,
23.03.1983/05.10.2005, 687 bottles). Starts with chocolate and something sweetish ("Port?" Ingo suggested grinning with pleasure
when I mentioned this). Yeah, I know, I did deserve that remark, but the sweet aromas somehow reminded me of calvados. Problem is
– I don't like calvados. Edradour, here we go again! Now wait, what is this? All of a sudden there are some cinnamon and metallic
notes. At least some development that scores some points. On the palate we have chocolate again in addition to some espresso
notes (now, THAT I like) before showing some winey aromas in the back. Let's add some water: oops, all of a sudden it gets kind of
minty. Interesting! The finish is surprisingly short although with a warm and nice burn on the tongue. Absolutely not a bad whisky, but again I'm having a little trouble with a port-finished whisky. Still, 81 points
overall after I considered it for a while. As with the Strathisla, a lot of those present at the tasting thought better of it than I did. So, draw your own conclusions. ;-) And last but not least Ingo poured us a
Macallan 20yo 1984/2005 (55,9%, SigV, sherry butt #7099, 06.11.1984/04.08.2005, 515 bottles). Lots and lots of typical sherry influences here: chocolate, coffee, leather, furniture polish, paper and lots of glue. Palate:
sherry (surprise!) and raisins. The finish offers some coffee again as well as roasted nuts and is surprisingly fresh. 83 points in my book, which is not a bad score for a sherry bomb according to my likes (or dislikes?).
To summarize it all, I have to say the overall level of the chosen whiskies was quite high. * * * * * * * * * * *
And rest assured, I've never felt cold on my way back. ;-)
Ingo had decided to go with all new Signatory bottlings, starting with a...
Fruity nose of apples and pears. Taste: shows nice spicyness and wood. The finish is surprisingly strong, slightly bitter but still
pleasant. Not shy at all for a Lowlander and a good malt to start with. 84 points.
What is it with this distillery and yours truly? I know a lot of people who just love Strathisla which also happens to be the lead malt for
Chivas Regal as far as I know. I just haven't found one single Strathisla bottling that I like. Something seems to turn me off every time
I try one. It's the same with this one. It starts out musty and rancid and also shows some hay and pine notes. After a little while it
gets milder and sweeter with a hint of wood and smoke. Taste: very sweet and resiny. Finish: very sticky mouthfeel, turning dry and astringent. 75 points
. (Take this score with a grain of salt, however. If you are usually fond of Strathisla, you'll probably be fine with this one, too, as were most of the other attendees. It's just not my cup of tea.)
Another job well done, Ingo!
Newsflash
: many of you will probably know Peter 'Pit' Krause, a.k.a. "The Dude" from the Regensburger Whiskyclub in Germany. You also might have read about the bastard Ardbeg malt 'Habemus Cerevisiam Destillatum' they created last year in Log Entry 240 in
Johannes' log. Anyway, not only is Pit the founder and chairman of this whisky club with many international ties, he also regularly
conducts exquisite tastings that often feature old and rare bottlings. As much as I would like to attend these tastings every once in a
while, Pit just lives too far away from my home to drive there for such events. However, his invitation for the 'Sweet Peat' tasting really tickled my fancy which you'll understand once you've read this impressive lineup:
1. BL (Extra Special) Gold Label (43 %, Bulloch Lade & Co. Ltd., 1960s)
Thank God, Pit was kind enough to send me some samples of those great bottlings so I could try them at home. The most intriguing
one in a way was the blind sample included. The nose led me to the most unusual associations: from potpourri smells like the ones
you'll experience in some very luxurious shops, meatball sauce, smoke (the tasting set wasn't called 'sweet peat' for nothing..) and
wet cardboard in the finish. Extremely unusual and amazing. This one didn't fit any Islay profile at all despite all the smokiness, so my
guess would have been something along the lines of the Benriach Curiositas or Balvenie Islay Cask experiments. But the solution was even more stunning than expected: I had just tried a McCarthy's Oregon 3yo Single Malt
(40%, OB). Now, the most surprising fact is that McCarthy are using peated malt from Port Ellen. A really fresh cask and Islay malt – a highly unusual combination that resulted in my score of 83 points
. It could have used a little higher ABV, but it's definitely worth the roughly 40 EUR you have to shell out for it in Germany. And that's it for this time. Slainte,
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2. Laphroaig 16yo 1974/1991 (54,6%, Signatory, Dark Sherry cask #5119, 75cl, 225 bottles)
3. Caol Ila 11yo 1993/2005 (57,8%, G&M CASK-Serie, 1st fill Sherry Butts #9924+9926, dist. 28.6.1993, bottled 28.1.2005)
4. Brora 29yo 02.1971/04.2000 (50%, DL OMC, 274 bottles)
5. Blind Sample!!!
6. Port Ellen 25yo 1979/2005 (57,1%, DLPS for Potstill, Cask Ref. 669, 302 bottles)
7. Ardbeg 28yo 1974/2003 (50%, Douglas Laing OMC, Dist. 08.1974, bottled 02.2003, 264 bottles)
E-pistle #17/19 - Speed Dating, Intro-Tastings & a National Smoking Ban
Submitted on 25/03/2006 by Ralf Mitchell, Schotland
Dear Maniacs, let me start this e-pistle with a special and significant scots word.
With the advancing effects of global warming, there's less snow on the mountains and fewer frosty mornings scraping ice off the car
windscreen before heading to work, but Scots have to cope with the miserable experience of wet, twilight days without sunlight and
only the thought of short summer holidays to cheer us up. Thats one basic reason why so much alcohol is consumed, and whisky is
the alchemist's elixir to fend off pitch-grey shrouds of dreich winters. A lot of people like to smoke whilst drinking, but more of that later.
Last year saw the introduction of some low-key whisky tasting events in Glasgow to tap into growing interest amongst the younger
generation who are increasingly traveling abroad to discover just how 'cool' whisky is, and this January, two styles of tastings were organized by industry reps: in an event called 'Make a Date With Whisky'
- tutored tastings for novices - and 'Speed-Dating' (i.e. quickie intros to a range of whiskies presented by five distillers and lasting five minutes each) for non-whisky drinkers, who looked
dazed but happy by the end of their experience. I enjoyed the novelty of this event, but as a malt snob, became distressed at the
Highland Park table as only 40 seconds of my five minutes was left to taste the 18 year old (92 points). Imagine my anguish at having
to leave it behind, or swallow the lot in one go! ( I did the latter, shame on me!). The same thing happened a short time after with a
17yo Bowmore (91 points), and then to add another dimension to the experience, an Isle of Jura 10yo (79 points) was handed to me mixed with............................... yes, cloudy Apple Juice.
Shock horror !!!!!!!!!!!! .......... well actually, it was quite pleasant. I spoke to the event organizer Susan Young, who confirmed that the event was geared towards younger non-whisky drinkers trying
out for the first time in a relaxed activity, and I could see that in this respect the experience worked, by first encouraging people to
try mixers and younger (more affordable) malts, perhaps in time they will trade up to better malts with the benefit of their experience............. then malt maniacs will rule the world, sort of!
The tutored tasting event I attended was at the Bon Accord,(Glasgow's real ale pub with a splendid range of malts), most colourfully
presented by Diageo rep: Regis, who, with the assistance of a straw, cleverly showed the huddle of Malties present how little water is needed to significantly enhance the nose and flavour range of most whiskies. An excellent event.
Two weeks later, and local venue Cottier's (an old church converted to a bar, restaurant and theatre) had a mini whisky week of
cheaper offers/free samples and two tutored tastings, the first being by Diageo rep: Mitch who led a small group of 14 through the six
classic malts range of Dalwhinnie 15y.o. (91), Glenkinchie 10y.o.(74), Cragganmore 12y.o.(87), Oban 14y.o.(82), Lagavullin
16y.o.(88)and Talisker 10y.o.(89). An informative, articulate presentation, and it was at this point where novice malties were happy
but more experienced malties felt that they wanted to know more detail, and experience less well known whiskies. The 'Classic Range'
has done well for Diageo, who are to be admired for promoting malts across the world so effectively, especially through the Johnnie
Walker labels, however, as I pointed out to Mitch, experienced whisky drinkers continue to be distressed at the seal of such great
Distilleries as Port Ellen and Rosebank. Their demise is a great loss to our culture, and the reasons given for seal do not generate sympathy,........... no, none at all.
The second tutored tasting was presented independently by Andy Bell, an 'ileach'.....that's a native of Islay to you and me!,
Originally from Port Charlotte, Andy gave a well informed and colourful talk on Malts to the nine, mainly young people who turned up
out of the pouring rain. With samples of his own choice selected from the bar downstairs, geography, history and economics were
discussed along with taste profiles, all done in an informal and refreshingly casual way, a reminder to me that big-event
tastings/tutorials like 'Whisky Live' can be intimidating to younger, less experienced folk, and can be misconstrued as snobby... Whiskies sampled were; Poit Dhub NAS (84)
.......... as all you mega-maltiemaniacs can see, humble choice for a tasting, but covering a good area of profiles at a cost of £15, and
warmly received by the huddle of novices. A buffet dinner was also provided including avocado tortillas, marinated salmon and
crouton-bites. Only the spicy rice with it's chilli pepper hotness threatened to invaded the remainder of the tasting. The Ardbeg saw off that challenge. In Scotland, as in most other countries, a lot of drinkers also smoke. Yes, fellow maniac, I can hear you say..... Surely not?
The word is DREICH, (dree-ch - the 'ch' as in loch) and it describes the general, overwhelming weather phenomenon which possesses
Scotland (and all of the northern countries) throughout the winter months. This is the sort of winter that arrives at the beginning of
autumn, and lasts to the end of spring, and it's just rotten. Scotland doesn't suffer from sudden earth-quakes, volcanic eruptions and
drought (thank goodness), but does have the depression inducing, bone chilling, happiness-crushing thing called a dreich winter.
And as a little, rather than a big 'malt maniac', I am comfortable mixing peated malts of young age (and lower cost) with green tea,
rum, vermouths, champagne, and now, cloudy apple juice. But not Pernod or absinth. So there!
Macallan 10yo (86)
Macallan 10yo fine oak (84)
Bruichladdich 10yo (89)
Auchantoshan 10yo (78)
Tobermoray 10yo (78)
Glengoyne 10yo (86)
Ardbeg 10yo (90)
Sometimes an old grandad pipe, or a cigar, but most usually, cigarettes. It sort of just goes with a pint 'n' a half (blend) or whatever
your drinking. On the 26th of March, smoking will be banned by law from all public 'confined' spaces, which means no smoking in pubs,
restaurants and bars. Bar sales will fall, and whisky consumption will migrate from the bar to the home, with increased sales at the
Supermarkets and Licensed shops. How this will affect longer term whisky consumption is anyones guess, however, there is a bigger
implication; Britain is a group of small countries who's government loves to control the detail of peoples lives, and it spends a lot of tax
in doing so. (Thats 70% tax on an average bottle of spirits). Smoking is now a social disease as much as a personal risk, and political
correctness dictates that it must be limited then eradicated. When this is achieved in the near future, our government (god bless 'em)
will move onto the next great social ill, (no, not crime), but due for control, ........... alcohol consumption.
Well I bet they're discussing it right now...
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E-pistle #17/20 - Another Amazing Discovery
Submitted on 29/03/2006 by Johannes van den Heuvel
, Holland
These days I receive an average of well over 150 whisky related messages each day, quite a few from the other malt maniacs and even more from visitors of this website. I'm having enough trouble as it is trying to respond to all of them in a timely fashion, so I rarely have the time to publish 'the cream of the crop' like I used to on earlier versions of the site, before Malt Maniacs was born. However, the message I received from 'Quag7' (parents choose the strangest names for their kids these days) reminded me so much of my own experiences when I first discovered single malts that I wanted to share it with you. Quag's story is also the perfect example of this website working like it's supposed to: helping to spread the single malt whisky gospel.
'You know what made me curious about scotch? It wasn't scotch...
Anyway, I've never seen these plastig jugs in Holland being used for whisky, even though
See, I had this party after my wedding 2 years ago and I'd stocked up on all kind of alcohol for it even though I wasn't much of a
drinker. One of the things I bought was a bottle of Clan MacGregor scotch. This comes in a big - must have been a half-gallon jug, plastic, screw top cap. Haven't searched for it on your site, so I don't know if you've had it.'
I think a few people commented on it on the old 'public warnings' page on MM.
I've heard about these plastic jugs and Rober Karlsson recently informed the maniacs
about an offer of a five littre jug of almost pure alcohol at 96% for 'just' 119,95 Euro's.
Some maniacs commented that in some Eastern European countries this stuff is diluted
with water and drank as wodka. Hmmmm.... Let's see how this would translate to the
price of a bottle at 40%... First, we have the alcohol percentage of 96%. Let's see how
much water we'd have to add to bring it to 40%. If I'm not mistaken, that would have
to be seven litres, bringing the total volume to twelve litres. So, if we distributed those
twelve litres across the standard 70cl European bottles we could fill a little more than
seventeen bottles with our 'mixed beverage' at 40%. That would equal a price of just
over seven Euro's a bottle. Of course, this calculation doesn't take the cost of clear
water, bottles and labour into consideration. If we look at that, the MacLean blended
Scotch at 7,99 Euro's would probably offer the better deal - with this bottom shelf
blend you'll get the added value of caramel colouring (and maybe even flavouring?).
I've spent my fair share of time around the bottom shelves of different Dutch liquorists.
So, let's get back to Quag's message about his experiences with Clan MacGregor...
'It's foul, obviously. It took me 2 years to finish this bottle, trying to mix it with things from time to time.
I kind of figured I just hated whisk(e)y. My parents would drink this cheap Canadian whiskey with Sprite every night, their own
personal middle American highball, and I understood that it could get you drunk faster than beer but I didn't understand how, in
movies, people would drink it straight. (I would mention here that I am drinking some Laphroaig 15, neat, just to show you how
we're going to come around in a minute). I wanted one of those metal hip flasks to take with me camping. I live in Tucson, Arizona,
which is right down near the Mexican border, the American "Old West," not far from Tombstone. Impossible to find for some odd
reason, at least down here in stores. I figured I could mix whiskey with soda or something when sitting around a campfire, like my
parents did with their cheap Canadian. My wife found this gift package of Jim Beam Black, which came with a nice metal flask, and
bought it for me. I'd tried various whisk(e)ys over the years and didn't really like any of them but I could see how they could be used in certain mixed drinks for the purpose of intoxication.'
Ah yes... Intoxication.... I have to admit that was the main goal of my consumption during the 1980's as well...
And if that's the main objective, single malts are hardly the obvious choice - there are cheaper and faster ways to get drunk. I still
feel the need to get really drunk now and then - the difference is that I used to have the urge every weekend when I was younger,
while one or two nights of debauchery a year are quite enough for me. The rest of the time I'm quite content to drink for enjoyment
and analysis; a slight buzz after three of four malts is a nice side effect, but as soon as genuine intoxiaction sets in (you know the
symptoms, slurred speech, decreased coordination, the sudden urges to take your clothes off and do the macarena, etc.) I know I've overshot the mark and have reached a point where serious analysis is nigh impossible.
'One night for no reason at all, I opened up the Jim Beam Black. If you haven't had it, this is a somewhat new offering from Jim Beam, a bourbon which is older than the classic white bottle Jim Beam. The Beverage Tasting Institute rated this higher than Maker's Mark. I know you're a Scotch man, but you can, I am sure, appreciate how someone might like bourbon, especially the better ones. Jim Beam Black, despite being cheap ($16 US dollars?), I was soon to find out, was damn tasty. I took one swig of it straight because I liked the way it smelled, and was kind of shocked. I found myself quite drunk (unintentionally) about an hour later, sort of aghast that it was possible for a beer drinker like me to get drunk on whiskey, which I'd hated previously. Suddenly, I became curious about whiskey. What was bourbon? What was scotch? What was the difference? We have a long running television show here called Saturday Night Live, and there was a funny sketch about two violent, drunken Irish friends,"sponsored by Jameson's Irish Whiskey." I wondered about that too. I always thought all whiskey was the same.'
Well, not quite - but I guess you've already discovered that ;-)
I seem to recall trying a bottle of the Jim beam with a Black Label about seven or eight years ago - I don't know if that was the same
expression, but it was indeed a little smoother than the standard white version. I liked it just fine as a 'drinking' liquor (at was
consumed during a midnight walk to an old watchtower in the woods near Doorn) when the main goal is keeping you warm and on the
move, but for 'serious' dramming (and especially nosing) I personally still prefer single malts over bourbons. That being said, I've mostly
tried the 'bottom shelf' stuff like Jack Daniels, Jim Beam and Four Roses - the difference with the 'high end' stuff might be just as
significant as the difference between bottom shelf blends and single malts. I'll try to have myself a 'Walpurgis' session with some bourbons one day in the forseeable future.
'Now Scotland, well, Scotland's a fairly romantic place. Even from way down here in the Sonoran desert, or maybe because of the climate, the mind sometimes drifts off to misty Scottish moors and tors. I heard the song 'Last Exit to Eden' by a Canadian singer Amanda Marshall, which mentioned Johnny Walker Red, soon after this experience with Jim Beam Black. I wondered about it, and googled it, and found out it was scotch and that scotch was, in fact, a kind of whisky (Didn't know that "scotch" referred to a kind of whisk(e)y. Shows you my ignorance. Most of my friends in college were potheads, and my parents were hardly conoisseurs when it came to alcohol.)'
Well, you don't have to feel ignorant if you feel a bit dazed and confused about the whisky world.
One of the main problems for relative novices is the large variety of liquors that are sold under the name 'whisky'. First of all, we have
the many different national varieties; Scotch whisky (spelled without the extra 'e'), Irish whiskey, American whiskey (a.k.a. bourbon),
Canadian whisky, etc. The production methods and even the ingredients can be quite different. Whisky is usually distilled from one or
more types of grain, but according to our Indian malt maniac Krishna they use molasses in India. But that's not the end of the story,
it's also possible to define whiskies according to the production menthod (and, again, ingredients). For example, Irish pot still whisky is produced differently from either Scotch malt whisky or Scotch grain whisky. Anyway, the first chapters of the Beginner's Guide should
provide some answers for novices in the frightening and confusing world of whisky.
'After reading a little about different whiskies on Wikipedia, I somehow came across your site.
Which gets us to the meat of this long, overly-contextual e-mail: Thank you for your site. Your site is fantastic. I have read many
other sites about various spirits since that Jim Beam Black experience, but none are as good as yours, and I keep pointing people back to your site. Never let it fall into disrepair. Your site is what the internet is supposed to be about.
So thank you, thank you, thank you.'
Thank YOU, Quag... It's messages like these that keep the maniacs and myself motivated.
It's very easy to get a little bit jaded after sampling 1000+ single malts, because as you go along you're bound to run into a few dozen
absolutely STELLAR whiskies (including some old blends and single grain whiskies) that make 99% of all other whiskies pale by comparision - the sort of stuff you'll find at the very top of my Hit List. Since I don't have the sort of cashflow that allows me to
invest heavily in those 'best-of-the-best' malts, I would be easy to become frustrated if the goal of 'my mission' still was to 'find the
best whisky in the world'. Fortunately, I've discovered that the real fun can be found in the neverending quest to unravel the many mysteries of the malt world and sharing your experiences with like-minded spirits.
'I learned mostly all I know about scotch from your site. I filed away Lagavulin into the back of my head, as something to try, but the price was prohibitive. Here, Lagavulin runs over $80.00 per bottle. I thought that, if there was any chance I might like scotch, I'd better just go straight to the single malts, and I'd better try some fairly reputable brands, but I wasn't ready to put down $80.00 on something I might hate. So, the first thing I tried was Glenlivet. Actually I had a glass of Glenfiddich at a bar. I was middling on it. This was good though because it did indicate that, in fact, there did exist scotch I didn't absolutely hate, which is how I felt about the blasted damned Clan MacGregor. But I found Glenlivet, which is ubiquitous, for a decent price (less than $30.00). I liked it. I got drunk on it. And while I realize that this is fairly gauche, it is important in the sense that it establishes the fact that I can enjoy scotch enough that I can drink enough of it to get drunk. There is a logic in these things. I still keep it around as it is affordable and pleasant, and familiar. People badmouth it but I wonder how much of it is true distaste as opposed to snobbery. It's not my favorite whisk(e)y, but it's quite pleasant and I enjoy it, so, pardon my French, fuck those people.'
Your French is pardoned - especially because I agree that the Glenlivet 12yo is a fine dram.
It has always been sort of a 'benchmark' malt for me; perfect to calibrate your nose and palate.
All the batches I've tried so far earned scores within a few points of eachoter; around the 'average' mark.
'But ah, there was the Lagavulin that you raved about. And I have been putting down about $100.00 a bottle for French absinthe
(what a brilliant new fad and industry, nice to see it return), and I kept telling my wife, ah, I have to try this Lagavulin stuff, which,
they say, evokes the sea. She kept encouraging me to just bite the bullet, as we say, and try the stuff. So one day I bought a
bottle. I'm sort of impressed with the selection here in Tucson. This is a slightly out of the way place - a city to be sure, but a small
to medium sized one (Phoenix, Arizona, is much larger). Still, I've found at least 90 kinds of single malt scotch here. Surprising.'
'Well I bought it, and then I couldn't bring myself to open it. I was saving it for a special occasion and the right company. We took a
trip to Puerto Penasco, which is in Mexico on the Sea of Cortez (Gulf of California), about a 4 hour drive from here. There, you can
drink on the beach, which you can't do on most American beaches because The United States is a bizarrely puritan and repressed
place in ways you wouldn't expect from a country that, well, has brought you some of the most spectacular war and violence, both
real and cinematic. But that is the subject for another rant (And that rant would be less an anti-war rant, and one more along the
lines of, if we are blowing all this crap up, at bare minimum drugs and titties should be way more legal. Not that I'm pro-war, but I
am quintessentially American - in the sense that, war doesn't affect me personally nearly as much as the censorship of titties and the lack of legal, quality, recreational drugs - ah the isolation two oceans affords you!).'
Hehehe ;-)
Well, my seedy little home town of Amsterdam (only slightly larger than Tuscon) looks like the exact opposite of the USA in that
respect; hundreds of semi-legal coffeeshops that offer a wide variety of 'herbal medicine' and an overdose of 'titties' at the infamous
red light district. It might look like 'Sodom & Gomorrah' to some people, but I like the fact that people can make their own choices
here. Of course, to quote a famous philosopher from Amsterdam: 'Every advantage has its disadvantage'. There are downsides to
relatively unlimited freedom, mostly due to people who are incapable of enjoying their freedom responsibly. (In fact, this reminds me
that I still have to write a few words to go with a few pictures I took last fall on my usual route from the 'Nieuwmarkt' subway station into town - it shows a glimpse of the life in this dirty little city. Stay tuned for the pics...)
'It was right around sunset and I was bounding down to the beach to watch it, and I brought a Reidel scotch glass (not as good as the cognac glasses you recommend, by the way - though better than a tumbler). Now, peat. I only know peat as "peat moss," the stuff you use as a gardening medium. I had a mental impression of what peat would smell like, or what was meant by smoke. That impression was wrong. I took a fairly large sized gulp, by mistake (I was walking at the time), and as a newcomer to Scotch in general, gulping Lagavulin for the first time is not the best way of experiencing it. I'd read it "wasn't for beginners" and various things like that, and I think I nearly threw up from a combination of the taste and the fumes.'
Indeed, Lagavulin isn't for 'beginners'... ;-)
In fact, if it hadn't been for my many years of 'training' with other liquors and the many other drinks that I had enjoyed
during the evening before I got my first taste of Lagavulin I might have responded to it just like you. But then again, maybe not - as a lover of
extremities and novelties I was immediately smitten. And even though it was even 'better' (a purely subjective term here) during the
early 1990's, the current batches are still very good. Well, the last batch I 'seriously' tried was bottled around 2003, so I guess it's
time to invest in a bottle again to see if and how it has developed recently. Stay tuned for more on that...
'To me, Lagavulin is *swamp*. I'd been in swamps before, and I'd never considered that a drinkable substance might be flavored or smell like an actual swamp. Maybe it just smells like the New Jersey swamps I'd smelled in my many years growing up there, but that's what it immediately evoked. My friend and associate, not a big drinker but typically prejudiced toward Irish Whiskey, outright disliked it. I was too busy grimacing to express an opinion on this. I was doubly upset because of the amount of money I'd spent on it. Strangely, it took me a while but, I couldn't rationalize just leaving it sit around, gathering dust (I know no scotch enthusiasts so I couldn't give an open bottle away to anyone), nor could I rationalize pouring $80.00 down the sink, so like a badly beaten pugilist with nowhere else to turn, I stepped back in the ring with it, this time with far more respect and caution. In the safety of my own home, I took the smallest sip and closed my eyes, and let it roll back and forth across my tongue. After a few of these (neat, of course) I was no longer gagging. Why I persisted, I do not know, but it paid off because I sit here now, 1:38 AM on a Thursday night, now past the Laphroaig and into the last remains of that bottle of Lagavulin. And, somehow, I have learned to love it. THIS must be how people learn how to SMOKE. Because I've never understood that habit (having smoked exactly one pack of cigarettes in my life trying to understand the allure). Yet somehow I've gone from nearly vomiting to, I must admit, a small pang of depression at the emptiness of this Lagavulin bottle.'
Ah, yes.... I have to admit I still haven't managed to give up the filthy habit of smoking.
I just love these 'dark' flavours; coffee, smoke, etc... If they ever
managed to procuce leather flavoured ice cream I'd probably love that too... I loved your vivid comment about 'stepping back into the ring with more respect and caution'.
'My wife initially inquired about the availability of Lagavulin at our preferred liquor store and the fellow there insisted that we buy the Laphroaig - about $25.00 cheaper - instead. It was, he said, "Better than Lagavulin." But I damn well INSISTED on buying Lagavulin first because of your recommendation, and your recommendation alone. I trusted you, because your site is fantastic, and you clearly love what you write about. And now I have had some 15 year old Laphroaig, and while both are more similar than they are different, I have to say, I like the Lagavulin better. I have attempted to add a small amount of water to each as many recommend to, they say, "bring out the aromas." I tried Laphroaig like this first. I have to say that I enjoy it more neat, and no one better give me any shit about it or I will likely stab them. I wouldn't say that Laphroaig "doesn't hold a candle" to Lagavulin - it seems quite satisfactory and peaty, but my point is - the point of this very unnecessarily long screed is - Lagavulin is better. I wonder what the Laphroaig 10yo tastes like in comparison (I have 15yo here).'
Well, try to get your hands on the cask strength version of the Laphroaig 10yo, I'd say.
Just like the profile of the Lagavulin 16yo, the Laphroaig 10yo at 40% seems to have grown a little 'friendlier' in style over the last
decade. Nothing wrong with that - both are still 'highly recommendable' - but every now and then you just have to fulfill a slightly
masochistic urge for a real peat monster that knocks you right on the solar plexis and takes your breath away. To me, that's the 10yo
Cask Strength - the last time I compared them it was slightly less 'austere' than the 10yo but bigger and rounder with a powerful
peaty punch. And great value too, considering it's bottled at an ABV of 55.7% these days. And after that, you might want to think
about trying another fairly 'extreme' style of single malt; a heavily sherried one. One of the major projects I have planned for the
future is trying to figure out some sort of 'classification' of different malt whisky aroma and flavour profiles. I know that's a bit like
re-inventing the wheel, but I'd like to try. If we paint the picture in the broadest possible strokes, I guess you could identify five styles; 1) light (like some young Lowlanders or older grain whiskies), 2) medium
(like many Speysiders), 3) heavy (like a few Highland and Island malts), 4) peaty (most of the Islay bunch) and 5) sherried (by which I mean 'heavily sherried' - more than just a
'minor factor' in the vatting). Needless to say, this is a gross over-simplification of the wide variety in character, but it's a point to start. (Check out
chapter 7 of the Beginner's Guide for some examples for each style.) For me, one of the things that has so far
prevented me from being 'cured' of my malt mania is the enormous variation in character and style that can be found in single malts.
'Anyway -- Thank you again for your superior site. Please keep updating it and keep it alive.
It's a treasure, and the best evangelical resource for scotch whisky I've found (Why scotch and not Scottish Whisky?).
And you're right about Lagavulin. I've only had a few scotches so far:
- Macallan (Not as impressed as I felt I should be based on what I've read)
- Dalwhinnie (eh. I can appreciate how someone would like this but it's not to my taste)
- Glenlivet (Comfortable, familiar. Nothing exciting, but soothing in a "comfort drink" kind of way).
- Lagavulin (My pupils dilate as I actually, literally taste the country - the land - of Scotland. Oh, how I wish for wetter, foggier climates. I would love to drink this on a miserable, rotten, cold, rainy day, in front of a fireplace).'
Well, we've just seen the last (hopefully) of six months of that miserable, rotten weather here in Holland ;-)
And if it's swamps you're interested in; as countries go you can't get much swampier than Holland. Almost half the country is located
below sea level and although most of it is kept dry by the modern successors of the windmills we have our fair share of boggy and
swampy parts. I can tell you from personal experience that it's a nasty job traversing the swamplands, both in summer and in winter.