Your personal favorite single malt scotch

[Jock Scot]

I feel like this is the perfect thread to ask a question I have been searching for answer for about a month now. I would like to start enjoying Scotch as I have only heard great things (typically my drink of choice is a big pint of Guinness or Murphys). I recently Tried a Glenlivet 12 yr and it seemed a bit harsh. But I was told not to be discouraged.

Any suggestions for [sober] piper who is looking for a smoother Scotch to end his evenings with?

Slainte M'Hath

Try, Jura.

[Joseph McLaren]

Caol Ila 18-year-old for me.

[TheSp8]

Top two would be Laphroaig 10 cask strength and Lagavulin 18.
Had a MacAllen 21 on my birthday. It was great but I can only afford that one by the dram. Best price I found online was $450 a bottle.
Dalwhinnie 15, enjoyed by my wife and I with fresh strawberries.
Glen Rothes for a Speyside malt.
We have many others in the cabinet to suit mood but if I was limited to one it would be one of the first two.
My Single Malt education was greatly enhanced by a week stay at Ferintosh Guest House under Robertson's tutelege.

YMOS,
Tony

[Old Hippie]

I would like to start enjoying Scotch as I have only heard great things...

You can make quite a study of it. I have heard the Glenlivet described as a good "starter" single-malt Scotch along with Glenfiddich and MacAllan. Not that they are particularly gentle, but they are fairly commonly available and most people are likely to have seen them.

The distinguishing characteristic of Scotch is the use of burning peat to dry the malt.

One of the difficulties of finding your favourite Scotch is that you may be buying a lot of expensive stuff looking for the perfect one. You can minimize this a bit by making friends with people who will invite you over to taste their favourites. Seriously! Scotch drinkers are evangelists.

Go at it systematically, asking them what it is about *this* one that they like, what factors influence their choice, and so on. Do a bit of reading in a good book about single malts to learn the regions and the general characteristics of Scotches from each region. Hopefully your friends will encourage you to share your observations, with no overt investment in whether you're using the "right" terminology. Of such experiments do you refine your taste and expectations.

What you're trying to do is develop your taste, and then discover what matches your taste.

My taste is for Islay malts, which to some other tastes might be execrable. I like the rough and blustery character, the salt sea and the screaming wind, the peat smoke breaking off sharp against the tongue.

I started on Glenfiddich's basic 12 year old, which you may find a useful starting point yourself. Lately, I've added Grant's Ale Cask Reserve (a blended Scotch) to my sideboard. I find it to be a pleasant, complex, and convivial tipple, and I still cherish the taste of Lagavulin 16 and Laphroaig 15 for those times when I really want to give the tastebuds a tickle.

[SFCRick]

last night I hit on a perfect (to me) combination, I had a 12 YO MacAllen and a Honduran Mamora churchill cigar- these two complimented each other amazingly well.
One of the finest combos I have ever had. I know this will never repeat since every cigar is a wee bit different and other variables also can change it.

[ForresterModern]

My wife likes her scotch particularly light and soft without the smoky peaty afterbite of many of the "classics", and we drink ours neat. The best readily obtainable reasonably priced and smoother tasting single malts we have come across and have in our collection (40 something bottles strong and getting bigger) are Auchentoshan and Tobermory. A general rule of thumb is the lighter the color the lighter the taste. Also you might try Irish whiskies which are malted over oak charcoal instead of peat, and thereby incur a lot less of the darkening and bittering peat elements entering into the malt from which the scotch is made. Irish whickies tend to be very light colored and flavored as well---try Clontarf, our favorite for a lite Irish single malt. Beats the pants off Jamesons and Bushmills IMHO.

Another suggestion for scotch tasting which will help you get the most out of your tastings---take a small swig and thoroughly wash your mouth and whole tongue with it first to awaken all your tastebuds before slowly swallowing. The first taste of straight scotch can startle your tastebuds a bit so do not trust this first taste, just get it around your mouth a bit and over the back of your tongue. Take a few deep breaths to forget that first taste, then try a nice sized sip for the second taste, and as it coats your mouth and tongue it will likely have a much better taste to it than the first, and you will be able to enjoy its full flavour.

[The Soup Dragon]

You can make quite a study of it.

Great advice, and I take it with open ears and an open mind. I did some research and heard that Whisky from Islay is a bit less harsh. In doing so I bought a 12YO Bowmore as i read the back and it sounded delicious. While I loved the taste, I was overwhelmed by the "peatiness". No necessarily a bad thing, I quite enjoyed the taste, however, I could not stomach more than a small glass.

I get this rot-gut felling in my stomach when I drink Whisk(e)y. This may date back to one unexperienced night in Undergrad. when I was drinking away engineering sorrow and not drinking to enjoy (never make this mistake again). Now, older, wiser, curious and drinking for pleasure, I really want this to be a go to night cap.

Any thoughts?

[Tony Miles]

Great advice, and I take it with open ears and an open mind. I did some research and heard that Whisky from Islay is a bit less harsh. In doing so I bought a 12YO Bowmore as i read the back and it sounded delicious. While I loved the taste, I was overwhelmed by the "peatiness". No necessarily a bad thing, I quite enjoyed the taste, however, I could not stomach more than a small glass.

I get this rot-gut felling in my stomach when I drink Whisk(e)y. This may date back to one unexperienced night in Undergrad. when I was drinking away engineering sorrow and not drinking to enjoy (never make this mistake again). Now, older, wiser, curious and drinking for pleasure, I really want this to be a go to night cap.

Any thoughts?

try some water in your scotch - start with a tablespoon or 2 in an ounce and adjust to taste - I know some people who enjoy a 50/50 mix of water and scotch - i prefer mine neat for the most part but some that are bit "hot" or too young I'll put a dab of water

[ziggy]

Now of course I can only suggest based on the scotches I have tried \ have access too here, so others can expand on this. Generally the older it is, the smoother it is, though you'll sometimes find a younger scotch that behaves like an older scotch in terms of harshness, and vice versa as well...

Having said that, what's the price range? For a cheaper bottle, Glenmorangie original is an incredible for the buck, being only a 10, but exceptional in terms of flavor and harshness.... now if you want smooth, and don't mind paying a bit more for it, the first that comes to mind is the highland park 18, I know where I live, it's priced extremely well for what's in the bottle, not sure about your location.

Just remember, generally speaking, you get what you pay for is a valid rule with scotch, with some exceptions.

[Jack Daw]

My favorite is Macallan 18, but I put Macallan 12 in my games flask to share. I have several bottles of various single-malts (and a couple of blends, too) on the top of my kitchen cabinets. My latest discoveries are: Springbank 15; Springbank 12; and, a new one I've never heard of before - Battlehill. I very much like the Spr. 15, sorta like the Battlehill, and have not tried the Spr. 12, yet.

Don't spit out all the blends - Famous Grouse and Black Bottle are good for mixed drinks, like the now uncommon Rob Roy, with which I like to challenge bartenders' knowledge.