On Scotch

[Casey_in_Carolina]

So, I've been a whiskey drinker, a bit of a tequila connoisseur, and lately, have been staying mostly with beers, ales and stouts. I figure that since I'm wearing the kilt now, at least occasionally, I should give scotch a try.

What recommendations are there? Keep in mind, I'm not looking for top shelf, single malt, single barrel scotch. I thinking more along the lines of an everyday drinking sort of scotch. You know, after dinner, mix up a drink and take a walk around the yard kind of scotch.

Also, what would you recommend for mixing with scotch? I always found that ginger ale mixed well with whiskey, but only sweetened lime juice was good with tequila. So, what scotch would you recommend, and what would you mix it with?


Casey

[ChattanCat]

I have been buying Glenlivet (12 yr old, single malt) at the local Sams club. I celibrate every kilt I make with a dram.

Cheers

[Sionnach]

Glenlivet 12 is good, I also like Macallan 12 (with a good chocolate even better) better than 10- 10 has just a little bite on its way past the pallate. I prefer neat, but for 4 cubes of ice are also nice.
Slainte!

[robthehiker]

Glenlivet 12 is great value. You can take it with a splash of water if you like but I prefer mine neat. I would not recommend ice.

[ChattanCat]

Aye, I just had a choclate with my drink.

[Steve53]

Well, if you want to stay with blended Scotch, I like J&B... mix with water, 50-50, or a little lighter on the h2o if you prefer. Nice on the rocks, but room temp is good also.

Another blend I like is Famous Grouse.

I prefer to mix with water, but soda is also good.

Steve

[GDub]

I like the Glenmorangie with the portwood finish.

[Shinchan]

I second the Glenmorangie with the portwood finish! It's fantastic. Very little ice only, let melt and sip slow.

[Livingston]

If you are not going to drink your single malt neat, mix with a little water, NO ICE. P1M can explain why much better than I can. If I'm drinking a blend, then I'll have with water and ice. I much prefer sipping a single malt such as The Glenlivit, Glenmorangie Port Finish, Oban, Talisker.... I have to stop there. I have yet to meet a single malt I didn't like

[English Bloke]

There are some good blended whiskys and there is alot of rubbish!! General rule of thumb, cheap = rubbish! Buy cheap if you want to add a mixer.

Famous Grouse or Johnny Walker Red / Black are good quality, consistant (and that's a key thing) blended whiskys and mix up fine with Coke or ginger and/or ice and make for a very drinkable 'long' drink but are also drinkable as standalone whisky and don't NEED a mixer to make them drinkable... If that's what you like these are probably a good choice to get you going. The real fun though, lies in the GOOD stuff!

Talisker 10 year old or Bunnahabin 12 year old are good single malt starters and not stupidly expensive but both exude quality. They are not really that much more in price than the good blendeds. Give them a try and you'll probably never go back to run of the mill whisky. (there are also many others at hugely varying prices ... mind you don't become obsessed.)

In case you do decide to give single malts a go I would suggest the following:

I don't recommend mixing a single malt. OK for blended whiskys like J-W but ginger or coke or even fizzy water for that matter will destroy the subtleties of a quality whisky. If you are going to add a mixer, it's the mixer you'll mainly taste so don't waste your money on a fine single malt!

Drink it from a bowl shaped Brandy Glass rather than a traditional round whisky tumbler (a nosing glass is even better). Hold the glass in the palm of your hand to warm the liquid and use your nose to catch the smell as well as the taste and don't rush it, sippers not gulpers.

You can add a little water but avoid ice. Ice will flatten the whisky so it just tastes like spirit. Add the water progressively until you know what's best for you, you can put the water in but you can't take it out so don't drown it from the off. Start with a few drops and add more so as to find the best balance for you... Try and remember how much water you put in so you can get it right next time. Or drink it neat as I do...

Single malt whisky is an aquired taste but once you've discovered it, it's magic. And be careful and responsible. It's strong stuff!

There's a good website run by a Dutch Bloke (interestingly) called malt madness (google it) which is a mine of useful information and reviews. A wonderful world lies ahead if you want to explore it.

EDIT: Forgot to mention. Some of the Irish Blended is very nice too. Bushmills Original is lovely neat and Jameson's is on a par with Famous Grouse for quality. Both nice blended whiskeys (note the different spelling) and quite subtly different from Scotch.