The Official Single Malt Thread

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shirtsleeve said:
Single malt Scotch whiskeys. As opposed to blended Scotch whiskeys. All of this as opposed to the unaged "corn whiskey" in your neck of the woods.

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What is this strange drink you call, Scotch Whiskey? I know of no such drink.
 
I was sipping on this by game time:

Averna Amaro Siciliano



By Robert Plotkin
http://www.amaroaverna.it
One sign that we are evolving as a society is America's growing appreciation of things that taste bitter. A direct beneficiary of this trend is Averna® Amaro Siciliano, an herbal liqueur famous worldwide for its delectably bitter flavor and prowess as a digestive and restorative. If you haven’t yet sampled this invigorating, centuries-old aperitif, you’re in for a treat.

Produced since 1868 by Fratelli Averna of Caltanissetta, Sicily, Averna Amaro is made according to a closely guarded recipe originated by the friars at nearby Convent of St. Spirito Abbey. The production process is an exacting one that involves macerating grape spirits with an all-natural array of flowers, roots, herbs, spices and dried citrus rinds. The liqueur is bottled at 32% alcohol by volume (64-proof).

Averna Amaro is a masterpiece. It has an opaque, dark brown appearance, a viscous body and captivating herbaceous bouquet comprised of fresh flora, anise and bitter orange notes. The surgically balanced palate presents a warm, bittersweet medley of herbal, spicy and earthy flavors, all of which persist throughout the long, satisfying finish.

While most often sipped neat or with a chill, Amaro is excellent served over ice, mixed with tonic water or used as an ingredient in cocktails to add a bitter component.
 
Ryan91 said:
What is this strange drink you call, Scotch Whiskey? I know of no such drink.
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Yes you do, any malt beverage, when they distil it in Scotland, age for a minimum of five years is scotch. They then place it on boats in a harbour. When it gets to the US they put it in trucks with rubber tyres.

It is typically an amber colour and a marvellous flavour, although that flavour is really from the vapour
 
Beaglebay said:
I like Laphroaig, though I rarely drink single malts.
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Between Laphroaig and Ardberg, you guys have me feeling like a single-malt pussy.

I'm no booze expert, but I have attended a couple of single-malt tastings and to sum it up I've discovered I like my single-malt smooth AKA with training wheels. My go-to brand is a Dalwhinnie 15, which has a bit of sweetness and a relative smoothness to go with the punch. Reviews will tell you that Dalwhinnie has notes of sweet smoke, strawberry and beeswax on the nose, but I didn't get anything but a little bit of smoke. Which doesn't stop me from digging it. I never get the right fruits in wine, either, but I know what I like.

There is no accounting for personal taste, but Laphroaig tastes medicinal to me and Ardberg is in the same ballpark. Like something a black market liver surgeon would put on a rag to knock you out in a bathtub.

I've heard that hardcore smoky/salty/peaty is what the smart scotch drinkers gravitate towards, but so far it's not looking good for me to join that party. I, however, remain hopeful that I can improve with practice.
 
Beaglebay said:
A direct beneficiary of this trend is Averna® Amaro Siciliano, an herbal liqueur famous worldwide for its delectably bitter flavor and prowess as a digestive and restorative. If you haven’t yet sampled this invigorating, centuries-old aperitif, you’re in for a treat.
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That's intriguing. I might have to give it a shot when I run across some Averna.

It sounds a little like the bitters that cured me one night. I was in a bar and feeling mighty poorly. I was in a cold sweat with my stomach roiling and I told my friend, the bar-T, that I was going to have to head home and after briefly describing my symptoms he poured me a small glass of what he called "bitters" and something fizzy. I'd never heard of bitters prior to that night.

The effect was almost instantaneous. I was feeling 100% fine within a few minutes. I was amazed.

Never underestimate the genius of a top-notch bartender.
 
Hawg73 said:
Laphroaig tastes medicinal to me and Ardberg is in the same ballpark. Like something a black market liver surgeon would put on a rag to knock you out in a bathtub.
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Mmmm... That sounds good. I'll have that.
 
Hawg73 said:
Between Laphroaig and Ardberg, you guys have me feeling like a single-malt pussy.

I'm no booze expert, but I have attended a couple of single-malt tastings and to sum it up I've discovered I like my single-malt smooth AKA with training wheels. My go-to brand is a Dalwhinnie 15, which has a bit of sweetness and a relative smoothness to go with the punch. Reviews will tell you that Dalwhinnie has notes of sweet smoke, strawberry and beeswax on the nose, but I didn't get anything but a little bit of smoke. Which doesn't stop me from digging it. I never get the right fruits in wine, either, but I know what I like.

There is no accounting for personal taste, but Laphroaig tastes medicinal to me and Ardberg is in the same ballpark. Like something a black market liver surgeon would put on a rag to knock you out in a bathtub.

I've heard that hardcore smoky/salty/peaty is what the smart scotch drinkers gravitate towards, but so far it's not looking good for me to join that party. I, however, remain hopeful that I can improve with practice.
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That's what is so great about single malts, there is a huge variety of flavors and types.

Just as with good beer and wine, not every type is to an individuals taste, and even if you do enjoy a variety of beers or wines, not every one is suited to every occasion.

For example, with the exception of "doing my job" during Patriots games :D I normally will only have the islay/ heavy peat type malts as a digestive or night cap. The lighter malts are more suited to an aperitif, IMHO.

BTW, if you like the Dalwhinnie, I would recommend that you try any of the sherry cask malts that are out there. Balvenie double wood and Macallan sherry cask are two that come to mind.
 
Hawg73 said:
It sounds a little like the bitters that cured me one night. I was in a bar and feeling mighty poorly. I was in a cold sweat with my stomach roiling and I told my friend, the bar-T, that I was going to have to head home and after briefly describing my symptoms he poured me a small glass of what he called "bitters" and something fizzy. I'd never heard of bitters prior to that night.

The effect was almost instantaneous. I was feeling 100% fine within a few minutes. I was amazed.

Never underestimate the genius of a top-notch bartender.
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I was in the Village on trip to NYcity and not up to my usual self, talking to the bartender cured all that ailed me with a bit of the bitters.

I also have sipped a little Ginger Brandy for a tummy ache
 
So, went up to my folks in Portland, OR for thanksgiving. My dad is the real Scotch nut - I'm more into the absinthes. We started off with a pleasant Balvenie - don't remember which one. The real treat was the Ardbeg Uigeadail. Very scrumptious. Unlike most of the earthy scotches, this one is aged in sherry casks, but doesn't have the telltale flavors that most sherry cask scotches do. Not only is the malt roasted over peat, but the water is peat-laden, too. I can understand why the flavor might not be palatable to some (peat is, after all, pretty much proto-petroleum) but to me this was exquisite.
 
So how many of you drink it this way?

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bideau said:
So how many of you drink it this way?

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A lot of what he says is the same stuff the guys at the taste testing I went to 20 odd years ago say.

I don't use the glass he shows but the Riedel Single Malt glass.

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Similar idea though, let your nose get in the glass and enjoy the bouquet.

I rinse out the glass every time I pour a malt, but I do that with water, not whisky.

His comment about adding the water is pretty much exactly what the guys at the taste testing said.

I don't use ice, but use cool water from my Brita pitcher.
 
I currently have only two bottles of scotch in my den. My tradition is to have two fingers of one of them at kickoff of each Patriots game when I am home to watch.
This is a real sherried Laphroaig. It is a single hogshead from 1989 and has been bottled after two full decades in the wood.
 
The other bottle is my prized scotch it is a rare old mid-'90s bottling of cask strength Laproaig 1966 30 year old from Signatory. This is a truly phenomenal scotch. Only 142 bottles of this were ever released. I got this at an auction 12 years ago.
 
Picked up a bottle of Glenlivet 18 over the weekend. Amazing difference from the 12 year version.

Makes you wonder why they bother with the 12.

I also noticed this news story.


Whisky saves man's eyesight after being blinded by vodka
By Matthew Theunissen


7:34 PM Friday Nov 30, 2012

Alcohol doesn't tend to make you see more clearly, but in Denis Duthie's case a bottle of whisky literally saved his sight.

The 65-year-old Taranaki man suddenly went blind when vodka he had been drinking reacted with his diabetes medication. He regained his sight only after hospital staff administered expensive whisky.
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