Are there any purchases you regret making?

The recent post 1990s fire Heaven Hill distillery Old Fitzgerald wheated bourbons have all left me cold (yes, even the Old Fitz 12 yo). Jim Murray says they are getting better. It will be a long time before I consider buying a bottle of any of them, though. That said, that same distillery does produce the excellent Parker's Heritage 10 yo wheated bourbon. Time will tell. Most likely they will get better. Heaven Hill does have quite a few very good products.

i've never purchased a bottle that i later regretted. i usually do some research first, and i know what i like (everything?), so i've yet to experience a great disappointment. however, i do have regrets regarding how much i've paid for certain bottles. i live in ontario, canada, and until i move i will be one frustrated whisky drinker.

@stakenblocken Like you, I struggled with my Jura Superstition too. It took me about half the bottle and six months to start appreciating it, and now, while it's not my preferred flavour profile, I appreciate it for what it is.

Being a young whisky drinker I don't really regret making any purchases because they're all either new or different experiences for me. In my opinion, in order to become a true connoisseur one must try as much as possible and have all these different experiences to recall, much like was said about your bottle of Laphroaig 10. If we're talking financial regret, I'm sure everybody has a bottle or two they wish they didn't purchase.

Bunnahabhanin 12, Ralfy tricked me! The 12 yo seems interesting enough untill a terrible aftertaste hits you! You are much better off spending the extra money for the Bunnahabhain 18 og 25, which both are wonderfull drams.

I have only ever had 1 bot. of un-drinkable Malt: That was a Bowmore Legend; it was truly vile but all due respects to Morrison, it was replaced with 2 bot. of a very tasty !5yo. I bot, Darkest, 1 bot. Mariner & of course, I was delighted. Their explanation "...ongoing problems with a bottler". (?) The whole process was a protracted affair but we had a good outcome!

Previous to this poor sample we had several excellent Whiskies from Bowmore, all the Legend bottling, then the disaster. My eldest picked-up on the fact that all the good samples were pale lemon and that the foul sample was a deep and none too bright gold! We purchased several bottles of Legend subsequent to this event and they were all excellent (very fine and beautifully peated), but we did steer clear of the darker version - Once the penny dropped, it was very obvious, indeed.

Only one so far. Bowmore Legend. Horrible medicinal, iodine aftertaste. I do like other Islay malts though, just not this particular drop - I'll be steering clear of Bowmore for a while. That 12yo Bowmore I have on my shelf will probably remain unopened for at least a couple of years yet, just in case it brings back memories of the (not so) Legend.

The first (and only) bottle of McClelland's Islay. No matter how cheap the price, it was money wasted.

The second bottles of Bowmore 15 Darkest and Macallan 12. I should have trusted my dislike for them with the first bottle.

Two regrets so far. The first is Black Bull 12. Drinking it is like getting kicked in the teeth, and not in a good way. It is growing on me like a fungus though. One good thing about it is it works well in a Scotch Ball recipe.

My second regret is Edradour 10. I tried it as part of a night of sampling with friends and I thought it was fine. Tried it later at home with a clear palate and was very disappointed.

Knappogue Castle 1995. I find it a bit lacking in body... its quite a grassy single malt. It's the only way I can describe it.

Laphroaig 10 was a regret for me , I am a big fan of Islay but this did nothing for me. After trying it on several different evenings I gave it to a friend who loves it. I love Ardbeg and Lagavulin so I thought the Laphroaig would be perfect for me .....not so

I think the only bottle that disappointed me was the original Bunnahabhain 12 year. That was remedied with the updated release : )

A couple bottles - McClelland's Lowland. Sometimes you get what you pay for. Just a terrible taste, no real flavor. Second was a Dewar's White Label. Bought it to have something to have as a mixer. Definitely a waste of $30. Just a horrible palate. Medicinal and alcohol were the only two flavors I can really remember from the bottle.

It's hard to regret something too much that only cost US$20 as some of these did but in order of most to least regrets I would say these four: McClellands Islay (just awful, borderline undrinkable), Bowmore Legend (an older McClellands Islay I would reckon but still not very good for the money), Pendleton Canadian, and Knappogue Castle 1995 (expensive but extremely light).

Fettercairn Fior: tastes like some of the cheap sugar-cane "whisky" one finds in India, with an added dollop of caramel flavouring. Other than that most initial disappointments were forgotten once the bottle had been open a few weeks and had had a chance to oxidize.

I read through this entire thread and actually like everything listed here so far. I may be more forgiving than most. In fact some list are personal favorites: Edradour 10, Bunnahabhanin 12 and Bowmore Legend. I guess I am a bottom feeder. However, I did not see listed something I'll never buy again: Anything from Speyburn. Yuck. Then again I tried their cheapest entry stuff, the "Singleton". I'm betting their older offerings are much better otherwise they wouldn't still be around. And as for stakenblocken disliking Laphroaig 10, well, that's fine, it just means more for me!

@Wodha, it is a fortunate man who can enjoy everything which life has to offer!

A few years ago I made a few purchases which I regarded as mistakes - wasn't a massive fan of Jura Supersition, and in Australia I bought a Benriach 10yo which was just totally insipid (although since the changeover their whisky's improved dramatically), and I wasn't totally turned on by the Glenturret 10 I bought either.

I've found that an excellent way to avoid making these sort of costly mistakes is to take advantage of being able to buy whisky samples instead of entire bottles, via programmes such as Master of Malt's Drinks By The Dram (www.masterofmalt.com/samples/), The Whisky Tasting Club (thewhiskytastingclub.co.uk), or Whisky Samples (whiskysamples.eu).

Another good idea is to get involved in a tasting club (e.g. Whisky Squad - www.whiskysquad.com), or get in contact with your local whisky specialist about tasting evenings they might be running.

Or, get some mates together and club in to buy a bottle - then you can try it together, compare notes, and have more fun. And in some cases, that can lead to accidentally starting your own tasting club...

I will add my voice to those who named Jura Superstition. It is probably the least enjoyable, and least memorable whisky I have had. If we are talking all spirits, then Makers Mark, with the red seal. I managed to drink two half drams of this filth, on both occassions emptying the second half of the glass down the drain, before giving the bottle away to a random visitor. I would have gotten more satisfaction out of setting fire to the money I paid for the bottle.

@Peatpete Ah, the sweet smell of burning banknotes :)

There are ways to avoid disappointment, that is tasting a dram before purchasing a bottle. That is pretty obvious, of course, but not always possible. So disappointements are part of the journey. For example, my Dad went to Czech Republic and brought back both the Gold Cock blend and Gold Cock single malt, both from R. Jelinek distilleries. I cannot even give that stuff away. Luckily I often host tastings in which I can then use this as a study object of aqua horribilis.

Glengoyne 14Yo. Purchased in a litre bottle from the duty free shop at Innsbruck airport. I'd never seen a 14yo expression before and assumed that anything from Glengoyne would be good quality. How wrong I was. A bland whisky best avoided. In future I'll be very weary of unheard of expressions only to be found at airports! Got a Glenfarclas 12yo litre bottle at the same time, so it wasn't a total loss. Cheers.

Kilbeggan--feinty, nasty nose. Clynelish--not bad, but not worth the money. Bernheim Wheat--what a bore. Pappy Van Winkle 15--turns out I just don't like wheated stuff. Finlaggen--ugh.

What an amusing & controversial discussion ! :) First some comments: I wish we lived closer to each other ... I could take your "aqua horribillis" (that was good @markjedi1) off your hands, and you could perhaps have my rejects :)

OK ... Jura Superstition is one of my all-time favorites. I love those captivating, sweet & complex, medium peated/smoky malts, like Longrow CV, Ledaig 10, Ardmore Trad Cask, Bruichladdich Rocks, Springbank 10 etc. Laphroaig 10 if different from other Islays, and nice now and then, but Laphroaig Qtr Cask is the Laphroaig of choice for me.

I recently picked up a bottle of Knappogue Castle 1995, which I do like; I now have a fair collection of Irish whiskey, and have come to find an inherent grassy character in most non-sherried bottles ... just the way it is. And I do like Kilbeggan. Also Bunnahabhanin 12 (the old 40% expression) is a favorite of mine ... the bottle nose smells like chocolate fudge every time; but a sad day is coming, as my bottle has mostly fumes left. Singleton 12 is another soft sherried single malt, which someone mentioned, which I also enjoy very much. Oh, and save me your discarded Macallan 12s ... I guess I like sometimes like the soft sherrieds :)

Finally, there is Bowmore 15 Darkest, which at worst I find problematic ... but then there are days when I appreciate the challenge of such an intriguing whisky, and the task of trying to understand it :)

I'll discuss what I don't like ( or willing to give away ) in my next post ...

I have too many bottles that I wish I could have sampled first ... not as easy in the States though. But I do have to preface my list with the fact that, over a couple of years I try these rejects now and then, and if I don't compare them to much to my loyal guard, I can find merit in most of them ... for what they are. Well, except for Red Stag, a cherried bourbon by Jim Beam ... just absolutely aweful with no redeeming value.

Whiskies that I often don't care for, and regret buying, are often the unremakable lighter ones, such as Glenkinchie 12, Dalwhinnie 15, Dalmore 12, Tobermory 10, Tomatin 15, and Auchentoshan Classic. But then again, if sampled alone, now and then, each has something to offer.

Bourbons (and similar) which i rarely sample (and offer for sale or trade), are Four Roses Sing Barrel and Small Batch, Hirsch Special Reserve American Whiskey, Old Forester 100, Ridgemont Reserve 1792, Rock Hill Farms Single Barrel, Rebel Reserve, Bernheims Wheat, Jefferson's Presidential Select, Knob Creek, Blantons Single Barrel and Wild Turkey Kentucky Spirit. And of course this includes numerous bottles of bourbons meant for mixing.

Then there are the bottles that I rarely sample, but I am happy to have tried for their novelty and uniqueness, such as Yamazaki 12, Wasmunds Single Malt Whiskey, Stranahan's Colorado Whiskey, and Harrison's Indiana Bourbon. But I would not replace any of these ... but they would never need replacing :)

Winners for most regrets, when including the cost factor: Hirsch Spec Res American Whiskey, Jefferson's Presidential Select and Macallan Fine Oak 15.

And my nomination for most heretical regret: @CharlieDavis and Pappy Van Winkle 15 ... Yikes Charlie !! :) ... but appreciate your honesty :)

Anyone up for a swap-meet somewhere ?? :)

@AboutChoice Can I have your Stranahan's?

Charlie, I'd actually like to hang on to my Stranahan's, as it is good to offer to friends to try, and for when I really want something unique & different. I think I recall that you are part of the Stranahan's team ! But if you are even in MI, I'll have a generous dram waiting for you !

@AboutChoice I was kiddin' anyway, pal. You are, however, welcome to my Pappy's if you are ever in Colorado.

I must be in a distinct minority, but I have had a bottle of A'Bunadh batch #21 for two years now and it is still almost half full. I have just never liked the back end of this one on the palate. I find the sherry and the high ABV just too overpowering. Maybe 21 was just not a good batch. I did try a dram with about a quarter oz. of Uigeadail mixed in and I must say that really tuned it up nicely.

Glen Moray 12, at least at first. When I first opened the bottle it seemed to harsh to me. It was a struggle to drink it. However, after a while it became somewhat enjoyable from time to time.

Hirsch Selection 20 Year old straight Bourbon - overpriced and instantly forgettable bottle which reminded my of burnt glue. As I really liked the older Hirsch Bourbons (16 Year old ...) this was a very big disappointment.