Plans / Resolutions for 2019

@Nozinan - I really should have waited, shouldn't I?

As I said on the 2018 thread, no 'set in stone' iron test of will but . . . There are a group of around 6 - 7 whiskys that I have on the list that I hope to buy. There are also one or two bottles that don't come up often that, if I see them, I'll snap up.

Hoping to buy less than ten (but hoping a few more come as gifts)!

I don't know If I will be able to make any credible plans after the last year (at least it wasn't as ridiculous as my 2015-16 inventory explosions).

I still hope to have fewer or equal unopened bottles by the end of the year. Part of this will be aided by bottles I had wanted to open but never had time to. Plus after the purchases from last year there just isn't much on my radar.

I have specific plans to open 11-13 bottles:

• 3 Amruts (IS / Portonova / Bangalore Tiger)

• Cadenheads Linkwood (thanks @bluenote for recommending)

• Ardbeg Corryvreckan (and possibly the 10 YO in my collection)

• Hibiki Harmony Master's Blend (my Secret Santa gift)

• One of the 2 JW Blues I received this year

• Little Book

• A'Bunadh batch 50 (when I turn 50)

• Canadian Rockies 21 (gift from @nosebleed)

• 2017 Laphroaig Cairdeas Fino Sherry

• Jefferson's Reserve I got as a gift

  In terms of finishing bottles, I have 9-12 that may reasonably be emptied (a little less than last year), so I may not make the goal of having equal or fewer opened bottles.

In terms of purchases:

• I expect to want 2-3 of the Lot 40 CS if I can get them and the price doesn't go up

• An additional Naarangi IF available and affordable

• Possibly a Little Book

• 1-2 unforeseeable things I will come across

I would like to commit myself to starting to drink down the collection because without that aim things can get out of control. But I think I need to stress less about it. As I learned this year, opportunities may arise...

The one new thing I plan to do is generate new data. Over the years I've estimated the number of years worth of whisky I have by guessing how much i drink in a year.

This year I plan to track the amount I actually drink (or rather, pour) from my collection, for me, and for others, to get a better idea about actual throughput, and how the number of CCs out compares with the number in.

I'm also going to try to to keep closer track of how much I drink (both at home and away). I certainly don't think I'm at a dangerous level, but I think I might be be surprised at the total I drink. By tracking this yearly (smaller sampling would be inaccurate for me) I will know how much but also whether it is creeping up.

So these are my plans. More plans than goals this year.

Happy New Year everyone!

@Nozinan Except for one possible tasting session at some point in the month, I will try to go dry for January prior to spending the month of February over indulging in Mexico. I have until midnight tomorrow to eat my last bag of potato chips and taste as many of my favourite drams before the wagon rolls up. As far as buying goes, I will try to resist the temptation until I have dealt with a lot more of my existing open inventory. We'll see how it goes. Sounds easy, but willpower has not been one of my strong points lately. If only it didn't taste so damn good!

I wish you and your family a happy and healthy new year and look forward to more stimulating discussions on connosr in 2019.

Slainte.

As I managed to keep my new purchases in 2018 quite low (a total of two bottles) I figure I'll try to maintain that level, and allow myself a budget of two new bottles this year as well.

We'll see if I'll manage to stick to that this year, but I have reasonably high hopes as last year it was surprisingly easy. Although, not being around on Connosr very much made that infintely more true, so if I find myself here more this year I suspect I may fall prey to that ever powerful FOMO.

I have a habit of if I find a bottle I like going out and buying 2 or 3 more bottles. I'm going to try to reduce that in 2019 to if I find a bottle I Iove maybe just buying one more for later. I think I get more enjoyment out of opening a new bottle of something I end up liking than opening a bottle of something I've had before and know I like.

So I'm going to try and make 2019 a bit more about discovering new whiskies. Trying new distilleries, broadening my horizons beyond Scotland a bit.

The 2 indy bottles I've opened so far were both excellent. So I'll definitely be buying a few more indy bottles, I want to try a cadenhead or two for starters.

Finally, I've not had a lot of whisky over 20 years before so I'd like to buy a bottle or two that's a bit older. But older whisky is right at the limits of what I am able and capable of paying for a bottle so I'll need to choose carefully there. I think independent bottlers will come in useful there as their older whiskies are usually better value for money.

Happy new year everyone!

@Wierdo - I'm the same with older whiskys. There's a Ben Nevis 20 IB on MoM that I'm keeping an eye on for maybe a birthday treat but it's £135 - so way above what I'd normally pay, and I'd want to try the 10 first.

Speaking of BN 10 - I just noticed a 10 cask strength (batch 1) on MoM for nearly £100. Is it me or is tripling the price for what is essentially (I'm presuming) the 10 at CS a little bit 'rich'?

And so as I don't stray too far off the OP - another resolution for 2019 will be to call out producers when they decide to suddenly whack up their prices or ask silly money for a young NAS etc etc. I've started early

@RianC @Wierdo I think you do better price wise with the IBs for aged offerings and they are usually more interesting than the OBs. If you can try the cask strength Glencoe that comes out of Ben Nevis I'm sure it's far less than 100 quid and I think you would like it. I think it is 8 years old.

Happy New Year Lads.

@BlueNote - I've been looking at that actually. I remember someone saying it was a good drop but I couldn't find the comment. Only about £33 as well.

It says it's a highland malt blend - what was your take on it? The reviews on MoM are all positive.

@RianC I bought a couple of miniatures of the Glencoe and a couple of the 10 year old last year at the distillery and after downing them in short order I was wishing I’d bought a full bottle of each. I don’t recall enough to give you detailed tasting notes, but I thought at the time that I would rate them both easily in the mid to high 80s. I think at £33 you can’t go wrong.

@BlueNote thanks for the recommendation on the Glencoe. Sounds great. I'll definitely keep an eye out for it.

So, a bit more than a third of the year has passed us by. How are people doing with their plans/resolutions?

Me, I resolved to buy no more than two new bottles and so far I'm doing ok. By "ok" I mean that I just bought my first one, so even though only a third of the year has passed I've used up half my allotment.

We'll see if I can go another 8 months and only buy one more bottle... I'm betting yes, but I'll make no promises. :)

@Nelom great question!

At this point I have opened 5 of the 11-13 bottles I flagged at the beginning of the year (Little Book 2, Corry, Hibiki, Linkwood and A'Bunadh 50), and have gifted one bottle as well (an Amrut Peated CS). I fully intend to open a few more of the ones on the list.

In terms of purchases, I have bought the Naarangi as hoped (lucky there was a sale). The Lot 40s are released in the fall. I did go over my expected purchase of unexpected bottles, as the price of the Octomore 7.3 made it a no-brainer, and the Lag 8 was cheaper than the original, but both have since been opened at a tasting. I have acquired 2 others (one not in my hands yet), and one or both should be open by year's end. I currently have 2 fewer sealed bottles than I started the year with, but even with the bottle I gifted and total output measured I have still brought more cc of whisky into my home than has left it.

Tomorrow my wife has arranged a party to commemorate my turning 50, and many have asked what whisky to bring me (these are not friends I tend to dram with) and she has thankfully replied that I have more whisky than I need...

In terms of finished bottles, this has been a challenge. I have 6 more open bottles than I started the year with. I have only actually finished 2. Another one will likely be archived (my last dram of Mac CS), and there are 10 that, with appropriate attention, could make their way into history.

Monitoring my intake has been eye opening. I have consumed the equivalent of 2 700 cc bottles of whisky already this year. That seems like a huge amount. But spread over 4.5 months I guess it's not so bad. I think my intake hasn't increased since last year, but I think it's good to have some perspective on what that amount actually is. about 500 cc (or 36%) can be attributed to my tasting at home, Collingwood, and Ottawa (4 days total).

I think overall my whisky spending is going down, only partly replaced by glassware), and I hope that this will continue. So I would say things are on track.

@Nozinan Your consumption only amounts to something around 10.5cc per day, not much more than 2.5 oz. per week. I'd say you are showing great restraint. For many of us the problem is not drinking, it's buying. It's that pesky collector/hoarder gene.

@BlueNote Totally agree. Consumption is not my biggest concern. But imagine our fortune that our big concern is not buying too much as opposed to not having enough...

You have hit the nail on the head. It's not the consumption, it's the stockpiling.