So, what are you drinking now?

@bwmccoy I’ve done the lemon vs orange and I preferred the lemon as I found it did a better job of cutting through the drink’s sweetness.

Last night's tasting with a friend over:

1) Catoctin Creek Pearousia Pear Brandy, 40% ABV

2) Franzac 25 yo Cognac, 40% ABV

3) Karlovarska Becherovka Czech digestif, 38% ABV

4) Wahaka Mezcal Tobala, 42% ABV This one had a refined and restrained nose, and showed itself to be quite black peppery and delicious in the mouth

5) El Tesoro de Don Felipe Anejo Tequila, 40% ABV, also quite black peppery

6) Tomatin 15 Tempranillo 52% ABV

7) Tomatin 15 Tempranillo 52% ABV after a year's activated charcoal treatment

8) Redbreast Lustau 4i6% ABV. This was an especially nice bottle of the Redbreast Lustau

9) Hazelburn 8 yo, 46% ABV

10) Springbank 10, 46% ABV, OB

11) Springbank 14 Bourbon Wood, 55.8% ABV

12) Longrow 14 Burgundy Wood, 56.1% ABV A very beautiful whisky

13) Talisker 57 Degrees North, 57% ABV. My friend concluded that he would plan to bring some of this back from his next European trip, if possible

14) Ardbeg Blaaack, 46% ABV, a newly opened bottle. This started out on the more restrained side for an Ardbeg. It may change a lot with air exposure

15) Calumet Farm Bourbon, 43% ABV. This is a 50:50 mixture of 14 yo Kentucky sourced bourbon and 8 yo Kentucky sourced bourbon. I could not figure out from the taste profile the distillery or distilleries from which this originates.. I did not have a clue. If anything it reminded me a bit of Maker's Mark. Online gossip mentions the Barton distillery as a source for some of the Calumet Farm products. It would be nice to know the distillery/ies of origin for this one day

16) Maker's Mark RC6 special release, 54.1% ABV. Among Maker's Mark products this is unusual in flavour and a favourite for both my friend and for me. I was highly amused that my friend was clearly trying hard to conserve his supply of his one bottle of this one, because he is unlikely to be able to get another one. He doesn't do that with his other whiskis

Laissez rouler les bons temps!!!

@Victor Wow, nice tasting.

Such beauty! It's 0930 hrs here on a Thursday and I 'm nibbling on some samples from family and friends.

1) G & M Linkwood 15 yo, 43% ABV, fabulous clean barley-malt. Linkwood makes my favourite basic barley-malt in tout le monde

2) Laphroaig Cairdeas PX 58.9% ABV, magnifico! So so good!

3) Port Charlotte 10 yo Heavily Peated, 50% ABV, solid, as ever

4) Bruichladdich Octomore 8.3, 61.2% ABV, ...whoa, yeah, ...the razor blade is tickling my tongue. This whisky is sharp to the tongue, but also makes the mind sharp

When you are drinking the best stuff out there, it requires only a little bit to have a great and transcendent experience

@Victor completely agree with you there. Nice line up again. Your assessment of that Octomore with its sharpness intrigue’s me.

I only have a third of a bottle of 7.1 left so I sort of know I will need to have one to replace it, and I have been hovering over internet availability and price. Gonna have to gulp and justify the cash.

Regarding the Laphroaig Cairdeas bottlings which one did you like the most?

Not a bottling I have tried but been tempted by the Amontillado finish one. Another one on the list.

@Timp I have liked all of the Laphroaig Cairdeas releases I have tried quite a lot. I strongly recommend the 2021 58.9% ABV PX bottling. It may be easier to come by and it is as good or better than any of the others, assuming you are comfortable with the wine influence present. The ones I know are 2012 (bourbon wood), 2013 (Port Wood), and this latest 2021 PX release. I own the 2015 Cairdeas also but have never had a sip. I have never had a bad taste of Laphroaig whisky. I consider Laphroaig to be the most reliable distillery in the world.

@Victor thanks for that. Advice noted and will have a look at the auctions this month for that PX bottle. Good integration of peat and sherry can be wonderful. Cheers.

@Victor, what a picturesque description you give of of Octomore 8.3

" Bruichladdich Octomore 8.3, 61.2% ABV, ...whoa, yeah, ...the razor blade is tickling my tongue. This whisky is sharp to the tongue, but also makes the mind sharp " ...that is a beauty, both the whisky and the quote!

I believe @Nock rated this one somewhere in the Exosphere with a score of 98/100....high praise indeed coming from the Archduke of Ardbeg.

This is a pic of the bottle which I am holding for @Nock, purchased in the pre-Covid-era from @OdysseusUnbound when he was rationalizing his whisky inventory. A helping hand from @Nozinan made the exchange possible, he harbored the bottle while it was between owners, much like I am doing now. When someone like @Nock rates a bottle at 98/100, you buy first and ask questions later.

@Timp, @Victor, rumor has it that one of our Toronto area Connosr friends picked up a box of the 2021 Laphroaig Cairdeas PX 58.9% abv.

I'm behind in my posting because this has been and continues to be a VERY busy week at work. About a year ago, my company selected me and 11 of my co-workers to be in a Leadership Development MBA program in order to prepare us to be the next generation of leaders within the company. As part of the MBA program, we were divided into 3 teams and were assigned projects. The culmination of those projects was a presentation to our Board of Directors yesterday. Fortunately, all 3 teams did very well, but we've had to give our presentation 3 times so far this week (one to our Presentation Skills trainer and once to the executive management team prior to presenting to the Board). We will give the presentation once again tomorrow to all employees at our annual all-employee meeting. Probably more information than you wanted or needed to know.

Anyway, on Tuesday night, while I was making final tweaks to my presentation, I had a dram of Copperworks Distilling Company (Seattle) Special Release 34 Washington state peated malt (Skagit Valley Maltings) aged for 49 months in 8 new American oak - 52% ABV.

After presenting to the Board yesterday (Wednesday), all of us in the Leadership Development group went out for a 3 hour lunch (with drinks) at a very nice restaurant to celebrate. Our waiter asked if we celebrating something and when we said yes, he brought us a bottle of Veuve Clicquot Yellow Label champagne on the house. This is my wife and I's favorite champagne because we had it on our first date. I don't drink a lot of champagne, but I really like this one.

With lunch, I ordered a "Double Oaked & Rye Manhattan" off their menu. Woodford Reserve Double Oaked small batch Bourbon, Woodford Reserve Rye, Carpano Antica Vermouth, Amarena cherry. Unfortunately, it was not that great. A co-worker also ordered one and we both thought it was lacking. He said he thought it tasted "watered down".

After I got home and after dinner, I had a dram of one of my favorite open bottles; Fettercairn SMWS 94.10 (13 year - Aug. 2007) "The gentle beast from the east". After 11 years in a refill ex-bourbon hogshead, transferred to a 1st-fill ex-Pedro Ximenez sherry hogshead - 56.0% ABV.

@paddockjudge I am delighted that you have enjoyed my poetic prose. That's also some astute bottle buying you are doing. Yes, I also put a lot of stock in @Nock's opinion.

@bwmccoy, that is a great post! I very much enjoyed the backstory leading up to your after dinner dram.

@Victor I love the Càirdeas releases as well. I have gotten at least two bottles of each starting with Càirdeas 2015 - 200th Anniversary Edition and ending with the Càirdeas 2021 - Pedro Ximenez Casks. The exception to that is the Càirdeas 2018 which I think is the Fino cask. I completely missed that one so I have not tried it but I have tried the others.

Still hoping to find a 2018 hiding on a shelf somewhere....

@Victor Oh, and you probably already know this but there was an earlier Laphroaig PX cask release. It was a duty free bottle at 48%. It's pretty good but the Càirdeas 2021 PX at 58.9% is better!

@paddockjudge - Thank you for your kind words!

Tonight, a new to me cocktail called Trifecta. 1.5 oz Amaricano Bianca Amaro, 1 oz Hornitos Reposado Tequila, .5 oz Olorosso Sherry. Garnish: Orange twist.

Followed that up with a Margarita. 2 oz Trader Joe’s Margarita mix, 1 oz Hornitos Reposado Tequila and 1oz Triple Sec.

@Victor I am curious to know about the bottle you tasted the 8.3 from? Was that your friend’s bottle or a sample from my bottle back from 2018? As you and I have discussed many times in the past, it is always about the tasting from that specific bottle on that specific day.

It looks like you had a fantastic tasting! I am particularly interested in the Laphroaig Cairdeas PX. It has been more and more difficult to get Scotch here in Virginia since the great Bourbon boom. They wisdom of the State Controlled stores is to allocate more shelf space to Bourbon and greatly reduce the Scotch offerings. There is virtually nothing left for me to buy in my state. Which is why I go a bit crazy when I happen to visit other locations.

I have an open bottle of the Calumet Farm 15yo at 52.5% that I am excited for you to try some day . . . as well as many other peated drams.

@paddockjudge . . . and don't think I have forgotten about that bottle! I am still gleefully looking forward to the day when we can meet up in person and taste again. If for no other purpose then to simply disagree with each other on the relative merits of different drams.

And don’t think I won’t generously reward @Nozinan for his efforts in that bottle obtaining process.

I think what I am most excited to do is to crack open that new bottle with those present and taste the differences in the new bottle . . . and the last 100mL of my bottle now. My expectation is that it will be a dramatic difference.

I remember I poured some Octomore 8.3 at that very first tasting we did at @Victor’s house. Did you try it that night @paddockjudge? It was at the very end after our exploration of Canadian whiskies and taste testing a few Macallan’s. You might have sensibly passed for driving purposes.

I offered up the Laphroaig Cairdeas 2016 Maderia, the 2017 Quarter Cask Cask Strength, and a 1998 independent single cask. Finally, ending with Octomore 8.3. My fuzzy memory is that no one (including me) was that impressed with the Octomore. It would take that bottle 4 more months with literally one month where I left the cork off the bottle for it to transform into the magnificent 98 score I ended up giving it.

I maintain that any score above a 91 says more about the scorer than the bottle. For me, and likely me alone, that 8.3 Octomore approaches the pinnacle of my peated perfect dram.

Please anyone else reading this . . . disregard my score of 98. It is clearly absurd and ridiculous. I can promise you that you won’t like this bottle as much as I do. I can promise you that your bottle won’t taste like mine. Your best bet is to simply give me your bottle . . . and all will be well.

@Nock it is good to see you prowling the Connosr corridors again.

The bottle of Octomore 8.3 which I tasted yesterday belongs to...my sister. It was just opened December 25, 2021.

And that 2021 Laphroaig Cairdeas PX is a real sweetheart. I always like Laphroaig, but this one gets my blood pumping far more than most. That bottle belongs to my friend.

@Nock I really did not have to do any hard labour to get that bottle to @paddockjudge. I picked up a few bottles from @OdysseusUnbound and that was just one of them. The best reward would be getting together again.

I have not tasted an Octomore that I didn't like. But for me, the ultimate peated dram is Amrut peated Cask Strength. The Ashok manoeuvre creates an explosion of flavour like none other I have experienced.

New bottle Friday! Cheers all.

@Timp a long time since I’ve had a taste of Farclas 105. I have too many A’Bunads open to open that too. But I have a bottle just waiting for me to do it…

@Nozinan yes it’s nice. Immediately remember that Glenfarclas style. Always get the cherry sweetness on the finish. Lovely.

Now the Abunadh is a dram I need to have again. Just to compare, obviously!

@Nock, ah yes, our almost completely polar opposite palates which I believe you pegged at 80% (divergent). I am always surprised by the samples on which we agree. I am looking forward to submersing myself in the deep end of your Islay reservoir, a task that will no doubt allow us to remain buoyant for hours.

Since our last session, I have acquired a number of cask strength Canadian releases, some of which I plan to share with you and @Victor. I anticipate participation from @Nozinan and I am hopeful for a couple of our Connosr compadres to join us.

Last night for happy hour, my wife and I had a couple of Vieux Carre cocktails made with a lemon twist garnish as @OdysseusUnbound recommended. So surprised how different this cocktail tastes with only the garnish being different. I found the lemon twist version to be very refreshing. I still want to compare all 3 versions head-to-head, but that will be for another day.

@Nozinan Aren’t you holding on to a ‘Farclas 105’ for a friend? Said friend can’t even recall all the bottles you’re holding for him. Although I hear he has a bottle of an exclusive Foursquare Ontario only release for you….

@bwmccoy I’ve experimented with a lemon twist vs an orange twist and as ridiculous as it seems, the whole experience is different depending on that simple garnish. I haven’t tried the “flaming orange twist” variant but I hear it adds another dimension. I just worry about lingering sulphur from the match. Yes, I’m that petty.

@OdysseusUnbound I have 3 bottles of the 105 in my home. One is an old unopened 10 YO age statement bottle. I bought 2 of the last ones at the LCBO (one went to @paddockjudge I believe).

The other two were purchased during a good sale at Zyn. One is for me, and the other is for said friend...

I just finished a dram of Big Peat. It must have been from the first batch because of its relatively low ABV. It is much better than I remember. It is quite gentle now. Of course, there is a lot of smoke and peat. Lots of white choclate and vanilla. I even taste some fruit: cranberry and yellow apple. I taste some faint rubber and iodine at the same time as the fruit. It has been a nice surprise.

@OdysseusUnbound - I use a butane torch when lighting orange oils on fire. Didn't think of that variant. Now, I'm going to have to have 4 head-to-head Vieux Carre cocktails. :-)

Well, I ordered a set of Spiegelau Willsberger Digestive Glasses, and wanted to see how they go with armagnac. I have been using the Spiegel Whisky Snifter glass, and I have been enjoying armagnac from this glass. I wouldn't compare/contrast to find out which one is better. I am sure I might come to a conclusion of which glass I prefer when drinking armagnac, but this is (at the moment) more about how I am getting different sensations from a new glass. Also, I always got a sweetness from the whisky snifter, but the sweetness now really jumps out at me. I am glad I don't have kids doing that to me.

Tonight, I am enjoy Darroze Domaine de Moturon, 2004 vintage.

Yes, I am listening to Kenny Burrel's album, "Lucky So and So".