What was the last bottle you finished?

@Jonathan Thanks. My f-i-l was only 67 years old. He only survived 3 months after his diagnosis, but he lived a very full life and passed surrounded by his loved ones.

@BlueNote excellent to hear! If I were in your shoes I would see no reason to replace your vehicles either. With my wife no longer in the flesh, and me now retired I am currently putting a mere 5,000 miles per year split between two cars. I'll probably keep these high mileage cars for another 6 years or more and then buy something electric, when they get the electric cars better, longer range, and cheaper.

Please give Ray and Rhoda my best. My wife's bright red commuter car she named Ruby, a 2007 model Hyundai Elantra now with 165 K miles. Ruby remains in my life along with Sonnalta Skye.

@Victor I can buy a lot of good whisky and my wife can buy a lot of shoes with what it would cost for two new vehicles.

I'm sure you know that many of us here were truly saddened at the news of Dramlette's passing. I hope Ruby, and many other good memories, will help, in some way, to keep her with you. It's good to still have you here on connosr keeping the rest of us well informed.

@BlueNote thank you very much for your very kind words. Seeing Julie's car often makes me cry, because my biggest association with that car is in seeing her coming home from work in it. I see the car, automatically think of her, and then remember that I am not going to see her coming out of it any more. She still hangs out with me all the time in spirit, though, but it is much more difficult for me to carry on a conversation with her now. I need to improve my abilities with telepathy. Some of her girlfriends are better with telepathy than I am and chat with her nearly every day Her passing was very unexpected by her doctors. None of them ever said a word that the illness might take her life until the day before she actually checked out of the material dimension.

@Victor I didn't realize you owned an elantra.

I knew you had a Sonnalta. I thought you had an Ealeanta.

A Highland Park 12 (old label) last weekend - got much better with air and was quite enjoyable near the end as an 'opener' or casual sipper. I have a new label bottle in the stash and even taking the (usually) low price into consideration, I won't rush to buy another.

Benromach peated - not so much finished as given the last half or so to my Mum. I liked it but found I'd want other peaters over it pretty much always. Mum liked it so off it went.

Jura Superstition - I liked it on opening (almost two years ago now) but it went very flat very quickly and ended up in the kitchen as it made a lovely whisky sauce. Had a sniff yesterday and it had 'gone'. The last 1/5th down the sink. Pained me to do it but I wouldn't have wanted to even cook with it.

@Nozinan yes I did have an Ealanta, but I finished that bottle off six years ago. It was more 'interesting' than delicious, but it changed and developed in very interesting ways. I wish I had bought 1 or 2 more bottles of it, mostly for study and learning.

Bushmills 21 Year Three Wood 2014, small a.b.v., a whiskey that gives so much more than a typical forty percenter. This bottle is from Houston TX (Go 'stros!) right around the time the Astros began to make a strong showing after an abysmal season with 111 losses (51 wins). Turns out to be the perfect whiskey to bring home from Houston, a small proof release. Just like 5' 6" José Altuve, Bushmills 21 Year defies its diminutive stature by being a perennial all-star. This was one fine bottle....hit after, hit after, after hit....

@Victor I meant the car. I thought you had Julie's Hyundai "ealeanta"

@paddockjudge last Wednesday I lunched with an old Army buddy who told me the tale of how his uninvited adult son and his son's friends polished off not one but two bottles of his favourite whiskey, Bushmills 21 yo Malt, from my friend's cabinet. I told him he should demand the bottles be replaced. He has done so, but no satisfaction of the debt has thus far been made. There is always room for more Bushmills 21 yo malt. In the meantime my friend is settling for Bushmills 16 yo on his vacation to Cancun.

As for the Astros I am happy for them and root for them against everyone but the Nationals.

@Victor, I always had low hanging fruit in my cabinet.....diplomacy over war. My kids still buy me whisky to this day....and I for them; however, I did lose track of a few choice bottles whilst three teenagers rested under my roof, and a few gems have come to me since. Whisky Karma.

I'm pleased to claim that the Nationals also hold a special place in my heart, who doesn't love Les Expos?!!!

@Victor @paddockjudge

I think it's a matter of education. If the kids grow up with an understanding that this stuff is not a plaything... they will leave it alone.

@Nozinan, you’re not wrong, but you missed the most import point. You love Les Expos, n’est ce pas?

@paddockjudge Mais Oui!

@paddockjudge Et mois aussi.

Well I went through three bottles tonight. We had a very emotional celebration of life for my late father-in-law today. It’s impossible for me to put into words what this man meant to me, so I’ll just say it was an incredibly intense day. There were between 300-400 people who came by to pay their respects which is significant in a tiny town like ours. Afterwards, about 40-50 people came to our modest home to continue celebrating. Luckily most brought their own refreshments. Nevertheless, I handed out my own beer to those who didn’t have any, we fed those who had not eaten, and my whisky collection, which has become something of an urban legend, got dipped into. No problem. I was happy to oblige. We finished my Tyrconnell 15 Year Madeira Cask, Woodford Reserve Distiller’s Select, and Ardbeg Corryvreckan. All were well received which is all that matters. Cheers!

@paddockjudge , I remember listening to game 5 NLCS against the Dodgers on the radio while at work as a surveyor in Sundre, Alberta. We were running back and forth to the truck to listen, plus get warm as it was freezing cold that day. Rick Monday's HR off Steve Rogers in the 9th ruined me until 1985 when it was George Brett's turn to ruin me.

@Astroke They had no business putting Rogers in in relief!

@Astroke, I watched and nearly cried.

I just gave the last half cup of my Ardbeg 10 to a friend who makes killer Islay infused marmalade every year. I should be spreading some on my toast in a couple of weeks.

@BlueNote That sounds deliciously interesting!

And for those of us that don't know how to make marmalade, do you think it'd work with regular marmalade, but leaving the toast in the toaster 15min to get those smokey bonfire-embers coming through the sweetness?

@RikS HaHa. Only if you pre-soaked the bread in Laphroaig 10 cask strength.

Forgot to mention that my marmalade buddy dropped off a sample of SMWS 29-142 which is an 18 year old Laphroaig at 58.6%ABV called Rock Pooling + Beach BBQ. Bit early in the day for tasting, but it will get done in later.

That’s it for this one. An 18 year old Highland Park as it should be. 52%, NCF, natural colour. Puts the OB 18 to shame and is considerably cheaper to boot. Sad to see it go as there is no more.

Done...sadly.

@BlueNote, lightly peated 1970s Benriach???

Schwwwwing!

Last night, I finished off my Octomore.

I call it my Octomore because it was my own dumped-together bottle of a couple different Octomore remnants, none of which seemed special enough to preserve in their own bottles until the end. I'm not totally sure now, but I think they were the 6.1 and the 7.2.

It was good stuff, but I won't miss it. I'm on to some new Caol Ila IBs now.

@MadSingleMalt Yeah, it was a dandy. Parting gift from an employer/client. Way more money than I would ever spend. I managed to make it last 13 months. Of course I had to give samples (small) to all my malthead buddies.

I'm trying to clear up some heels in the past 2 weeks before opening anything new.

-Bruichladdich Classic Laddie - A batch from 2016, open a long time it was a bit past it's prime at the end, this one had a lot of wine cask in the vatting and I felt was quite different than other batches I've tried.

-Octomore 7.4 - I really enjoyed this one, probably one that would have been good to ease someone into Octomore, lots of BBQ pork, sweet oak, thai curry paste.

-Gooderham & Worts 11 souls, I made no secret about how much I loved this one, great profile and bit of blending work, I wish it was a bit less expensive.

Wiser's Legacy - I milked this one until the end it was good till the last drop, rich beautiful profile, the rye is well integrated. Sad to see it go.

I finished bottle of the Bunnahabhain 12yo, the older version, well, before the bottlings with the red label. I will say, I waited a bit too long for the last drams. I ought to have poured into a smaller container. It had lost most of the aromas and flavors I came to enjoy, and was almost bitter. I ended up pouring just the little what was left. Lesson learned.