Which bottle did you just buy and why?

@RikS - I’ve been going into my office in Downtown Seattle one day a week. It’s crazy how eerily quiet the streets are. Definitely seems apocalyptic.

@OdysseusUnbound I think you’ll like the Glengoyne 18. Takes a little time to open up. I haven’t had it for a couple of years, but I recall it being a pretty good, and much cheaper alternative to any of the sherried Macallan’s.

@bwmccoy

"I mean, he'll see everything, he'll see the big board!"

"We'll meet again; Don't know where; Don't know when; But I know we'll meet again some sunny day" -- Dr Strangelove

My advice, enjoy the quiet as much as you can. ^_^ Especially, when you have your favorite whisk(e)y to choose from.

I'm in the fortunate position of being able to work during lockdown. Which means as well as getting me out of the house and meeting people (so keeping me sane) I'm also getting my full wages at a time when others are being furloughed and so on. I'm aware how lucky I am not to have financial worries in this time.

Anyway bizarrely because I'm not stuck in traffic in the day so spending less on petrol and can't go out anywhere instead of being worse off financially in the current climate I'm actually better off (I'd guess to the tune of around £200 a month). I've paid off the credit card last month and as it was payday this tues I decided to do a big splurge on a bottle I've wanted for a long time but have always felt it was a bit too pricey.

Why this bottle? Well as a big Springbank fan I've always wanted at some point to try an older Springbank and the 21 gets great reviews. This cost me £197 so is far and away the most expensive bottle I've ever brought (my previous record is the Octomore 8.2 at £130). Ironically it was actually cheap for a Springbank 21. They do an annual release and the price on release is £200. They tend to get snapped up relatively quickly and the price creeps up within a few months of the release to around £220-250.

This is actually the 2018 release and so on auction if I wanted to I could probably sell this for £250+ but i only have intentions to open and drink it! I brought it from an online wine merchants so perhaps being wine specialists they didn't realise they could charge a bit more for it.

Finally it's actually a bit glitzier than your typical Springbank who don't tend to bother too much with presentation. It comes in a heavy cardboard box with a magnetic flip top. Which is quite nice!

@Wierdo Glad to hear that you are going to drink it. I hope you'll give us a review after you've spent some time with it.

@Wierdo Good to see that someone is ACTUALLY getting the Springbank 21 they order! :)

Not sure if it is appropriate to post here since they aren’t full bottles, but my wife asked if I would be interested in purchasing a set of 2oz samples consisting of Black Arts 4.1 (1990, 23 yr), 6.1 (1990, 26 yr), Octomore 8.2 Masterclass (8 yr) and Octomore 9.3 (5 year)? The answer was absolutely, Yes! Can’t wait for these to arrive.

@bwmccoy I have a bottle of the 08.2 open at the moment. My first Octomore (I will get another at some point in the nearish future). I enjoy it

I am jealous of the 23 year old black arts I bet that is amazing

@BlueNote my sense of smell still isnt quite there yet so I'm off whisky at the moment. But I will put a review on here when I open it.

@bwmccoy Did you hesitate at all before yelling; yes, yes, yes? Let’s face it, it’s not a question posed by a lot of wives. You (and I) are very lucky boys.

@BlueNote - I think my exact response after screaming “YES!!!!!” was that she never has to ask the question if Octomore or Black Arts is at play; just buy it and tell me later. Yes, we are very blessed to have wives that support our interests. At the same time she got the set above, she also bought a set of 4 Japanese whiskies for her that are for a Women Who Whiskey on-line virtual tasting in a couple of weeks. I’ve never tried any of these before so I’m sure I will sneak a taste of these as well.

I just bought a Wild Turkey 101. Why? Because I’m almost never without a bottle. It’s well-priced, bottled at a nice proof point, oh and it’s delicious and versatile.

These just arrived from Alberta today, so it's game on with shipping, albeit with Ontaro tax versus the low Alberta tax. The Hazelburn 14 is a single cask 186 bottles that I believe was finished in a Rum cask not matured. The bottle label says nothing but on the back there is a few notes as well as the 52.6% ABV.

@Astroke Is that zyn or craft cellars?

@ajjarrett I'm a bit late but I saw your posts on the pair of GG21 you picked up. Nice purchase, my brother is a sherry fiend and I believe this is one of his most requested bottles, it's an enjoyable dram and still available at a reasonable price in some areas. I like the Glengoyne line-up but I believe my fave is the 15 as well which has sadly been discontinued.

Let us know how you get along when you crack one open...after you have a go at the wall of Nadurra's that is

@Astroke You got your order already, nice that was fast!

@cricklewood

I didn't realize the 15yo Glengoyne was discontinued. Where did you hear/read this? I have been a bit out of the loop in following whisk(e)y that has been, or will be, discontinued. As for the wall of Nadurra 16yo, it will be up a bit up for a while, but maybe not as long as the various section of the Great Wall of China.

I agree with your observation about the 21yo Glengoyne being affordable. I believe Glenfarclas is another whisky that sells at a reasonable price even for the older expressions.

Once I open a bottle, I will certainly share my experiences. ^_^

@OdysseusUnbound Zyn

@Astroke I'd love to hear your thoughts on that latest Longrow Red if you crack it anytime soon. It should be landing here in NZ very soon!

@Astroke Is ZYN still shipping out of province? I thought they had stopped.

@BlueNote with the tax of the shipped to province instead of the 5% in Alberta. Not sure if that is a scam or the money actually goes to the province.

@Astroke Their prices are very good, but if they have to add the 15% BC tax plus shipping, it may not be worth it except for offerings not available here. Our group is still doing quite a bit of business with Craft Cellars and KWM, mostly when they have sales on, which in the case of CC is about every 2 weeks.

@BlueNote Agreed. As you can see the 2 I purchased were not going to be easy to come by at any price. Like you say, unless it's special or a sale I will not be buying. In the end it is a 8% increase for purchase to Ontario as the 5% Alberta tax goes away. I highly doubt that HST is finding it's way into Doug Fords coffers.

@Astroke I loved the one Red I had.

Two bottles of Pusser's 50th Anniversary - a bottling in celebration of 50 years since Black Tot Day, the last time a rum ration was given to sailors in the Royal Navy.

A bit gimmicky, aye, but I do like Pussers Gunpowder and reviews for this are glowing across the board, with most saying it's like the 15 at gunpowder strength. It also has a 'good proportion' of Port Mourant wooden pot still rum in the mix too! At £50 for a limited, one off edition of a favourite, at 54.5% and 7 years old, it's a gamble I thought worth taking.

I opened an ancnoc 2002 last night on a Zoom meeting. It was good enough in my opinion that it warranted picking up a spare.

@RianC Pusser’s Gunpowder isn’t available around here, but I’ve heard that even the standard 42% abv version is decent. Do you have any experience with that one?

Bartered four masks made of skull and roses fabric (colleague loves the Dead) for a twelve pack of Dogfish Head American Beauty beer.

Bought some JWB, Blood Orange Bitters, Pellegrino Blood Orange soda, Corryvreckan, Johnny Drum

@Jonathan and back up of Port Charlotte 10

@fiddich1980 I have the 2001. It got a lot better over a couple of months with some air in the bottle. I would definitely buy another, or the 2002 vintage.