Which bottle did you just buy and why?

@BlueNote - While I don't currently have any high-end stereo equipment, I have an appreciation for it after working at a high-end stereo store in my hometown back in the early 80's. I was there when the first CD player was released. We had brands such as MacIntosh, Bang & Olusfen, Nakamichi, NAD, Boston Acoustic, etc., but my favorite speakers were from Alison Acoustics. They had a unique design; a flat (horizontal to the floor) metal base, the woofer was diagonal so the sound bounced off of the metal base at an angle. The mid range faced forward and the tweeter was on top facing the ceiling. Way ahead of their time and unfortunately, no longer in business.

This Ben Nevis has been calling to me for months and I finally answered the call, threw in some Bourbons to lighten the shipping cost.

@Astroke - ooooh! Wel jel ... as the kids say (or used to, I think!?)

@bwmccoy Those speakers sound very interesting and well ahead of their time. The audiophile thing is a very deep rabbit hole, one that can cut deeply into a guy's whisky budget. There are a whole lot of audio forums where, just like connosr, it is difficult to "curb your enthusiasm."

Just a few recent purchases. Some easy sippers and some a little more interesting.

Cheers all.

@Timp I'm pretty sure you are going to love both those G&Ms. I'd also be interested in what you think of the GlenAllachie.

Thanks @BlueNote , yeah sure I will. Had a couple of their Mortlach 15s before so know that one will be fine. Can’t go wrong with Caol Ila too tbh..

I purchased another Glenallachie 12 earlier in the year and loved it. I know not everyone likes a strong sherry influence but for me it’s worth every penny. Good, clean casks and it shows.

I think I need to get more to make it a permanent feature in my stash.

Cheers.

@Timp I share your 'interest' in sherry matured whisky. I had purchased a few bottles of 18yo Glendronach, and I did buy a couple bottles of the 25yo Glengoyne. I even had to ask the store, in Michigan (while I live in Colorado), how may bottles of the 25yo Gg they had in stock. I was pleased to get their reply of "12 bottles".

I still have to get my hands on some Glenallachie expressions, so I look forward to reading your thoughts about them.

Alberta Rye Premium Cask Strength Batch 3 because it WAS cheap and cheery.

Lock Stock And Barrel RYE 16 from auction for a gathering but, sometimes life gets in the way ... till next time.

Elijah Craig Barrel Proof A120 as a replacement to a bottle sold at cost to a fellow Connosr whom shall remain nameless.

Weller Antique 107 because my nephews needs X-mas gifts for his vendors and he does not have the time to hunt.

Highland Park Cask Strength Batch 2 for the sake of continuity.

Not pictured Glenfarclas 185 en route because I suspect I may like it.

@fiddich1980 Jealous of that LS&B 16. My US source will only cross the border when the testing before crossing is lifted. So many bottles sitting there for 18 months.

@Astroke your U.S.A. acquisitions are always gobsmacked, looking forward to seeing what you picked up.

@ajjarrett Hi. First impressions on a dram of the Glenallachie are very favourable. Lovely clean and strong sherry cask notes and going to have to hold myself back with this one to make it last! Haha.

Not had the Glengoyne 25 myself but maybe one day. Glad you managed to snag some.

Will try and do a proper tasting note for the Glenallachie..

Cheers.

A bottle of Kilchoman Machir Bay because this is the first time I’ve seen it here.

@MRick I hope you enjoy it. I’ve been impressed with every Kilchoman I’ve tried so far.

@MRick I first tasted Machir Bay at a store tasting about 8 years ago. It was a fabulously delicious sample. Soon thereafter I made a point of getting myself two bottles of Machir Bay, but was very disappointed when I got into the first of them. It hadn't delivered at all what I had remembered from the store sample. I thought I had made a big mistake in my purchase. BUT, air exposure has solved all of that. So expect very good things, and if you don't see them at first, just give it some air time and expect them later. My bottle of Machir Bay is fantastic now.

At that same tasting I had about 5 Isle of Arran malts, and reported on them on Connosr. When I made that report NO ONE ON CONNOSR had made any previous comment on any of the standard line Arran products, with the possible exception of the 10 yo. I lavished praise on the 14 yo.

WHY do I make a big point in pointing out instances in which I was FIRST on Connosr to call a whiski GREAT? Because being the FIRST in a group to call a whiski GREAT takes enourmous nerve. "Great" is a big deal. It is a lot more going out on a limb than "good" or "very good". In being the first in a group to call anything "great" you expose yourself to 'great' criticism, even ridicule, and loss of reputation as having good taste-- if the members of the group do not later agree with your assessment. I encourage everyone on Connosr to trust your own honest taste and to make honest testimony about what you have experienced. This fearless and honest sharing of information is how we go forward. It is wonderful to discover a gem that others have discovered first, through following their guidance to try it. But it is more important to trust yourself, when alone with no consensus reality to fall back upon, to know a gem when you have it in your glass.

@Victor I can’t imagine anyone credible criticizing your palate. While my palate doesn’t line up with yours 100% of the time (and why would it?) I’ve never known you to steer anyone wrong.

I agree that praising something that many are still unsure of (or dislike altogether) is a bit unnerving. When I posted a very positive review of Dalmore 12, I was worried about being kicked off this site. It’s representative of many things most Connosr members dislike: low abv, heavily coloured/chill-filtered, aggressively marketed as a “luxury” whiski…..and yet……. My last bottle of Dalmore 12 was excellent. I’ll likely purchase another one for social Christmas time sharing.

@Victor you are an authoritative source of whisky information. If I found myself completely disagreeing with your palate, I would re-evaluate mine!

@casualtorture thank you very much for your kind testimonial!

@OdysseusUnbound the closest alignment of palates I have ever seen to my own is maybe about what I would estimate to be a 70-80% alignment. Your taste is one of the closer ones to mine, along with @Nock's. I glory in and deeply respect the individuality of everyone "here" on Connosr and on the earth in general, but it is true that the opinions based on the experiences of those with whom we share a closer alignment of taste make it far easier, quicker, and more predictable for us to discover those products which we will like best. I can get information from the reviews of those whose taste is far different than my own, but it is a more complex and labour-intensive process, requiring the use of cognitive filters, subtle interpretations, and intuition. In the end we have nothing to rely upon but our own intuition when we venture forth blind, but the testimony of those in good general alignment to our own taste simplifies the challenge of engaging and making decisions deriving from our own intuition.

The Connosr Top 100 Rated List is not a foolproof tool for selecting whiskis for anyone's taste, but it IS a reliable list of whiskis which have few detractors.

@Victor I agree everyone's tastes are different, and we have different favourites. For instance I would prefer most Amrut expressions to Pappy Van Winkle. I like the examples I have tasted, mostly through you, but it does not excite me as it does others. George T, on the other hand...

@Nozinan bien entendu and agreed upon. What I would say to you about Pappy Van Winkle and my perception of the cult of Van Winkle, is that Pappy Van Winkle grows and grows and grows upon you, like a fungus, if you will, with experience and exposure. My experience having drunk through maybe half a dozen bottles of Van Winkle is that it becomes habit-forming and flavour-addictive to many (not all) with repeated experience. That experience will not usually be had with one, or two or three, or four tastes.

That said, I've seen enourmous variations in Van Winkle bottlings, and none of my early reviews of the 10 and 12 yos reached 90 points. I think I reviewed the 10 yo 90 proof (now extinct) at 78 points. That same 78 point bottle was worth more like 90 points to me after it had been open for a couple of years. I could have tasted that bottle 5 times in the early months and still not given it 80 points. But it became a true beauty later. Whiski, and especially Van Winkle is a subtle business. George T. Stagg? Not so much.

And it is critically important to understand with Van Winkle bourbons that they MUST be consumed on a very clean palate to be appreciated. In the mix with 30 other whiskis and you will likely "just not get it".

A Doorly's XO. Why? Sherry cask matured rum from arguably the best rum distillery currently producing. At 43% and £27 on reduction. If it ends up being a mixer, nothing is lost, but reviews suggest this is excellent bang for one's buck so I bit.

Oh and I randomly came across a positive review on a rum ratings site from @OdysseusUnbound, so it seemed like the stars were aligning

@RianC Doorly’s and RL Seale are usually excellent value for money rums. They’re almost impossible to find in Ontario, though.

I just picked up a Benromach 10 and a Lagavulin 8. I haven’t seen Ben10 around for awhile and I remember really enjoying it. Lag 8 I’ve twice rated 90-91 points in blind tastings so it seems silly to me that I’ve never owned a full bottle.

@OdysseusUnbound personally, I think the 8 is better than the vaunted and more expensive 16.

@BlueNote I’m not sure if I like the 8 more than the 16, but it’s brighter and punchier for sure. Honestly, I’ve never met a Lagavulin I didn’t love.

@OdysseusUnbound likewise.

@OdysseusUnbound I'll be interested to see how you find the Benromach 10. I bought a bottle recently (with the new label). I was surprised by the almost diesel-like, kind of dirty industrial note it has. It's fantastic value and I really enjoy it.

@Hewie I reviewed the “old label” version here and I really enjoyed it. Industrial diesel sounds very Springbank-esque which is promising.

@OdysseusUnbound that’s not the old label. That’s the old new label. I was looking at some old photos that came up on my phone and one was of a lineup that @nosebleed and I tasted at his place years ago. It included the Ben 10, before the rebranding I to what you reviewed. I recall it was a sherried malt with chocolate notes and no peat and I really liked it.

Of course, I really liked the newer one too, at least the bottle that I didn’t drop, unopened, on the pavement one evening….

I have to say, there seem to be a lot of reasonably priced decent malts showing up at the LCBO and a part of me wishes I were in the process of building up a cabinet…

Talsiker Storm. Was just at Costco's and spotted it at the wonderful price of $34.99. A single malt drinker, I generally prefer and have on hand a few non-peated bottles, e.g., the Bunnahabhain 12. Fills a void and after going quite a while without a peated Islay dram, I must admit it's a treat.