Which bottle did you just buy and why?

@Astroke OGD 114 - one of my favourite bourbons. Good pickup!

Another quick trip to Kentucky.

I got a tip that Alberta has released the 2022 edition of Alberta Premium Cask Strength. So I checked the LCBO website and it is listed as the 2022 edition with the 2021 ABV.

On Friday I called a store and they confirmed that it is the 2022 edition, so I went out and bought one for me and one on behalf of a friend. I figured I should try it before I decide how many backups I want of this batch (storage space is an issue). It is $5 cheaper in Ontario.

A few thoughts on this batch:

• It appears to have been a stealth release. Usually I hear that it’s coming.

• This is the fourth edition by AP. Unlike Lot 40 CS, they did not mess with success. This is a batch of standard APCS, not finished in French oaks or peated casks. Well done AP!

• They still have not fixed the seal - I was able to remove it, crack the screw cap, pour, and replace the seal. This could be used by the unscrupulous to pour out the good stuff, replace it with bad stuff, and return it for refund. Buyers beware…

As for the contents of the bottle, delicious! My first smells and taste are extremely positive. I will try to get a spare, and one for my NP friend who will probably really like it.

@Nozinan Getting a spare should be fairly easy as there are 4200 bottles available according to the LCBO website. Nice to hear that it is worth the pickup though, will grab one for sure.

Against my better judgment, I purchased a bottle of Lagavulin 12 Year Cask Strength, 2021 edition. It's the one with Mufasa on the carton sleeve. The Lion Sleeps Tonight or something like that. Why "against my better judgment"? Because this is Ontario and the price I paid was embarrassing. That said, I admit to being irrational when it comes to Laphroaig and Lagavulin, especially at Cask Strength. I take comfort in the fact that the one and only @markjedi1 rated this particular expression 89/100. I usually rate whiskies a few points higher than Mark, probably owing to my relative inexperience compared to him.

@OdysseusUnbound I to complained about the price I paid in Ontario for it. As it turns out, that is pretty much the price it goes for in North America. That will be my last Diageo special release purchase however

@Astroke @OdysseusUnbound I'm afraid that gone are the days when I could snap up a bottle of Laphroaig 12 on boxing day for about $120, and would that I had picked up a few more when I could, just like the year when I saw various batches of Octomore for $115-130. Those days are gone, sadly.

@OdysseusUnbound you paid a couple of hundred bucks for a bottle of Lagavulin 12 CS. Why question the decision? Trust yourself. You can't get $ 200 pleasure from smelling and tasting currency.

I didn't want to spend $ 200 for each of 2 bottles of Pappy Van Winkle 23 year old bourbon I saw sitting on a liquor store shelf 1.5 miles away from my home in 2011. "$ 200 for a bottle of bourbon? Ridiculous!" I thought then. So I left them on the shelf. Now if I had that choice to make again....

I purchased a Blanton’s Original Single Barrel, LCBO exclusive release. So what’s special and exclusive about it? It has an LCBO sticker on the bottle and comes in a brown felt bag. I suppose taste will determine if it’s any different than regular Blanton’s.

@OdysseusUnbound They're all single barrel bottlings, right? So each bottle is going to be slightly different but keeping within the Blanton's taste profile...

@OdysseusUnbound for better or for worse you have made an act of faith in the good taste of the LCBO barrel pickers.

The good news is that Blanton's would be unlikely to release a truly shitty single barrel product. Distillers don't take lousy barrels of whiskey and say, "Let's release this one on its own and let it represent our company." Especially not Buffalo Trace Distillery/Sazerac Company. On the other hand...the Blanton's brand is owned by Age International, not by Sazerac Company. Still, you are probably safe. It's a bet I'd probably take if I wanted a bottle of Blanton's.

The only Blanton's I've ever owned was a 375 ml of Blanton's Original given to me as a gift by my brother-in-law 10 years ago, and an unopened bottle of Blanton's Straight From the Barrel acquired from Belgium piggybacking on an order of @numen's. I didn't used to like Blanton's in my early experiences with it for 2 or 3 years. I was disappointed that my BIL gave me a bottle of one of the few bourbons I didn't like. But that bottle he gave me was excellent, and I wish it were a 750 and not 375. Hey, if you get the chance, that Blanton's Straight from the Barrel is sublime.

@Victor For all my pithy sarcasm, I do enjoy Blanton’s. There’s a blueberry and honey note that I usually find in there and it’s quite interesting.

@OdysseusUnbound blueberry? I can't say I've tasted that in Blanton's but it would likely be a big draw for me. Some years I've eaten 80 pints of blueberries.

@Victor - I have a blueberry gin that was gifted to me a few months ago. I can bring you a sample when I see you next month. Heck, if I knew you were going to like it, I would bring you the entire bottle. I took one sip thinking it might make an interesting cocktail, but I'm not that much of a mixologist to cover up / fix this one. :-)

Not a purchase, but some samples sent to me from a friend. These Canadian Whiskies are from Valleyfield (Schenley) in Quebec. Valleyfield have been selling barrels of aged Canadian whisky to NDP bottlers and The Old Dragon Bones is a 15 year rye from multiple barrels sent south for private Story Time picks. I appreciate these being sent to me, but I feel I should be the one sending the samples south.

Just come back from a trip to Dumfries and Galloway district of Scotland. A part of the country I hadn’t been to before and very rural. We stayed by the coast which was lovely as although we live quite close to the sea I spend my days on the moor in woodlands so nice to have a change.

Only a couple of local distilleries Annandale and Bladnoch, neither of which I managed to get to, but wasn’t too bothered to be honest. I knew I would end up spending on so callled exclusive bottles if I went and it can be so easy to spend loads on whisky in Scotland.

I tracked these down in a couple of local deli stores where they had sat on the shelves for a while. I had a chance to read a few reviews before I purchased which always helps a bit.

They are Brig O Perth 14, 46.7%, blended whisky, a very nice sherry influenced whisky. A Wemyss Malts Nectar Grove, 54%, blended malt finished in a Madeira cask. An Orkney 15 46% bourbon cask by Solasta Spirits and a Dram Mor 6 year old Caol Ila bourbon cask.

Why? The Brig O Perth I got as a holiday drinker and it went down well. I had wanted to try one of Wemyss malts bottlings for a while now and I do like the sweet fruits from the influence of a Madeira cask. Lots of that in this one so all good.

The other two bottles are examples of that full distillery character you experience from bourbon cask matured whisky and particularly the Caol Ila. It is tinder dry, sharp with beautiful lemon and rounded with slightly sweet peat smoke. Great review from Angus on whiskyfun so that sealed the deal.

The Orkney is only the third bottle of independent Highland Park I have purchased and the other two where G&M bourbon casks and were lovely. Been on my radar to get another when the opportunity presented itself. Not a disappointment and only had a couple of drams but very pleased.

Cheers..

@Timp, nice going. Those bottles all look like a lot of fun.

@Timp - agree with @Victor, they look like a fun mix!

Absolutely love D&G! One of the lesser visited parts of Scotland but, consequently, one of the least spoiled and 'natural' parts of the UK. Sure I remember seeing red squirrels there too.

I need to sort out a trip up there, I really do ...

Bit behind on posting but recently got another old bottling of Blue Label at auction. Why? Was outbid on some other bottles and it was under £100 so thought, Why not? Surprised I got it so 'cheap' to be honest. 75cl and 43%.

I also broke the £200 barrier and splurged on a Redbreast 21 - a whiskey everyone drools over and I am a fan of other RBs I've had. I was also able to pay in instalments ... For a bottle of whiskey ... Crazy, right! . I regret not buying it a few years back when much cheaper but such is life. I actually got it on an offer price too ...

Then bought a Powers Gold Label in the new 43% dumpy bottles. Why? It was cheap and one I've wanted to try for a while.

Here's some other Irish, just for 'de craic, don' cha know

Not whisky but a few ales. With the weather cooling off, the light beers are out and the 'proper' (lol) beer is in.

The Guinness is one I've been after for a while. Brewed in Nigeria and at 7.5%. They use more hops than the standard, apparently - I'm eager to see what it's like.

The Gem is a local ale from Bath that's very malty and tasty and perfect with a curry or spicy food. The London Pride is possibly my favourite beer - loads of toffee, malt and the perfect amount of hops. Refreshing and quaffable yet susbstantial - the perfect session ale?

Cheers!

These four plus a mini.

The Tobermory is one I've wanted to try but never wanted to take the plunge on a full bottle. It was either buy that or pay £5 for delivery - no brainer.

Thompson Bros - cheap as chips and, if the rumours are true about it being a tsp Macallan, then it's a great chance to try some with a decent presentation. Seems to be getting high prices at auction too so one never knows.

Talisker DE - one of only two affordable (and drinkable!) Taliskers left on shelves so I thought it prudent to get while I could. Think I'll like this - basically the 10 with an amorosso sherry finish.

Springbank - need I say? Oh, fyi - they now don't sell with boxes for any of their core range. I get why (environment) but then it arrives in enough plastic bubble wrap to see Santa through the next three Christmases ...

Fortaleza Reposado - Wanted it for a while so thought, 'why not?' when I bought the SB. Gets great reviews and I have seen how they make it at the distillery, courtesy of Rick Stein on TV. All traditional and at 40% - which is rare in the UK.

I also made some more auction purchases last night - two Dimple's (Pinch) from the 70s and 80's (I think). Also got a Famous Grouse 18 - bottled for Chinese market I believe at 43%. Reported to contain only Macallan and Highland Park malts and gets some gushing feedback online (images to come).

I dread to think what I've spent on whisky and spirits this year so far and the years not even through ... Would it be any better left in the bank though? Hmmm ...

Auction bottles arrived today. To my dismay, the non age statement Dimple's paper seal.was broken - it was hard to see from the on line image. I had to have a sniff and, well, whatever is in there is bloody good and has that OBE thing going on. Amazing nose, very orangey and chalky.

I could also open the 12 - similar profile but this one has less complexity and more peat. I'll be quaffing that first bottle soon. Both bottles appear to be from the 70's. I suspect The 12 was bottled after the other.

The FG does state that it contains HP and THE Macallan in there and, going off the year of the award sticker logo on the back (2005), might well contain 80's distillate. Not bad for £50! I have high expectations for this.

@RianC I was once offered an open bottle of dimple at the home if a patient. The family had found it. It had leaked on my hand. I did not accept it, but my hand smelled really good.

@Nozinan - didn't really know what to expect but have heard older bottles can be very good. Going off first impressions, they were bang on! Only had a tiny sip from the bottle so far but the smell was haunting me all evening - had I not been exhausted, I'd have tucked in.

Good news is they are one of the cheapest old bottles to pick up at auction and, like JW's, there are plenty available.

@RianC oh yes, I like the old (and odd) bottle(s) of Pinch which I have tasted!

@RianC catching up on the discussions. You've brought a Redbreast 21. That is a legendary whisky. Have to say I'm jealous.

I did buy a Redbreast 12 CS the other day. So that has compensated me a little.

It's my birthday today and the wife and I have the day off. We're going to Bakewell in Derbyshire which is about an hour from me. There is a whisky shop there called 'the Wee Dram' I've brought from online but never visited. I've got a budget of £70 for a bottle. Let's see what I come back with.

Happy Birthday, @Wierdo !

Back home now. I brought a bottle of Speyburn 15 as I've heard good things about it.

They also had a small stock of Springbank/Kilkerran products in store that aren't on their website. Fair play they were at RRP (as some retailers have been taking advantage of Springbank's currently popularity to hike prices). My wife brought me a bottle of Kilkerran heavily peated batch 7 and put it away for my Christmas present. £48 so good value for cask strength heavily peated Kilkerran.

@Wierdo - Happy Birthday

Sounds like you got a few treats as well. Nice one!

@RianC, I must admit that I have a "hole" in my palate, or perhaps the only bottle of Red Breast 21 YO that I have owned was corked. It would be impossible for me to score this particular bottle higher than 70/100. I just don't feel the love.