Which bottle did you just buy and why?

I bought a bottle of Glenfiddich 15 today. The reasoning was pretty simple. I wanted a simple go to dram which is tasty, smooth and easy drinking. For only £30 you can't go wrong with a bottle of this.

I just bought a bottle of A'bunadh batch 49. The reason is you Connosr Buddies and all your nice comments about this batch. Now, I am looking forward to buy a Arran 13 yo single sherry cask. This is a SAQ exclusive and I hesitate because I didn't read any review of it but I doubt I will resist ...

@Robert99 please let me know if it's any good and how it compares to any other batches you've tried.

@Nozinan I don't think I will open it before many months since my bottle of #46 batch os almost full. I am planning to open the #49 just when I will be about to finish #46 for batch comparaison.

For the moment, I can say that I really like the 46. I know the community is divided about this batch and I think I have an hypothesis to explain why. Batch 46 is not as peppery as older A'bunadh. I found that it offers a profile at midpoint between regular A'bunadh (if there is such a thing as regular A'bunadh) and Macallan 10 yo Cask Strenght. So those for whom Mac CS works will love it and...

This afternoon, I was comparing Glenfarclas 105 to this 46 and OMG the 46 is so much richer and spicier, nobody should be allowed to compare it, it is not fair to the 105 which is not bad in itself. This is not a H2H but a H2T the T standing for toes as it is a knock out.

@Robert99

Well, I think by the time I turn 49 the batch 49 will be long gone, and I won't be able to pick up a second bottle even in I like it.

Not to worry. Now that I've expamded my portfolio, i don't usually go through more than one bottle of A'Bunadh per year (still have some of the 36 I opened in January and the 45 I opened in April is half full), and I reach for it less often...a treat among the many treats I have to choose from...

@Nozinan Maybe I will find the opportunity to offer you a sample since my son is sometimes competing in the GTA and I am usually travelling with him. If that happenned, I will let you know.

@Robert99

Very kind of you, but I do have a bottle of the 49 and I plan to open it when I reach that age. I have considered buying an extra of batches that are considered exceptional because I figure I can always return it if I do 't like it, as long as the bottle and packaging of the batches remains the same ( buy a current batch, return the old one), but as I have 12 "extra" batches already and my storage space is dwindling, I'd better not. If I keep buying ahead to save for future birthdays I'll either go crazy or never clear the backlog....

Another bottle of Laphroaig Cairdeas 2012 Origin because 1 is the loneliest number.

I just bought a bottle of the Glenlivet Nadurra Oloroso, 60.7% abv. I love the A'bunadh, and other sherried whiskys so wanted to add a bottle of this to my cabinet. I also received a bottle of Balvenie 14 year Caribbean Cask for Christmas.

Just picked up a bottle of Benromach 10 year old and a bottle of Great King Street- Glasgow Blend. Finally got around to trying the Benromach and liked it so the price was right. The Glasgow blend was an impulse buy because I could't make a decision on the other choices I had. Tried the Macallan Speymalt 21 and it was good but not worth the price and I got two bottles cheaper than the Speymalt cost.

@mscottydunc...when you get a chance to crack the Nadurra Oloroso open, do let us know your thoughts as this one is on my wish list as well!

@KRB80, where did you find the PC7—auction? local store? online store?

I just wonder whether any stores are still out there with this on the shelf.

Thanks to Christmas gifts, birthday gifts, and small end-of-the-year windfalls that I’ve devoted to peaty goodness, I’m made quite a haul lately. We have an unwritten rule in my family that whisky is not to be bought “on a whim” (so to speak) with household funds, so I rely on these blessings to keep my whisky train a-rolling throughout the year. I should be pretty well set for 2015.

•Lagavulin 12 2014. I’d been eyeballing this one and I thought it made sense to include on a list of “splurge bottles” gift ideas that I made on request. Thanks to my wife and my 36th birthday, it’s now sitting in pride of place among the other open bottles on my bar.

•Laphroaig Cairdeas 2014. Same story as the Lagavulin 12, expect replace “birthday” with “Christmas.” Thanks wifey!

•Glenmorangie four-pack mini sampler. This isn’t my usual stuff, so why? I need the eventual empties for sample bottles, I’m interested in trying the various finishes (especially to compare the Glenmorangie port finish to some peat + port stuff I have open), and I thought this was decent value at $31.

•Kilkerran WIP #1. I’ve commented on my preoccupation with this bottle on the “lusting” thread, but when I called the shop to have their last bottle set aside for me, they said it was no more. D’oh! I went in person, though, and found it pushed back way up on the top shelf. Score. This is surely the rawest of the WIP line, but I sorta like that. I had a bottle of this as a birthday gift a few years ago and I’m happy to have a new one now tucked away before they’re gone for good.

•Ardbeg Ten. I did an online order from K&L and they have ridiculously good prices on Ardbeg. I hadn’t had a Ten for a while and I’d be a fool not to include one on my order for $43. This is the very best value in quality peated whisky, in my opinion.

•Ardbeg Oogie. Same story as the Ten, except the price is different. Just $55 at K&L. That’s killer. Stores in my area typically charge around $90.

•Lagavulin 16. I included this on my K&L order because their price is good again ($66 versus $85 locally). Even at $66, I think this price is really high for a colored & chill-filtered OB diluted down to 43%, but I had a dram of it while out on my birthday and I was impressed by its freshness and relative power. I hadn’t had it for a few years and I never owned a full-size bottle. Given that I now have a Lag 12 (above), I decided now is the time for the 16 too to do a proper comparison.

•Lost Spirits Leviathan III. I included this on my K&L order out of sheer curiosity. I rather expect to dislike it, but like its spiritual predecessors McCarthy’s, Balcones Brimstone, and Charbay R5, it’s impossible to sample and I know that I’ll always wonder what it’s like until I just buy a dang bottle myself. When this one came out, the K&L blog described it as more accessible than the Leviathan I, so I do have some hope. In any case, I have enough totally solid other stuff (here on this list, plus other bottles already on or under my bar) that I feel OK about rolling the dice once.

•Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength. This is my favorite whisky and I haven’t had a bottle in the house since spring. It is time. It’s my yardstick for all other peaty whiskies, of which I now have plenty that need yardsticking. Especially, I want to drink it side-by-side-by-side with the Cairdeas and the Lagavulin 12.

In the main, I’m currently focusing more on reliable favorites than interesting-but-risky new stuff. (That Leviathan is the obvious but only exception.) In that same vein, my next two planned buys are rebuys: Springbank 12 Cask Strength and Connemara Cask Strength.

In peat we trust,

Ol’ Jas

@OlJas I bout it at one of my local Whisk(e)y emporiums; Joyals Liquors in West Warwick, RI.

www.joyalsliquors.com

@Pudge72 I likely won't open it for a while, as I have a bunch of other bottles on the go, but Ill be sure to let you know. Better even, you can join me for the opening when it happens:)

@KRB80, wow—that's a great local store you have there, especially if the stock listed on their website is accurate. Good prices too!

@Oljas I am very curious about the Leviathan, let us know what you think of it as it is one I dream of. Did they have the Ouroboros from Lost Spirit, that's another one I am curious about.

You are very lucky to have the chance to taste all your odd acquisitions. Except for the Charbay, I looked for the others when I was on vacation in the US and was not able to put my hand on any of them. The only lucky grab I had in the US was a bottle of Old Potrero 18th century style. As you probably know, mail delivry is illegal in Canada, so when I read about your order you make me daydreaming about the day it would be legal in Canada. But for the moment, I can only say enjoy you lucky...

Very recently I bought a bottle of nikka from the barrel. I tend to favour single malts over blends but since this comes highly recommended at the connosr top list I decided to give it a try. Looking forward to giving it some loving attention

@Robert99, yeah, online ordering can be a boon: sometimes good prices, usually good selection—and when they combine, you can't go wrong! This is my first time ordering from K&L, but I've ordered from Binny's a couple times in the past and have been thoroughly pleased each time. I just make a point to skip bottles that I can buy locally for comparable prices. If we don't buy local today, we won't HAVE local tomorrow.

If your US travels ever take you down to the Madison, Wisconsin area, let me know if you want to me to receive a shipment for you to take back home.

--

K&L is out of the Ouroboros. Too bad—that one sounds like it's been the LEAST off-putting of their whiskies while still demonstrating the Lost Spirits weirdness. I was still happy to take a whirl on the Leviathan III, though. I'll share some notes on it when I open it. I'm unlikely to do a full review anytime soon, but I'll leave some comments on one of these ongoing threads.

@Oljas Thank you for the offer. I am not planning any trip in your area soon but I will keep that in mind.

What I usually do when I go on vacation in the US is I find on the net the best store in the visiting area and then I walk in. Sometime, if they advertise a special bottle on the Net, I will call them or write to them to have it put aside. But I do think like you, I buy products that are not available in Quebec or whiskies like the Ardbeg line that are at 50% of the Canadian price. I still buy a majority of my whiskies localy.

Btw I am just wondering how weirdness translate itself in flavor? So I hope you'll be up to the task to describe that weirdness, I am already having fun and puzzled in simple expectation. Anyway, enjoy it!

Not really a purchase per se, however we hosted a dinner for the cousins and one brought a Glenfiddich 15 Distillers Edition.

Let him try a dram of the Corryvreckan with a couple drips of water and he ended up taking a bottle of Ardbeg 10 home w him.

Happy New Year to all...

@Robert99, Leviathan is one of the more fun whiskies to enjoy vicariously. I've been browsing the (few) online reviews lately and they're all over the place. Many have a "what in the world am I tasting here??!!" quality.

Forgot to mention that he has only had Speyside before and the Corry was his first venture into Islay

Courtesy of Nozinan et al recommendations, picked up two bottles of the Amrut Peated Cask Strength today.

Nozinan - had the second shipped to the store in case you are interested; if not, I can either keep or return for the Glenfarclas 21 or Kilchoman Loch Gorm I am eyeing (thus concluding my LCBO scotch purchases for 2015)

@JayRain very kind of you. I phoned my local KGBO and asked them to bring some in. Apparently they have some in the warehouse as well as stores west of Toronto. It's dangerous stuff. I opened my bottle last month and I can see how it could disappear quickly. I've been offering it to anyone who comes over (if they like whisky). Tonight I plan to do the same, and I may use a wine glass to replicate the Ashok method.

wow @JayRain

Looks like you have sway at that store... 47 bottles listed at Queens Quay now!

Ardbeg Corryvreckan. Reason 1: It was only €55, reason 2: Cask Strength:) reason 3: Ardbeg, reason 4: I didnt try this one yet and I figured a whole bottle would give me that opportunity. I also ordered a Port Charlotte Islay Barley sample because Im really curious about the provenance factor, but €75,- for a 6yo made me go for the Corry last minute.

I picked up some more of the Amrut peated CS at a local store. Looks like they got it in but didn't call to tell me. No matter, it will soon be safely stowed with some of my other favourites.

I'm in the process of buying a bottle, but not sure what. Wife went out to the store, so I asked her to grab me a surprise bottle for the Canada Juniors game tonight to share with a few friends. I told her nothing over $40, so we will see how this little game works and if I have her do it again with a larger budget next time :)

@mscottydunc...angling for a bottle of Lot 40 there? :)