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The Glenlivet 18

June 27, 2024 Scotland

Name: The Glenlivet 18

Color: Light Brown

Nose: Cereal, butter, cinnamon, oak

Taste: Light oak, spice, flowers/heather, nuts, vanilla

Glenlivet distillery is in Ballindalloch in Moray, Scotland. It was founded in 1824 and only closed during World War II. Glenlivet is listed as one of the biggest, if not the biggest seller of single malt whisky in America. The Glenlivet 18-Year-Old Single Malt is bottled at 43 abv and is aged in American and European oak casks.

18-Year-Old Single Malts are never really bad, just some are better than others. The age and the title are almost a brand name label to place on a whisky. When you get to 18 years you should be getting high quality whisky.

Glenlivet 18 is not the best tasting 18-year-old I have had but is very good. I find it a bit too light for my preference, but I would not turn down a glass. I prefer Glenfiddich18 at this price range or Talisker 18 if I want to spend more money.

Other expressions are the following:
Core Range: Founder’s Reserve,12-Year-Old, 15-Year-Old French Oak Reserve, Nàdurra 16-Year-Old, Archive 21-Year-Old, and 25 Year Old.

Limited Release: The Glenlivet Cellar Collection 1972 Cask Strength, 1959 Cask Strength, 1964 Cask Strength, 1967, French Oak Finish 1983 and American Oak Finish 30-Year-Old.

Travel Retail: 12-Year-Old First Fill and 15-Year-old.

Priced around $125 and worth the money if you like Glenlivet.

If you like it, drink it! – Chris

If you like it, drink it!

The Singleton 12 Cocktail Series #3 – Scotch 75

June 26, 2024 Scotland

The Singleton 12-Year-Old is a Speyside Scotch with a lighter taste profile of malt, lemon, honey, heather, and light oak. It is 40% abv, chilled filtered, color adjusted, and aged for 12 years in ex bourbon and sherry casks. For me, it is a summer scotch.

It is a lighter tasting Scotch, and, on their website, they present numerous cocktail receipts. I am generally not a fan of cocktails made from Scotch so this series will be an experiment to broaden my horizons and educate you as the reader.

Singleton Cocktail Series #3 – Scotch 75

1.25 oz Singleton
0.5 oz Lemon Juice
0.5 oz Simple Syrup
0.5 oz Vanilla Extract
Shake in strainer
Pour in wine glass
Top with sparkling wine
Garnish with a lemon twist

This cocktail is very brown in appearance but decent in taste. I However, I was generally surprised how drinkable this cocktail ended up being. The lemon, simple syrup and vanilla was blend. I think with a dryer champagne and higher quality vanilla extract it would have been very good. It was a little sweet for my taste but I could drink it.

In conclusion, it is nice drink but I would either drink a lighter whisky on the rocks or champagne straight. The Scotch 75 would be worth serving at a party to non-scotch drinkers.

If you like it, drink it! – Chris

If you like it, drink it!

New Riff “Red Turkey Wheat” Bourbon

June 20, 2024 America

Name: New Riff “Red Turkey Wheat” Bourbon

Color: Copper

Nose: Corn, unique wheat, vanilla, caramel-orange

Taste: Toasted malted blend, caramel, vanilla, white fruits

New Riff Bourbon Single Barrel Bourbon is produced by the New Riff Distillery which is located in Newport, KY on the Ohio River adjacent to Cincinnati. New Riff was founded by Ken Lewis who used to own The Party Source next door in the same plaza. It is my understanding that you cannot produce and distribute whiskey in Kentucky so he sold the store to start the distillery.

On my last visit to Kentucky, I stopped by the bar to see if they had anything new. The bartender presented me the New Riff Red Turkey Wheat for a tasting. I was pleasantly surprised. The mash bill is 70% corn, 25% red turkey wheat, 5% malted barley, aged “at “least five years. It is a bottle and bonded, non-chilled filtered whiskey that is bottled at 50% abv. The Red turkey wheat uses heirloom seed that have been passed down over 50 years from crops and unlike modern seeds they are not a hybrid mix. This type of wheat creates a different flavor profile that I had not experience before and it is very enjoyable.

Red Turkey Wheat it is very good whiskey, well balanced, and can be drank neat. At 100 proof I would add some water or make a high-quality cocktail.

Priced around $50 and worth the money. Not sure if you are going to find it in the stores up in the NYC area as this is limited production run.

If you like it, drink it! – Chris

If you like it, drink it!

Davidoff Churchill

June 19, 2024 Cigars

Name: Davidoff Churchill

Size/Gauge: 6-7/8” / 47

Wrapper: Ecuador

Binder: Mexico

Filler: Dominican Republic / Nicaragua

The Davidoff Churchill cigar is the longest one of the box set and with good reason. The story goes that Winston Churchill smoked five cigars a day and his doctor told him to cut back to three a day. He agreed and the next day told his cigar maker to create the same cigar but longer. Problem solved and thanks to Winston for his wise thinking!

This cigar is a medium-light smoke with easy tobacco. It is not too strong and it is a little on the sweet side in flavor. It has notes of spices, chocolate and wood but they are very subtle. I started with a bullet cut and it worked nicely with the gauge but after 15 minutes I switched to a V-cut to get more the flavor from the smoke. The cigar lasted around 45 minutes. I can see this cigar pairing well with a peaty whisky or a Speyside Single Malt.

Priced around $25 and good, but for the price I would prefer a more robust tasting cigar.

If you like it, drink it (or smoke it)! – Chris

If you like it, drink it!

Springbank Single Malt – 10 Year Old

June 13, 2024 Scotland

Name: Springbank Single Malt – 10 Year Old

Color: Brown

Nose: Peat, smoke, white fruit, earthy

Taste: Cereal malt, oily wood, peat, slight sweetness

Established in 1828 Springbank is located in Campbelltown, Scotland, which is on the Kintyre Peninsula the West Coast (Lowlands). Campbelltown was once the whisky capital of the world with over 30 active distilleries. Today, only three distilleries remain; Springbank, Glen Scotia, and Glengyle. When it comes to making whisky, Springbank does everything in house from start to finish. They malt (floor malted), distill, mature, and bottle on site which is rare these days due to operational costs.

What is “Floor Malted?”

Grains of barley are what is used make malt whisky and are basically small packets of starch. The barley is steeped in water over two days to start germination to eventfully release sugar to be converted to alcohol. After steeping the barley is called green malt and is laid over a heated floor (up 2 feet deep) to stop the growth. Kilns below heat the green malt through the floor and workers use wooden shovels to turn it regularly. This is labor intensive and most distilleries use automated drums to save time and money. After the floor malting is complete the distiller proceeds to the milling, mashing, fermentation, and finally the distillation process.

Long story short, floor malting is a lot of work.

Many feel that this traditional step in the process makes for better whisky. That can be true, but many distilleries do not floor malt and they make excellent whiskies. Some distilleries embrace the older methods and some only use modern technology. I am not saying floor malting is better but in my opinion if a distillery is going the extra mile you are going to get a better product. That extra mile may be floor malting or using technology, it all varies.

Priced around $65 and well worth the money for a 10 year old. If you are not familiar with Springbank and you like Scotch, I suggest you get familiar with it tonight over a dram or two.

If you like it, drink it! – Chris

If you like it, drink it!

Auchentoshan Sauvignon Blanc Finish

June 12, 2024 Scotland

Name: Auchentoshan Sauvignon Blanc Finish

Color: Yellow

Nose: Malt, heather, white wine, oak wood

Taste: Malt, honey, citrus, sav blanc notes

Auchentoshan Sauvignon Blanc Finish is a limited edition that was released in 2019. It is aged five years in ex-bourbon casks and five months in Sauvignon Blanc casks from Bordeaux. It is bottled at 47% abv.

This expression is a little strange. Upon tasting it, I immediately thought this must be an experimental expression or a marketing gimmick. It has an odd snappy flavor and a “stingy” finish as my sister described it. It reminds me a little of Badsons Beer that was finished in chardonnay casks. You can drink it, it’s not disgusting, but it is not that enjoyable. From my research the distillery marketing states, “served chilled from the refrigerator or from an ice bucket…..use in Highballs and Spritzer”. I did not try it chilled so perhaps it would taste better, but I doubt it. This is just a marketing campaign for whisky as a mixer to move product. The snappy taste and stingy finish must come from the Bordeaux wine casks. White with from Bordeaux can lean towards being harsher tasting in my experience. I am glad I tried it, but I cannot recommend it. If you have not experienced Auchentoshan I recommend you start with American Oak.

Priced around $70 and I am not impressed.

If you like it, drink it! – Chris

If you like it, drink it!

Glen Scotia 15 Year Old

June 6, 2024 Scotland

Name: Glen Scotia 15-Year-Old

Color: Brown

Nose: Malted barley, flowers, citrus, honey, apple, dark fruit/berries

Taste: Dark fruit, flowers, malted barley finish

Glen Scotia 15-Year-Old Single Malt is a scotch that I had not yet tried so it was a new experience for me. I had heard of Glen Scotia and seen it on the store shelves but had not sampled it until now. As I like to do, when Astor Wines had a 15% off sale I buy the whiskies I have not tried that are over 14 years old and/or over $70. And notes to the readers, I self-fund this operation. No free samples for me, not yet at least.

Glen Scotia is distilled in Campbeltown, Scotland which is one of the five whisky producing regions in Scotland. At one time Campbeltown had thirty distilleries but today there is only three. The three distilleries are Glen Scotia, Glengyle, and Springbank. The 15-year-old is bottled at 46% abv and has a great flavor but more importantly has a very good balance and smoothness to go along with the flavor. The taste is light with a medium body and very little burn from the alcohol on the finish.

I enjoyed the Glen Scotia 15-Year-Old neat. In my opinion this particular scotch does not need water or ice but you drink it how you like it. I cannot say much more other than it is very good and well-priced for the age, taste, and price.

Priced around $75 and definitely worth the money for the flavor profile.

If you like it, drink it! – Chris

If you like it, drink it!

Glen Scotia – Double Cask

June 5, 2024 Scotland

Name: Glen Scotia – Double Cask

Color: Amber

Nose: Malt, flowers, citrus (lemon), spices

Taste: Malt, flower, citrus, oak light sherry, honey, spice finish

Glen Scotia – Double Cask is a Campbeltown malt aged in American oak and finished in Pedro Ximenez sherry casks. It is bottle at 46% abv which is a little higher than your average scotch. It has a medium body and is smooth with little rich spice notes on the finish. It also has Little dry, red wine sherry thing on the finish.

It has been years since I sampled a Glen Scotia and I forget that is a good whisky. I was impressed with the Double Cask as this is easy drinking whisky with a nice balance. I will be looking to buy a bottle if I see one.

Expressions: Double Rum Cask, Harbor, Double Cask, Victoriana, 15-, 18-, and 25-year-old.

Priced around $70 and worth the money if you like the flavor profile.

If you like it, drink it! – Chris

If you like it, drink it!

Heaven Hill 6-Year-Old Bourbon

May 30, 2024 America

Name: Heaven Hill 6-Year-Old Bourbon

Color: Copper

Nose: Corn, vanilla, wood

Taste: Corn, vanilla, caramel, wood

The Heaven Hill distillery was found in 1935 by a group of investors ready to take advantage of the upcoming open market after Prohibition ended in 1933. The distillery is in Louisville, Kentucky and produces a ridiculous amount of bourbon each year.

Heaven Hill 6-Year-Old Bourbon “Green Label” mash bill is 78% corn, 12% malted barley, and 10% rye. Aged in white oak barrels at char #3 and bottled at 45% abv. This is a basic bourbon from Kentucky and is nothing special or very interesting. It is drinkable and good for a mixer, but at $15 per bottle at 90 proof (sold in Kentucky only) it might be an alcoholics delight. My friend St. Matthew of Covington prefers to use this in his bourbon slushes and those things can really put you on your ass.

Other expressions: Bottle in Bond, Henry McKenna, Bernheim Original Wheat, Larceny, Rittenhouse Rye, Old Fitzgerald, Parker’s Heritage Collection, Pikesville Straight Rye, Elijah Craig, Evan Williams, and Mellow Corn.

Priced around $15 and decent drinker for the price if you need to buy a cheap bottle in Kentucky.

If you like it, drink it! – Chris

If you like it, drink it!

The Singleton 12 Cocktail Series #2 – Singleton & Ginger

May 29, 2024 Scotland

Singleton Cocktail Series #2 – Singleton & Ginger

1.5 oz Singleton

3 oz Ginger Ale

Pour on ice

Lime wheel for garnish

Jesus, fuck me this tasted awful. The flavor profile does not work for me. If you like a light scotch, ginger, and lime juice this is your cocktail but I found it terrible tasting. It needs something else in it. I doubted I was going to like this cocktail. I am not a fan of whisky & soda. I only drink whisky & coke when I am in Madrid where it is regular party drink and I opt to blend in with the Spaniards.

If you like it, drink it! – Chris

If you like it, drink it!

christopher.dias.nyc@gmail.com

The Glenlivet 18

The Singleton 12 Cocktail Series #3 – Scotch 75

New Riff “Red Turkey Wheat” Bourbon

Davidoff Churchill

Springbank Single Malt – 10 Year Old

Auchentoshan Sauvignon Blanc Finish

Glen Scotia 15 Year Old

Glen Scotia – Double Cask

Heaven Hill 6-Year-Old Bourbon

The Singleton 12 Cocktail Series #2 – Singleton & Ginger

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