I'll certainly have a look. I watched a ralfy video the other month where he quite aggressively railed against chill filtering and I do respect his opinion. You also have to wonder why it's the supermarket/common/conglomerates that chill filter and don't state it -- whereas some very good distilleries like Springbank actively state NCF on their bottles...
The OCUK Whisky (and Whiskey) review thread
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Soldato
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It's a marketing tool I guess. People have been told CF is bad, so therefore distilleries want to please the markets (or rather the part of the market that actually thinks it matters!). I imagine the majority of buyers don't care/aren't even aware it is a thing.
I've accidentally found I tend to prefer the higher proofs, so I'm not sure how much CF I've been exposed to really. I also can't think of the last time I added ice. Even when I have, I've not ever thought that visual distortion that comes from the addition of the water to an NCF of suitably low proof was a bad looking thing - if anything, it made it more interesting to oggle in the glass!
destroys all taste though. I think that's why some people do it - to deaden the taste so they can appear cool and sophisticated while actually displaying an ignorance/disdain for the drink they've just ordered.
Soldato
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Ooh, I don't know about that - a nice bourbon with a punchy proof, strong vanilla and eucalyptus notes...cuts through the ice and is rather enjoyable on a hot afternoon....
At least so long as you drink it quite swiftly!
exactly. A "nice" bourbon (oxymoron if ever there was one
) might benefit from ice to flatten the harsh paint-stripper overtones. Good single malts seldom want ice.
I'd think it is better to show disdain to a drink than to people that want to enjoy the drink they have bought and paid for, in whatever form that takes.
Sure and we should also respect people who buy track cars to drive to the corner shop in 1st gear and never do anything more with them. Doesn't mean we shouldn't say they're wasting their money and would be better off paying less for something better matched.
Hi all, hoping for a recommendation. My taste buds have slowly developed where I am starting to appreciate whisky (that's not a dig at anyone but 3 years ago I wouldn't touch the stuff) I'm looking for something around £30 ish mark to get me into it. Hopefully a subtle oakey/ smokey taste maybe?
Nobody will take it as a dig at all. Most are the same and come an age you develop a taste for it.
I was exactly the same as you but now absolutely love the stuff and trying different things.
Highland Park 12 year old is currently on offer in Tesco for £26 I think it was. It's a very subtle smokey end on it and I still to this day think it is a cracking whisky.
I mention this one because it's on offer but also, like you, years ago I tried a dram of HP12 in a bar and it was literally the whisky that made my tastebuds think WOW, this is actually super nice.
A safer bet may be to try some sample sized bottles from Master of the Malts etc. You could try a a few rather than going all in on a single bottle you may not enjoy.
There is a fair amount of snobbery going on in the whisky world at the moment. A lot of people seem to forget they were once new to whisky and what they were like when they started out. Looking down on people instead of encouraging them helps no one. Look at the responses the guy that posted his collection a few pages back got, does that encourage others to take part in the community?
Anything that gets people interested in whisky is a good thing. If that's with ice, in cocktails, with water, whatever, it's often the start of their journey. Just because we have long passed that stage isn't a reason for us adopting an I'm better than you attitude for those that are still there.
Soldato
Sorry guys, I'm only seeing the replies to my photo of the collection. I must say that the only two bottles I've actually bought for myself are the Laguavillin 16 and the Highland Park 12. I think everything else has been a gift (birthday or Christmas present).
The Whyte & Mackay was a present for my girlfriend's sister and to be fair I've not had it before, so I'll take a free bottle of whiskey any day of the week... Mr Cheapsake
Love the door comment! The door on the left leads to the hall, the one behind it, is to the airing cupboard and the one on the right is for the utility room. Having the hall door open onto the airing cupboard does indeed cause problems. But yes I do often spill cups of tea around the place 
I've also missed three bottles from the picture. A Glengoyne own blended bottle from there Master Distiller Tour, a Jura of some time and yes a bottle of Johnnie Walker Game of Thrones... rip me about
I think the Famous Grouse being unopened says it all, although I do like the Naked Grouse, mainly because my girlfriend bought me it lol The Bourbon and Tennesse whiskey only really gets drunk with Coke or used in cooking
Tearing into him for FG but there is a bottle of Whyte & Mackay sat there also.... even worse!!
The Whyte & Mackay was a present for my girlfriend's sister and to be fair I've not had it before, so I'll take a free bottle of whiskey any day of the week... Mr Cheapsake
Love the door comment!
The door on the left leads to the hall, the one behind it, is to the airing cupboard and the one on the right is for the utility room. Having the hall door open onto the airing cupboard does indeed cause problems. But yes I do often spill cups of tea around the place I know! Bourbon is much nicer than single malt so it deserves to be separated from that stuff
Thanks. Lagualuvin 16 is lovely.Ignore all the whisky snobs
I need to try the Lagaluvin 16, just a bit expensive for me at the moment.
I've also missed three bottles from the picture. A Glengoyne own blended bottle from there Master Distiller Tour, a Jura of some time and yes a bottle of Johnnie Walker Game of Thrones... rip me about
but the most important question got missed - which old particular is it
also I understand the dilemma with gifted whiskies. I have bottle of generic blended scotch my grandmother gave me just before she passed. I use it for hipflasks when I'm going away for long weekends etc and the likelihood is the flask will get shared around etc. It means it will last a good while, sentimental reasons mean I don't just want to get rid into cooking etc, and I'm still putting it to good use as she would have wanted. Plus if I get made to empty it I won't mind as much as pouring away a really good single malt.
It's not snobbery. The person's reply shows they took it in the spirit it was meant. What is it with people getting offended on others' behalf? The world seems to be increasingly full of people who take umbridge at any little thing.
Also given the cost and effort that goes into producing good single malt, and the efforts the distillers go to to ensure the flavours and complexities of the drams, it is appropriate to encourage people to drink them in ways that let you actually taste it. You don't buy tickets to hear a recital of Beethoven by the LSO and then sit with your isolating headphones listening to your neighbuor's kids school orchestra instead. If we want to talk offensive I'd argue that it is more offensive to the distiller to stick ice in decent single malts than it is to point out to someone that it might not be a good idea. And a good number of proper Scottish bars will cut you off if you order "a single malt &..." and direct you to a blend instead. I'm going to side with them on this.
Please do name me one Scottish bar that does that?
Edit: And ask the likes of Billy Walker if they find it offensive if people add ice to their whisky. I think you'll be surprised at the answer.
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Soldato
but the most important question got missed - which old particular is it
Also, I understand the dilemma with gifted whiskies. I have bottle of generic blended scotch my grandmother gave me just before she passed. I use it for hipflasks when I'm going away for long weekends etc and the likelihood is the flask will get shared around etc. It means it will last a good while, sentimental reasons mean I don't just want to get rid into cooking etc, and I'm still putting it to good use as she would have wanted. Plus if I get made to empty it I won't mind as much as pouring away a really good single malt.
It's the Dalmore Old Particular.
Yeah, I took the posts in jest.
I guess if you like it, whether it be a cheap supermarket own brand or expensive one-off bottles, it doesn't matter what other people think. I guess single malts have this reputation as being "better" for whatever reason. It is the same as my Gibson guitars, they are "better" than Epiphone because they cost more and people say they are better. It is entirely up to the guitar play which they prefer. The problem with having so many open bottles of whiskey and whisky is trying to decide which one to have!
the one I was recently in in Fort William for starters - my friend went a comedy shade of red. It was the start of a good night though and we ended up getting a taste of some good stuff from the back in the name of education! Then the one we spent a crazy amount of money in at Port Askaig down by the ferry terminal - though of course it could just be their barman talking a good game as I was ordering sensibly and made an instant friend when I ordered two cask-strength neat with no ice which met with instant approval.
Why how much time do you spend up there?
Which bar in Fort William was that?
It's the Dalmore Old Particular.
Yeah, I took the posts in jest.
The problem with having so many open bottles of whiskey and whisky is trying to decide which one to have!
yes, the open bottle roulette! I find like wine tastes change with seasons and circumstances. It's fine to have a few on the go, just don't have too many! (unless your good lady is very understanding about the amount of shelf space...)
Gibsons are better than Epiphones, but not as much as the price suggests. They;ve really hiked prices recently in some weird vanity exercise to try and adopt a "luxury brand" status. The differences come in a variety of ways: no scarf joint on the neck/headstock - stronger, better resonance. Better tone woods and solid pieces, less lamination and splicing so better resonance. The pickups are generally better quality, and wiring, pots etc are a world apart if you go into the specs and compare magnets, resonant spikes etc. Finishing, workmanship are supposed to be better too (though some of that can be remedied by a guiter tech/luthier later). It doesn't make the Epiphone a bad guitar, but Gibson - a proper one, less so the newer ones - really are something special when you get to play one.
the one we walked to. Why don't you go and find the names and I'll see if anyone of them ring a bell.
Yeah, ok...