The KOTQ

At our 13Q2 meeting last night at Delilah’s in Chicago Brother B Funk designed a terrific Speyside themed lineup. We started with the classic: Glen Grant 16. The star of the show, Glendronach 15 “Revival” was next. Benromach Peat Smoke was a big favorite as well. The fourth malt was Strathisla 12 which was followed by the surprise of the evening which was a private bottling by the very bar we were in: Delilah’s.

Delilah’s 14 was the celebration of Delilah’s 14 anniversary in operation. Mike, the proprietor, creates a private whiskey bottling for the bar’s customers to enjoy. 2006 was the 14th year and Mike chose single malt for that year’s private bottle expression. The identity of the source malt is a closely kept secret but the malt had strong Speyside characteristics and likely came from either Macallan, Glenfarclas, or Aberlour or similar. Mike is of Scottish descent and the bottle label features his family’s tartan.

While B – Funk, Hoopie and I anxiously awaited the arrival of our brethren at last night’s fantastic tasting, I perused the impressive whisky menu at Delilah’s.  To my shock and awe, there it was on the page, Springbank 21.  I immediately thought of my bachelor party back in 2002 when we last had Springbank 21 due to a major production gap.

Despite the $30.00 per dram price point, I didn’t hesitate and dialed one up while B-Funk and Hoopie respectably ordered the new Ardbog from Ardbeg.

My dram of Springbank 21 was worth every bit of the $30.00, albeit I was a bit nostalgic as I dialed it up.  The night only got better from there as the lineup was terrific and our new initiates brought strong presentations to the group.

There was a good debate later in the night though between me and one of our esteemed guests on the relative price to value ratio of some of these spirits.  This is one of those classic discussions we’ve had as a group over the last 13 years, and to which I believe led Brother Bop to come up with Bop’s Select list.  Last night’s debate was Springbank 21 @ $30 per dram vs. Highland Park 18 @ $18 per dram.  Is Springbank 21 really 66% better than HP 18?  Of course this all assumes that price is a measure of quality when it comes to scotch…..

Thoughts?

Brother Brass went to our EMEA offices to conduct some training and while in London found his way to The Whisky Exchange’s brick and mortar store. Our distillery pages at our KOTQ web-site are linked with TWE’s on-line store which is so incredibly complete and up to date that I hadn’t even considered a physical store was behind it. Brass spent considerable time simultaneously being tempted and overwhelmed and netted out on a special bottling of Lagavulin. It was special for a number of reasons.

Firstly, because it was actually bottled by the The Whisky Exchange itself. Secondly, for us North Americans, it was available only in Europe. And, thirdly, it was a cool bottle size and style we’re not accustomed to and was not age expressioned. Our European colleague at work, Klaus, informed us that non age-expressions usually mean a youngish whisky and we pegged this one as a 6-8 year. The bottling was cask strength yet some of the group enjoyed it uncut. I cut mine and discovered a large fruitiness to the palate including pineapple, plum, and peach. Depending on where you cut it you could have a smoky, smooth or very spicy experience. Definitely fun, new ground for a Lagavulin.

Thanks to Brass for his diligence in providing a remarkable experience for the Friday afternoon single malt club.

Mrs. Hoopie thought out of the box for fathers day this year and bought me a product from the Copper Fox Distillery provides a 100% barley single malt spirit and a charred barrel to allow you to age at home.  The product sheet and faq are below.  It recommends the first fill be aged 4-7 months.  I put it in in June, and was planning to crack it around Christmas time to see what comes out.  Being a habitual tinkerer, the best part will be the subsequent fills where I can experiment with how the output changes after the barrel has been used a few times.

http://www.copperfox.biz/images/cp-wasmunds-barrel-kit-product-sheet-2012.pdf

http://www.copperfox.biz/products/distillers-art-faq.php

Exciting off-line tasting from Ardbeg Committeeman Brother Bluff on Ardbeg’s new release: Galileo.

The bottle is a limited edition bottling but not hidden in the back room for committee members only. I pulled it off the shelf for $90 without having to give a special wink or super secret handshake.

I just cracked it open and my initial impressions are positive. Bottled at 49%, I only added a little bit of water to open it up. It has all the usual smoke that you’d expect from Ardbeg, but I get sweetness on the nose and reminds me of BBQ Ribs—charred and caramelized.

The palate has all the salt you’ve come to expect, plus some surprising sweet notes that come from the ex-Marsala casks. It’s aged 12 years, so unlike the recent committee bottlings, this release has an age statement…1999, bottled 2012.

Forget about the gimmick celebrating Ardbeg in Space….the whisky is pretty delicious without the hype, and sadly will not be available for long.