4 August 2013

03/08/2013 Summer barbecue

Afternoon at an American friend's for a sunny barbecue. The underlying idea (sort of) is to show off his whisk(e)y collection, so I bring a few things along. No exhaustive notes, this time; a mere placeholder.

Baby Blue BB 12.5 (46%, OB): nice, though not as round as expected. Very much full of corn.
True Blue 100 PROOF (50%, OB): much more to my taste. Corn syrup aplenty and more quaffable, despite the additional 4%.
Balcones #1: Balcones' flagship, according to the host. It is rougher around the edges and, although not bad, it is less my thing.
Eagle Rare 10yo Single Barrel (45%, OB): Buffalo Trace is usually very nice; this one does not break that pattern. Pick of the lot for me.
Yamazaki 12yo (40%, OB): OK, a bit sharpish. Lots of wood.
Zuidam 4yo 2007/2011 (46%, Milroy's Selection Number 1, American Oak, C#8448, 298b) (the neighbour): surprisingly pleasant. Full of orange peels and rather floral. Who said orange tulips? Bueller? First Dutch whisky -- or is it?
Balvenie 14yo Golden Cask (43%, OB) (me): not having that one myself, today. Surprisingly, people are less enthusiastic about it than they usually are.
Caperdonich 12yo 1997/2009 (43%, DMG Provenance, Refill Hogshead, Ref DMG 5569) (me): the host, who normally does not care for Scotch admits this one is actually a lot nicer than he expected. It is light with a bitter after-taste of flower-stem juice. 7/10
Blair Athol 12yo (43%, OB) (me): both the host and the neighbour seem to like this one and agree it is a winter-warmer. It is an honest, sherried dram, a good introduction to that kind of taste, medium wide, medium long and leathery, with a touch of tobacco (cigar). 7/10
Talisker 10yo (45.8%, OB): I do not have this one either -- well-known and not the weather for it, not to mention I am not a fan.

One of the girls says she likes whisky from time to time and her favourite are St Magdalene and TaLIsker. Have to do a double take on that to believe it. Not the unusual Talisker pronunciation, but the fact she just mentioned a distillery that has been shut for over 30 years and is not all that well known outside the geekiness of circles I am accustomed to. It turns out her father is a collector. Ha!

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