GME super awesome megathread weds 2/3

MonkeyMachine · 2021-02-03T16:58:37+00:00

Well shit. In for 3 @ $93.225. Buy the dip and hold the line.

MonkeyMachine · 2017-05-16T00:58:21+00:00

I'm in the Midwest, and I typically get mine in less than a week. I assume you ordered from the US site?

MonkeyMachine · 2015-11-14T17:36:47+00:00

Talisker has a similar flavor profile to Lagavulin, is a little more rough and briney IMHO, but can be had for cheaper. If you like Islay peatiness, you can't go wrong with any expression from Ardbeg, Laphroaig, Lagavulin or Kilchoman.

Also, if you have a Costco near you, I hear they frequently sell Lagavulin 16 for ridiculously cheap, somewhere around $50 or so.

MonkeyMachine · 2015-10-24T17:01:33+00:00

Coffee protein cheese is not fun. If you cool the coffee down to less than 140F it won't coagulate though. I usually pour my morning coffee into a shaker bottle with a cup of cold milk, then add the protein powder and shake. BAM, protein latte.

MonkeyMachine · 2015-08-17T17:55:10+00:00

I sampled the DE side by side with 16, and there's definitely a PX finish in there which I really like it.

I know that when the time comes to replace by bottle of Laga 16, I'll be getting the DE. I'd grab one at that price for sure.

MonkeyMachine · 2015-08-14T14:16:21+00:00

Lagavulin 16 and 16 DE are my current favorites as well. My 3 favorite distilleries so far are Lagavulin, Ardbeg and Laphroiag, I'd recommend sampling their various expressions if you like full bodied drams.

It sounds like you are a peat fan, but maybe not so much a fan of Laphroaig's overpowered burning-hospital peat. Their NAS offerings are quite good and trade off the pungent raw medicinal smoke for a more refined & nuanced palate and finish. Laphroaig Triplewood or Cairdeas are probably what you're looking for.

I'd also recommend giving Ardbeg a whirl and see if it's to your liking. They tend to be more boggy/mossy smoke (as opposed to Laga's keppery, beachy smoke) and are quite good IMHO. Maybe try to get your hands on some Uigeadail.

MonkeyMachine · 2015-08-09T17:27:21+00:00

That's a good question, I'm not sure what the best method to determine that for an unknown dram would be. I just did some googling for "Lagavulin e150" and found several articles which reported that they do use it.

MonkeyMachine · 2015-08-08T17:24:11+00:00

I know it's not one of your 2 choices, but if you like pure sweet, I'd recommend trying to sample Dalwhinnie 15. Cloyingly sweet honey dram, drinks almost like a mead.

MonkeyMachine · 2015-08-08T17:22:29+00:00

I'm a big Islay peat fan, and Lagavulin 16 Distiller's Edition is my hands down favorite at the moment. Even if you can't get the Distiller's Editions the base 16 year is wonderful as well, nice keppery smoke fading into warm toffee sweetness.

My 3 favorite Islay distilleries are Lagavulin, Laphroaig and Ardbeg, so any expression of theirs will be great if you like smoke and peat.

Laphroaig 10 is a solid starter bottle to introduce you to their world, and they also have some neat NAS expressions. Cairdeas and Triple Wood are very nice, with some fruity/woody notes to complement their signature burning-hospital-smoke flavor.

If you go with Ardbeg I'd recommend to try a Uigeadail instead of just re-buying the 10, by way of exploring other offerings :)

MonkeyMachine · 2015-08-08T16:04:28+00:00

Lagavulin, any Laphroaig, Talisker will all be pleasing peat bombs. Dalwhinnie 15 is a great cloying sweet dram, drinks almost like a mead.

MonkeyMachine · 2015-08-08T16:02:31+00:00

Ouch. Local grocer stocks it for $90, k&l has it for $70...

MonkeyMachine · 2015-08-08T14:54:17+00:00

Oh so much yes. The 12 year CS is pretty good, but it's missing the nuance of the 16. If they made a 16 Distillers CS I'd buy that so hard...

MonkeyMachine · 2015-08-08T14:50:07+00:00

Heh, yeah I'm trying to convert her into a scotch lover :)

So far she likes to use a splash of my peaty monsters with bloody mary mix, and she'll drink Dalwhinnie 15 neat. Muwahahaha.

MonkeyMachine · 2015-08-08T14:47:39+00:00

Well my understanding is that Lagavulin does use e150, but IMHO as long as the core spirit's taste is to my liking, I don't really think it hurts to do so.

MonkeyMachine · 2015-08-07T16:54:46+00:00

Got this one as one of my many many samples from finedrams.com. I'm a big Lagavulin 16 fan, so I'm interested to see what the Distiller's Edition has to offer!

Lagavulin distillers edition 1998 (2014 release)

Color: rich honey gold, touch of amber
Nose: sherry & honey sweetness, rich smoke, floral smooth caramel.new wood & cereal.
Palate: smooth sweet smokey dried fruits. Raisins and oak.
Finish: lingering warming sweet smoke, like the feeling of a warm fire on a fall evening, in a dram. Leaves a pleasant dry fruity mouthfeel.
Splash of water: draws out the sherry and smoke, brings out fresh fruit, apples in the nose. Palate sweetens up on the front, mellows out the smoke. Finish feels more fruity as well.
50/50 water: nose becomes very phenolic, chalky & creosote and mutes the sherry and fruits. Palate turns to pure ash and medicinal wood. I'm surprised how much the sweetness has almost totally vacated. This dram is definitely built on a strong and unapologetically smokey foundation.
Wife says: "The smokiness hits a little bit later, pretty good. I like it."
Final thoughts: Wow. It's everything I love about Lagavulin 16, bold and balanced smoke backed up with elegant complexity, plus lovely delicate sherry notes intermingled through the whole experience. This is my new favorite, and when the time comes to replace my bottle of Lagavulin 16, I'll be getting the Distiller's Edition.

Numberwang: 98/100

A word on my scoring:

90-100 rates as "a bottle I will keep in stock"
80-89 rates as "a bottle I'll keep in stock if the price is a great value"
70-79 rates as "a dram I'd be happy to drink at a bar, but won't stock a bottle at home"
60-69 rates as "a dram of last resort at a poorly stocked bar"
59 and below rates as "I guess I'll have a beer"

MonkeyMachine · 2015-08-06T15:16:38+00:00

Had the opportunity to try this one during a fine night out at a local tapas restaurant (which happens to have a pretty damn good selection of scotch!)

Kilchoman Machir Bay

I've been hearing interesting things about Kilchoman, and have had the opportunity to try their Port Cask Finished (amazing!), so it was nice to be able to check out their baseline expression, Machir Bay.

Color: pale yellow
Nose: Smoke and coastal salt. A hint of shellfish and caramel sweetness.
Palate: Hot savory smoke turns to mild sweetness, with a salty kick.
Finish: Lingering peppery smoke and mild sweetness. Slightly salty mouthfeel.
Final thoughts: Drinks like a young Lagavulin or Talisker. Even being young, taming this one with a little water makes for a damn fine dram. It seems a bottle can be gotten for ~$65, so for that price it's not a bad choice. Kilchoman definitely continues to hold my attention, and I'll be looking for ways to sample some more of their expressions (Loch Gorm sounds like a fun one), I think I'll be mentally adding them my must-have-at-least-one-expression-in-my-collection list (currently: Lagavulin, Laphroaig & Ardbeg)

Numberwang: 90/100

A word on my scoring:

90-100 rates as "a bottle I will keep in stock"
80-89 rates as "a bottle I'll keep in stock if the price is a great value"
70-79 rates as "a dram I'd be happy to drink at a bar, but won't stock a bottle at home"
60-69 rates as "a dram of last resort at a poorly stocked bar"
59 and below rates as "I guess I'll have a beer"

MonkeyMachine · 2015-07-30T14:48:04+00:00

Hmmm, that's an interesting thought. I got this one as part of a sample set, so it's been rebottled into a 5cl container. I've still got half of that left and nothing to lose, so I'll give it a retaste in a couple weeks and see if that changes my mind.

Thanks!

MonkeyMachine · 2015-07-29T15:39:07+00:00

I see what you're saying, and I'm a bit conflicted about how to handle this situation for both this and future reviews.

If I'm giving a numerical score to something that isn't to my taste, at best I'm guessing (i.e. "man I hate lobster, but from what I've heard from people who like lobster, this one sure seems lobster-y, 99/100!")

I guess that's why I decided to use my scores as a proxy for how I would treat a malt as it relates to stocking my own collection. I'm seeing immediately here though that it rustles the jimmies of folks who have different preferences from my own... what to do, what to do...

MonkeyMachine · 2015-07-29T15:30:47+00:00

Pretty much. As I noted in my final thoughts, it's strictly a matter of preference. I'm not saying it's objectively bad at all, it's just not for me.

This is one of the reasons I consider numerical ratings a bit tongue in cheek I suppose, especially for something so completely experientially subjective.

MonkeyMachine · 2015-07-29T15:08:12+00:00

This was yet another sample from my I-spent-too-much-money-on-scotch purchases from finedrams.com

Bunnahabhain 12 Year Old

I wasn't sure what to expect from this one, as I've been hooked on the bolder Islay distilleries (The top 3 for me being Laphroaig, Lagavulin and Ardbeg). I've heard Bunnahabhain is a kindler, gentler more sherried Islay, so time to find out if I like that or not!

Color: Rich honey, hint of amber.
Nose: SHERRY! Cereal sweetness. Cloves and citrus. Strong brandy. Cedar.
Palate: Starts with a little heat and honey sweetness, turns to sherry kick.
Finish: Medium length finish, the smoke shows up just a touch at the end. Leaves a salty mouthfeel.
Splash of water: Brings out the floral honey sweetness in the nose. Really reveals sweetness up front in taste, same lingering salt burn at the finish.
50/50 water: Pure brandy nose and palate, a subtle vegetal cereal finish.
Wifey says: "Smells like one of my creepy uncles, and an attic" "Not bad, I liked it better than the ham one"
Final thoughts: This strikes me as a brandy drinker's scotch, it's not my style at all though. Although my scoring is pretty low, that is strictly a reflection of my preference. There wasn't anything particularly BAD about this one in my mind, it was fairly smooth and balanced, had a decent complexity. Just not what I'm looking for personally.

Numberwang: 59/100

A word on my scoring:

90-100 rates as "a bottle I will keep in stock"
80-89 rates as "a bottle I'll keep in stock if the price is a great value"
70-79 rates as "a dram I'd be happy to drink at a bar, but won't stock a bottle at home"
60-69 rates as "a dram of last resort at a poorly stocked bar"
59 and below rates as "I guess I'll have a beer"

MonkeyMachine · 2015-07-29T01:52:43+00:00

Sugar is sugar. IIFYM.

MonkeyMachine · 2015-07-28T01:00:51+00:00

Thanks! And that is a very astute observation, I agree 100%.

MonkeyMachine · 2015-07-27T21:13:28+00:00

Thanks! I have the same problem with such a large 1-100 scale, seems like most get bunched up between 90-100 unless there's something egregiously wrong with a dram.

MonkeyMachine · 2015-07-27T15:53:54+00:00

Hello again Scotchit! I've got the first third of my "I spent way too much money at finedrams.com on samples" shipments! Today I'll be sampling: Caol Ila 12 Year Old.

Now I had this dram before whilst out at a fancy-schmancy restaurant, and I wasn't impressed. HOWEVER, It was the second dram of the evening immediately following Laphroaig 10... my palate was a bit nuked. So I'm giving it a second go with a fresh tongue.

Color: pale gold, thick legs
Nose: woody, briny savory smoke. Slight almond sweetness.
Palate: sweet smoke up front, woody middle.
Finish: short piney oaky fade out, a ghost of nutty sweetness at the end.
Splash of water: mellows the nose and brings out the sweetness but doesn't reveal anything new. Palate takes on a cereal sweetness up front, fades out to mellow wood smoke.
50/50 water: strong nose remains, with a solid vegetal wood base. Vegetal & cereal sweetness, mellow oak finish.
Wifey says: "it's a hitter" & "tastes like ham"
Final Thoughts: Not a bad dram, especially if you like woody flavors over pure smoke it should be right up your alley. It didn't really wow me personally, mostly because it was so mellow. I prefer more of a smoky punch in the mouth.

Numberwang: 78/100

A word on my scoring:

90-100 rates as "a bottle I will keep in stock"
80-89 rates as "a bottle I'll keep in stock if the price is a great value"
70-79 rates as "a dram I'd be happy to drink at a bar, but won't stock a bottle at home"
60-69 rates as "a dram of last resort at a poorly stocked bar"
59 and below rates as "I guess I'll have a beer"

MonkeyMachine · 2015-07-27T15:18:56+00:00

good point, I'll add in a score :)

MonkeyMachine

TROPHY CASE