Modern Vespa

Floral, herbal hops, grapefruit citrus notes with subtle orchard fruits, complemented by wood shavings and a little nuttiness. Hops and light citrus with sweet herbal notes and delicate spicy tones. The lingering fresh fruit and hops give way to grains of barley and a signature smooth finish.

So just like any other whiskey really.

I do like this.

Great as "bourbon and branch" (a splash of water opens it up nicely).

Drinking a Warsteiner Dunkel tonight outside in my backyard.

72F makes for a pleasant happy hour.

These backyard beers were better before our dog, Cooper, passed away two weeks ago.

She made everything better, but 14 years was as long as she was going to last.

Bill

Watched the Flames vs Rangers last night on tv while drinking 2 fab "lunch" beers and ate weiner w home made pickled stuff on top. It was good.

Bill,

Sorry about Cooper. They add so much to our lives.

That dog was also fortunate to have you.

Side story for love of dogs. I would sit in my garage with
the door open smoking a cigar always with a box of
Milk-Bone Dog Biscuits. The dogs in the neighborhood
would drag their owners up my driveway to have a
Milk-Bone treat. I met a lot of nice neighbors walking their
dogs. So now I am the old fart dog bone man around here.

God bless Cooper.

Bob Copeland

Ooof. My sincerest condolences. Genuinely.

For my better half's birthday and she deserves it for putting up with me for so many years. Not sure I've had wine from before I was born so I'm looking forward to pulling the cork tomorrow.

Playing the long game...

Sadly, I will not be drinking a £2000 whisky tonight, (or any other night, ever) but:

Got to love the consistency of these labels on The Macallan 18 over the years. Far left is a 2016 bottling, followed by several from the 1990s, with a 1989 on the far right. Same label design all the way.

Prices range from £595 for a 2022 bottling, to £2750 for a 1986. The pic was taken at Robertsons of Pitlochry, so be sure to pick up a bottle or two if you find yourself in the area.

Ironfoot,

I simply do not have the experienced palate to even appreciate
such fine stuff. One of the contractors we work with gave me a
$500 bottle of 44 year old bourbon for new years. I am afraid to open it.

All my experience is with E&J VSOP Blue on ice with Diet Seven.

Bob Copeland

In terms of a whisky's age, the length of the maturation is what's important. The whisky matures only in the cask. It doesn't mature any further once it's in the bottle.

I believe the higher price tags on the older bottles of Macallan 18 pictured above are due to their increasing scarcity. But they are all essentially 18 year old whiskies, regardless of the year they were bottled.

Whichever way you spin it, The Macallan is marketed at the premium end of the Scottish single malts and you'd expect to see high prices for an old bottle. But I was surprised to see, in the same shop, some very high prices on 1990s bottles of cheap blended scotch, for brands with no cachet at all. I don't really understand the market for that.

Ironfoot,

I regret that I have not developed a taste for scotch. I have probably
saved a bunch not doing so.

In college, I had a girl friend (extended period of time) who drank scotch.
My response was "your kidding me!". Evidently her Dad owned a Bar
in St Paul. I bought one bottle of Johnnie Walker (Pricey for a college
budget) then kept the bottle and poured cheap scotch into it later. She
could not tell the difference.

Bob Copeland
Admittedly, cheap on the romance.

Bob, I should have probably hit the Walk Away button rather than posting this but that bottle really does look as though it came from the Irish Folk Museum gift shop.

Please don't take offence

Ian

haha, some boyfriend you were!

Makes you think though. Are we sure what's actually inside that old bourbon decanter? Could be another switcheroo.

Ironfoot,

Very much a possibility. The tax seal stamp has been broken. Although,
I could see the seal busting due to age. I will crack it open soon.

Bob Copeland

Bob open that dam thing and drink it. you can't take it with you and don't leave it for someone else to enjoy. if you want to leave it for someone give it to them now so you at have the satisfaction of it being enjoyed.

One thing I've learned over the years about drinking "good" beer (which also applies to wine & liquor): The best beer/wine/liquor is the one you like to drink.

old as dirt, monogodo

Very good advise.

Bob Copeland

An espresso martini (or two) -- thinking of you jess.

Quite a while back I had a conference in Leiden in Holland. On a free evening I took the short train trip up to Amsterdam, stepping off to find the heavens opening in a torrent that would have even Bill scurrying for cover. I found shelter in a little bar and spent some time chatting to the bar tender who was happy to offer me some samples between fastidiously washing glasses. We don't really bars like that in NZ. We have pubs. I settled down with a fantastic Belgian IPA, and I've never found anything similar since. Until tonight.

Cheap Sangria from a taco spot within walk-in distance.

10th Mountain Whiskey's Bourbon in an ol' fashy. The latter is my go-to, the former is often changed.

Guess where I am right now

Love it, we will be going back next May. A few days ago we were at our local pub Boyd's Jig & Reel and my husband discovered they had two Raasay scotches on their extensive list. So he had a dram.

I was surprised to learn how widely their products are distributed. I think they said 17 or 18 countries, a lot for a small new distillery. I enjoyed the whisky. It's very good for such a young single malt.

Had a good little trip to the Isle of Raasay. The distillery is nicely integrated with the bar, restaurant and hotel. I was all set to zoom straight across Skye without stopping until I remembered about Raasay. Thanks for the tip.

Well there is exactly 1 place in the US you can get Raasay by the bottle at considerably higher than in the UK. When we were there they hadn't reached the 3 years in a barrel to start bottling their own. They had a "While You Wait" blend they purchased barrels from other nearby distilleries, blended and finished in their casks. If you find some I'd recommend trying it. The owners have a definite opinion on how they want it to taste.

We will probably stay at Raasay House for a few nights. This time though we will rent a car as public transit sucks. Though if I could find a scooter rental in Scotland I'd love to rent an pair and spend a week exploring.

Had a 6666 Pilsner last night. First alcoholic drink since at least February.

It's a basic pilsner. A little hoppier than I would have preferred, but still drinkable. It had more of a hop bite than expected, but not to the level of an IPA hop slap in the face.

Nice Easter drinkin'. Turn it up to 11.

i like hazy new england ipas or imperial ipas but i like most beers...typically stay away for the cheaper stuff due to the additives that cause headaches...will occasionally have one of those seltzers...don't really drink wine or hard alcohol unless it's mixed...doesn't taste good to me

https://untappd.com/b/toppling-goliath-brewing-co-king-sue/594015

Finishing off my 4R single barrel from Jack Rose, and of course a lil EH Taylor since it's Taylor Tuesday.

During a trip my wife and I took to Australia a few weeks ago, we were introduced to Victoria-grown Pinot Grigio wines. They are gentler on the palate than unwooded Chardonnay and great to drink every day. On our return I found some imported examples and some bottles of locally grown Pinot Grigio. It is now my favourite evening tipple... served cold.

In an effort to clear out some space I've been rooting around in the back of the drinks cabinet and finishing off the old bottles. It's a risky enterprise.

Tonight is a chocolate and coffee liqueur by Bundaberg rum. There are a couple of measures left in this old bottle. Difficult to say how many years it has actually sat unfinished, but I do know the label has been redesigned at least twice since this version. Contents could be hazardous.

What's lurking at the back of your drinks cupboard with just a minimum risk of blindness and death?

---

Update: the liqueur was delish! I take it all back!

Hmmmm, looks better than Kahlua.

Having a Dark and Stormy tonight. The Cock and Bull ginger beer is better but the wife picked up the Goslings recently. Not as raspy. Should pair well with the pork spareribs I'm putting in the smoker.

I can't decide......

We have a local store called "Rishi's International Beverage". We don't frequent liquor stores, but when we do it's always Rishi's. I've been shopping there for more than 20 years, since he was in his smaller store around the corner from where his current place is.

Last night was an impromptu visit. We were at a store across the street and I said to my wife, "We haven't stopped at Rishi's in a while." So we did.

The thing about Rishi is this. He may be the consummate salesman, but you never feel that way. When he saw us, he waved at us, walked over and said, "I've missed you guys. How have you been?" and gave me a fist bump. We had a nice conversation about how we've been and how his business has really done well, even though we have had a MegaBev and a Total Wine and More go in over the past couple of years. He asked what we were looking for and when I told him I was considering a bottle of scotch, he asked what I liked, why I liked it, what price range I was looking for and proceeded to lead me back to the counter where he pulled five bottles off the shelf, scanned them all and arranged them on the counter in order of price and then proceeded to explain each one and what he personally liked about them. Every visit with Rishi is that way.

So, $140 later I cane home with this, among other things.

As usual, Rishi nailed it.

Probably finishing off my Weller 107 so I can open this.

It's made from the blue agave plant, or old vine Zinfandel grapes.
Now to remember where that Coppola was found last time I scooped it up.

Off Color Brewing Company

Aqua Regia
English Style Barleywine Ale

So exactly what does bottled in bond mean?

Wikipedia explains it pretty good but basically it means it is from a single batch and not blended, and the bond part means this has been documented.

Lots of people like blended whiskey but some prefer "superior" unblended. I do think it takes more skill to get the unblended batch to come out just right and with blends you can mix several different batches to get the taste you are looking for.

One of my uncles started making wine aboard a ship while in the Navy during the Vietnam war. When he got home he and his best friend (from kindergarten at 5 years old) started making wine in the garage. I was 14 when they bought a press and a large quantity of Thompson seedless. They added a lot of sugar, the goal was high alcohol content. My uncle moved away after several years for work but his friend kept making it in a shed behind his house.

Once in my 30's with my oldest son we were at a bottling party on new years day and they brought out a bottle from the grapes we had pressed when I was 14. Surprisingly enough it wasn't bad. Not great but drinkable and it produced the desired effect...

My son got a short stint on the corking machine and I told him this officially made him a third generation wine maker.

In the shed were about six barrels and they would use a "thief" to get samples from the barrels without opening them to be able to tell when it was time to bottle. The red could stay in the barrel a lot longer the white had to come out as soon as it was ready. One batch of white was fantastic in the barrel but just a few weeks later when it finally got bottled it was practically undrinkable and couldn't give it away.

Skids,

I was a failure at wine making. A good friend, got me into a wine making club. We got together, bought grapes, and had social sessions drinking wine. Mine turned out horrible. His was also horrible. So, there is a art to good home made vino. Beyond me.

Bob Copeland