Results of a little experiment on "home blending" of Single Malt and OTC blended whisky

[edlye]

I usually start my whisky sessions with a small amount of scotch blend before moving to my single malts. The blend that I've been using lately is King Robert II Scotch Whisky from Ian Macleod Distillers which has a short finish with a hint of sherry & flora but lots of burn. I undertook an experiment on a not-so-sober thought that occurred to me when I was near to emptying my bottles of Aberlour A'bunadh (Batch #39) and Ardbeg 10 YO.

I had a new bottle of the scotch blend and decided to empty half in each of the said near-empty single malts (about 2 fingers left in each bottle) and left each of the concoction to 'marry' for a week. The result was a stellar Ardbeg mixture but an enjoyable but meh Aberlour mix.

It was an interesting experiment that I'll continue in the future, have you done something similar? What were the components used and the results. Have you continued doing so?

[Chris7]

Haven't tried it yet, but you have certainly sparked my curiosity. I have thought about soaking the different wood chips in an OTC scotch to see what the results would be like.

[edlye]

Well, I can only report that the Aberlour mix tastes much better now. In fact, I'm down to my last dram on that bottle while I still have half a bottle left for the other.

I've never tried soaking any blends in wood chips but there should be reports of similar experiments. Reminds me of the Compass Box Spice Tree whisky where they inserted french oak staves into the barrels of re-casked vatted malts.

[Marker]

I once mixed about 2 fingers each of Crown Royal, JW Red, J&B and Whyte & Mackay into a flask, shook it up and took it out to a friend's party.

Not enjoyable, but got me smashed and silly very quickly!

I don't think this is news to anyone here...

[ZinZan]

Somebody tell me what's OTC,in my line business it's over the counter drug. Is it same thing?

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

[edlye]

Over the counter whisky/blend, typically from a supermarket or convenience store where they are kept at the counter.

[ZinZan]

Ahhhh, thanks Edlye

[Fuzz AI]

Oh, I thought OTC meant "Okay To Chug"...

[winelover]

Do we need to use the acronym "OTC"? Most scotch, eapecially blended is bought over the counter whether from a specialist merchant or not. What useful information does "OTC" add?

Otherwise I enjoyed reading, although I probably would test any blending using single malts I didn't like, as they are too precious.

Cheers

Graham

[edlye]

Where I live, the specialist merchants, even the whisky specialist, don't carry said blends... go figure.

I'm not hung up on terms, thanks for the opinion.

[CanuckSARTech]

Where I live, the specialist merchants, even the whisky specialist, don't carry said blends... go figure.

I'm not hung up on terms, thanks for the opinion.

Then those would be "special order". I don't see where OTC is common nomenclature here, either. That's a drug term, IMO.

Just a thought. I'm not big on whiskey or scotch, but that could confuse some.

[edlye]

Crikey, this post suddenly elicited more interest in my overly casual use of the 'now deleted term'...

Now that this is sorted out, let's stay on topic please.

[winelover]

Crikey, this post suddenly elicited more interest in my overly casual use of the 'now deleted term'...

Now that this is sorted out, let's stay on topic please.

Hey, don't worry too much! Come on free speech! You are free to ignore pedants! Please feel free to post what you like, but there will always be someone who takes exception to something, and in this case it was to OTC! Your thread was interesting. Chin up !

[Chris7]

Hey, don't worry too much! Come on free speech! You are free to ignore pedants! Please feel free to post what you like, but there will always be someone who takes exception to something, and in this case it was to OTC! Your thread was interesting. Chin up !

Agreed.

When you said OTC I just thought of the generic/stock standard or house scotch, nothing fancy.

Don't let this ruin a perfectly good thread on experimentation of whisky flavours.

[ayedfy]

I recently started an unpeated blend and will soon start a peated blend. In my unpeated I have a bunch of Tasmanian SMs and one Scotch (Glenfarclas 15). I'd have more Scotch but all my other Scotch on hand is peated, and there were a few months there where I decided to stop buying and drink through my collection to make room. Have no idea how it tastes yet as I'm following the "one dram out, one dram in" process.

New whiskies on hand now, so hopefully I can start experimenting!

[KyleHaldane]

When I was reading through this I had this picture Edlye laughing like a maniac when he was mixing his malts.

But it does raise the question of what can be achieved when you are on the last few drams.

[edlye]

I assure you that all I had was a cheeky smile and a sense of anticipation when I conducted the blending. Both are now gone and were very drinkable. This is just one way of bringing a nice scotch blend to a higher level of enjoyment.

[edlye]

I recently started an unpeated blend and will soon start a peated blend. In my unpeated I have a bunch of Tasmanian SMs and one Scotch (Glenfarclas 15). I'd have more Scotch but all my other Scotch on hand is peated, and there were a few months there where I decided to stop buying and drink through my collection to make room. Have no idea how it tastes yet as I'm following the "one dram out, one dram in" process.

New whiskies on hand now, so hopefully I can start experimenting!

I'd share my observation that a little peated whisky goes a long way when added to a blend; especially when dealing with a peat monster like Ardbeg.

Best to have 3 or more mixing glasses to work out the best tasting proportion before blending the final mix.

[ayedfy]

I'd share my observation that a little peated whisky goes a long way when added to a blend; especially when dealing with a peat monster like Ardbeg.

Best to have 3 or more mixing glasses to work out the best tasting proportion before blending the final mix.

I'll be keeping all peat out of my unpeated solera. May add some lighter inexpensive stuff as filler to the peated blend if it gets too overwhelming though.

I was talking to someone the other day who blended Lagavulin 12 with Old Pulteney 21 (with a 3:1 ration in favour of the OP). He claims the finish was unbelievable. I've tasted both independently and they were excellent, so I don't doubt him!

[ayedfy]

Alright, so I've created two solera bottles using the whiskies I currently have on hand. Just thrown a dram of each in, so there hasn't been careful measurement to create a particular style. That will happen further down the road and after there is some more to put in the bottles!

(Also turns out I'm neither a good photographer nor a good label craftsman )

[edlye]

Great job! Thanks for your contribution to this thread, I can't wait for your tasting notes on the final elixirs. Your post inspired me to add a splash of my Aberlour A'bunadh to the remaining Ardbeg mix, I can't wait to see if that extra sherry influence lifts the mix further.

[ayedfy]

Great job! Thanks for your contribution to this thread, I can't wait for your tasting notes on the final elixirs. Your post inspired me to add a splash of my Aberlour A'bunadh to the remaining Ardbeg mix, I can't wait to see if that extra sherry influence lifts the mix further.

What's currently featuring in your Ardbeg mix minus the A'bunadh? I'd imagine if you were adding it to just the Ten, you'd get something a little like Corryvreckan. Ardbeg and sherry mix beautifully!

[edlye]

What's currently featuring in your Ardbeg mix minus the A'bunadh? I'd imagine if you were adding it to just the Ten, you'd get something a little like Corryvreckan. Ardbeg and sherry mix beautifully!

A healthy dose (half a bottle) of King Robert II Scotch Whisky from Ian Macleod Distillers and about 4 drams worth of Ardbeg 10. The original intent was to lift the cheap blend to greater heights.

[ayedfy]

A healthy dose (half a bottle) of King Robert II Scotch Whisky from Ian Macleod Distillers and about 4 drams worth of Ardbeg 10. The original intent was to lift the cheap blend to greater heights.

I should have reread further up the page. I'd imagine you'd get something pretty nice out of that though.

[winelover]

V interesting experimentation above guys. Mine is a vir unintentional. I've been drinking some Laphroaig QC out of a hipflaak that has previously contained a number of Glenfiddichs, and the QC now has a sherry note finish. Was very pleasing indeed with the taste as had all of the peatiness going on but with anotger layer of complexity.