BuzzArd Posted April 1, 2017 Share Posted April 1, 2017 My pal, Lt Col Jim Govin (just retired!) got this as a retirement gift yesterday. His SARM picked it up or received it as a gift in Japan years ago. He's a big Scotch fan (I'm more of a bourbon guy), but neither of us have seen this one. Its quite old and the cork has dried out and actually dropped the lower half into the bottle. Maybe no good, who knows... Anyone know this one? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post SirVantes Posted April 1, 2017 Popular Post Share Posted April 1, 2017 La Tour d'Argent is an old restaurant in Paris, and Les Comptoirs de la Tour d'Argent is the name of its affiliated food store. The front label shows that the bottle is a single malt from an undisclosed Highland distillery, bottled as an "own-brand" for Les Comptoirs de la Tour d'Argent. The date on the front label typically states the year of distillation (1996), but since there is no information on how old the whisky was when it was bottled, it could be anything from 3 years old and up. La Tour d'Argent has a sister restaurant in Tokyo, and also a Les Comptoirs de la Tour d'Argent, which fits the narrative of the bottle having been picked up in Japan (and so does the back label in Japanese). So, this bottle of Highland scotch was born in Scotland, possibly went to France, then to Japan, and now has found its way to the USA. The fill level looks ok, and there's a good chance the cork breaking off may not have compromised the airtight seal - you'll never know until you taste it. Congratulations to your friend on his retirement, and I say uncork the bottle now and toast the occasion! 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuzzArd Posted April 1, 2017 Author Share Posted April 1, 2017 Thanks @SirVantes. Good information. Not sure it's physically possible to drink more Scotch this weekend.... Our eyeballs are floating and yellow with jaundice already.... Have put down at least two full bottles among only a few of us since yesterday. A Laphroig and a The Balvenie 12 double wood have been played "Taps" and there are two other bottles suffering significant losses.... And he's gratefull for the well-wishes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuzzArd Posted April 1, 2017 Author Share Posted April 1, 2017 9 minutes ago, sarkozy said: According to David Ridgway the chief Sommelier at La Tour d'Argent in Paris this is a bottling from Bruichladdich More great info. Thanks! He's duly impressed. Told him I was a dolt when it came to Scotch, but that I "knew some guys".... Think he's planning on straining it through some cheesecloth into an old decanter that belonged to his grandparents. There's some cork bits down in the bottom as well as the half still floating. It it's bad maybe it will look good in the decanter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirVantes Posted April 1, 2017 Share Posted April 1, 2017 6 hours ago, sarkozy said: According to David Ridgway the chief Sommelier at La Tour d'Argent in Paris this is a bottling from Bruichladdich Hmm, Bruichladdich is an Islay malt, not Highland...? Maybe a different bottling? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smallclub Posted April 1, 2017 Share Posted April 1, 2017 40 minutes ago, SirVantes said: Hmm, Bruichladdich is an Islay malt, not Highland...? Maybe a different bottling? …or someone throwing infos without checking… Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jersey Devil Posted April 4, 2017 Share Posted April 4, 2017 I have been a dedicated Single Malt Scotch fan for over 30 years and I can tell you I've never heard of such a bottle, but I will ask those more in the know than me and hopefully have an answer shortly. If it's labeled as a Highland then it cannot be a Bruichladdich, which as another poster mentioned, is an Islay distillery, known more for their gimmick bottlings in the last few years, plus a somewhat-tolerable 10YO. At only 40% ABV it also doesn't sound particularly enticing, either. Flavour is generally better at 43-46% ABV, and Cask Strength (~57%) bottlings are usually even tastier. EDIT: One reply I received is that this is likely a private bottling for the La Tour D'Argent restaurant (Paris or Tokyo). The Paris restaurant is a Michelin Starred legend so this probably isn't a horrible whisky, but finding an exact provenance to this bottle will be difficult. If I hear anything definitive I'll follow this up. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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