That slippery slope known as Single Malt Scotch...

[genevapics]

I had an opportunity to sample a few single malts this past monday, MLK's birthday, at an establishment in West Chester, Pa named "Teca". Nice little establishment that still allows indoor smoking. I am not sure if they allow cigar smoking, as I did not ask, but will certainly find out before my next trip. Anyway, this place had a nice assortment of single malts and I decided to do a little sampling.

My first scotch was the Glenmorangie Port Wood 12 yr. I had the bartender serve the single malt in a copita glass, instead of a brandy snifter.

The Glenmorangie had a beautiful straw color to it. Upon nosing, the beverage provided me with a faint hint of oranges and butterscotch. Upon tasting, my palate was greeted with a sweet orange flavor. The Glenmorangie was smooth with very little bite. While not as complex as the Macallan 18, it was definitely a nice scotch and something that I would certainly purchase for my collection.

The second single malt of the evening was the Talisker 10 yr. This scotch had a slightly darker straw color than the Glenmorangie. From what I have read, the Talisker is supposed to be a fine representation of the Island malts, which are known for their briny, sea weedy, medicinal, and peaty aromas. My first nosing proved this to be true; I now know what medicinal means! Wow! As soon as I nosed the Talisker, the thought of a medicine cabinet came to mind. The second and third nosing’s brought about thoughts of Band-Aid bandages. But why? The thought of going to the bathroom (as a young child), opening the medicine cabinet and reaching for the Band-Aids was deeply ingrained in my mind. Again, why?

I looked at my girlfriend, who was conveniently talking on her cellphone and motioned to her to nose the scotch. She did, wrinkled her nose and finished her call. She looked at me like I was crazy and asked, “What is that?” I shrugged and asked her what did she smell. She nosed it again and replied, “Iodine.” Bingo! It all made sense now. Medicine cabinet. Band-Aids. Mecuricrome. The iodine smell of the Talisker reminded me of the ritual I went through, as a young child, when I scraped my knee.

So there I sat, looking at the glass of Talisker, contemplating my next move. Evidently, the look on my face was enough for my girlfriend to respond, “You don’t have to drink it if you don’t like it.” “No”, I said, “That’s why we are here.” I took a sip of the Talisker. The taste was very strong and medicinal. And if there was peat or brine, I could not taste it; the iodine was just too strong. I took a few more sips, but could drink no more than about half the glass.

Unfortunately the Talisker 10 yr is not for me. An acquired taste? Maybe, but how does one acquire a taste for iodine unless the blood of Sir William Wallace courses through your veins? Since I can’t trace any of my roots back to Sir William, I think I will pass on the Talisker 10 yr for the time being.

The final single malt of the night, was the Lagavulin 16 yr. This is another scotch that I have heard people rave about. This one was the darkest of the three; almost Gran Mariner in color and viscousity. Upon nosing, the iodine was there, but not as prevalent as the Talisker. In fact, this was tolerable. The Lagavulin tasted slightly sweet along with the medicinal/iodine aromas. And viscous. If I remember correctly, this was the most viscous of the three.

I need to sample the Lagavulin 16 yr again. While not quite my cup of tea, I think I could acquire a taste for this single malt (maybe I do have a little scottish in me). It will certainly take awhile though.

All in all it was an enjoyable evening.

[Colt45]

Though I'm only a casual scotch drinker, I do enjoy reading about

the differences from region to region.

After reading some of these recent reviews, I think I need to find a

bar with a good selection, and taste the differences for myself :-D

[genevapics]

» ...I need to find a bar with a good selection, and taste the

» differences for myself :-D

[El Presidente]

One can never have too many vices Andre

Shopping for a new one to adopt should be taken slowly and serioulsy

[bobsled]

I find the Lagavulin to be much stronger than the Talisker, but those extra years of aging make a difference, the Lagavulin is a hands down favorite for me, you should also try Laphroiag, this is another peat monster.

Also try the Glenrothes 10 year, its a nice fruity alternative to the peat monsters.:-)

[fago01]

Lagavulin 16yr was the first pour to really spark my interest in Scotch. Today, I'm an a full-blown aficionado, yet the Lagavulin remains my all time favorite.

[Trevor2118]

» I find the Lagavulin to be much stronger than the Talisker, but those extra years of ageing make a difference, the Lagavulin is a hands down favorite for me, you should also try Laphroiag, this is another peat monster.

I think the Laphroiag is the monster of monsters when it comes to a peaty, iodine, seaweed flavour.

[GoodTimes]

I tried the Langavulin 16 yr. for the first time about two weeks ago and now wish I had not! It was by far the best Scotch I have ever tried...sooooo smokey flavored and smooth. It made my regular Scotch of choice, Chivas 12 yr., taste bad. I wish I could afford to make the switch to Langavulin, but the lowest price I could find is $73 for a 750ml bottle, when I can get a 1.75L bottle of Chivas for $50. El Pres said, you can never have too many vices... but that only applies when you can afford those vices! Cigars take up 90% of my vice money. For now I am going to have to stay with the Chivas and keep on the lookout for a sale on the Langavulin. I saw online, a store in California had the Langavulin on sale for $50, but living in Florida, that does me no good.:-(

[CelticBasque]

Sounds like a nice evening of tastings, Geneva...

I think your GF hit it dead-on with the "Iodine" observation.

I've always referred to it as 'astringent' but Iodine is quite a bit more specific.

Thanks for the share!

[Claudius]

» I tried the Langavulin 16 yr. for the first time about two weeks ago and

» now wish I had not! It was by far the best Scotch I have ever

» tried...sooooo smokey flavored and smooth. It made my regular Scotch of

» choice, Chivas 12 yr., taste bad. I wish I could afford to make the

» switch to Langavulin, but the lowest price I could find is $73 for a 750ml

» bottle, when I can get a 1.75L bottle of Chivas for $50. El Pres said, you

» can never have too many vices... but that only applies when you can afford

» those vices! Cigars take up 90% of my vice money. For now I am going to

» have to stay with the Chivas and keep on the lookout for a sale on the

» Langavulin. I saw online, a store in California had the Langavulin on

» sale for $50, but living in Florida, that does me no good.:-(

Damn, crazy prices there, seems to be much cheaper in Europe. But then again they have to ship the stuff across the Atlantic Ocean (which is quite large ;-)).

Lagavullin 16 is SOO smoky, it's unreal. I kind of like it, but it's a little too smokey IMHO. The Talisker (15 or 16 years old) is more to my liking, peppery and spicy but not aggressive. From 18 years and older it gets interesting, the whiskies become more mellow and complex and less harsh. The issue then becomes to find what you like, and as the choice is immense, there's only one way to find out :-D