I’m a confirmed Bourbon man. I like an occasional good Irish whiskey. I sometimes enjoy rye. I would never allow a bottle of Canadian whisky in my house…too puckeringly sweet.
Tonight I have no Bourbon in the house, and I wanted a nice nightcap. I found an open bottle of Glenlivet single malt, bought years ago to keep around for the occasional Scotch-drinking guest, and poured a slug over an ice cube, topping with a few dashes of seltzer water.
Christ, it tastes like crushed bedbugs! Ive been to Scotland, and I’ve tried some Scotch whiskies I find palatable, but this one is going WAY to the back of the cabinet until the next barbarian comes around.
So…If you like Scotch, do you ever indulge in Irish? If you drink Canadian (like my Mom and her parents, who mixed it with ginger ale, yuk), do you think Bourbon is “too complex?” If you drink Japanese whisky, why the hell would you do that?
During a period of my life when I drank a lot of scotch, I found myself in a dive bar where friends of mine were performing an acoustic set. I figured I wouldn’t have many choices, so I ordered “scotch, rocks” and figured I’d drink whichever brand they had.
I picked up my glass and drained half of it, and had a huge shock. I told the bartender whatever she poured me it wasn’t scotch. She brought the bottle over; Crown Royal. She was in her 30s, had been a bartender there for a decade, and thought that Crown Royal was scotch. I was her first complaint.
I’m a Scotch drinker when it comes to whisk(e)ys, but I don’t have a single type I stick with all the time. Some days I feel sweet & mellow and want a Speyside; other days I’m feeling spicy and smoky and want a Islay. Most days I’m somewhere in between and maybe go for a good Highland. It’s all good.
Bourbon I enjoy, as well, though I prefer high-rye types and tend to stay away from the wheated bourbons, which I just find a bit too sweet for my tastes. But I won’t turn any down. Irish is my classic go-to for a shot & a beer type of night (although I know there are sipping Irish whiskeys out there.) American rye is my favorite of the American styles of whiskey. Canadian I’ve only really used for mixing.
And Japanese whiskey–although I’ve only had two or three different kinds–it’s just fantastic.
The harsh fact is that anyone who would take an exquisite 18-year old single malt Glenlivet and poison it with seltzer water and ice is a barbarian who knows nothing about Scotch and can say nothing that qualifies as an acceptable opinion of Scotch. I suppose that, with it, you would smoke something like a Phillies Cheroot instead of a Montecristo #2? Shame on you!
All the time. I prefer scotch but I also like bourbon, rye, Canadian, Irish, and Ike, if you haven’t tried Suntory you really ought to. The Japanese make some damn good whiskies, like Hibiki.
This Barbarian knows plenty about scotch, enough to know that Ukulele Ike is a fool for pouring seltzer water into a bottle of Glenlivet.
I also have to wonder what on earth he’s drinking that he thinks Canadian whiskies are sweet, and he’s drinking bourbon. I mean, the whole reason Canadian whiskey started incorporating rye was because corn-based liquor was too sweet.
Not that all Canadian whiskies have rye. Some things labelled as rye in Canada actually have no rye at all.
And when it comes to brown, I don’t play favourites.
Have to agree with this - your fault, this is a single malt (and a darn good one), sounds like what you made was some kiddie soda drink out of it then complain you can’t understand it :smack:
Just reading that is giving me a hangover and making my stomach flip.
My brother-in-law likes scotch, and will drink any type of scotch be it Speyside, Islay or Highland, it doesn’t matter to him. Offer him a bourbon or rye and he will politely decline.
Personally, I like scotch, bourbon and many ryes, but I won’t drink Crown Royal or Canadian Club.
Heavens, no. A “splash” of soda means just that. To take the edge off. You sound like you’re accusing me of pouring grenadine and pineapple juice and Coca-Cola over the whisky.
And sorry, I’m a proud American, an ice cube is not out of place.
It’s a big-city thing. If I lived in a cabin in the Rockies, fifty miles drive down twisty mountain roads to the nearest town, I would keep a case of whiskey in the house (and 30 rolls of toilet paper).
As it is, pretty much everything I need is within a few blocks walk. So I buy a liter of booze at a time, and if I finish it after the wine shops have closed, I’m out of luck until the next day.
I would assume Uke just had a bog-standard 12-year Glenlivet, which is pretty middle-of-the-road scotch whisky. I wouldn’t sully any single malt with seltzer water (nor ice), but if you’re going to do it, Glenlivet 12 or Glenfiddich 12 is probably the least objectionable scotch to do that to. Seeing that a “splash” was really just a “splash,” I can’t really object too much to that. Almost every whisky I put in a splash of water (like maybe a teaspoon for a 2 oz pour–maybe next none except for ritual for something like a Glenlivet that is at 80 proof, but definitely some for anything higher than that., and even more for cask strength) That’s pretty typical (and the way I was taught to drink my whisky in Scotland.) I’ve never tried it with seltzer, though, and would wonder if the flavor of seltzer might throw it off a bit.
Unless I’m drinking a higher end single malt or blend, it’s Johnnie Walker Black with a splash of club soda for me. Doesn’t matter if it’s my birthday, my mama’s birthday, or Jesus’s birthday!
ETA: if not available, Dewar’s or beer is manageable.
I meant “least objectionable single malt scotch to do that to.” I have no issues with Scotch & Sodas, though–like if it’s Johnnie Red or Famous Grouse (though I’ll enjoy the latter on its own, as well), I’m happy with a scotch and soda, where it’s about one part scotch to three parts soda water.
That surprises me. IMO, Glenlivet is one of the milder single malts. I usually drink Glenfiddich, but like to have a variety of single malts on hand. Most are fairly interchangeable, but while I like it on occasion I only rarely sample my Laphroaig, which I admit tastes like a fire in a boot factory.
I like to change it up. I mostly drink single malt Scotch, and an occasional blend, but also like Irish and other whiskeys. If I feel nostalgia for my college days, I may have a Bourbon.
