6 ms·

I really, really don't understand the expensive alcohol hobby. For those of you that do, is it more about finding and trying cool stuff? Because I can completel

by fhood 8y ago

I really, really don't understand the expensive alcohol hobby. For those of you that do, is it more about finding and trying cool stuff? Because I can completely relate to that. I just feel like expensive alcohol is so transient, and can't provide the same experience that the equivalently priced food could.

mi100hael 8y ago
> I just feel like expensive alcohol is so transient, and can't provide the same experience that the equivalently priced food could. How do you figure? Food is at least as transient. A several hundred dollar bottle of whiskey can last years.
- fhood 8y ago
  I know food is transient, that's why I used it as a comparison. And really, really good food is just good. On a very primeval and satisfying level. I get collecting. I love it. And at that level I understand. But from a pure enjoyment level I do not.
  - leoc 8y ago
    Have you drunk high-quality whiskey neat? If all you're used to is cheap stuff or mixers then I can see why you might not see the attraction.
southphillyman 8y ago
Not sure about Vodkas, wines, or champagnes as I can't really tell the difference. But I could instantly tell the difference in smoothness between the $60 scotch I have at home now and the $150+ bottle I recently sampled at a friends house.
deleted 8y ago
[deleted]
ritchiea 8y ago
Actually at least in my experience the people into expensive alcohol tend to like collecting it, which I find odd. I'm into food and I enjoy food with my friends who are also into food (note I said food, it doesn't have to be expensive, just good). My friends who are into expensive alcohol like having huge stocks of expensive alcohol that they rarely or never drink because it's expensive. Doesn't sound like much fun.
- mikec3010 8y ago
  Unlike alcohol, food is generally perishable. Plus a (responsible) alcohol connoisseur's consumption is more strictly throttled by his body.
  - ritchiea 8y ago
    It’s not stock in a public company or money in your IRA, it’s alcohol, drink up & enjoy!
- dageshi 8y ago
  It's being able to buy a bit of the present that you'll be able to sample in the future.
- lazerpants 8y ago
  I have a large amaro collection and a large whiskey collection because I really like them, and it's fun to sometimes be in the mood for a specific flavor. Plus, when people come over I can introduce them to things they haven't tried, so it makes for easy conversation. Plus, when mixing to make cocktails, nuances in flavor can matter a lot.
- peterwwillis 8y ago
  Giving your friends samples of interesting things you've found over the years is really fun. And sometimes it's a bit like having a nice suit that you put on for special occasions. My collection grew to the point I realized I could never drink it all, so I started giving it away, and now I only collect something new when I've emptied something else. It's fun to go back and try things. "Ooh, I haven't had the Absinthe in a while!"
tptacek 8y ago
A $70 bottle of single malt is good for 4-6 serious drinking sessions (so: several weeks, especially if you're not just drinking single malt; my daily drink is VOB bourbon), and those sessions are approximately as enjoyable as a really good restaurant meal. A big part is finding and trying cool stuff, but I'd guess every ~3rd bottle I buy is GlenDronach, so a big part of it is also just loving a couple things. Like: if I buy a dry-aged prime ribeye, it's expensive, but I'm not looking for something "new" (that would be worrisome) so much as something enjoyable and a bit scarce. Important to keep in mind that it's not "alcohol", it's whiskey. It would be weird to spend this kind of effort on vodka or even gin.
- whitepoplar 8y ago
  Do you have any recommendations for a great whisk(e)y under $100? I'm at the stage where I've had Scotch, both peaty/low peat, as well as bourbon. Here's what I've tried, and my thoughts. Please excuse my poor descriptions, I'm still a newbie to the world of spirits! Lagavulin 16 - I hadn't had much scotch before I tried it. Very confusing, as I initially didn't like the peat, but was more and more intrigued by the same thing that turned me off to it. Kind of the same experience I had with IPAs. Tamdhu - I really liked this one. Felt easy to drink, familiar, and comforting. Balvenie Caribbean Cask - Pretty bad. The rum notes made me feel nauseous. High West Double Rye - Really good. "Fresh" for lack of a better word (but I had a second bottle years later that was horrible so who knows). Pappy 15/20 (before they became $$$) - I thought the 20 was okay. Tasted like a mellowed out Buffalo Trace. Really liked the 15--flavorful, hot, and just the right amount of sweet.
  - tptacek 8y ago
    If you like High West, track down a High West Midwinter Night, which is their sherried rye; it'll go for like $70 in season and holds up with good Speyside. Dollar for dollar, there's probably no better value in Scotland than a GlenDronach 15, and you really can't go wrong with any GlenDronach, from 12 to 23, with an age statement. Aberlour A'bunadh is Aberlour's no-age-statement high-cask-flavor expression and it's pretty cheap (like $50?). If you buy it and really like it, there's a whole world of wine-casked Speysides you can go explore. I am a fiend for cask-y Speysides but I haven't really liked any of the Balvenie stuff (even though Balvenie is one of the cooler distilleries). I'm working my way through a Tamdhu NAS Special Edition which I'm liking a lot, so our tastes may be similar. If you're less into sweetness and wineyness and fruitiness and more into grain character, I like Springbank a lot. The good news about American whiskey is that spending money on it is the wrong approach. The right thing to do with American whiskey is to buy bottom-shelf bourbon and rye, preferably from brands that have a bottled-in-bond expression of whatever it is you're buying (or just buy the bonded expression itself if you can get it). So: Very Old Barton, Heaven Hill, Old Granddad, and Old Forester. These are, like, $30 bottles. Also buy a Four Roses and a Wild Turkey. Don't buy premium-priced American whiskey until you've tried enough "cheap" whiskey to know what you liked and (importantly) don't like. You can live on the bottom shelf of bourbon and be a happy drinker for a long time, and you get snob points for appreciating a cheap Heaven Hill while "hipsters" pay $60 for an "artisanal" "craft whiskey" that is really just a bottling of MGPI. Later A lay-up pick in your price range is Redbreast Lustau, a sherry-casked Irish whiskey. Over-the-top wine notes on top of an already super drinkable whiskey.
Spellman 8y ago
I think it depends on your comparison point. A good value bottle of Whiskey sits around $30-$50, and you can easily spread that single bottle over at minimum 20 servings. For a few dollars, if you enjoy it, that's a pretty good value. As you get more expensive, you tend to get more distinct and nuanced. Smoother hard liquors, more interesting flavors, etc. We once did a tasting flight and one tasted literally like camping outdoors with the smoke and wood. Another tasted almost like honey. So, to me, it's not that expensive and opens you up to an interesting and exciting landscape of flavors. If you're comparing to prices on a menu at a restaurant, then it's completely outrageous that a single glass would cost as much as your entire dinner. And there I agree, it's completely skewed. Granted, after a certain point (about $200 for me since I'm still a relative newbie. $1k is getting outrageous imo.) you're just chasing popularity, hoarding as a collection, or showing off your wealth. There's some amazing stuff, and for those trained and really knowledgeable and deep into the hobby it's worth it as they tease out all the little nuances. But just like buying a >$1k bike, for the average person you can't take advantage of the extra value and care that went into the product.
- tptacek 8y ago
  Those are pretty small pours if you're getting 20 out of a bottle. There are ~12 2oz pours in a bottle of scotch.
- NorthOf33rd 8y ago
  > But just like buying a >$1k bike, for the average person you can't take advantage of the extra value and care that went into the product. I'd put this price at around 2500. The better shifting from a decent group set makes a huge difference in a new rider's ability to enjoy the ride. It's hard to enjoy a ride when your chain keeps dropping and you cant shift through your gears. Though, I really wish someone would come out with a mass market Ultegra spec'ed decent geometry steel bike for ~1k.
- dhimes 8y ago
  I use 1 bottle whiskey = 3 bottles wine for my conversion.
Uhhrrr 8y ago
For the oenophiles I know, it's totally about exploring interesting flavors, and also appreciating the context in which the different wines are made (like with art). As for transience, you can stretch out a bottle of spirits over months. And hopefully the wine would be enjoyed synergistically with some great food. All that said, there are a thousand good/interesting $15-25 bottles of wine to chase if you're wanting to get into that, and IMHO Veblen goods are stupid.

by fhood 8y ago

mi100hael 8y ago

> I just feel like expensive alcohol is so transient, and can't provide the same experience that the equivalently priced food could. How do you figure? Food is at least as transient. A several hundred dollar bottle of whiskey can last years.

fhood 8y ago
I know food is transient, that's why I used it as a comparison. And really, really good food is just good. On a very primeval and satisfying level. I get collecting. I love it. And at that level I understand. But from a pure enjoyment level I do not.
- leoc 8y ago
  Have you drunk high-quality whiskey neat? If all you're used to is cheap stuff or mixers then I can see why you might not see the attraction.

southphillyman 8y ago

Not sure about Vodkas, wines, or champagnes as I can't really tell the difference. But I could instantly tell the difference in smoothness between the $60 scotch I have at home now and the $150+ bottle I recently sampled at a friends house.

deleted 8y ago

[deleted]

ritchiea 8y ago

Actually at least in my experience the people into expensive alcohol tend to like collecting it, which I find odd. I'm into food and I enjoy food with my friends who are also into food (note I said food, it doesn't have to be expensive, just good). My friends who are into expensive alcohol like having huge stocks of expensive alcohol that they rarely or never drink because it's expensive. Doesn't sound like much fun.

mikec3010 8y ago
Unlike alcohol, food is generally perishable. Plus a (responsible) alcohol connoisseur's consumption is more strictly throttled by his body.
- ritchiea 8y ago
  It’s not stock in a public company or money in your IRA, it’s alcohol, drink up & enjoy!
dageshi 8y ago
It's being able to buy a bit of the present that you'll be able to sample in the future.
lazerpants 8y ago
I have a large amaro collection and a large whiskey collection because I really like them, and it's fun to sometimes be in the mood for a specific flavor. Plus, when people come over I can introduce them to things they haven't tried, so it makes for easy conversation. Plus, when mixing to make cocktails, nuances in flavor can matter a lot.
peterwwillis 8y ago
Giving your friends samples of interesting things you've found over the years is really fun. And sometimes it's a bit like having a nice suit that you put on for special occasions. My collection grew to the point I realized I could never drink it all, so I started giving it away, and now I only collect something new when I've emptied something else. It's fun to go back and try things. "Ooh, I haven't had the Absinthe in a while!"

tptacek 8y ago

A $70 bottle of single malt is good for 4-6 serious drinking sessions (so: several weeks, especially if you're not just drinking single malt; my daily drink is VOB bourbon), and those sessions are approximately as enjoyable as a really good restaurant meal. A big part is finding and trying cool stuff, but I'd guess every ~3rd bottle I buy is GlenDronach, so a big part of it is also just loving a couple things. Like: if I buy a dry-aged prime ribeye, it's expensive, but I'm not looking for something "new" (that would be worrisome) so much as something enjoyable and a bit scarce. Important to keep in mind that it's not "alcohol", it's whiskey. It would be weird to spend this kind of effort on vodka or even gin.

whitepoplar 8y ago
Do you have any recommendations for a great whisk(e)y under $100? I'm at the stage where I've had Scotch, both peaty/low peat, as well as bourbon. Here's what I've tried, and my thoughts. Please excuse my poor descriptions, I'm still a newbie to the world of spirits! Lagavulin 16 - I hadn't had much scotch before I tried it. Very confusing, as I initially didn't like the peat, but was more and more intrigued by the same thing that turned me off to it. Kind of the same experience I had with IPAs. Tamdhu - I really liked this one. Felt easy to drink, familiar, and comforting. Balvenie Caribbean Cask - Pretty bad. The rum notes made me feel nauseous. High West Double Rye - Really good. "Fresh" for lack of a better word (but I had a second bottle years later that was horrible so who knows). Pappy 15/20 (before they became $$$) - I thought the 20 was okay. Tasted like a mellowed out Buffalo Trace. Really liked the 15--flavorful, hot, and just the right amount of sweet.
- tptacek 8y ago
  If you like High West, track down a High West Midwinter Night, which is their sherried rye; it'll go for like $70 in season and holds up with good Speyside. Dollar for dollar, there's probably no better value in Scotland than a GlenDronach 15, and you really can't go wrong with any GlenDronach, from 12 to 23, with an age statement. Aberlour A'bunadh is Aberlour's no-age-statement high-cask-flavor expression and it's pretty cheap (like $50?). If you buy it and really like it, there's a whole world of wine-casked Speysides you can go explore. I am a fiend for cask-y Speysides but I haven't really liked any of the Balvenie stuff (even though Balvenie is one of the cooler distilleries). I'm working my way through a Tamdhu NAS Special Edition which I'm liking a lot, so our tastes may be similar. If you're less into sweetness and wineyness and fruitiness and more into grain character, I like Springbank a lot. The good news about American whiskey is that spending money on it is the wrong approach. The right thing to do with American whiskey is to buy bottom-shelf bourbon and rye, preferably from brands that have a bottled-in-bond expression of whatever it is you're buying (or just buy the bonded expression itself if you can get it). So: Very Old Barton, Heaven Hill, Old Granddad, and Old Forester. These are, like, $30 bottles. Also buy a Four Roses and a Wild Turkey. Don't buy premium-priced American whiskey until you've tried enough "cheap" whiskey to know what you liked and (importantly) don't like. You can live on the bottom shelf of bourbon and be a happy drinker for a long time, and you get snob points for appreciating a cheap Heaven Hill while "hipsters" pay $60 for an "artisanal" "craft whiskey" that is really just a bottling of MGPI. Later A lay-up pick in your price range is Redbreast Lustau, a sherry-casked Irish whiskey. Over-the-top wine notes on top of an already super drinkable whiskey.

Spellman 8y ago

I think it depends on your comparison point. A good value bottle of Whiskey sits around $30-$50, and you can easily spread that single bottle over at minimum 20 servings. For a few dollars, if you enjoy it, that's a pretty good value. As you get more expensive, you tend to get more distinct and nuanced. Smoother hard liquors, more interesting flavors, etc. We once did a tasting flight and one tasted literally like camping outdoors with the smoke and wood. Another tasted almost like honey. So, to me, it's not that expensive and opens you up to an interesting and exciting landscape of flavors. If you're comparing to prices on a menu at a restaurant, then it's completely outrageous that a single glass would cost as much as your entire dinner. And there I agree, it's completely skewed. Granted, after a certain point (about $200 for me since I'm still a relative newbie. $1k is getting outrageous imo.) you're just chasing popularity, hoarding as a collection, or showing off your wealth. There's some amazing stuff, and for those trained and really knowledgeable and deep into the hobby it's worth it as they tease out all the little nuances. But just like buying a >$1k bike, for the average person you can't take advantage of the extra value and care that went into the product.

tptacek 8y ago
Those are pretty small pours if you're getting 20 out of a bottle. There are ~12 2oz pours in a bottle of scotch.
NorthOf33rd 8y ago
> But just like buying a >$1k bike, for the average person you can't take advantage of the extra value and care that went into the product. I'd put this price at around 2500. The better shifting from a decent group set makes a huge difference in a new rider's ability to enjoy the ride. It's hard to enjoy a ride when your chain keeps dropping and you cant shift through your gears. Though, I really wish someone would come out with a mass market Ultegra spec'ed decent geometry steel bike for ~1k.
dhimes 8y ago
I use 1 bottle whiskey = 3 bottles wine for my conversion.

Uhhrrr 8y ago

For the oenophiles I know, it's totally about exploring interesting flavors, and also appreciating the context in which the different wines are made (like with art). As for transience, you can stretch out a bottle of spirits over months. And hopefully the wine would be enjoyed synergistically with some great food. All that said, there are a thousand good/interesting $15-25 bottles of wine to chase if you're wanting to get into that, and IMHO Veblen goods are stupid.