4 ms·

Absolutely on age. I think the Taketsuru NAS is very good, for example (it's a blend of malts by Nikka, and available everywhere in Japan), for its ridiculously

by crdb 12y ago

Absolutely on age. I think the Taketsuru NAS is very good, for example (it's a blend of malts by Nikka, and available everywhere in Japan), for its ridiculously low price locally. Bruichladdich is consistently outputting both solid classic stuff (PC5-8) and interesting innovations (Bere Barley) all of which are less than a decade old. The ones that consistently impress me are the "limited edition small run" houses like Rhum Rhum, Rum Nation, Velier and so on. The Rhum Rhum cask strength Liberation (the one with the lobster on it) is only 5 years old but (to me at least) fully justifies its very high price tag - this is what we want bottlers to do! Whereas I remember a horizontal Islay 30+ year old tasting that left me thinking I was drinking wooded water - the price tags were purely a function of supply (none) and demand (there's a sort of vicious circle whereby the rarity makes the price go up, turning it into a Veblen good amongst wealthy non-amateurs). For the price of the night, I could have had a couple bottles of legendary Veliers... Regarding buying without tasting, I'm done with that - generally I get people I trust (such as Stephane M. at la Maison du Whisky in Singapore for rum) to make some guiding recommendations, pay for a few shots and buy the best. I've had too many promising bottles left on the shelf to be used as expensive mixers, especially lately. You're right that cognac and armagnac especially are still little known, I think because they are still very fragmented and small family businesses compared to scotch which is basically Diageo and the Japanese. A few houses (usually owned by the likes of LVMH) get away with monstruous pricing thanks to their extensive DFS exposure, but if you browse the Cognatheque (particularly the 30+ and 50+ sections) you'll find a lot of very interesting stuff at reasonable prices even including international shipping; although it might not be worth the risk of buying blind.

e12e 12y ago
When it comes to Cognac, one house to keep an eye on is Tesseron. Eg their "lot 76" XO. Also A. E. Doer have a very good XO series. When it comes to single malt, my favourite so far was a Springbank Madeira wood (aged in Madeira barrels). Apparently the Madeira people didn't like them using the name in marketing and/or the barrels for whisky, so they had to stop producing it. The "normal" Sprinkbank does very little for me tastewise, but the extra fruit/sweetness from the Madeira really made it interesting. Since I've come a across a few other's aged on Barolo barrels etc that are quite good - but I've yet to find one that was as appealing to my palate. And which wasn't so expensive that it becomes silly.
- crdb 12y ago
  Ah, Tesseron is the nobility... they probably have the largest collection of old vintages of all the Grande Champagne houses! But you pay for the privilege... I once had a vertical tasting in a Swiss supermarket (Manor Geneva) by accident, I just wanted to chat to the sales guy and one thing led to another (and to the Lot 29). It was good but not good enough for the price tag. I'd say the marginal price increase to marginal value ratio becomes unattractive for me around the 53. Maybe when I've sold my company for millions things will look different. In Springbank I love the Longrow CV - it's my default request in a bar with limited interesting choices because it's still relatively cheap. Very Islay-like though (a lot of peat, and probably the opposite of your sherried sweetness) which is not to everyone's taste. Haven't had it in 3 years so YMMV. I'll keep an eye out for the Madeira, although generally not a fan of port or sherry finishes (except Mortlach, whose sheer brutality is somehow enhanced by the lingering smell). In terms of wine finish, Renegade (another Bruichladdich experiment!) used to make a series of rums finished in great wine casks - I particularly remember the Black Rock (itself legendary) finished in Petrus, and still kick myself for not buying a few bottles back then... they were really cheap! On the other hand I bought some Iwai "Chateau Mars" finish at Hasegawa last week, and that was literally all nose and nothing else, despite the glowing review from Nonjatta. Hit and miss...

by crdb 12y ago

e12e 12y ago

When it comes to Cognac, one house to keep an eye on is Tesseron. Eg their "lot 76" XO. Also A. E. Doer have a very good XO series. When it comes to single malt, my favourite so far was a Springbank Madeira wood (aged in Madeira barrels). Apparently the Madeira people didn't like them using the name in marketing and/or the barrels for whisky, so they had to stop producing it. The "normal" Sprinkbank does very little for me tastewise, but the extra fruit/sweetness from the Madeira really made it interesting. Since I've come a across a few other's aged on Barolo barrels etc that are quite good - but I've yet to find one that was as appealing to my palate. And which wasn't so expensive that it becomes silly.

crdb 12y ago
Ah, Tesseron is the nobility... they probably have the largest collection of old vintages of all the Grande Champagne houses! But you pay for the privilege... I once had a vertical tasting in a Swiss supermarket (Manor Geneva) by accident, I just wanted to chat to the sales guy and one thing led to another (and to the Lot 29). It was good but not good enough for the price tag. I'd say the marginal price increase to marginal value ratio becomes unattractive for me around the 53. Maybe when I've sold my company for millions things will look different. In Springbank I love the Longrow CV - it's my default request in a bar with limited interesting choices because it's still relatively cheap. Very Islay-like though (a lot of peat, and probably the opposite of your sherried sweetness) which is not to everyone's taste. Haven't had it in 3 years so YMMV. I'll keep an eye out for the Madeira, although generally not a fan of port or sherry finishes (except Mortlach, whose sheer brutality is somehow enhanced by the lingering smell). In terms of wine finish, Renegade (another Bruichladdich experiment!) used to make a series of rums finished in great wine casks - I particularly remember the Black Rock (itself legendary) finished in Petrus, and still kick myself for not buying a few bottles back then... they were really cheap! On the other hand I bought some Iwai "Chateau Mars" finish at Hasegawa last week, and that was literally all nose and nothing else, despite the glowing review from Nonjatta. Hit and miss...