As you may or may not be aware, I had a short visit to see some glibs. During this time, I received a generous gift of whiskies and this is a review thereof. First, I must start with a mea culpa, an apology if you will. I was presented with a choice of three bottles, and I could take one or several. The right thing to do would have been to pick just the one. In the end I took all three. This was somewhat in poor taste, a social faux pas, but my love of whisky got the better of me. And such, I got greedy and ended up with all three. I will probably need to make amends at some point in the future.
The three I got were: Widow Jane 10 (SF) River Roots Four Grain Gang 6 years old (Neph) and Whisky Acres 12 bottled in bond (Swiss). To round up the tasting I added two more bottles. One of the I purchased from the duty free at Toronto airport, and it is Wayne Gretzky 99 toasted barrel 100% rye. I chose this out of all the options because it was the only one with an age statement – 8 – and with an higher proof. I like both age and proof in my whisky. The fifth, the wildcard, came from my bar and was purchased in Romania. Tempelton 10 straight rye, which is basically 10 year old 95/5 MGP, always a solid dram, bottled at about 55% ABV. I also had a Jackie D single barrel, barrel proof, but that would stick out a bit too much in this lineup, due to the proof and the jack danielsness to it.
There is one thing to note about tastings: depending on your day, your mood, the food you ate, etc, different blinds in different days of the same whisky can yield different results. Another thing is I did not try to put my finger on the scales in favor of this or that when I ranked them. I was curious what it would be. I will say say the outcome was not completely unexpected. In a different blind I would expect the first and last place to be the same. The middle three could vary. But in the end all 5 could vary. All are good whisky, really. I originally did the blind ranking for my own curiosity, without necessarily meaning to write an article, but I figured why not. I do not much write about whiskey as I wrote a few posts years back and they did not seem to interest the glibertariat. As I will not include the ranking in this post, I should not have included this paragraph, but it is mostly about the process so I will leave it.
Now on to the method of blinding. I do not have enough identical glassware to have the same glass for all whisky. This too can influence the outcome. I do have identical 25 ml shot glasses, on the bottom of which I had a black sticker with a number. I associated that number, barely visible so I could not see it accidentally, with each bottle as I poured. Then I gave the glasses a few spins on a round tray, right round baby right round, mixed em up, spun again until I had honestly no idea which was which. Then I poured each in a glass and as Marvin G said, let’s get it on.
Note: there are fancy devices for blinding whisky on the market, but I do not like single use devices that take space when I can find appropriate replacements. Like chive scissors. No one needs no goddamn chive scissors.
The method was simple. Smell left to right, right to left and take notes. Taste in the same fashion with a bit of water between whiskies. Then, with what is left, just take some random sips while ranking. Nothing fancy. The results are what they are. I do not take extensive note, to be fair, just some key words to help me rank things. I should probably spend more time identifying flavors but I don’t.
So, without further ado.
Whisky 1 : Nose: sweet with some vanilla caramel/sugar, bold, something slightly minty. Taste: sweet oak nutty medium finish.
Whisky 2: Nose: light sharp, alcohol present, fairly simple. Taste: drinks hot, oak, spice, not too complex.
Whisky 3 Nose light sweet floral taste: slight fruit, oak, a little spice, alcohol well integrated
Whisky 4 Nose deep, complex, vanilla, coffee, spice. Taste: intense, bold, spicy, warm
Whisky 5 Nose sweet, complex, fruity. Taste warm, long after taste, fruit, oak, spice.
Now to see which number is which whisky: 1 Widow Jane; 2 Gretzky; 3 River Roots; 4 Tempelton; 5 Whisky Acres
A note on the Tempelton: this was for a while a controversial whisky as they were heavily marketing it as Iowa whisky despite being MGP. Another aspect was that they used flavor enhancing additives, thus the whisky was not pure – they could not even write straight rye on the 4 yo and 6 yo. The 10 is indeed straight rye, simply aged for 10 years, presumably in Iowa.
A second note on age of whisky: climate matter a lot, the hotter the faster the aging. 4 years in Texas is different than 4 years in Canada. The 8 year Canadian seemed younger than the 6 year American. I had Paul John aged in India and in Scotland and it was quite different. I tend to prefer the longer aged in cooler weather scotch myself. For example I am not a huge fan of Taiwanese Republic of China whisky. For Kentucky bourbon, many say it gets too oaky over 15-20 years old and many prefer it younger than 20. Alas I never had the pleasure of 15 year old or more Kentucky juice.
A note on the Whisky Acres, I googled the mash bill and was very surprised there is no rye in it, though I do not know if they have multiple bills. But the one that google turns out is 75% corn, 15% soft red winter wheat, and 10% malted barley no rye at all, which I usually associate with the spicy taste. I would have expected more sweetness from a wheater.
They all taste the same to me but more power to those who can tell the difference. 😀
I like whiskey, but have such indifference to taste, I drink it all like cheap swill. except scotch, that stuff is crap.
I blame my wife.
It’s your wife’s fault you don’t like scotch?
I love whiskey. I will keep those in mind next time I shop.
Brown liquor makes me mean. Not necessarily violent though that did happen on occasion when things got dicey at the bar with buddies. Just over an asshole who’d flip out on you for the smallest thing. Gave it up about fifteen years ago.
…I’m cool with vodka but that’s about it.
OT back to VADM Ching Lee and the USS Washington.
This link will take you to the battle damage analysis of the IJN Kirishima.
https://www.navweaps.com/index_lundgren/Kirishima_Damage_Analysis.pdf
Page 8 of the report shows the identified 5″ and 16″ impacts. Good shooting indeed.
Widow Jane 10 is a favorite. It is almost always in the cabinet. Templeton 10 would be, if it were regularly stocked at the store. A delicious dram. The 4 and 6 do nothing for me. Swiss has brought River Roots Rye before, and it was a pleasant drink.
Local sushi place has the Widow Jane 13. Damn, that’s good.
They also have the rye which, despite my predilections, is not as good but still tasty.
When I talked to EvilSheldon on GlibsCruise One, that was his recommendation.
ES is one of the most erudite people I’ve ever met, and I’ll respect his opinion on nearly every matter.
I finally got a bottle of 10 year Widow Jane on GlibsCruise 2, and damn… he was spot-on. That’s tremendous whiskey.
Neph was my river roots dealer did not know Swiss also handles the stuff.
My Dad was a European immigrant. If it had alcohol he drank it. Cheaper meant more quantity. More proofs were better than less proofs.
The last time I saw him we went to a local bar and had a drink. It may have been the only we had a drink together in a bar. I would always bring
bottles of stuff home and we could relax without having to drive. I miss him, it’s been almost 60 years now.
I don’t like spirits.
Except . . . I rather enjoy very heavily peated, smokey, briny scotches from Islay.
I blame my scotch drinking friends for getting me hooked on that shit.
I also enjoy the very heavily peated islay malts. Buy i also enjoy the quite different highland peat and unpeated whisky. I dont dislike good cognac armagnac or rum but do not have the liver budget to include them, mostly stick to wine ans whisky with an occasional beer.
So, I ignored the warning about not putting cloves in the grinder, but the mix should have soaked some of the oil (I did clean the grinder afterwards because I don’t want to mix it into whatever I make next)
Well see if the whole spice snobs have any credibility or are full of it. Pork is cooking.
I will not be having whiskey alongside, but I may open a mead.
Well see if the whole spice snobs have any credibility or are full of it.
So Posh Spice?
I have identified a flaw in my methodology so far.
While I did enjoy the meal I made, I realized I have used a combination of spices I never made from pre-ground, so I don’t have a 1:1 point of comparison. Plus the mix included some whole and some pre-ground spices. It did work flavor wise as a spice rub on a boneless pork chop baked at 350 for 30-35 minutes.
Mix was:
Scary Spice was more my speed.
may open a mead.
Always a good choice.
I did open a bottle. The Blood Orange paired just fine with the Pork Chop.
what was the ABV of the blood orange mead?
Good choice.
Table wine strength: 12-13% ABV
👍
“As I will not include the ranking in this post, I should not have included this paragraph, but it is mostly about the process so I will leave it.” You were correct to to keep it. It’s perhaps my favorite. Your for-fun blending of words and sounds is remarkable. (I’m remarking upon it now. So there.)
“Alas I never had the pleasure of 15 year old or more Kentucky juice.” Which leads me to that. You sound so dirty. 👍
Ill take that as a compliment
RIP Stacy Keach
Damn.
Seems apropos given Pie’s article.
As kinda predicted, Cedar Rapids ain’t happening with Munch, but I do have Dec 9-11 off into the weekend. Kinda want to make a little vacation out of it for myself, but I haven’t thought too much about it yet. Warmer is better than colder, but more people may be a turn-off.
Since I really never do it, kinda thought I’d have a ~Fri-Sat trip someplace to do something. Like I used to in Korea, but in America. I’ve been so many places, though, and I have a really, really hard time answering the simple “What do you want to do?” question. Jokingly, but truthfully, when asked what type of food I’d like to eat, “Caloric” is a solid answer.
That does and will make me think. I’ll be alone, with 99.Big Number% certainty. hmmmmm — Going to see a hockey game would be a big sell, but again, by yourself is a bit odd. *frumpier hmmmmm*
How do we feel about Jack and Coke?
Never met an IRL Jack I liked and Coke was never my speed of choice when I did that sort of thing.
…wait…
Not for me.
Good enough in a pinch…
Only way I’ll drink whisky.
I think I threw some up in a bar bathroom once or twice in my college years and that was the end of that experiment.
I did something similar with very cheap vodka.
Lemmy Kilmister drank Jack and Coke.
The american whisly youtubez tells.me high end Jack is some of the finest whisky out there. 12 14 coy hill etc. will probably never get any myself. But i would not mix it.
Standards jack? Whatever floats your boat. Also Jack redbull is classier than coke
Better than Jack and Diane?
We’re talkin’ bout a little dram, not a little ditty.
Dummy could have led a leisurely life of crime in NYC for many more years without any fear of yet another deportation. Attempting to hijack a plane seems like a federal crime – no sanctuary up there.
My oldest turned 18 without us realizing that even though we brought all of the necessary documentation to the DMV, they did not issue him a Real ID. We were all on the same itinerary this summer, and they pulled him aside at LAX. It took 10 minutes of extra nonsense and a $45 fee to get him through TSA.
How in the hell did this guy get on a plane?
This is where someone needs to sit you down and tell you about the 2 tiered system currently in place in the US.
Identity theft?
One look at his photo and I was sure he is Arab.
*looks at picture*
Guilty.
He drinks a whiskey drink, he drinks a vodka drink
He drinks a lager drink, he drinks a cider drink
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=2H5uWRjFsGc&ra=m
Pissing the night away.
/Afternoon Links: Thanks to y’all from earlier about my new work. I’m still rather stunned. Such a bizarre little paper-churn mill. We shipped “over 6,000” titles yesterday. I think 4-5k may be more normal.
@RAHeinlein (re: clothes) and others: My ‘fancy’ jacket has arrived! It’s lovely. very soft and awfully, awfully warm for its weight and slimness. 🤔 It actually fits me and isn’t baggy around /under my arms. This was a wise sartorial decision, me thinky. And completely inconspicuous. A simple black hoodie. Just merino wool and made well. “He puts the b in subtle.”
Silent Letter Day – Michael MacIntyre
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOUqHr9tcVY
I think I first heard it in The Wire.
Templeton Rye: Sourced from MGP. Told stories that didn’t line up with reality, and ended up in lawsuits because of it. MGP’s 95/5 is the standard mash bill. Fortunately, MGP makes a very good product. However, since they private label so many products that show up on the shelf as rye (including some big names), consumers have come to think that it’s what rye is supposed to taste like. Rye was an old drink that was almost lost to history, something grandpa drank. Rye has been in revival mode in the last dozen-ish years, and some distilleries that make their own (including the smaller ones) are helping to re-broaden the flavor profile.
Yes, they do.
Unfortunately, too many big names (as you noted) slap their own label on it and just make “their” rye. Looking at you, Bulleit, George Dickell.
Then there are other distilleries who get the MGP — now called Sempreon, and do their own magic to it.
Y’all ever get a chance to try some of High West’s stuff, buy it. Older years, the better. Released pre-2018, if you can find it. Midwinter Nights Dram is fantastic, but bring money. Lots of money.
On rye available here i like the michters and the willet 4 year old. I still regret not getting a jack single barell rye some years ago because it was sold out quick. I was under the impression i had ordered it but the site needed one more click and i did not realize and it sold.out before i cpuld get one. It became unobtainum agter that. I hear it is becoming available again in the US maybe some makes it here. I had a dram of the BTAC Handy rye in canada and it was delish but expensive. I remember in 2014 in a bar in Viena i had a Sazerac 18 rye. I once wanred to try midwinter nights dram but rhe internet tells me it aint as good as it once was.
I woudl also try a willet 7 or 11 but those be pricy. But maybe the secondary market drops in the states who knows.
Stupid typos stupid phone
Michter’s Straight Rye is fantastic and my go-to rye.
Around $45 here.
The difficult part, from looking at things from your home, is that the really good stuff is made by small producers and rarely gets a distribution farther than 1000 km from the distillery. When they scale up to go to Europe or the rest of the western hemisphere, quality goes down.
Or you can get their best product, but at a superpremium cost.
Living in the southeastern U.S., my two favorites are from Virginia and Georgia.
Virginia: Copper Fox Original Rye
Georgia: 13th Colony Barrel Symphony (though any cask-strength bourbon or rye is excellent)
Take notes and be on the lookout.
One that i find strange it here is catoctin creek rye does not seem a mainstream producer
Midwinters Night Dram showed up around here. I should pick up a bottle tomorrow in honor of Gluttons Day.
https://x.com/knowingbetteryt/status/2119943921459724441
Another victim of the yellow fever vaccinations.
This is not even subtle and it seems lost on some people
https://x.com/Davethecat19/status/2120023751974858853
Full version please
https://x.com/verbalriotshow/status/2120252357619630573/video/1
So, I finished the Ocarina of Time Remake.
As far as I can tell it is the same game from the N64 era with quality of life upgrades and improved visuals. This is not a bad thing. Some internet folks were speculating about stuff being added in such as restoring cut content or new dungeons. Turns out they decided to deliver what was originally promised and what I expected. I strongly suspect that this was a training project – get the junior team practice on a proven skeleton of a game before they work on new projects with less of a safety net.
I have no nostalgia for the original – never played it.
Was it worth my money? Yes, I’d say it was. I was entertained well enough. It does suffer from the people with nostalgia goggles overhyping it. Causes an expectation unfair to the product.
The hardest boss in the game was Dark Link. That cheap bastard dodged or blocked anything I tried, and he deletes health faster than anything else I ran into. I lost so many times I wonder if I tripped a Mercy condition in the code because I eventually got a fight where I had a easy stage two and it took far fewer dodge-counterattack cycles to end the fight than I would have expected.
Lastly, like all iterations of videogame fishing, fishing sucks. I’d rather go fishing in real life, and I don’t. My fishing pole is still in the packaging (I bought it at a going out of business sale of a small sporting goods store)
Fishing games…
Have you tried Dredge?
I’m currently playing it. 👍
It’s hump day again. So I did.
Mornin Glibs.
🫡🍑💦
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3PwyGIZxX8
🎶🎶
How the *fuck* did those dickless cucks re-elect Thune?
Fuck, fuck, fuck.
My new gun finally shipped. Yay.
Oh dear, I drive by this place just enough to make the dam breaking a scary thought
This is the main road that would get flooded. The dam is on the west side that you can’t really see through the trees. What you can see used to be a second holding pond when I was a kid, but somewhere along the way AIUI the greenies forced the government to return that area to its “natural” state quite a few years back leading to the ugly monstrosity we have now. Street view claims October 2026, but it’s always looked like more dead trees to me than that photo. If you go a bit south you can see the building that serviced the pond.