Infectious Charm. Devastating Wit. Average Looks.
While discontinuing several popular bottles in 2017, Highland Park has recast their image in Viking lore. The previously named Highland Park 12 Yr Old has been reborn as Viking Honour. The bottle has received a makeover, but this expression remains a core bottling for the company as it always was. With the effort to improve... Continue Reading →
We have discussed as a club the now dwindling Irish options on the shelf as we approach our 6th year together. Our plan initially was to rotate three themes, each theme getting its own meeting and every now and then we throw in a Canadian or world whiskey. Every third meeting was devoted to Irish... Continue Reading →
The following statement might come across as shocking to some of you, but peated whiskey doesn't have to claw your very face off as you force it down your ravaged gullet. For the rest of you, it might also come off as shocking that there exists out there in the world people that prefer their... Continue Reading →
In my experience, nearly every liquor joint I sashay into displays all the available Irish whiskey bottles into a single, four to five foot wide section. A big store might have two of these sections at most. Because of this, it is easy for a schmuck like me to visualize the entirety of available options... Continue Reading →
We have introduced High West and their wares already when we reviewed the exceptional "Rendezvous Rye," so there is no real particular need to rehash their quaint ways, except to say that while they are technically a distillery, they are instead known for their artisan blends of sourced whiskies. They don't just take one whiskey... Continue Reading →
One of the precious few bourbons I have ignored thus far in my whiskey odyssey is Bulleit Bourbon. No offense to Tom Bulleit, "The Proprietor," but having known for some time that every bottle of Bulleit bourbon is distilled at Four Roses Distillery in Lawrenceburg, KY, I figured I would just drink Four Roses and... Continue Reading →
Gather round, my friends, and give unto me your ears, for I shall tell you about the time-honored art of "dusty hunting." Before we go any further let me say that this whisky hobby phenomenon is less about art and more about science. Allow me to define terms: dusty hunting is the pursuit of rare... Continue Reading →
I have cried only 3 times in my life. Dad's funeral, the day the music died, and the day I found out that Balvenie Single Barrel 15 was discontinued. I have a special love affair with a decent Scotch whisky with no sherry finishing. There is something pure about that kind of stripped down composition... Continue Reading →
You know what I like? Cocktails. And just between you and me, I sometimes enjoy a Vodka Cranberry. Yeah, you heard me right. But do you know what I don't like? Alchoholic Syncretism. If we are not talking about cocktails, generally speaking, this is expressed when you merge two standalone styles into a new creation.... Continue Reading →
Wild Turkey's Russell's Reserve has a special place in SWC's heart, as both the Kentucky Straight Bourbon and Rye versions offer a decent pour for a decent price. Say no more. Well, I will say a bit more. I should really stop using that line. Today's selection is a new expression in Big Russ's signature... Continue Reading →
You may have noticed that not a word has been posted to this site since last December. I needed a break, badly, and took some time off. It's June now, and every time I think to start again, an uncontrollable feeling of dread and despondency comes over me like a warm blanket of death on a... Continue Reading →
My first recollection of Ardbeg Supernova occurred in 2009, the year of its first release, during an interview between Whisky Cast and whisky writer Jim Murray. Murray recounted his sensory experience with Supernova as intense, to say the least, but perfectly caught the moment when he described swirling his last sip in the mouth for... Continue Reading →
Stagg Jr. was a joy to see launched. Anytime an uncut, unfiltered, barrel proof bourbon aged nearly a decade by Buffalo Trace goes to market, any bourbon fan should be grateful. But of course, when you appropriate the mighty, beloved brand name of George T. Stagg and attach “Jr,” as sure as God made green... Continue Reading →
It seems that every time I sashay into a local Total Wine and More here in Spokane I find some new, out of no-where Dry Fly product showing up on the shelf. This pleasant reality, along with the fact that most of their products are now older and possess a higher ABV, means that I... Continue Reading →
It was at one time customary for this blog to introduce a new brand with a quick history overview. That’s becoming less and less necessary in my view, so I will leave Westland Distillery’s story to the internet, as their story has been told already in numerous places (here's a good one). Let’s spend the... Continue Reading →
Dry Fly Distillery is not only Washington State’s first distillery since prohibition, but they're also credentialed as one of the original pioneers of the craft whiskey boom. In 2007, they laid down new fifty three gallon barrels filled with whiskey made from a mash bill of 100% Washington wheat. This whiskey was released two years later... Continue Reading →
Baker’s 7 Year Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon is a whiskey that took me years to figure out. Liking a dram your first time seems almost too easy, too…lazy, maybe? The idea that multiple tastings with patience and contemplation, which are eventually rewarded with enlightenment, is much more fun. Some whiskies just take time to get,... Continue Reading →
Some time ago another club member and I were prepping work on a “Best Bourbons under $20” project that would surely sweep the interwebs by storm and propel us into the stratosphere of whiskey blogging. While I am sterling certain that our popularity will be irresistible, the project probably stays in the hopper for the... Continue Reading →
It’s been too long since I have spent a meaningful amount of time poking around the Irish whiskey scene. Last I looked, it wasn’t just all about Midleton, Bushmills and Cooley. Small outfits were popping up much like the American craft boom, although not quite at our pace. The most prominent of these new distilleries... Continue Reading →
