Single Malt Cask Strength Scotch

agreed, that is a terrible waste.

@Mike_T, yes, Drambuie and Disaronno are both good. I prefer them neat, like my other good beverages.

@Gary_H, yes, those are nice, too.

This is turning our to be a good thread. A nice change of pace to all the stories detailing the ills of the world. As I don’t have the firearm collection many others here do, I don’t have too much to discuss on that topic. Just have more than several and fewer than what I would want. I do have to work on that… :sunglasses:

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I love Scotch… but got spoiled to the high dollar stuff. Just not in my budget right now. My budget is more blended Irish Whiskey… :smile:

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I like the Balcones single barrel, single malt made in Waco, Texas. It’s about 129 proof, so visitors stay out of it usually…more for me!

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We just solved it… SCOTCH IS THE ANSWER…!!!

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129 proof! :grinning: Wow. That is pretty stout! I would try a shot of it.

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It’ll definitely wake you up, but it’s smooth. It’s probably my favorite

My choice is Aberlour, single malt double cask 12 year old, 18 year old when ever Trump sends me money. :wink: I drink it neat as Scotch should be drunk, as they say in Scotland, “If God had wanted you to drink Scotch with ice, He would have put a glacier in Scotland.”

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Ok, about that Budweiser comment - right, I get that.
Wat I shoulda said is I’ve never had good scotch…

I hear Lophraig ain’t bad. Thing is, for the price, I can get a bottle of say, Blantons bourbon and already know I’ll like it

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You win the internet today. :rofl:

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This is an economic little jewel I like, hard to beat at around $60 for the 1.75 liter bottle:

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Yes, cask strength is usually in the upper 50s to low 60s in percentage of alcohol. The single barrels are interesting at cask strength as the bottles are whatever came out of that cask, no Master of Malt deciding how to create a flavor profile, no watering-down of the flavors, just the pure essence of the aqua vitae. The only thing that gets decided after it is in the barrel is how long to age it. If the new make is good and the ageing went well, it is awesome stuff.

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Yes, another distillery I like. I had more than several of their Abunadh batch series. It was quite good until the last one I had, batch 62. Those, too, were cask strength. The best I had was #46; those were amazing, aged completely in x-sherry barrels. They do at least one lightly peated in x-sherry, too. I can’t recall which one I had, but also nice.

After looking up the definition I am not sure I have ever had a cask strength scotch.

I too started on single malts … settled on Glenmorangie LaSanta as my go to sipper. Since then, I have migrated to bourbon and have since become a Maker’s Ambassador.

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Ooh…that sounds intriguing. Tell me more! PM is fine.

What’s a good starter bottle of scotch that’s under $100? Does such exist? I’d like to check it out, truly. I spend about, ohh, 250 in a month on bourbon. I simply like a couple doubles in the evening, out in cool evening breeze on my patio…
Maybe I’d enjoy scotch too,just really unfamiliar.
Bourbon I know. Well. Scotch not…

Thx for input!

Don’t drink, not an AA thing, just don’t like taste or lowered inhibitions and interference with my physical abilities.

@Paul008
Can u recommend a sub $100 bottle for a scotch newb?

I’ll hafta research scotch in general too looks like. I know bourbon very well, but scotch = nada

@Smiddy
Finding a Scotch is on par with finding a holster that works for you. As with bourbon, the flavor profile is expansive. Within the single malt family flavor profiles run from delicate fruit and floral notes to smoky and quite “heady” peat influences. It may very well take a while to find a flavor profile that you enjoy. Also, remember you’d be shopping for “whisky”, not “whiskey” if you’re looking for Scotch.

Because I’m inclined towards Glenmorangie, think about trying a sampler pack that they offer with four different expressions. It’s a $30 dollar investment without committing to a whole fifth that you may not like. The sampler contains their 10 year and three double woods that are matured in oak for 10 years and then transferred to a second barrel for two additional years (if memory serves me). The second barrel imparts a second layer which does phenomenal things for the complexity and flavor profile.

Here’s a link to get the gears turning and decide which door you choose to open first:

Thanks for the opportunity

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There’s quite a bit under $100, and even under $50. One factor of the cost is the alcohol content, as higher proof whiskies are taxed higher, based on their percentage of alcohol; one reason cask strength whiskies are more expensive. Some of the more approachable ones would be Auchentoshan, a Lowland, unpeated. Their typical expressions, more easily found, are American Oak, Three Wood, Heartwood, and 12 year. I preferred the American and Heartwood. I believe most are $35 - $50. Glenmorangie is also good and approachable, but many are over $50, but typically under $100.

All Single Malts are good, depending on what you enjoy and can afford. Just like wine, price is not necessarily indicative of quality. To me, the reason I like the single cask, cask strength more is that the flavors are not watered-down and human intervention in the flavor profile is at a minimum. The end result is directly related to what went into the cask, the new make, the cask selection, and its ageing. It is the true expression of Scotch, not some flavor profile created by a Master of Malt.

The best way to discover Scotch is to go to a whisky bar. There you can get flights, or at the bar, often you can nose a bottle. If you have certain flavor notes you enjoy in Bourbon, talk to the bartender about your interest in Scotch Single Malts, and explain your flavor/style preferences. You can then jump from there. I personally enjoy the full range of flavors, from fruity, floral, to heavily peated, both Islay and Highland peat, and various cask finishes, such as x-bourbon or x-sherry, etc.

The main difference between Scotch and Bourbon is that Scotch is 100% malted barley, not a mixed grain. Scotch is also typically aged longer, too. Grain whisky is also produced in Scotland, but it is not Scotch. Typically those use wheat and other grains, and may include barley, but not corn, as is required in Bourbon. Their grain whisky is typically not batch or pot still, but continuous distillation.

The flavor profiles are even more varied than Bourbon, as the rules for Bourbon are much stricter than for Scotch. One being, Bourbon must use new American Oak barrels. Like wine, Scotch has a wide variety of flavors. This comes from the many different types of barrels used, almost all are x-casks of some type of whiskey, usually Bourbon, or wine, such sherry, very rarely new oak. Another difference is the use of peat, or not, while drying the barley during malting.

Blended Scotch is whisky that is made with Scotch from more than one distillery, often from various regions, and typically varying amounts of peat, from little to none, to slightly peated. Single Malts are also blends, but use casks from only one distillery; of course, single cask is from only one cask. In Single Malts, the regions make a difference. Many of the most well-known are either from Speyside (named after the River Spey), and Islay.

There are 5 general areas; Highland and Lowland, are the largest areas. Speyside, actually part of Highland, has the most distilleries. Islay (an island off the west coast) is noted for its peated Scotch. There are two main types of peat used in Islay, Islay peat and Highland peat; each has different nose and taste. Then there is Campbeltown, southwestern peninsula. There are smaller noted areas, such as Island, islands off the Northwest; Orkney Islands, off the North coast, and the Isle of Arran, off the Southwest - only one distillery there, currently, but it is good.

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