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I'll Drink to That! What is your favorite beverage to have with a cigar? Juice? Cola? Beer? Port? Single Malt Scotch? This room is for the discussion of beverages, especially alcoholic beverages that go well with cigars!

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Old 11-16-2008, 06:01 PM   #1
jazznut
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Benriach & Glenlivet editions

This week, I gave the following two single malts an initial taste test, and came away quite impressed...

Benriach Madeira Wood Finish 15 Year Old – 46%

This spirit spends its final period of maturation in Madeira casks sourced from Henriques & Henriques. Not chill-filtered, and with no artificial colouring. Fairly pale lemon-yellow gold hue. A high-toned fragrance with notions of spring blossoms, honeydew melon, sweet oak and acetone. On the palate, a sparkling interplay of sun-ripened citrus, sweet malt and crisp oak that, though lightly textured and silky, offers up just the right degree of simmering white pepper warmth. Dries at the finish in the manner of a fine Cragganmore, with notions of stone-grist barley, lemon zest, leather and even the faint saltiness of a young Brie cheese making guest appearances. A subtle and initially somewhat deceptive malt that rewards subsequent pours. Lovely apéritif whisky.

Glenlivet 15 Year Old French Oak Reserve – 40%

The utilization of Limousin oak casks introduces additional layers of aroma and taste to the Glenlivet flavour profile. Full shimmering gold colour. Rounded and quite sensual on the nose. Yellow Delicious apples and a few peaches macerating with a spoonful of honey. Lightly toasted oak provides the backdrop. A soft shoe palate entry if ever there was one. Delicate floral and herbal overtones with notions of apples and honey. Then the fun begins! Limousin oak brings on an enlivening cascade of spices, only to have the whisky exert a textural smoothness to calm the proceedings as the finish line approaches. 15-plus years and a touch of the continental forest serve the intrinsic characteristics of the distillate admirably. Finely gauged balancing of the elements. The perfect match for a Por Larrañaga Cuban cigar.

Now it's on to that 16-year old Aberlour.
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Old 11-16-2008, 06:15 PM   #2
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Thanks for the info, Doug, I knew you were wanting to try the Glenlivet French Oak Reserve. Sounds interesting! I've been wondering (and a little concerned )how using that un-bourboned oak would flavor it. I have not seen the Benriach at a local store, if memory serves.

There was an interesting little side-remark in you description of the Benriach that made me very curious indeed. "...no artificial colouring." Is it a common practice for whiskysmiths to put coloring in there? I sure hope not. I do love the colors of the various single-malts I've been sampling, it would be a shame to think it's not just a factor of the maturing process. Aren't alcohols white as a function of distilling, and get their colors from the casks? I'm really clueless about the process.

Looking forward to your remarks on the Aberlour 16, which I found deliciously spicy.
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Old 11-16-2008, 06:46 PM   #3
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Is it a common practice for whiskysmiths to put coloring in there? I sure hope not. I do love the colors of the various single-malts I've been sampling, it would be a shame to think it's not just a factor of the maturing process.
Yes, cask/barrel maturation DOES account for most of the hue in aged whiskies. But concerning that 'OTHER' factor, I can't do any better than to revisit some of my remarks on this topic from an older thread, Joel...

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First off, let's clarify exactly what we mean by caramel. E150a is a naturally extracted caramel additive, possessing a dark brown colour, that is often utilized in sauces, canned goods, beer, whisk(e)y, biscuits and pickles.

Different batches of whiskies from barrel-aged stocks will often display variations in hue, and most customers unfortunately expect one bottle of a particular whisk(e)y to have the same appearance as the next. Therefore, within the Scottish and Irish whisk(e)y industries, E150a is used as a colour-corrective to ensure consistency of colour in the bottled product from one year to the next. It may also be true that very inexpensive Scotches (which have undergone close to the minimum permitted 3 years of barrel maturation - ALL Scotch has to be aged in wood at least that long) - contain E150a not only as a colouring agent, but to help smooth out the rough edges and add a slight degree of sweetness. Responsible bottlers will aim to minimize the use of E150a. Some will eschew the practice altogether.

Most spirits coming off the stills ARE relatively colourless, though the nature of local water used in the distillation process as well as the incorporation of minute quantities of copper (copper stills DO thin and wear out over time!) in the fresh spirit can alter the clarity almost imperceptibly.

The use of E150a is quite common, though the demand for entirely natural (not coloured or chill-filtered) whiskies is growing and bottling houses seem to be responding bit by bit.

E150a certainly has flavour. And to suggest that its utilization doesn't affect the taste of a whisk(e)y simply isn't true, although extremely restrained use might be hard to detect.

Minimal use of E150a can be very difficult to discern, especially if the whisk(e)y to which it is added has a bold flavour profile to begin with. Lighter, more delicate whiskies may be more adversely affected.

Do I condone the use of E150a within the whisk(e)y industry? As long as its presence in a whisk(e)y doesn't noticeably change the characteristics (colour excepted) of said spirit, there is no great problem. However, I've encountered more instances than I'm comfortable with where the quantitites of E150a employed DID affect the taste of the whisk(e)y in question. Even such full-flavoured and revered entities as Lagavulin, Laphroaig and Talisker have, on occasion, demonstrated such shortcomings. The effect has more often than not been subtle, but there's no denying I sensed a thin veil that clouded the dynamics of delivery of flavour to the palate.

On the positive side, at least drinkers of such whiskies don't have to worry about what has gone on in the Cognac industry, where liquid wood extract has frequently been added to younger Cognacs (V.S.O.P. or lower) to simulate the 'rancio' effect that greater cask ageing brings to the more expensive ones.
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No denying that various bottlings of a single malt will differ marginally in terms of depth and nature of colour from one issue to the next. Casked inventories of stockpiled whisky also vary at any given time. And why would anyone within the industry own up to the presence of caramel additives, as this would merely serve to erode the image of the product they're trying to peddle? But it has been there at times. And if it occurs, it happens during the marrying and bottling stages.

That's why certain bottlers (independents amongst them) now proudly declare on their labels that the whisky within some of their bottles is all-natural, uncoloured and not chill filtered. It's just their way of putting a positive spin on matters without openly disparaging others who might use caramel additives.

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The 1988 Scotch Whisky Act allows the addition of E150a to Scotch whisky provided this isn't discernible (my underline) in the aroma or flavour.

Ian Wisniewski says in his article entitled Caramel Keg (Whisky Magazine, Issue 22, pages 52-54), "Adding caramel is usual for blends, and hardly unusual among malts, in order to achieve colour consistency between batches, as even the most rigorous cask selection results in colour variations... The amounts are negligible: around 0.01% of the total, or less... As being able to detect spirit caramel is a breach of the regulations..., the explanation lies in the barrel."

This is all well and good. However, like all such regulations, its inviolability rests on human sensory analysis, which can be selectively fallible. And Wisniewski fails to address how the interaction of relatively pronounced wood-driven flavour elements and more subtle caramel-induced aspects might serve to mask, but not necessarily eliminate the latter. It's sometimes very difficult to differentiate between the two, especially if the odd substandard barrel of whisky has crept into the vatting.

A tough nut to crack indeed!
Well... There you have it in a rather large nutshell.

As a postscript, the single malt Scotch industry trend toward avoiding the addition of E150a seems to have taken firm root. And this may have as much to do with a more broadly educated public (no longer put off by minor colour inconsistencies from one issue of a whisky to another) as with industry personnel.
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Old 11-16-2008, 08:28 PM   #4
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Thanks for going to all that trouble Doug, very informative and ultimately encouraging, I think. I'm not the expert taster you are, and may never be able to cock my head at a beverage and think, "I SAY, that's E150a!" but I would love to think I'm getting the "real deal" in a whisky for which I paid good money. Maybe that will be the case more and more, as you hopefully suggest. It's actually almost crushing to someone coming from the wine world, to discover that such a fine product may not be exhibiting natural characteristics. I love the color of whisky, it's fully a part of my enjoyment, it would be sad to think it was merely an artifact.
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Old 11-17-2008, 03:56 AM   #5
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Maybe that (the 'all-natural' approach) will be the case more and more, as you hopefully suggest.
While the dispensing with of caramel colouring extract may never filter right through to the mid and lower bracket blends, it certainly appears to have become something of a phenomenon in the single malt segment of the industry, and may have a lot to do with the increasing consumer awareness of green issues - particularly as regards food and drink products.

We, as single malt whisky enthusiasts, should also know that the independent bottlers of single malt Scotch, such as William Cadenhead, have had much to do with the promotion of nonchill-filtered, naturally hued whiskies, not to mention single malts in general.

But more about this in an upcoming A Rich Pour column in the Lifestyles section of the Cigar Weekly Magazine Pages.
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Old 11-17-2008, 04:45 PM   #6
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Look forward to it.

During a recent pinch, I opted for a lower-priced scotch, the Johnny Walker Black, and boy can you tell the difference in quality and taste. I did make it through okay, , but I hope not to have to traffic in price range overmuch. Nothing against JW or JW Black enthusiasts, but after enjoying some good single malts, it's tough to go home again. It wouldn't surprise me that lower-level blends would have all kinds of things in them that would make the purist balk, but you do what you have to do at times. JW Black is sure better than nothing.
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Old 11-18-2008, 09:42 AM   #7
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JW Black is sure better than nothing.
Joel... If you can find it, I'd recommend giving Gordon Graham's Black Bottle (from Burn Stewart Distillers) a go - especially seeing as Ardbeg works for you. Here are links to 2 sets of reviews from the pages of Whisky Magazine:
http://www.whiskymag.com/whisky/bran...whisky814.html
http://www.whiskymag.com/whisky/bran...hisky2199.html

Sound enticing?
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Old 11-18-2008, 04:15 PM   #8
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Looks VERY interesting, considering the price and the rave reviews. "Brilliant," says Jim Murray. Thanks for the heads up, I'll keep my eyes peeled.
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Old 11-19-2008, 06:58 AM   #9
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I think you might also really dig The Peat Monster from Compass Box.
This one's a melding of aged whiskies from the Ardmore and Caol Ila Distilleries.
More expensive? Yep. But it's very tasty!
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