Ardbeg is my absolute favorite whisky. Their standard 10 year is about $50 a bottle. Smokiness from the gods. Ardbeg just reopened in the late 90's. They are only offering their 10 year at the moment, I'd assume because they aren't old enough for older bottlings yet. The older bottles that you do find are from before the original distillery closed. I haven't tried any that, but from what I've read, it's all pretty amazing as well. I'm thinking of springing for a bottle of their Airigh Nam Beist from 1990. It seems pretty interesting and seems to be around $90 online. Before shelling out $200 a bottle for some older year stuff of any of the listed whisky's, you should sample some cheaper bottlings of the companies or get some of the expensive shots at bars. If you know the region/s you like, by all means go for it and all of this is moot or if you like all whisky, go for it then, but they differ drastically from region to region and it can be a quick waste of some serious money. I also don't think you need to shell $100-200 for top shelf whisky. A large amount of good single malts can be had in the $50-$60. I personally would take a bottle of Ardbeg 10, Lagavulin 16 or Laphroaig 10, which are much cheaper than some of the 20some year bottlings of Macallan or Glenlivet, etc. or the very expensive Chivas or Johnnie Walker Blue type blends. On the non-scotch side, I can't tell the difference between regular Crown Royal and Crown Royal Reserve except it being double the price. I was told it was just hand picked out of the regular stuff. I'm not nearly good enough to discern the difference. XR, on the other hand, it is just fantastic and on a whole different level. It's about $130 in North Carolina and as soon as I've finished some of the bottles already in my cabinet, I'm springing for one. This bottle is worth every penny.
If you're getting Lagavulin 16 for $60 a bottle I'm moving. [Here a bottle of Laphroaig is around $60, while a bottle of Lagavulin 16 is around $120]
My bad. The Lagavulin 16 is around $90 here. The Laphroaig 10, Ardbeg 10 and Caol Ila 12 are all in the $50-$60 range. Those are my typical brands.
Thanks for the advice fellas, I picked up a bottle of The Macallan Fine Oak and its pretty good. Kinda has a hit of like, citrius. Its so good I dont want to drink it all in one night lol. I think thats the whiskey Im going to drink from now on.
My team's holiday party is tonight (at my place), and I'm looking for some drink ideas. We're getting about 8 cases of shitty beer, for general drinking and games. In addition to this, we are getting some eggnog, but since we're lazy, we were just going to buy a couple cartons (about 2 quarts) of nonalcoholic nog from the grocery store and add our own booze. I know that you can add rum, brandy, or whiskey, but does anyone here have a favorite combination of the above to put in the eggnog? I'm also looking for some good Christmas-themed shots we can do. We've already got Peppermint Patties (peppermint schnapps and chocolate syrup) and Goldschlager, but I'd also like some shots that guys can take that won't make them grow ovaries.
Incredible Hulk (make it in drinks, or as shots) 1 part cognac 1 part Hpnotiq. Change the proportions if necessary to taste, but the combination will make the drink turn green when mixed. If you're taking shots of it, I guess stir it with a candy cane or some shit. Maybe a red umbrella toothpick? Or serve it in red shot glasses, or red solo cups? This drink is easy to down while at the same time it still tastes strong, especially if you add a bit more cognac. Oh, and it will floor you.
2 oz. Bourbon Pour into 2 oz. shot glass Drink 2 oz. Tequila Pour into 2 oz. shot glass Drink 2 oz. Canadian whiskey Pour into 2 oz. shot glass Drink Enjoy.
1 shot of whiskey of your liking immediatly followed by this concoction... Lunchbox 3/4 of a pint glass of beer 1-2 shots of ammareto Fill rest of glass with orange juice
No. 209 is excellent. It's certainly my favorite. Blue Gin and Blue Coat are ok; as is Aviation. I'm yet to try Junipero, I'm not sure it's for me.
I'm not much of a fan of the pine needle flavor of Tanqueray. I also think their Ten is not worth the premium and I can't really discern a difference over regular Tanqueray. Their Rangpur is just Tanqueray with limes... one can do that themselves without getting "watered down" gin at the same price or more per ML (Essentially you're being ripped off). Not that the flavor is bad, I like it but I don't see the value in it. The marketing and profit margins, however, are genius. You'll probably like Hendricks or hate it. Try it first with tonic (Q-Tonic is the best) and cucumber slices if you can. Adding limes to this gin doesn't do it justice. My favorite is No. 209. It's excellent. 209 and Q-Tonic is a great way to stock your liquor cabinet. Cheers
Just came back from the store and the lady there said Schweppes has a lime tonic water coming out soon. That'll be convenient. I love gin, and I'm proud of the fact that absolutely every other male in my family will turn down a G & T because it "tastes too strong." I prefer Bombay Sapphire over Tanqueray, but both will do in a pinch and after a few of them I can 't tell the difference anyway. I drink them either with tonic, or on the rocks with a splash of lime (I know that's probably not the right way, but fuck it, it tastes good). Never had Beefeaters but I was tempted to pick up a bottle today. Anyone have any good, fairly simple gin drinks? Admittedly I'm relatively new to the stuff and after my first G&T I pretty much have stayed there.
Gin, sprite, lemon juice. I drank too much of this one night and haven't been able to touch gin since; but in the meantime, it was delicious. Or, if you want to do it the proper way: the Tom Collins and Raspberry Collins: <a class="postlink" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdanI5uRpyo&feature=related" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdanI5uR ... re=related</a>
Greyhound: Gin, Ruby Red grapefruit juice. That's pretty much my go-to. Rickey: Gin, seltzer (not tonic), half a lime's juice. Tom Collins: 2 ounces Gin 3/4 lime juice (one lime) 1 ounce simple syrup Seltzer Now, a couple complicated Gin drinks. Singapore Sling: 2 ounces gin 1/2 ounce Cherry Herring 1/4 ounce Cointreau 1/4 ounce Benedictine 3 ounces pineapple juice 1/2 ounce lime juice 1/3 ounce grenadine 1 dash Angostura Bitters Shake the shit out of it, drop the bitters in last. Ramos Gin Fizz: 2 ounces gin 1 ounce cream 1 whole egg white 1/2 ounce lemon juice 1/2 ounce lime juice 1 ounce simple syrup 2 dash orange flower water Seltzer Shake everything over ice, strain into glass, fill with seltzer. This drink is fucking AWESOME. I cut the citrus down by half for myself though; just a quick splash of each. Gin will always be my drink because TV told me to:
I picked up a bottle of Johnnie Walker Green Label for 60$ last night. It's a blend of four 15 year old scotches and goddamn it's smooth and tasty. I usually drink Black Label but my tastes are going to be costing me more now I think.
My girlfriend, knowing the way to her man's heart, bought me a brewing kit for Christmas. I'm fucking psyched. The only issue is that it's one of those Mr. Beer kits. From what I've read, the beer they produce isn't exactly great*. I'm excited as hell that I'm able to start brewing my own beer and I'm looking forward to learning as much as I can about it (I've already read much of this site). Is there any way that I can adjust the ingredients/methods with this Mr. Beer kit to make a better beer or should I just give their stuff a shot, chalk it up as a good learning experience, and if the beer sucks, adjust things afterwards? *Is it the materials, ingredients, or a combination of both that are the cause of most of the negative feedback from these?
Mr Beer is what you'd give a retard for Christmas, no offense. The mash is premade and canned, all you do is add yeast and heat, It's disgusting and little you can do to fix it since there's little in the kit to begin with. Return it and go online.
I am definitely picky about what kind of beer I am willing to drink. Sam Adams Brew Master pack is normally my trash beer for the month. I have been going to a bar in Wilmington NC though the Front Street Brewery(<a class="postlink" href="http://frontstreetbrewery.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://frontstreetbrewery.com/</a>) that is a beer drinkers dream come true. They deliver, brew, have to go orders they do everything possible with beer. One of their flagships that is awesome though is DRAM TREE SCOTTISH ALE. I really wish I could go get one tonight.
You clearly have no fucking clue about what you're writing, so shut the fuck up. That said, Mr. Beer isn't a bad introduction to brewing. The beer you'll make isn't exactly Alesmith or Hair of the Dog, but its good for learning some of the basics. If you enjoyed making the beer you'll probably want to upgrade to a more involved setup (steeping specialty grains, then partial mash, then all grain is the usual route) that produces better qaulity brew after a couple attempts. If you didn't enjoy it, no money lost. Many brewers start with Mr. Beer, and investing a lot of money into a hobby you've never been involved/participated in before isn't always the smartest idea. I say give it a shot.