...where distraction is the main attraction.

Monday, July 9, 2012

Sad and Happy Single Malt Ramblings on a Monday

Relatively confident in an LA source for future bottles, I opened my Wild Turkey 101 Rye this weekend.  It is good.  And it is fantastic in a Sazerac, a rare whisk(e)y cocktail that I actually enjoy.  Take a gander at this video by Chris McMillian for a great Sazerac How-To.

The Ardbeg Ten bottle was retired, thus opening a spot in the Whisky Closet for the WT101.  Hope to do a report on this hard-to-find Turkey next month.



Bruichladdich distillery, the face of creative and experimental independent whisky making, has announced that they are selling to drinks giant Remy Cointreau.

Questions remain.  What will happen to their grand mad scientist Master Blender Jim McEwan?  Are the rumors of his retirement true?  Will an access to more resources allow for a price drop in their products?  Or will their already steep prices swell further?

Jim McEwan and the distillery's independence were not only responsible for the products' quality, but are also the two major selling points for Bruichladdich itself.  Lose those them and what are we (and Remy Cointreau) left with?



SKU posted a dynamite Recent Eats piece entitled "The Golden Age of Whiskey is Over" last week.  It's right on; he's more realist than cynic in tone and message.  The comments that followed were fascinating as bloggers, craft distillers, and retailers weighed in.



Finally for a smile, there's a video (below).

First, some context.  Ralfy, the man with the hat, is the king of whisky vlogs.  Boisterous, funny, and candid, he's the owner of a well-earned set of opinions (and a set of whiskys).  The quiet Frenchman on the left is the king, period.  Serge.  Serge started blogging whisky reviews TEN years ago.  His site whiskyfun.comnow has over 8000 reviews.  Not a single one of those reviews were quickly tossed off, instead each shows considerable consideration.  Besides having sensory superpowers, Serge has a great sense of humor and is always quick to make fun of himself.

Serge rarely does written interviews, and when he does he's always humble.  Yet this here......this has to be a first.  He does a video interview!  There's a voice attached to the man!

For me, as a whisky nerd, this won the Internet last week.