What makes a good Burns supper?

[Marmora Man]

Off to open my new bottle of Highland Park - cask strength single malt. Whoopee

[SimonM]

Just to add to the identity confusion, the orange Scottish "turnips" or neeps are actually swedes.

"Swedes" in this context is short for "Swedish turnips" (see Cobbett's "Rural Rides"). They are not exclusively Scottish. White turnips are basically cattle food, except when served with white sauce at expensive restaurants...B)

Is no-one going to quote/recite Burns' "Nine inch will please a lady" then?

Oh very well

Come rede me dame, come tell me dame,

My dame come tell me truly,

What length o' graith when weel ca'd hame

Will sair a woman duly?"

The carlin clew her wanton tail,

Her wanton tail sae ready,

"l learn'd a sang in Annandale,

Nine inch will please a lady."

etc etc

[Mick Mac]

I find anything cask strength is to be avoided as it is too strong

Marmora Man Wrote:

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> Off to open my new bottle of Highland Park - cask

> strength single malt. Whoopee

[Marmora Man]

Mick Mac Wrote:

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> I find anything cask strength is to be avoided as

> it is too strong

The trick is to take it slowly - savour the aroma first, then a very small sip of undiluted whisky, then add drops of water until you achieve the desired taste. Adding water generally brings out a new swathe of flavour and aroma.

The pleasure for me also lies in the fact that thee bottles of say, Highland Park, will all have a basic similarity but still be very individual and separate from each other. It's possible to compare say, a 12 year old "branded" Highland Park at 40% strength with 18 year old and 28 year old cask strength versions and revel in the differences in colour, flavour and aroma. The older they are the lower in strength also - but also higher in price.

>

>

>

> Marmora Man Wrote:

> --------------------------------------------------

> -----

> > Off to open my new bottle of Highland Park -

> cask

> > strength single malt. Whoopee

[david_carnell]

I find the obsession with single malts and the associated snobbery to be rather strange.

Whilst some are, with out question, delicious, rare and very special the same can be said for some blends. A skilled blender producing a multi-dimensional whisky is truly a thing of wonder.

At the lower end of the market, Johnnie Walker Black Label routinely wins awards and blind tastings whilst the company's Blue Label variant is a king of blends. I've been lucky enough to sample a dram of 35 year Duncan Taylor blended scotch and it's by some distance the best thing I've ever drunk.

[louisiana]

david_carnell Wrote:

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> I find the obsession with single malts and the

> associated snobbery to be rather strange.

>

> Whilst some are, with out question, delicious,

> rare and very special the same can be said for

> some blends. A skilled blender producing a

> multi-dimensional whisky is truly a thing of

> wonder.

>

> At the lower end of the market, Johnnie Walker

> Black Label routinely wins awards and blind

> tastings whilst the company's Blue Label variant

> is a king of blends. I've been lucky enough to

> sample a dram of 35 year Duncan Taylor blended

> scotch and it's by some distance the best thing

> I've ever drunk.

For me it's nothing to do with snobbery. It's the flavour of particular single malts from the islands, imparted by the local terrain, water, air etc. So Talisker (from Skye, and my first love) and the three south-coast Islay malts (Ardbeg, Lagavulin, Laphroaig) in particular, and Caol Ila on the east side of Islay also, and I also have a soft spot for Highland Park (though there's a different kind of 'island drama' going on there).

Some people hate them. Talisker and Islay malts in particular have very distinctive nose and flavour (peat smoke, brine, iodine etc.). For me it's a love affair. I've had certain cask-strength Lagavulin that's like stars in your brain.

corrected for spelling!

[Marmora Man]

Louisiana - Talisker was also my first love - I visited the distillery as a young and fresh faced 19 year old midshipman - I had been climbing in the Cuillins with a mixed Navy & Royal Marine group. The weather clamped in and we decided to visit the local distillery. My only regret was that I was ordered to shave off my very first, and somewhat fluffy, beard by the hardened RM captain in charge of the expedition, but the whisky was worth it. Our tastes in whisky are very similar - I have a partial bottle of most of those you've mentioned in the sideboard.

David Carnell - I don't see it as snobbery at all. It's all about taking joy in diversity of flavours, aroma and techniques. Sure some people can get right up their own a*** on the subject - me I just enjoy and proselytise to visitors and friends.

[david_carnell]

Oh, I wasn't really having a go at you two. I love a single malt as much as the next man, and like MM, am a big fan of the southern Islay malts. I even own land at the Laphroig distillery (for what it's worth)!

But I just like to point people to some up market blends that can combine flavours and characteristics brilliantly to sometimes create a final product that is more than the sum of its parts.

[MrBen]

> I even own land at the Laphroig distillery (for what

> it's worth)!

(tu)

For anyone with a passing interest - I have now started to collect and have found one shop in London selling (a few left!) a very rare bottling of 36 year old (1970) cask strength from a distillery that has been closed since the early 1980's for the princely sum of ?200 - which is interesting as a quick google reveals (from multiple sources) that it's market value is be ?550. I have bought some and yes I intend to drink it!

[Mick Mac]

DC - I could not agree with you more and have said much the same elsewhere.

Maybe we should set up a blind taste testing some evening to test everyone's blend/malt tastes / convictions ....

I love whiskey but cask strenght gives me heartburn even when I add water.

[Marmora Man]

MrBen Wrote:

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> > I even own land at the Laphroig distillery (for

> what

> > it's worth)!

>

> (tu)

>

> For anyone with a passing interest - I have now

> started to collect and have found one shop in

> London selling (a few left!) a very rare bottling

> of 36 year old (1970) cask strength from a

> distillery that has been closed since the early

> 1980's for the princely sum of ?200 - which is

> interesting as a quick google reveals (from

> multiple sources) that it's market value is be

> ?550. I have bought some and yes I intend to drink

> it!

do tell!