Two big thumbs up for Oban.

I second this! Based on recommendations from this thread, I picked up a bottle of Oban 14 yr....incredible!!!!

Highland park 12 is delicious. 15 and 18 of you have the cash

Edited April 11, 201411 yr by casemac

My new favorite scotch. Highly recommend.

Edited June 22, 201411 yr by tac airlifter

Anything Glenfarclas is outstanding. The 21 year is almost as good as the 25, but runs a bit cheaper.

Concur on Glenfarclas - in fact their 10 is outstanding and proves age isn't everything when talking good wiskey

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Total Wine in Vegas has The Green Spot Irish whiskey for just over $50 a 750ml bottle - I picked up one tonight based on the couple comments here - looking forward to giving it a try tomorrow night. They also had a couple different High West offerings - the Double Rye might be my next purchase -- anyone here previously had any?

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High West Double Rye is excellent! I'm in the UAE and rye whiskey is scarce...found a store with some and bought their whole stock of Rittenhouse 100!

A big on Lagavulin 16year old single malt. I try to always have some in my decanter at home. A friend of mine introduced me to the great single malt on the night of my bachelor party and have loved it ever since.

Additionally, fall beer season is here. I found SHIPYARD Pumpkinhead last year and have been waiting for it to return. If you see it while you are out, I highly recommend it for a seasonal brew.

Talk to me about Lagavulin: how smokey/peaty is it? Any other flavor or just the smoke? I tried to like the Laphroaig 18 but it's too much. The 10 wasn't palatable at all. That said, JW double black is a fairly smooth and decent tasting smokey whiskey. How does Lagavulin compair?

All that said, Glendronach Allerdice 18 is the new hotness on my shelf.

I personally found Laphroaig very similar to Lagavulin. I would say Laphroaig was a little more smokey, but they are both in the same family, if you ask me. Smokey, peaty, etc.

I agree they are similar, however I think Lagavulin 16 is less intense than Laphroaig. It has some sweetness to it (sherry) that reduces the smoke/peat to a more palatable level. I don't dislike Laphroaig, but I do prefer Lagavulin. Have you tried Bowmore? It's in the same general group, but even slightly less smoke/peat than Lagavulin. If you're worried about blowing 80 bucks on something you're not sure you'll like, I'd get the Bowmore first and then if you're good with that, try the Lagavulin next.

The aforementioned scotches above are all distilled off the west coast of ye olde Scotland; the Isles of Islay. They each have similarities in the peat/smoke, some more intense than others. Prices for Lagavulin are a bit steep (I have seen anywhere from 69-96 bucks). IMHO Lagavulin is just the right mix between all the Islay scotches. If you are comparing it to JW Double Black, you are not even in the same sport, let alone the same league. Not to say JW DB is a bad scotch at all, just that it's different. I have attached a link for some information on scotch from the area. It's always nice to get a new bottle of scotch you haven't tried before...its gives me the same excitement today as strange did when I was younger...https://www.islayinfo.com/islay_whisky_distilleries.html

All you need to know about Lagavulin:

...and, if you've got 3 minutes:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1naXHTHiHZc

I think Laphroag tastes like dirt, but Lagavulin is quite smooth for a west coast scotch.

I agree they are similar, however I think Lagavulin 16 is less intense than Laphroaig. It has some sweetness to it (sherry) that reduces the smoke/peat to a more palatable level. I don't dislike Laphroaig, but I do prefer Lagavulin. Have you tried Bowmore? It's in the same general group, but even slightly less smoke/peat than Lagavulin. If you're worried about blowing 80 bucks on something you're not sure you'll like, I'd get the Bowmore first and then if you're good with that, try the Lagavulin next.

Big 2 on Lagavulin! Started drinking it at Mac and Marty's on Guam, haven't looked back, damn fine stuff.

I'm prepping for post-deployment ritual of ordering some great scotch to greet me when I return. Already have Glendronach 15 Revival lined up (I loved the Allerdice) along with Macallen Ruby, but I'm hearing I should try the Aberlour A'bunadh; anyone have experience with the various batches or a recommendation of which batch isn't worth trying? Thanks!

Oh, follow up to previous conversation-- the Lagavulin 16 was a clear winner during a SQ side by side tasting against Laphroaig 18. Although the latter got better with some time out of the bottle, it's still too medicinal for my taste.

I'm prepping for post-deployment ritual of ordering some great scotch to greet me when I return.

.

And then promptly losing it in the Gulf of Mexico before your 6-9 DHA interviews.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1b8W1tFFs3M

Some serious alcohol abuse here...but hey, it's Old Milwakee, so it's not really much of a waste!

Stranahans Diamond Peak.  Worth 65$, go buy it!  Also I've officially found the best IPA around- Ballast Point grapefruit sculpin.  You're welcome!

Love Stranahans. Got it as a solo gift and finished it in less than a week... Alone... Wait... am I an alcoholic?

Love Stranahans. Got it as a solo gift and finished it in less than a week... Alone... Wait... am I an alcoholic?

Alcoholics go to meetings, stay away from those and you'll be safe.