Daveo

After a recent 3 week trip to the US, I have developed an unhealthy liking for Jameson Irish Whisky. Not having ever been a whisky drinker i know little about the stuff.

Which other whisky's around are similar tasting and as smooth and easy to drink as Jameson? I've tried their 12 year old stuff which i like as much as the regular blended variety.

Any Scotchies as nice and smooth?

Dave

Scoob99

iTrader: (1)

Glenfiddich 18 year old malt......mmm

Chip

Or try some Welsh gold www.welsh-whisky.co.uk

Reassuringly expensive!

Chip

Simon C

Banff isn't bad but I think the distillery went under, I have a botle here of 25 year old single. Butit was ekpensive, Isle of Skye is a beautiful whiskey and not as firey as some of the more commercial 1's. But the very good whiskeys are a little on the expensive side.

Abdabz

Glenfiddich always a good bet.... My faves by them are their Caoran reserve and the 12 year old with port wood finish...both very smooth...
18yr old does take some beating though

chris's scooby

Paddy.

blueone

I prefer a flaming Drambuie myself
see the following link for what to do with Drambuie to make it a flamer!
http://www.stewartpratt.co.uk/showar...lamingdrambuie

corradoboy

Plenty to choose from, there's hundreds If you like the milder taste, then Speyside malts are usually quite tame. Highlands tend to be a little more firey, and Islay's have a distinctive peaty aroma. I favour Islay as I find the subtle flavours very satisfying. For an introduction to Islay I'd recommend Bowmore. Lagavulin has a strong distinctive but very palatable taste, whereas Laphroig is an acquired taste. Of the Highland stuff, try and find a bottle of Balvennie Double Wood. It's matured for part of its life in new oak casks, then transferred to used sherry casks, taking on a fruity flavour. I'll be seeing in the new year with a wee dram of Bowmore, but a special "Cask Strength" bottle at 56% There is a company called Cadendons who don't distill their own, but extra mature others (often keep them beyond 25yrs) and bottle them without watering them down to 40% so you get them at whatever strength they are in the cask. I'm gonna try and find a cask strength Lagavulin for my next one

If you're ever up in the Highlands, call in at Robertsons in Pitlochry. A real eye opener in both sheer range, but also price but the expensive stuff is mainly reserved for stupid American tourists

Ken 275

Fair call on the tasting notes.

Do you mean Cadenhead's?

K.

_Meridian_

iTrader: (1)

Of the more common ones, can I add Glenmorangie (not the various "flavoured" ones though) and Isle of Jura? And Glenfiddich is drain cleaner. IMNSHO. In general, the older, the smoother. The smoothest (and best) I've ever had was 25-year old MacCallam, but it's about £100 a bottle. And I've still never forgiven Lochnegar distillary after I found out that their 24-years stuff gets turned into Drambuie (AKA "vile sickly sweet travesty"). B*stards...


M

hugo

The nicest of the Islay malts are Bunahabhain, Lagavulin and Caol Isla IMHO. Laphroaig is tasty but any more than 2 measures and I've got heartburn for a fortnight!For the milder palate; Isle of Jura. From the mainland; Cardhu (cant get it at the moment due to a supply problem, apparently next batch not on line 'till next year).

HighlandLaddie

Yes, he did mean Cadenheads.
My mate was their marketing manager for a few years.....had some good nights trying out the sample bottles I can tell you....60%+ cask strength.

They have a shop in the Royal Mile in Edinburgh for those interested. However, should you decide to rob it, the bottles in the window are filled with cold tea

fast bloke

Stay away from Scotch - it is all rough on a £ for £ comparison. Jameson is averageish. Paddy and Black are reasonable, but try Bush, Black Bush and Single Malt Bush. IMHO nothing compares in the same price bracket

ALi-B

iTrader: (1)

errr after drink 3 hafl bottles between 3 of us of the following tonite: I can recommed....

Highland park
Jura
Blairmhor

I'm going to pay for drink all that thsi afternoon

GCollier

If you're after ultimate smoothness and great taste in a Scotch I'm quite partial to Johnnie Walker Blue Label...but it doesn't come cheap (at least 150 a bottle). For general everyday drinking I would recommend Dalwhinnie, Balvenie and Laphroaig (the regular 10 year olds of the latter two are great) in that order really depending on whether your tastes are middle of the road or extreme Islay peatiness.

Gary.

STi-Frenchie

I'm surprised no-one has mentioned Cragganmore - a wonderful Scotch which I'm rather partial to. I personally go for the Speysides with Glenlivet being a particular favourite followed by the usual Glenfiddich and Glenmorangie. McCallan 12 year old is also rather nice. I was given a bottle of Caol Ila for Christmas and opened it yesterday at lunchtime (for an aperitif) expecting great things. Damned stuff smelled and tasted like some sort of amonia-based cleaning fluid but I'm assured it's an acquired taste so I'll have to try it again today

Bushmills is always a good bet - being from that part of the world I would say that but honestly, Black Bush is a very good tipple indeed. as for the rest of the Irish offerings, I usually use Jameson's for making Irish coffees - either that or Tullamore Dew - as it doesn't cost a lot and is smooth enough for most palettes. Paddy Power is good if you are looking for a fight and Paddy is reserved for those on the downhill slide.

Stay away from the American offerings - they are as cheap and nasty as their president.

Single malt is the only way to go and make sure to taste plenty of it

Flat 4x4

Balvenie single malt double wood (12 yrs) is a very smooth Speyside - about £25 from Tesco.

Old Pultenay (spelling?) is also a bit of a smoothy at a reasonable (under £30) price

STi-Frenchie

The "nastier" ones will give you that effect - I generally find the cheaper brands which ahem, friends offer will do that...and it may be just my palette but blended whiskies seem to do it more often than not to me which is why I tend to go for 12 year old single malts as a starting point for my tippling As an example, Johnny Walker (Red or Black) will leave me feeling like someone has ripped my throat open whereas something like Glenlivet doesn't bother me at all. This is a personal opinion of course so your mileage may vary. I've also found that older is not always better although having said that, I think the smoothest I've had recently was a 25 yr old Knockando, that was like honey. Give the Speyside malts a try as they are milder and smoother than some of the others.

RobJenks

Black Label is reliable and value for money.

Daveo

I guess I'm gonna have to just sample as many as i can, and form my own opinions.

I've tried Glenlivet, which i liked, and Glenfiddich, again which i liked. I also invested in a bottle of Dalwhinnie yesterday which is ok.

There's something bout Jameson though which really does it for me. I must like the blended irish whisky type stuff.

Anyhow, I'll do some more research and post my findings!!!

Thanks for all the replies.

Dave

STi-Frenchie

Just remember - don't drink and type

CharlieWhiskey

That's my favourite, but it's a Speyside not a Highland I will have to check out Tesco!

Good call! I always stop of at Robertsons when I'm upt norf I dont think the prices are that bad, and you get some decent advice too Japs are the worst for paying over the odds!

I think that calls for a wee dram of that Dalwhinne I had for Christmas