• Hi Guest - Sign up now for Secret Santa 2024!
    Click here to sign up!
  • Hi Guest - Come check out all of the new CP Merch Shop! Now you can support CigarPass buy purchasing hats, apparel, and more...
    Click here to visit! here...

McClelland Islay

Do you like it?

  • Yes

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • No

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    0

Apathy78

New Member
Joined
May 19, 2006
Messages
447
I picked up a bottle of McClelland Islay on Friday, I figured that I like the Islay malts and this bottle was $19, how can you go wrong. I must say that I enjoyed this scotch very much. Curious what you guys think of it.
Thanks

...This is my first try at a poll, sorry if I jacked it up. :0
 
Yes, I like it very much. Especially for the qutantity vs quality vs price issues.
 
knocked out two bottles in a month, with some help. i like it! :cool:
 
As I've said before, this is really 5 yo Bowmore so you know it'll be good.
 
I just can't get into islay's. To much smoke! Not sweet enough. But I did try this one...and for the price...can't say too much bad about it.

-Fetter
 
As I've said before, this is really 5 yo Bowmore so you know it'll be good.
Well AVB, I finally was able to obtain a bottle of Bowmore 12yr.
It is about the exact same taste as the McClellands. The only real difference I was able to tell was the price tag, about $15 more for the Bowmore name.
I have only had a few tastes of this and plan to have some more here in the future to see if my opinion changes on this. The Bowmore does have a slightly stronger smoke taste, but I’m not sure if that is worth the extra $15. I’ll keep trying though. ;)
 
I just grabbed a bottle of this last night; it was rainy and cold, about as cold as it's been so far this fall, and I was just in the mood for a smoky, peaty Islay whisky. Unfortunately, my couple bottles of Islay were packed away in my new home, which I have not finished moving into yet. Rather than trip over there to dig them out of the basement, and seeing as I had to drive right past the supermarket on the way home from the restaurant anyway, I stopped in the liquor department. Because the selection at the store is relatively poor, my only peaty, smoky choices were McClelland's Islay or Talisker (which I like, but not for $65.00). Remembering that McClelland's was really 5 y.o. Bowmore, I decided to give it a shot.

The result: not too bad! Very light, but considering it's age and proof (80; 86 is better, 92 is much better, C/S is best ;) ) it was pretty good. It had appropriate Islay smoke and peat, as well as the typical Bowmore floweriness and a nice malty sweetness. Based on the age, I expected a fairly strong spirity aroma and was surprised there was not one; I suspect the lower than usual proof helped out there.

All in all, this was a good way to get myself a little fix of peat for not too much coin. I do not, however, recommend it unless you can buy it dirt cheap. I paid about $26.00 after tax, which I feel is too high considering one can buy Laphroaig 10 y.o. online for $30.00 plus shipping. But, if you're in a situation like I was last night, where you just want some Islay whisky right now and don't have any other options, you don't have to be afraid of McClelland's Islay.
 
OOOfff. $26 is high. $19 usually in my neck of the woods.
 
In my experience, Iowa liquor prices are always high. I've never seen a table with all the states' liquor taxes set out the way I have for cigars, but I suspect that Iowa's is probably up there fairly high, and considering that the state has a monopoly on wholesaling booze (not beer or wine, just the hard stuff) there isn't much room for price competition. Except for the basics, I buy my liquor in South Dakota or online.

I just looked it up: the state marks up wholesale price 50% on all distilled spirits. :0 No big deal on the $6.99 vodka, but that explains why the JW Blue is $240+
 
I just grabbed a bottle of this last night; it was rainy and cold, about as cold as it's been so far this fall, and I was just in the mood for a smoky, peaty Islay whisky. Unfortunately, my couple bottles of Islay were packed away in my new home, which I have not finished moving into yet. Rather than trip over there to dig them out of the basement, and seeing as I had to drive right past the supermarket on the way home from the restaurant anyway, I stopped in the liquor department. Because the selection at the store is relatively poor, my only peaty, smoky choices were McClelland's Islay or Talisker (which I like, but not for $65.00). Remembering that McClelland's was really 5 y.o. Bowmore, I decided to give it a shot.

The result: not too bad! Very light, but considering it's age and proof (80; 86 is better, 92 is much better, C/S is best ;) ) it was pretty good. It had appropriate Islay smoke and peat, as well as the typical Bowmore floweriness and a nice malty sweetness. Based on the age, I expected a fairly strong spirity aroma and was surprised there was not one; I suspect the lower than usual proof helped out there.

All in all, this was a good way to get myself a little fix of peat for not too much coin. I do not, however, recommend it unless you can buy it dirt cheap. I paid about $26.00 after tax, which I feel is too high considering one can buy Laphroaig 10 y.o. online for $30.00 plus shipping. But, if you're in a situation like I was last night, where you just want some Islay whisky right now and don't have any other options, you don't have to be afraid of McClelland's Islay.

Just a quick follow-up: I had some more of this whisky last night and was somewhat less pleased with it than I was that first night. This is likely because the first time I tried it I had already drunk one beer and three or four Balvenie doublewoods (I actually just ordered a double, neat, but the bartender grabbed a good-size tumbler and poured until it was 3/4 full - I'm guessing there was about 6 ounces of whisky in that glass). Needless to say, I was already pretty well into it when I got around to the McClelland's and my taster may have been somewhat less than optimal.

Upon trying the McClelland's with a fresh palate, it was much weaker than I expected. It does have the smoke, peat, flower and malt of a Bowmore, but it is very watery, tasting like it's been diluted. Definitely not worth the $26.00 I paid, and probably not even worth the $19.00 AVB can buy it for, unless you are truly stuck with no other options.

In sum: buy some Laphroaig online rather than letting yourself get caught in the position I was in the other day where this is your only choice. It's drinkable, and even mildly pleasant, but it's certainly not worth buying a bottle.
 
Top