Genevapics
New Member
(I posted this on a few other forums and thought I would share it here)
I had an opportunity to sample a few single malts this past monday, MLK's birthday, at an establishment in West Chester, Pa named "Teca". Nice little establishment that still allows indoor smoking. I am not sure if they allow cigar smoking, as I did not ask, but will certainly find out before my next trip. Anyway, this place had a nice assortment of single malts and I decided to do a little sampling.
My first scotch was the Glenmorangie Port Wood 12 yr. I had the bartender serve the single malt in a copita glass, instead of a brandy snifter.
The Glenmorangie had a beautiful straw color to it. Upon nosing, the beverage provided me with a faint hint of oranges and butterscotch. Upon tasting, my palate was greeted with a sweet orange flavor. The Glenmorangie was smooth with very little bite. While not as complex as the Macallan 18, it was definitely a nice scotch and something that I would certainly purchase for my collection.
The second single malt of the evening was the Talisker 10 yr. This scotch had a slightly darker straw color than the Glenmorangie. From what I have read, the Talisker is supposed to be a fine representation of the Island malts, which are known for their briny, sea weedy, medicinal, and peaty aromas. My first nosing proved this to be true; I now know what medicinal means! Wow! As soon as I nosed the Talisker, the thought of a medicine cabinet came to mind. The second and third nosing’s brought about thoughts of Band-Aid bandages. But why? The thought of going to the bathroom (as a young child), opening the medicine cabinet and reaching for the Band-Aids was deeply ingrained in my mind. Again, why?
I looked at my girlfriend, who was conveniently talking on her cellphone and motioned to her to nose the scotch. She did, wrinkled her nose and finished her call. She looked at me like I was crazy and asked, “What is that?” I shrugged and asked her what did she smell. She nosed it again and replied, “Iodine.” Bingo! It all made sense now. Medicine cabinet. Band-Aids. Mecuricrome. The iodine smell of the Talisker reminded me of the ritual I went through, as a young child, when I scraped my knee.
So there I sat, looking at the glass of Talisker, contemplating my next move. Evidently, the look on my face was enough for my girlfriend to respond, “You don’t have to drink it if you don’t like it.” “No”, I said, “That’s why we are here.” I took a sip of the Talisker. The taste was very strong and medicinal. And if there was peat or brine, I could not taste it; the iodine was just too strong. I took a few more sips, but could drink no more than about half the glass.
Unfortunately the Talisker 10 yr is not for me. An acquired taste? Maybe, but how does one acquire a taste for iodine unless the blood of Sir William Wallace courses through your veins? Since I can’t trace any of my roots back to Sir William, I think I will pass on the Talisker 10 yr for the time being.
The final single malt of the night, was the Lagavulin 16 yr. This is another scotch that I have heard people rave about. This one was the darkest of the three; almost Gran Mariner in color and viscousity. Upon nosing, the iodine was there, but not as prevalent as the Talisker. In fact, this was tolerable. The Lagavulin tasted slightly sweet along with the medicinal/iodine aromas. And viscous. If I remember correctly, this was the most viscous of the three.
I need to sample the Lagavulin 16 yr again. While not quite my cup of tea, I think I could acquire a taste for this single malt (maybe I do have a little scottish in me). It will certainly take awhile though.
All in all it was an enjoyable evening.
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