Wednesday, January 25, 2012

For the Love of Whisky

There are few things more Scottish than whisky, that golden liquid that burns a path down your throat. In fact, the Gaelic word for whisky is uisge beatha, which literally means "fire water." Aptly named, if you ask me.


My friends and I have had a couple whisky tasting parties at my house, which is a complete blast. I highly recommend trying a bunch of varieties to learn what you like and don't like, because all whiskys are not created equal. Wild Turkey, for example, is about the nastiest thing I've ever tasted (next to haggis- LOL).


The diagram above is from the Dalwhinnie whisky distillery in Scotland. Each dot represents a different whisky on the smoky-delicate-light-rich grid. So you can see there's quite a bit of variation. My favorite brand is Macallan Cask Strength, followed by Glenmorangie's Quinta Ruban, then Jura.


The weirdest whisky I've ever tried was Ardbeg, which tasted like licking a campfire. Okay, okay, I've never licked a campfire but you get the idea. I had less than a shot and the smoke flavor stayed with me all day long. Not something I'll drink again, but it was definitely worth doing once.

What about you? Do you have a taste for the fire water? Leave your faves in the comments section!

And speaking of fire, here's a commercial for William Lawson whisky that I love! Enjoy!


1 comment:

  1. There are few things more Scottish than whisky, that golden liquid that burns a path down your throat. In fact, the Gaelic word for whisky is uisge beatha, which literally means "fire water. Burgundy wine

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