Friday, February 4, 2011
Borgogno Barolo 1952
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Sunday's Whiskey Tasting
well another successful Robbie Burns tasting is over with eight whiskeys tasted, most of which we had not tasted in the past. We started with three blinds the first was a Canadian Rye Gibsons finest 12-year-old, it received the same reception it does every time we taste it. There is something about the sweetness inherent to corn and rye that it makes everyone happy. We followed that with a split tasting half of the room trying the clan Denny vatted malt and the other half tasting Chivas 18. I poured clan Denny this whiskey was extremely light in color and those with a hint of citrus and a very clean short finish it would be good for a pre-dinner dram but food would hide its subtle flavors. The last blind was the revelstoke spiced whiskey this liquid is an anomaly is Canadian whiskey made in Wisconsin and is technically a whiskey liqueur. There is a heavy addition of vanilla and spice and an underlying sweetness which makes this a great whiskey for mixing but straight up not a great choice.
We tasted five more whiskeys throughout the evening the first was the Isle of Arron 15-year-old anniversary edition this whiskey is aged in Amontillado Sherry casks that give the whiskey a reddish tint. The nose of this whiskey has strong cocoa powder and sulfur notes, the first impression on the tongue is somewhat tarry but it gives way to licorice notes. I was a bit unsure of this whiskey at the start but I warmed up to it as it sat on my tongue for a while. Before the next whiskey we had dinner, when we went back to tasting we started with anCnoc 12-year-old from Knockdhu distillery this is another light whiskey, and most people had trouble finding the flavors in this as their pallets were not ready after eating the lesson here is try a little coffee, or beer to cleanse the food from your pallet. I was talking to one member who suggested that perhaps mouth pH may have something to do with our inability to perceive flavors after eating. I will pursue some information on this.
Next up was Mackmyra special number 3 this is the first Swedish single malt we have tasted interestingly it is aged in small 30 L casks which include used bourbon, Sherry casks, and Swedish oak casks. This whiskey was surprisingly full-bodied with a real doughy or custardy mouth feel. I really enjoyed this whiskey. After that we moved on to the oak cross by compass box this whiskey is aged in a combination of used bourbon and French oak casks. this whiskey is also a vatted malt which effectively means that it is all single malt whiskey but from more than one distillery. It was hard to discern a difference caused by the French oak in this whiskey, there was a lot of wood in this whiskey but it did not have that classic French mouth feel. This is a good middle of the road whiskey that is not bad value for the money. The last whiskey of the evening was a monster, the Ardbeg supernova. This whiskey was selected by the whiskey Bible as whiskey of the year for 2010, at 160 ppm peat phenols it is one of the peatiest whiskeys we have ever tried. This whiskey lingers on the palate for ages. What is most striking about this whiskey is the balance between peat and drink ability, only after a few minutes does the peat overwhelm the palate.
As always these tastings end up with discussions about some portion of the process of making whiskey. This tasting most of the discussion was around barrels and wood affect, it is funny how some whiskeys seem perfectly balanced with the wood and others seem as though the wood is an afterthought. Personally I choose the whiskeys that have a complex relationship with the barrel.
We tasted five more whiskeys throughout the evening the first was the Isle of Arron 15-year-old anniversary edition this whiskey is aged in Amontillado Sherry casks that give the whiskey a reddish tint. The nose of this whiskey has strong cocoa powder and sulfur notes, the first impression on the tongue is somewhat tarry but it gives way to licorice notes. I was a bit unsure of this whiskey at the start but I warmed up to it as it sat on my tongue for a while. Before the next whiskey we had dinner, when we went back to tasting we started with anCnoc 12-year-old from Knockdhu distillery this is another light whiskey, and most people had trouble finding the flavors in this as their pallets were not ready after eating the lesson here is try a little coffee, or beer to cleanse the food from your pallet. I was talking to one member who suggested that perhaps mouth pH may have something to do with our inability to perceive flavors after eating. I will pursue some information on this.
Next up was Mackmyra special number 3 this is the first Swedish single malt we have tasted interestingly it is aged in small 30 L casks which include used bourbon, Sherry casks, and Swedish oak casks. This whiskey was surprisingly full-bodied with a real doughy or custardy mouth feel. I really enjoyed this whiskey. After that we moved on to the oak cross by compass box this whiskey is aged in a combination of used bourbon and French oak casks. this whiskey is also a vatted malt which effectively means that it is all single malt whiskey but from more than one distillery. It was hard to discern a difference caused by the French oak in this whiskey, there was a lot of wood in this whiskey but it did not have that classic French mouth feel. This is a good middle of the road whiskey that is not bad value for the money. The last whiskey of the evening was a monster, the Ardbeg supernova. This whiskey was selected by the whiskey Bible as whiskey of the year for 2010, at 160 ppm peat phenols it is one of the peatiest whiskeys we have ever tried. This whiskey lingers on the palate for ages. What is most striking about this whiskey is the balance between peat and drink ability, only after a few minutes does the peat overwhelm the palate.
As always these tastings end up with discussions about some portion of the process of making whiskey. This tasting most of the discussion was around barrels and wood affect, it is funny how some whiskeys seem perfectly balanced with the wood and others seem as though the wood is an afterthought. Personally I choose the whiskeys that have a complex relationship with the barrel.
Friday, January 28, 2011
TASTE MEMORY
As children we learn what it safe to eat or drink by tasting it and we store the information of how it tasted in our memories, typically we remember the things that tasted the worst and refuse to try them again. How many others however, remember the little clues in everything we taste that cause us to remember where and when we went somewhere or tried a fabulous wine or drink. I find that when I taste something that has a unique flavor or little clue hidden in it I try to put it in the context of what I was doing when I tasted it this helps me remember and draw it from my memory bank. Some beverages are easy to remember because they are so unique things like Laphroaig with its huge peat and iodine flavors or a big bitter beer such as dead guy I PA will always stick with you but it is much more difficult when the clues are very subtle such as the type of wood used to age a Chardonnay or the hint of citrus in an Auchentoshen.
When I think back over the last 20 years of working in this industry, I can almost place every major event with some new taste or beverage that went along with that occasion. It is funny how some events are more ingrained in my memory because of what was eaten or drank that evening. This is all pretty philosophical stuff but it has a practical side because when I taste a new beverage and catalog it in my mind it allows me to identify it in a blind tasting. I was at tequila tasting last week that we tried three types of tequila; tequila blanco, tequila joven, and tequila reposado, later that evening one of those in the group ordered a glass of tequila and was trying to figure out which sort they had been given after nosing it it was quite apparent that it was tequila joven due to its strong caramel nose. This is a great party trick try it at your next dinner party pour three samples of any beverage and have everyone try them and then mix them up and have them try to put them in the original order use beverages that are the same color but have unique smells, as their pallets get more sophisticated make the choices closer and closer.
On a more practical note I am writing this with Dragon naturally speaking instead of typing it as I am a lousy typist, hopefully this will make my posts more informative and give me the opportunity to expand my thoughts more clearly and ultimately more concise.
When I think back over the last 20 years of working in this industry, I can almost place every major event with some new taste or beverage that went along with that occasion. It is funny how some events are more ingrained in my memory because of what was eaten or drank that evening. This is all pretty philosophical stuff but it has a practical side because when I taste a new beverage and catalog it in my mind it allows me to identify it in a blind tasting. I was at tequila tasting last week that we tried three types of tequila; tequila blanco, tequila joven, and tequila reposado, later that evening one of those in the group ordered a glass of tequila and was trying to figure out which sort they had been given after nosing it it was quite apparent that it was tequila joven due to its strong caramel nose. This is a great party trick try it at your next dinner party pour three samples of any beverage and have everyone try them and then mix them up and have them try to put them in the original order use beverages that are the same color but have unique smells, as their pallets get more sophisticated make the choices closer and closer.
On a more practical note I am writing this with Dragon naturally speaking instead of typing it as I am a lousy typist, hopefully this will make my posts more informative and give me the opportunity to expand my thoughts more clearly and ultimately more concise.
Monday, January 10, 2011
XTABENTUN
I know that the title is a bit wierd but trust me the Liquer is not. Found this in riviera CanCun it is a mayan drink made from Anise and Honey a bit on the sweet side but fabulos in coffee. I mean at least thats what my tequila soaked brain wants me to believe. Cheers from Mexico.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Happy New Year
It is sure nice now the crazy season is over and we can all settle in to 2011. I think that the food and beverage industry is going to change a lot this year as the new realities of the lower tolerance on drinking and driving fully sinks in. I also think there is a significant trend of people trying to live on cash and within their means. Certainly large challenges that require us to become creative again bring more value to your dining dollar and find great lower alcohol alternatives. Speaking of which if you haven't tried the No Jail Pale yet you should, it is available on tap and tastes like real beer.www.cannerybrewing.com
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