[morticaixavier]

II also really like the HP but for whatever reason I just don't get the Macallan hype. I have two bottles of it because they were gifts and I rarely drink them.  It helps when your BIL is (was) a spirits distributor.

Maybe I'll use it in airlocks.

I actually very rarely drink whisky as all. Havn't had a bottle in three or four years. I wasn't aware there was alot of hype around the macallen. Just know I liked it when I tried it.

[jeffy]

It helps when your BIL is (was) a spirits distributor.

Maybe I'll use it in airlocks.

I think it may be worth it to come to a CFHB meeting to take that off your hands.

[tonyp]

I tend towards Speyside as my go-to whiskys because theres something about drinking smoke-flavored scotch that activates my gag-reflex so Talisker/Laphroiag/etc is right out the window for me...I dont mind the earthy flavor of the peat but the smoke is just disgusting. If i wanted that flavor in my booze i would dump an ashtray in it. yuck!

I think Balvenie 12 Double Wood is probably my favorite at the moment but I also like Macallan, Glenmorangie, Drumguish, Speyburn, Singleton of Glendullan, Glenlivet, and Glenfiddich to name a few.

I found a nice flavor map which has been a huge help in determining what to try next:



I also have a PDF here that's printable and with more info.

Tony

[jeffy]

That's a nice chart.  Your pdf didn't open for me though.

My favorites are all on the right side in the middle and lower parts of your chart, except Highland Park, which seems a little more to the smokey part of the chart than I remember it.
The Macallan, Glenmorengie, Dalmore, Oban, Balvenie and Highland Park are all affordable in my flavor preferences.

<edit> I was trying to open it in Firefox, which doesn't like pdf's on this pc.  It opens up just fine in Explorer.

[tumarkin]

I've seen that chart before and it's pretty good on flavor grouping. The old approach of classifying whisky by region just doesn't hold up any more (if it ever did). A great book with a similar approach is David Wishart's Whisky Classified (choosing single malts by flavour). It's based on grouping whisky into 10 clusters based on the presence/strength (or lack thereof) of 12 flavor elements (Body, Sweetness, Smoky, Medicinal, Tobacco, Honey, Spicy, Winey, Nutty, Malty, Fruity, Floral).

My whisky preferences are pretty eclectic. I love the big sherry bombs and the Islay peat monsters, but also really appreciate some of the more delicate whiskys at the right time. Hard to pick one overall favorite, but Highland Park is right up there. My current go-to bottle is a cask strength Isle of Arran, the 14 yr Sherry Cask.

[1vertical]

Set me up a double straight up of Low Gap

http://savoystomp.com/2011/02/18/low-gap-american-craft-whiskey/