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Moonshine, commercial or not, is only worth buying under $10 and it's never that cheap. At $15 you're getting into sippable bottom shelf bourbons. Most of the commercial moonshines are in the $25-30 range which is decent bourbon, tequila, and rum territory. Who in their right mind wants a $30 white dog or cheap liqueur? It's like paying $20 for Mad Dog when you can get a decent wine at that price. Only inexperienced drinkers who don't know better. Crazy, I don't know how they get away with it. Same for many of these new bourbons, they taste like rear end but are selling for $45, lol.
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Nov 6, 2018 18:26
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Yeah that's ridiculous. It's fun to get a jar of moonshine for curiosity but that's about it and you should never pay 45 earth dollers for it holy poo poo
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Nov 6, 2018 19:15
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It's literally the word "moonshine." For better or worse (and I lean toward worse) US drinkers are not educated. Marketing and novelty will win nearly every time versus quality. I've had good white spirit before (I even make good white spirit!), but anyone making good new-make is probably also getting ready to put it into good barrels. Buffalo Trace sold some white dog a few years ago in very limited quantity to spirits geeks, but if you're making good whiskey, then there is no room to half-rear end it.
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Nov 6, 2018 19:35
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I had a good amount of Ole' Smokey moonshine left that I needed to figure out something to do with. I ended up taking some Russian kiwi soda I had bought in NYC and pouring it into the jar to create alcoholic kiwi soda. Best decision of my life.
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Nov 6, 2018 20:49
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Weltlich posted:It's literally the word "moonshine." For better or worse (and I lean toward worse) US drinkers are not educated. Marketing and novelty will win nearly every time versus quality. I had some GREAT new make spirit in Scotland on various distillery tours. Given that most whisky is very much cask driven it's interesting to taste the fresh distillate spankmeister fucked around with this message at 21:13 on Nov 6, 2018 |
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Nov 6, 2018 21:09
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In other news, I had some leftover bushmills white label, some generic supermarket Irish whiskey and a finger or two of bushmills 16. I mixed them all together in a decanter to see if I can use the good whiskey to lift the other two. Gonna give it a go in a week or two when they've married a bit.
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Nov 6, 2018 21:12
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EW single barrel cork broke, so I had to try to work it out with a knife and then strain it to get rid of the larger bits. Then I canted it into the only empty bottle I had, highland park, I should probably drink it quickly before I forget and get very confused when I'm wanting a scotch.
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Nov 6, 2018 21:46
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Which one of Compass Box's offerings would you guys suggest try? I've tried Peat Monster and I've enjoyed it a bit, but not as much as Laphroaig 10.
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Nov 7, 2018 04:08
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If any of you guys drink a lot of Lagavulin, costco has it 3 bottles for 150$ which is a good deal if you want three bottles.
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Nov 7, 2018 04:23
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hakimashou posted:If any of you guys drink a lot of Lagavulin, costco has it 3 bottles for 150$ which is a good deal if you want three bottles. It's $100/bottle here, state liquor stores. I remembered to check, at our local ABC store, 101 has a handle, 81 doesn't. I realize both of those are 101. 
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Nov 7, 2018 05:46
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So where does everyone draw their own personal lines re: "craft" distilling? I mean, you hear/read a sentence or two about a product and you have the option to taste it at a reasonable-for-your-market-rate to get a pour of it at a bar. Do you automatically ignore any distilleries that buy neutral grain spirit, or unaged corn/rye/specific grain spirit? Do you draw the line at distilleries that buy already mashed grain they just load into their stills? Guys who blend grains/malts they source from wherever? The weirdos that do their own malting? Or growing their own ingredients? Guys who are at any particular of these levels but produce out-of-typical region spirits? (New Jersey Rum, Washington State Tequila etc.)
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Nov 7, 2018 05:59
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Can I talk to the person who actually distilled/blended it? If so, that's craft enough for me. Not the brand ambassador, or the head of the distillery, or even the CEO of the company. But the person or people who actually make the cuts etc.
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Nov 7, 2018 08:23
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I have no idea how the gently caress you are supposed to define "craft" when it comes to liquor if it doesn't mean you source the grain and the barrels and from that craft the end spirit. Independent is probably a more useful label. It's all a form of marketing anyway.
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Nov 7, 2018 09:24
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Sextro posted:So where does everyone draw their own personal lines re: "craft" distilling? My personal line is that it's a distillery that starts with raw ingredients, owns and operates a fermentation system and a still to turn those ingredients into a spirit, and then outputs finished, labeled bottles. So hilariously enough, I consider Wild Turkey to be more of a craft distillery than someone like Whistlepig. The "legal" definition of a craft distillery is something silly like 100k proof gallons of alcohol sold per year. Which ends up being something on the order of 500k to 700k bottles, depending on the bottling proof of the spirit. The differences in scale between distilleries can be huge, and I tend to ignore the output size and consider their methods and practices more.
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Nov 7, 2018 16:46
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I tend to drink what I like. It's a little different from beer because Anheuser-Busch and other macro companies produce a lot of really lovely products and they've had a long history of engaging in bullying and downright illegal practices to corner the market while loving with the craft beer companies they purchase, which I don't know of any major players like Brown-Forman doing. As such, while I appreciate craft distilleries and I've thought about starting one myself, I don't really feel the same need to seek out small time producers as I do with beer. The difference between Budweiser and Chimay is a hell of a lot wider than the difference between Evan Williams and Maker's Mark.
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Nov 7, 2018 20:45
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I live in Philadelphia and until my most recent neighborhood change I lived within walking distance of 5 different distilleries that fell all across my earlier mentioned spectrum, so it's something I've been contemplating more than necessary probably. Honestly regardless of any vague definitions as long as the local product isn't paint thinner I'm always going to heavily favor it over anything else because keeping money in the local economy is really good!
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Nov 7, 2018 21:45
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When it takes 5-10 years for a good product to age, and 15+ years for a really premium one to, it kind of makes "craft" distillers not that great. No matter how good you are, you can't have barrels you filled in 2004 in your warehouse if you open up shop today.
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Nov 8, 2018 03:11
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Infinite Karma posted:When it takes 5-10 years for a good product to age, and 15+ years for a really premium one to, it kind of makes "craft" distillers not that great. No matter how good you are, you can't have barrels you filled in 2004 in your warehouse if you open up shop today. The best option for a true craft distiller is probably to start out by putting whiskey away to age and then selling unaged or barely aged spirits like vodka, gin, eau de vie, and liqueurs. Buying MGP whiskey to rebottle is just cheap. I've thought it would be cool to have a distillery that also produces more unusual or international spirits domestically like soju, grappa, aquavit, and applejack.
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Nov 8, 2018 03:21
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chitoryu12 posted:The best option for a true craft distiller is probably to start out by putting whiskey away to age and then selling unaged or barely aged spirits like vodka, gin, eau de vie, and liqueurs. Buying MGP whiskey to rebottle is just cheap. There's a lot of distilleries around here that are selling truck loads of vodka, gin and "white whiskey" or quarter cask 1/2 year aged whiskey to basically fund their more fun adventures that need to sit in barrels. One distillery I know of their current long term projects are a series of eau de vie and fruit brandies that they sold a tiny portion of unaged and the rest of the product is barreled up for the next 1-7+ years. Sextro fucked around with this message at 03:42 on Nov 8, 2018 |
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Nov 8, 2018 03:33
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Also, make liqueurs! There's a place in Chicago I want to check out that makes a rose hip liqueur, which sounds incredibly interesting to make cocktails with. I have a stroopwafel liqueur that isn't too great, but tastes kinda like caramel corn. There's a huge world of potential liqueurs you can make if you've got an eye for taste.
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Nov 8, 2018 03:48
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Weltlich posted:My personal line is that it's a distillery that starts with raw ingredients, owns and operates a fermentation system and a still to turn those ingredients into a spirit, and then outputs finished, labeled bottles. So hilariously enough, I consider Wild Turkey to be more of a craft distillery than someone like Whistlepig. Yeah but you of all goons can't have a neutral  opinion on this.
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Nov 8, 2018 21:36
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Off topic on American craft distilleries, parents brought home a bottle of Bunnahabhain with them in thanks for watching their cats. It's really interesting - I've not had an extensive list of Islay Scotches, but it's, for lack of a better term, heavily peated but milder? Wonder if there's any other opinions on it, I definitely am enjoying it.
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Nov 9, 2018 00:43
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mekilljoydammit posted:Off topic on American craft distilleries, parents brought home a bottle of Bunnahabhain with them in thanks for watching their cats. It's really interesting - I've not had an extensive list of Islay Scotches, but it's, for lack of a better term, heavily peated but milder? Wonder if there's any other opinions on it, I definitely am enjoying it. I like it, but not enough to pay $70 for a bottle.
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Nov 9, 2018 01:22
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First time trying since the change, but... The new black maple hill is so drat bad lol
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Nov 9, 2018 01:38
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mekilljoydammit posted:Off topic on American craft distilleries, parents brought home a bottle of Bunnahabhain with them in thanks for watching their cats. It's really interesting - I've not had an extensive list of Islay Scotches, but it's, for lack of a better term, heavily peated but milder? Wonder if there's any other opinions on it, I definitely am enjoying it. Standard Bunnahabhain is completely unpeated. Going from memory if the bottling has ‘Moine’ in the name it is a peated expression.
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Nov 9, 2018 04:13
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2DCAT posted:First time trying since the change, but... The new black maple hill is so drat bad lol I've never had it either way, but what was the change?
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Nov 9, 2018 04:23
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slothrop posted:Standard Bunnahabhain is completely unpeated. Going from memory if the bottling has ‘Moine’ in the name it is a peated expression. Yeah, this is correct, most Bunnahabhain is completely unpeated. The peaty versions are called either Toiteach, Moine, or Ceobanach, but I forget which one of these is the one they actually added to their core range. I don't think any of them are quite nearly as heavily peated as some of the other Islays though, or at least Bunna's sticky, toffee-like sweetness tampers it down somehow. I've only had the Ceobanach though.
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Nov 9, 2018 05:04
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Sextro posted:So where does everyone draw their own personal lines re: "craft" distilling? I don't even think about it except as a marketing term to ignore. Put a gun to my head and I would probably say, 1 distillery whiskey. Same people buy the grain, ferment, barrel, age, taste, and bottle; and those people know what they are doing, not just cashing in on a fad. I have that bias toward everything in life -- I prefer products that are designed and manufactured by one company, preferably a company that has been around for decades, both are increasingly rare.
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Nov 9, 2018 07:21
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slothrop posted:Standard Bunnahabhain is completely unpeated. Going from memory if the bottling has ‘Moine’ in the name it is a peated expression. Yeah Moíne is the peated . It's Gaelic for "smoke" or something. The standard NAS Moíne is one of my favourites but they also have some cask finishes and stuff but haven't had a chance to try any. They also have a "lightly" peated NAS called Toiteach. General Emergency fucked around with this message at 08:18 on Nov 9, 2018 |
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Nov 9, 2018 07:35
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BenRiach cask strength (batch 2 I guess) is extremely good. It's like a flavorful bourbon with more earthy/nutty elements.
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Nov 9, 2018 10:26
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As far as the craft distillery stuff goes, there's an outfit here in Oregon called Stein that actually grows all their grain. That and their distillery are all out in North Eastern Oregon I think, but we did a tasting of their stuff in Beaverton and it was pretty drat decent. I think they have some older aged stuff coming to market soon, but I'm not sure if that's also their own home grown grains.
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Nov 11, 2018 04:54
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Yamazaki 12 worth it for $60?
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Nov 13, 2018 02:36
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obi_ant posted:Yamazaki 12 worth it for $60? It's worth it for a bottle to check it out once, I don't know if I'd keep it on the shelf forever at $60.
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Nov 13, 2018 03:02
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Yamazaki 12 officially retails for 8500 yen, but even in Japan it's quite rare to find it at that price these days. $60 is a steal.
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Nov 13, 2018 04:23
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Yeah probably worth a look at that price. I’ve never understood the hype about it. It was a decent whisky when you could buy it for ~$100 AU (Australian prices are always high) but it currently retails for $250ish and gently caress that noise.
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Nov 13, 2018 08:20
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It's Japanese. That's the hype. It's a fine whisky but way overpriced. $60 seems about a good a deal as you're gonna get.
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Nov 13, 2018 08:48
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obi_ant posted:Yamazaki 12 worth it for $60? If you don't think so buy it anyway and i'll take it off your hands. I can only find it one place in my area and they want 250 USD for it
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Nov 14, 2018 02:45
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spankmeister posted:It's Japanese. That's the hype. This. It's getting increasingly difficult to find decent Japanese whisky at a reasonable price. I've got some decently priced Chichibu recently, but the main Suntory/Nikka malts are crazy prices. I was getting Yamazaki 10 for around £25 in Tesco 4 years ago.
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Nov 14, 2018 16:30
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Just picked it up; looking forward to trying it. What the ideal temperature to store the drat thing? My place is small so there aren't many options for me. I've kept my other whiskeys in the box and the room usually fluxes between 68-74F (20-23C).
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Nov 15, 2018 22:31
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obi_ant posted:Just picked it up; looking forward to trying it. What the ideal temperature to store the drat thing? My place is small so there aren't many options for me. I've kept my other whiskeys in the box and the room usually fluxes between 68-74F (20-23C). Room temperature is fine and also send it to me please thank you
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Nov 15, 2018 22:53
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