Scotch

Ted and I went to our first Scotch tasting party last night. Six Scotches were sampled by twelve people, and it was fascinating to see how different they were. At the end of the evening, some bottles were empty, while others were barely touched. So, here they are, in my personal order of favorite to least favorite.


The Balvenie was my favorite. It had lots of honey notes and was less peaty than some of the others. This appeared to be the favorite of the women at the tasting.


The Laphroaig was my second favorite, although it was quite different from the Balvenie. It was very peaty and smokey, and gave that wonderful warm feeling going down the throat.


A close third was the Oban. I went back and forth between the Laphroaig and the Oban, debating which I liked more. I think the Oban belongs behind the Laphroaig, though. With my very limited Scotch expertise (none!), I found this to be middle-of-the-road for all of the attributes, making it very balanced.


Fourth in line was the Talisker. For me, this one was okay, but not a top favorite.


The Glenkinchie was very thin and light. It just didn't stand up when compared to the other four ahead of it. However, as our resident Scotch expert, Karl, pointed out, this could be an ideal Scotch for a hot Summer day.


The Highland Park was by far my least favorite, and, judging by the half+-full bottle at the end of the evening, this was the consensus. It lacked character and frankly was boring.

So, there are the rankings of 6 Scotches per the tastebuds of a Scotch newbie who will freely admit that she knows nothing about the subject. After last night, I would definitely like to learn more.