Beverages of All Kinds

[Gucci]

Wanted to peel off from the “what did you make” thread.

Good spot to talk about beverages of all kind. Doesn’t have to be alcoholic. Can be whatever you’d like.

I’ll start with the whiskey stuff since that was what sort of started this up. There are a lot of bottles that I think are worth the cost but taste is subjective at the end of the day. For people wanting to try scotch, Monkey Shoulder is a great beginner bottle that’s priced in the $30 range. It’s not complex and isn’t a peated whiskey so you’re not gonna destroy your palate. For bourbon, I like Anegl’s Envy. It’s a Kentucky straight bourbon finish in Port Wine barrels. So you get some hints of fruits. Angels envy also makes a right whiskey that’s finished in Caribbean Rumcast, which I also recommend. Japanese whiskey can be pricey but you can find Suntory’s Hibiki Japanese Harmony for less than $100 and is pleasant to drink.

Maybe this would be better for its own thread, but what are some really cool/nice bottles that are filled with stuff worth drinking?

Hard to say what’s exactly worth it. I mentioned Angel’s Envy above and the standard bottle goes for $45-$50. Anything more that it isn’t worth it. Johnnie Walker Green Label is often mentioned as a bottle worth its price and I agree. To me, that’s the best value from Johnnie Walker. For some of the priced bottles, Glenmorangie Signet is a $200-$300 bottle that is worth the cost. It’s got hints of coffee and chocolate, some ginger bread and bottled at a respectable 46%. It’s what I’d call a dessert whiskey. Blue Label isn’t really worth it but I like the stuff inside of it well enough. The bottle is the perfect gift though. Promotion, new job, holidays, etc. People know what it is and really appreciate it even though you can do better for less money.

Cocktails are a great way to enjoy some of this stuff. A YouTube channel called “How to Drink” has done Fallout themed cocktails as well as other media. Real great channel.

Arizona iced tea came out with spiked versions of their lemon and peach iced tea and green tea. 5% abv and it’s non carbonated.

Edit: here’s the Fallout stuff. https://m.youtube.com/results?sp=mAEA& ... nk+fallout

[marurun]

I have to stump for Chattanooga Whisky. They have some affordable craft whisky that’s really interesting and even slightly unconventional at times. They have their main line which is wheated but also they do some small batch experimental whiskies as well. Good stuff.

[Gucci]

I haven’t heard of them before but I will say that the craft whiskey has seen a massive boom because the overall prices of American whiskey in general have been increasing over the last few years. New players are coming in and capturing the low to mid price points and they are super easy to find.

Kings County in Brooklyn, NY is a new distillery founded in 2010 and the have a peated bourbon which I’m a fan of. I haven’t been able to find their coffee whiskey though. I want to try that.

Speaking of coffee: espresso martinis are favorite of mine. I used to like Kahlúa but it was always too sweet. Mr. Black is a better option.

In the non-alcoholic beverage space: Arizona has a campaign with Fallout. They released three energy drinks with Fallout branding for the Amazon prime show.

[Ziggy]

My new favorite whiskey is Four Roses Small Batch. It's smooth and not too expensive, although the bottle is pretty small for how much it costs. I also like the way the bottle looks. It has a cork cap, as oppose to a screw cap, which is always nice. The roses logo is embossed in the glass. And the shape of the bottle reminds me of a video game potion bottle.



Re: Dan Aykroyd's skull vodka... So it's not that good? The bottle looks cool, but it also looks like it would be annoying to actually handle and pour. IIRC, I was reading that Aykroyd wanted to make a vodka with no additives because of the lack of such a product on the market. So it's a shame that it's not very good with that being the goal.

For vodka, I've been drinking Tito's. It's good, not expensive, and doesn't make me feel terrible after drinking it. My old go-to for Vodka was Grey Goose, but the bottle is annoyingly tall. It's tall enough that it doesn't fit on most shelves that my other liquor bottles have no problem fitting on. And I haven't purchased it in a while, but I recall it being a little pricey.

Through June and July I was enjoying a slushy peach/vodka drink. I got this peach drink in a restaurant...



...and enjoyed it enough that I decided to recreate it at home. And then it sorta turned into a thing, and I was making it often. Mostly because it was so tasty, and refreshing in the heat, but also because it wasn't hard to make. I'm too lazy to make a really complicated drink. This is simple though. 3 shots vodka, 3 shots peach schnapps (although I do heavy pours for all 6 shots), 1 peach, and ice in the blender. Then just a splash of either grenadine or raspberry syrup. That will fill two glasses, sometimes a little more depending how much ice I use. I thought to experiment with using 2 peaches, but the 1 seems to be enough.

[Note]

Kings County in Brooklyn, NY is a new distillery founded in 2010 and the have a peated bourbon which I’m a fan of. I haven’t been able to find their coffee whiskey though. I want to try that.

I haven't had any of their whiskey in a while, but I did buy a bottle for my dad around ten years ago, and he really enjoyed it. I think I got him their straight bourbon, but I'm not totally sure. Would be cool to do a tour of their facility, if they offer that type of thing.

Through June and July I was enjoying a slushy peach/vodka drink. I got this peach drink in a restaurant...

...and enjoyed it enough that I decided to recreate it at home. And then it sorta turned into a thing, and I was making it often. Mostly because it was so tasty, and refreshing in the heat, but also because it wasn't hard to make. I'm too lazy to make a really complicated drink.

This sounds really good! Think I'd enjoy this. Unfortunately my girlfriend's allergic to peaches along with a lot of other raw fruits, so I try not to buy/use any stuff she's allergic to in our blender.

In regard to some other drinks I've enjoyed over the summer, my brother-in-law introduced me to Narragansett/Del's lemon shandy beer. It was really refreshing and easy to drink. I haven't seen it in my area though, which is a bummer. Has anyone else tried it?

Another drink that took me by surprise was a concoction my cousin made while we were hanging out down in Puerto Rico last week. He made a mix of Don Q coconut rum and mango juice. It was a bit sweet, but not overly so and didn't taste too strong. It was dangerous. Lol. I'd like to recreate it at home if I can find that liquor and a similar juice here.

[Ziggy]

Would your girlfriend be able to drink peach schnapps? I never checked, but I always assumed it didn't contain any real fruit juice. Because then you could make it without the actual peach. Maybe just add an extra shot of schnapps to make up for it. You'd be missing the pulp of the fruit, and you can taste the real peach in it versus the schnapps, but I think it might be a tasty drink anyway.

Tasty drinks that don't have a heavy alcohol taste are dangerous lol.

I tried a cheap coconut rum a few weeks back and had a bad reaction to it. I don't want to be a snob and say that I always need the more expensive thing, but I'm finding more and more often that the cheap stuff makes me feel bad or even horrible sometimes. I had Bacardi coconut rum not long after that and didn't have a bad reaction, and Bacardi isn't even a top shelf I don't think. Luckily the peach schnapps that I've been using doesn't have any ill effects on me. I'm always scared to try another brand.

Speaking of... Does anyone here drink wine? I tend to stay away from it because I almost always have a bad reaction.

[Gucci]

Speaking of... Does anyone here drink wine? I tend to stay away from it because I almost always have a bad reaction.

Not particularly but I did seek out ice wine because Glenfiddich had an experimental line awhile back and one of the premier releases was a 21 year old single malt finished in ice wine casks from Canada. It’s a very sweet wine and, along with port wine (which I dabble in), is ver very much an after dinner wine.

With regards to Four Roses: I’ve tried their standard release and that small batch you mentioned. I really want to hunt for the sample pack which has all ten of their recipes in one pack but sadly they are nowhere near us. Closest is a Total Wine in Georgia.
Https://imgur.com/a/02cPPHE

Also vodka: best one I’ve had was Suntory Japanese Vodka, called Haku.

[o.pwuaioc]

I'm always down for a whisk(e)y thread. My new favorite "go-to" (though not a daily driver) is probably Talisker Storm. Quality, smoky, decent price.

My usual go-to for a long time was Glenlivet 12 year. I haven't had that in a while, though. I should buy it again.

I've also recently become more familiar with Lagavulin's offerings. Their 8 year is affordable, but I went to a scotch bar and really, really enjoyed their higher end stuff.

For a cheap scotch that's great with a splash of soda (no lime), I actually found and enjoy Islay Mist (8 year). Anyone familiar with it? Super cheap, at least at my local liquor store, but the best at this price point that I've seen. Light, smooth, good flavor hints, nothing crazy, but nothing offensive either. Can't beat it for the price.

[Ziggy]

My new cheap go-to for bourbon whiskey is Evan Williams. Maybe I don't have the most sophisticated palate when it comes to liquor, but I think Evan Williams is great for the price. Jack Daniel's is too expensive now, and I got kind of sick of it.

Does anyone here drink energy drinks?

[Gucci]

I'm always down for a whisk(e)y thread. My new favorite "go-to" (though not a daily driver) is probably Talisker Storm. Quality, smoky, decent price.

My usual go-to for a long time was Glenlivet 12 year. I haven't had that in a while, though. I should buy it again.

I've also recently become more familiar with Lagavulin's offerings. Their 8 year is affordable, but I went to a scotch bar and really, really enjoyed their higher end stuff.

For a cheap scotch that's great with a splash of soda (no lime), I actually found and enjoy Islay Mist (8 year). Anyone familiar with it? Super cheap, at least at my local liquor store, but the best at this price point that I've seen. Light, smooth, good flavor hints, nothing crazy, but nothing offensive either. Can't beat it for the price.

Talisker and Lagavulin are my thing. Along with Oban. If you like the Storm, you should try Dark Storm. It is a travel retail exclusive that is supposedly smokier than the standard Storm. You can order it through websites like Fine Drams if you don’t plan on traveling overseas.

Regarding Lagavulin, I’m a fan of the standard 16 year and 8 year is quite good too. The 16 year has gone up in price though. The 11 year Offerman edition is pretty awesome. It’s sort of their experimental line where they finish the whiskey in different types of casks. The first edition I gifted it to someone so I don’t remember what that was finished in, but I have the second edition, finished in Guinness beer cask, the third one was finished in charred oak casks, and the most recent one was finished in Caribbean rum casks. I have a bottle of the 12 year special release from 2018 that’s bottled at cask strength, but I haven’t cracked it open yet. From what I gathered, the 12 year special release is where it's at if you like Lagavulin. Just enough time in a barrel to round out the edges but still get lots of the distiller's influence and at cask strength.

Does anyone here drink energy drinks?

I do only if coffee starts messing with the acid reflux after some time. Red Bull has been my go-to but with Arizona ones I mentioned before, I found something better. Only comes in a big can so I take a half to a third per serving. I don't need 300mg of caffeine and taurine all in one shot!

Jack Daniel's has gotten expensive. Seek out the Jack Daniel's mixers. I've had Jack and Coke (made with actual Coke a Cola), Jack Honey with Lemonade, and Jack and ginger ale.