Anyone drink scotch?

[N80]

I've never been much of a whiskey drinker. Always liked gin and tonic, beer, wine, etc. Then a few years ago I discovered..... maybe even invented, Jack Daniel's in Blenheim's ginger ale. It's just fantastic. So from there I developed a taste for JD just in water (whenever I would run out of Blenheims which can be hard to find). After a few years I got to where I began to enjoy JD plain.

Anyway, I told my wife I wanted a bottle of whiskey, meaning JD, for Christmas. She brought home a bottle of Johnnie Walker Black Label scotch. I think she thought I would like it because it was expensive. After explaining to her the difference between bourbon whiskey and scotch, I tried the Black Label and I like it.

Now, despite all that I'm not a big drinker. I'm a weekend sipper and usually just when I'm down at my cabin. No fancy bars or men's clubs. Not trying to impress anyone with expensive booze or hoity toity taste. But, I do like the scotch and am curious about how you guys drink it.

So far, I like it on ice with a little well water. I've read that serious scotch drinkers only drink it neat and that ice masks the flavor. Of course I'll drink it however I like it best, but I live down south and we're used to drinking stuff with ice in it. I think I could drink it without water but drinking it neat and room temp doesn't sound good.

 

[FallbrookFarmer]

Try an good single malt scotch, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. And by all means, drink it neat.

 

[N80]

Try an good single malt scotch, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. And by all means, drink it neat.

I'm looking forward to a single malt at some point. From what I've read the single malt trend tended to make people think that the blended scotch was inferior but in truth they're just different.

And when you say drink it neat, does that mean room temp?

 

[Bird]

I have never liked Bourbon for some reason. And I recall a friend telling me, before I was old enough to drink, that Scotch was an acquired taste. According to him, no one likes Scotch initially. So, one evening in 1965, a neighbor offered me a drink and he was drinking Johnnie Walker Red Label with ice and water. From the first taste, I knew that if I were going to drink whiskey, it would be Scotch. I've never tried the Black Label; guess I should sometime. Chivas Regal would be hard to beat, in my opinion. However, in 1971, I discovered a really cheap Scotch, Clan MacGregor, that's not bad. I don't drink much Scotch, but I do keep a bottle of Clan MacGregor on hand. And no matter what brand, I want it with plenty of ice and about 2 or 3 to 1 water to Scotch. In 1969, my wife and I went to Carlsbad Caverns the weekend after Labor Day (no traffic, few tourists). The evening we got out there, we went into the White Buffalo Saloon in White City, and I'd heard of Scotch and Soda as being the most popular way to drink Scotch, so I ordered a Scotch and Soda, took one sip, and told the bartender to throw it out and bring me a Scotch and Water.

When we bought a new house with a wet bar in 1977, I stocked the bar with a little of everything for company. There were two things NO ONE that I knew would drink, and I eventually threw them out. One was Creme de menthe and the other was the Jack Daniels black label.

I've found that Crown Royal ain't bad in coke or 7-up, but I'd rather have Scotch.

 

[Hosskix]

Yep, I'm a scotch drinker, in the winter months anyway.
(Like a cold beer when it's hot.)

Like Bird says, the first time I tried it I couldn't stand it.
I bought a really expensive bottle for a friends birthday (he loved scotch), I tried to mix mine with everything in the house to make it palatable, nothing worked!

A few years later I tried it at another friends house with a little ice and soda and kinda liked it, (it really is an acquired taste for some) now I drink it pretty often. Can't stand sweet drinks like crown and coke.

If you like the JW black, try Tomatin (?).
A guy at the store got me to try it; it's about half the price and beats JW in competitions all the time.

 

[kyspartan]

i can drink anything and love it, except gin, just can't take the pine tar taste of it, my current favorite is kentucky tavern, ice and coke. with a local apple jack moonshine being a very close second

 

[FallbrookFarmer]

I agree,
When I first tasted Scotch, almost gagged, but about 10 years ago somebody gave me a taste of single malt and IMHO it's totally different, If you like Bourbon, I think you'll like single malt. Sort of a smoky flavor. I know it costs an arm and a leg, but once in a while you just gotta treat yourself.
If you know anybody who is a fan, ask them for a taste.

 

[FallbrookFarmer]

Sorry didn't answer your question
Neat= No water.
Google Single malt scotch and you'll get a much better explanation than I can give you. Happy Drinking.

 

[Matt_Jr]

Yuck! My dad loves scotch, but I'll only drink it if you're all out of pee. I like to drink bourbon.. or bourban liqours like American Honey, or Jeremiah Weed. I like to pour them over ice, let the ice melt enough to water it down a little, then sip and puff. Usually with a Monte Cristo, or a new favorite, Atom Maduro by Acid cigars. When I run out of cigars, I'll pack the pipe with some Yachtsman, Ebony mix. I drink and smoke a lot less in the winter though 'cause I don't smoke in the house, and the frigid temps lower the pleasure enough to make me stay inside. Mostly just on the weekends on the porch with a good book on days when it's not too cold.

 

[N80]

Thanks Fallbrook....I knew that neat meant no water but didn't know what temp it should be served at. Anyway, just been sipping on the Black Label neat, room temp. Its okay and I like it but a couple of ice cubes makes a big difference for me. Like it lot more. Guess I'll never be a purist. The Black Label is very smokey too me, maybe even a little too smokey. Not as smooth as some others I've tried.

Matt, it used to gag me too. Even bourbon. Not sure what happened but slowly acquired a taste for it. I still love gin, any kind, any way.

Never have been crazy about cigars but I do like to smoke a pipe. There is a shop down in Charleston called the Smoking Lamp that sells their own mix called Holy City (Charleston's nickname) and I love it. It is a dark aromatic and probably sweeter than most pipe tobaccos but I've never found another 'flavor' that I like half as much. This is also a weekend, down at the cabin sort of thing. Usually just in the cooler months. When its 98 out I just can't smoke.