Instructive and entertaining, that's how I see this video. I started my whisky journey 3 years ago with Ralfy and now I've got a new companion on my road. Thank you, Roy!
I actually found out recently that a distillery can make single grain with 100% malted barley, by distilling it in a column still ! Loch Lomond makes that for example I believe
Educational, informative and enjoyable. Roy has a clear, engaging style, which isn't patronising or pretentious. The vlogs cover a good range of whisky related topics and really encourage the viewer to explore the subject. Like a good malt (or as I've also learnt a good grain!), these broadcasts are gems to be contemplated and savoured.
I find even veteran whisky reviewers get confused over terms such as Malt Blends and Single Grain whiskies. Your explanation was clear and warranted. I have only tried Compass Box Peat Monster. I became an instant fan. I saw just two bottles in a specialist shop in Ramat Gan, north Tel Aviv. They often bring in one or two bottles of something special. So impressed was I that I went back to buy the second bottle on the shelf before someone else grabbed it. The Peat Monster is a fantastic malt blend of Laphroaig, Caol Ila, Ledaig and a mystery peated Highland Malt, all having been matured in active Ex-Bourbon casks. For me, it was the influence of the Ledaig which while on its own, can be slightly farmyardy, blended with the other malts and became the back bone to a very complex and well balanced Malt Blend which was so fruity and floral, even those who say they don't like peated whisky were sipping this and enjoying it. Regarding blind tasting single grain verses single malt whiskies. I would imagine that if you selected something like Glenkinchie 12, Glencadam 10, Balblair Vintage 2005 (Bottled 2016), all Ex-Bourbon matured, all rather spirity grainy flavours due to perhaps minimum cask influence, to top quality single grain whiskies, one would be hard pushed to identify the single malts.
Thanks for the comments Reb, all your suggestions looked close, I think next time I did this I would attempt to try to match ABV, (but this served the purpose of a practical way to see if I could create a video!) I just grabbed another CB (No Name - peated) and love trying their creations.
I too love the Compass Box line of products. I’ve got Peat Monster, Hedonism, Great King Street Artist’s Blend, Oak Cross, Spice Tree etc. and hope to be able to obtain bottles of The Muse and Phenomenology soon (just taking my time since these are so common where I live). Recently, I even saw a tenth anniversary limited edition of Peat Monster for $100 at a small liquor store near where I work. Many of these whiskies are all fairly reasonably priced ($50-$70), and even the higher priced ones aren’t too bad considering what you get. Cheers! 🥃🥃
Excellent video, Roy. I think “throwing a couple of curve balls” as we say in the states with the Longmorn and Haig Club was interesting. You learned something so who cares if it wasn’t a perfect line-up. THe knowledge gained was worth it. Thanks for the follow-up. Keep up the excellent work!
@@ericschwab409 i got a bottle of great king st several years ago and have not opened it yet but i noticed any other bottles i found of this did no longer have the horesman on the label?
Thanks for the information on the Single Grain vs Single Malt. 5 years later Single Grains are more cheaper vs Single Malts especially with whiskys older than 20+ years. I found an Invergordon 33 year for $200 USD. I've been seeing 29 year old single malts in my area going for $370.
This type of video is what sets you apart and is what I find most enjoyable. I had a bottle of Hedonism, probably a little too early on my whisky journey, and was not that impressed ( was still drinking on ice ). So, I will try to get a bottle of the new Muse and give it another shot. Thanks again for all the blind tasting experiments you do.
Yes, the Hedonism is a nice and subtle prospect, although the Muse looks to be pretty high in price with some really well-aged whisky in there. Not tried it myself yet! Thanks for the great feedback Martin!
Imagine we were old-time friends and I wanted to give you some advice. Your videos are great, but in this one really... skip any apologies. Every word of apology in this video was bad. Everything in your video that wasn't an apology was great, really great. This is really useful information. Super valuable. Thanks!
Great video. I feel somewhat vindicated now with my 0% score on a 4 whisky blind tasting where my less experienced friends scored 50%. I learned a lot from your video. Look forward to more to come.
Tasting blind is sobering, humiliating and yet...awesome. But even chimps can hit an average score - and you and I didn't even match the chimps, so yeah I feel your pain. Next time though eh?
Finally this video popped up out of the blue and it was a nice surprise. I am fairly new to single malt, but I am also keen on trying something different every now and then. I got myself a bottle of rye whisky (which I enjoy!), tried some bourbon (not a fan of it, honestly) and I was really curious about grain whisky. Thank you Roy, your video is a good start for me!
Fantastic video Roy, I don't think I've seen any single grain or blended grain stateside except for the Hedonism so that is one place I have almost no expertise or knowledge on so thanks for this!
Thanks buddy, they're not freely available even here, you need to seek them out in specialists. some are amazing, I just tried a 43yo Invergordon from Boutique-y Whisky Co and it was eye-poppingly good.
This is great! Love Hedonism and also a fan of North British! Those casks being tired as they are for most of your experience, probably only imparted little of good flavour and exposed some nasty tannins!
Just recently discovered your channel and love what you are doing. Please keep them coming. I have a Cambus and a N British - both light and interesting but not too complex. Have only heard good reviews of CB Hedonism and will seek out a bottle for comparison. It's good to get out of the single malt rut occasionally ;-) Thanks for sharing.
For me, single grain whisky, alongside a good single malt, lifts the malt gives the malt an interesting level of complexity. Makes me see why some blends are so good.
@@Aqvavitae what would you say is the most amazing grain whisky at this time? Compass Box used North British 25 and Miltonduff 25 for Rogues' Banquet and they are charging a mint for that bottle (180 pounds). Yet even with Hedonism core bottling they use North British (24ish year) and Cameronbridge (17 year). I have a bottle of both but have not opened Rogues' Banquet. Hedonism is delish but Rogues' Banquet is going to have to be a stunner to make it worth almost 3 times the Hedonism. Nice art work though on Rogues Banquet. Maybe that is worth 40 quid alone.
I've got a 27yo sherry cask Strathclyde single grain in my cabinet. Waiting to open it on my b-day next month. This video has me nervous but also excited to try it. Very informative video, Roy. Appreciate your insight!
Another great one, Roy! OK, I've been looking at them in reverse chronological order... I vaguely remember tasting a wee pour of Hedonism at that last whisky festival, and found it to be a bit sweet for my liking... I wonder if the sweetness fades a bit as the whisky oxidizes. I may grab a bottle just to find out. Blended grain and single grain scotch is rare enough around here, so it may take me a while to find a bottle of Hedonism... I have seen it before. I just didn't take the plunge.
TBH FQ it is a wee bit sweet for a lot of people, but characterful too. I might not make sense saying this, but it's at once a perfect beginner's whisky and not really a beginner's whisky at all.
Love this video! I really appreciate your candor. The astute ways that you describe how the failed whiskies applied to the social scene (ie. the cask strength in the wrong line up that night in that particular flight, the expressions being in too small amounts for a drop of water, etc.) were very informative. I could see your point so accurately it almost felt like a memory, LOL! Anyway, So far I am hooked and can't wait to see more of your videos!
Hi Duncan thank you for the awesome comment! Despite a lengthy pause I am working on other video projects and I will get more stuff out soon - great to have you stopping by! 👍
An exceptionally interesting and informative video. I've had a few grains at whisky events and I find them wishy washy and generally over sweet. I think you make some very pertinent observations about cask types. Selling aged grain whiskies by bunging spirit into haggard old casks is not the way. I like the Hedonism but have never bought a bottle. It's on the radar again.
Hey WT, nice words, thanks. Het come in on the dummies live show - it's live now (for us Europeans this time!) th-cam.com/video/GnIRe3tVvaQ/w-d-xo.html&feature=push-lbss&attr_tag=XL37GYxmY-AyvG2W-6
This is pretty cool. I recall Ralfy saying that in premiumized blended Scotch it's the old grain whiskies that tend to uplift the blend, so far from being "cheap filler", even if it is cheaper than old malt. I'm thinking about experimenting eventually, perhaps focusing on blending just the malts for now :)
Glad you’re enjoying the back catalogue! Some older grains can be amazing, and still relatively affordable, but as time’s gone on they’ve remained only a distraction. I still love malts too much. Still, worthy of experimenting. Cheers.
@@Aqvavitae that's exactly how I feel almost about any spirit. I certainly dabble in bourbon and rye, cognac and armagnac, rum, tequila, but single malt Scotch is both - the first love and the love of my [spirit] life. I also find it to be more affordable than all the other spirits or even wine.
@@Aqvavitae oh, and yes, I've seen your videos before, seen you with Ralfy, but a friend of mine mentioned your recycled reviews and after catching up on them I'm starting from the beginning and watching everything (except the vPub long videos).
@@alexk3088 the short form, edited videos have me and they have whisky, but the vPubs have the community. Not everyone’s bag but give it a try if the mood and time should ever allow. I’ve removed monetisation to remove ads for people who cut them into listening chunks, podcast style. Thanks Alex.
Very interesting... There's a 31 year old invergordon single cask I've been eye balling around here for $100, which is the same price as Hedonism here as well.
If you're looking for an older single malt that comes anywhere near 27-30 years old, check out the Glenfarclas distillery. I found a Glenfarclas 21yo for £65,00 or a Glenfarclas 25yo for £87,35.
Patrick van Gerwen thanks Patrick, it seems like we agree www.aqvavitae.com/evangelism/best-value-whisky-2017/ Although those prices you found them at are way lower than retail, you scored bargains there. ( in that blog post there is one distillery which is, arguably, even better value still! )
Both of these whiskies are available where I live in the US and retail for $120USD AND $160USD (that’s roughly 90 and 120 UK Pounds). You got a great deal!
Late comment, but isn't that exactly what blends do so well; lifting "weaker" whiskies to a higher level? I'd imagine (also given the lesser scores of the remaining flight) this applies especially to grains, as they usually are criticised for simpler and superficial expressions compared to the malts (pot vs column etc).
+ed salisch Yes, you’re correct, we still say ‘vatted’ malt sometimes and in the context of the conversation we know the meaning. ‘Vatted’ was confusing, you can ‘vat’ malt whisky and still have a single malt. Hope you enjoyed the other parts of the video Ed, thanks for taking the time to comment.
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I am new to whisky and appreciate the extra time you spent on the explanation of the different kinds of whisky.
Instructive and entertaining, that's how I see this video. I started my whisky journey 3 years ago with Ralfy and now I've got a new companion on my road. Thank you, Roy!
Your humility and honesty has just made you my favourite whisky go to channel. Slange. (Or however it’s spelt)
I actually found out recently that a distillery can make single grain with 100% malted barley, by distilling it in a column still ! Loch Lomond makes that for example I believe
Educational, informative and enjoyable. Roy has a clear, engaging style, which isn't patronising or pretentious. The vlogs cover a good range of whisky related topics and really encourage the viewer to explore the subject. Like a good malt (or as I've also learnt a good grain!), these broadcasts are gems to be contemplated and savoured.
Awesome feedback and comment to read Simon - thank you! And kudos on discovering those tasty single grains!
I find even veteran whisky reviewers get confused over terms such as Malt Blends and Single Grain whiskies. Your explanation was clear and warranted.
I have only tried Compass Box Peat Monster. I became an instant fan. I saw just two bottles in a specialist shop in Ramat Gan, north Tel Aviv. They often bring in one or two bottles of something special. So impressed was I that I went back to buy the second bottle on the shelf before someone else grabbed it. The Peat Monster is a fantastic malt blend of Laphroaig, Caol Ila, Ledaig and a mystery peated Highland Malt, all having been matured in active Ex-Bourbon casks. For me, it was the influence of the Ledaig which while on its own, can be slightly farmyardy, blended with the other malts and became the back bone to a very complex and well balanced Malt Blend which was so fruity and floral, even those who say they don't like peated whisky were sipping this and enjoying it.
Regarding blind tasting single grain verses single malt whiskies. I would imagine that if you selected something like Glenkinchie 12, Glencadam 10, Balblair Vintage 2005 (Bottled 2016), all Ex-Bourbon matured, all rather spirity grainy flavours due to perhaps minimum cask influence, to top quality single grain whiskies, one would be hard pushed to identify the single malts.
Thanks for the comments Reb, all your suggestions looked close, I think next time I did this I would attempt to try to match ABV, (but this served the purpose of a practical way to see if I could create a video!) I just grabbed another CB (No Name - peated) and love trying their creations.
I too love the Compass Box line of products. I’ve got Peat Monster, Hedonism, Great King Street Artist’s Blend, Oak Cross, Spice Tree etc. and hope to be able to obtain bottles of The Muse and Phenomenology soon (just taking my time since these are so common where I live). Recently, I even saw a tenth anniversary limited edition of Peat Monster for $100 at a small liquor store near where I work. Many of these whiskies are all fairly reasonably priced ($50-$70), and even the higher priced ones aren’t too bad considering what you get. Cheers! 🥃🥃
Excellent video, Roy. I think “throwing a couple of curve balls” as we say in the states with the Longmorn and Haig Club was interesting. You learned something so who cares if it wasn’t a perfect line-up. THe knowledge gained was worth it. Thanks for the follow-up. Keep up the excellent work!
@@ericschwab409 i got a bottle of great king st several years ago and have not opened it yet but i noticed any other bottles i found of this did no longer have the horesman on the label?
You're the man Roy!
Thanks for the information on the Single Grain vs Single Malt. 5 years later Single Grains are more cheaper vs Single Malts especially with whiskys older than 20+ years. I found an Invergordon 33 year for $200 USD. I've been seeing 29 year old single malts in my area going for $370.
Nice flashback watching this again
This type of video is what sets you apart and is what I find most enjoyable. I had a bottle of Hedonism, probably a little too early on my whisky journey, and was not that impressed ( was still drinking on ice ). So, I will try to get a bottle of the new Muse and give it another shot. Thanks again for all the blind tasting experiments you do.
Yes, the Hedonism is a nice and subtle prospect, although the Muse looks to be pretty high in price with some really well-aged whisky in there. Not tried it myself yet! Thanks for the great feedback Martin!
Imagine we were old-time friends and I wanted to give you some advice. Your videos are great, but in this one really... skip any apologies. Every word of apology in this video was bad. Everything in your video that wasn't an apology was great, really great. This is really useful information. Super valuable. Thanks!
Great video. I feel somewhat vindicated now with my 0% score on a 4 whisky blind tasting where my less experienced friends scored 50%. I learned a lot from your video. Look forward to more to come.
Tasting blind is sobering, humiliating and yet...awesome. But even chimps can hit an average score - and you and I didn't even match the chimps, so yeah I feel your pain. Next time though eh?
Finally this video popped up out of the blue and it was a nice surprise. I am fairly new to single malt, but I am also keen on trying something different every now and then. I got myself a bottle of rye whisky (which I enjoy!), tried some bourbon (not a fan of it, honestly) and I was really curious about grain whisky. Thank you Roy, your video is a good start for me!
Thank you Alessandro - you found my first ever video! Enjoy the journey!
Fantastic video Roy, I don't think I've seen any single grain or blended grain stateside except for the Hedonism so that is one place I have almost no expertise or knowledge on so thanks for this!
Thanks buddy, they're not freely available even here, you need to seek them out in specialists. some are amazing, I just tried a 43yo Invergordon from Boutique-y Whisky Co and it was eye-poppingly good.
This is great! Love Hedonism and also a fan of North British! Those casks being tired as they are for most of your experience, probably only imparted little of good flavour and exposed some nasty tannins!
I agree, Balblair has some wonderful whisky's. I myself have the vintages 2002 and 1989. Both are, intheir own way, spectacular.
Just recently discovered your channel and love what you are doing. Please keep them coming. I have a Cambus and a N British - both light and interesting but not too complex. Have only heard good reviews of CB Hedonism and will seek out a bottle for comparison. It's good to get out of the single malt rut occasionally ;-) Thanks for sharing.
For me, single grain whisky, alongside a good single malt, lifts the malt gives the malt an interesting level of complexity. Makes me see why some blends are so good.
I am a big fan of Grains, thanks for sharing.
There's more grain available now than ever, it's a great time to explore. Some can be amazing!
Aqvavitae I have several oldest is 47 yrs old invergordon.
@@Aqvavitae what would you say is the most amazing grain whisky at this time? Compass Box used North British 25 and Miltonduff 25 for Rogues' Banquet and they are charging a mint for that bottle (180 pounds). Yet even with Hedonism core bottling they use North British (24ish year) and Cameronbridge (17 year). I have a bottle of both but have not opened Rogues' Banquet. Hedonism is delish but Rogues' Banquet is going to have to be a stunner to make it worth almost 3 times the Hedonism. Nice art work though on Rogues Banquet. Maybe that is worth 40 quid alone.
I've got a 27yo sherry cask Strathclyde single grain in my cabinet. Waiting to open it on my b-day next month. This video has me nervous but also excited to try it. Very informative video, Roy. Appreciate your insight!
don't be nervous - I'll bet it's awesome!
Another great one, Roy! OK, I've been looking at them in reverse chronological order... I vaguely remember tasting a wee pour of Hedonism at that last whisky festival, and found it to be a bit sweet for my liking... I wonder if the sweetness fades a bit as the whisky oxidizes. I may grab a bottle just to find out. Blended grain and single grain scotch is rare enough around here, so it may take me a while to find a bottle of Hedonism... I have seen it before. I just didn't take the plunge.
TBH FQ it is a wee bit sweet for a lot of people, but characterful too. I might not make sense saying this, but it's at once a perfect beginner's whisky and not really a beginner's whisky at all.
Great video. I've just found your channel and I'm loving it. Nothing pompous, just fun. Serious, but not stale.
Thank you so much Rodrigo - good to have you here!
Love this video! I really appreciate your candor. The astute ways that you describe how the failed whiskies applied to the social scene (ie. the cask strength in the wrong line up that night in that particular flight, the expressions being in too small amounts for a drop of water, etc.) were very informative. I could see your point so accurately it almost felt like a memory, LOL! Anyway, So far I am hooked and can't wait to see more of your videos!
Hi Duncan thank you for the awesome comment! Despite a lengthy pause I am working on other video projects and I will get more stuff out soon - great to have you stopping by! 👍
An exceptionally interesting and informative video. I've had a few grains at whisky events and I find them wishy washy and generally over sweet. I think you make some very pertinent observations about cask types. Selling aged grain whiskies by bunging spirit into haggard old casks is not the way. I like the Hedonism but have never bought a bottle. It's on the radar again.
Hey WT, nice words, thanks. Het come in on the dummies live show - it's live now (for us Europeans this time!) th-cam.com/video/GnIRe3tVvaQ/w-d-xo.html&feature=push-lbss&attr_tag=XL37GYxmY-AyvG2W-6
This is pretty cool. I recall Ralfy saying that in premiumized blended Scotch it's the old grain whiskies that tend to uplift the blend, so far from being "cheap filler", even if it is cheaper than old malt. I'm thinking about experimenting eventually, perhaps focusing on blending just the malts for now :)
Glad you’re enjoying the back catalogue! Some older grains can be amazing, and still relatively affordable, but as time’s gone on they’ve remained only a distraction. I still love malts too much. Still, worthy of experimenting. Cheers.
@@Aqvavitae that's exactly how I feel almost about any spirit. I certainly dabble in bourbon and rye, cognac and armagnac, rum, tequila, but single malt Scotch is both - the first love and the love of my [spirit] life. I also find it to be more affordable than all the other spirits or even wine.
@@Aqvavitae oh, and yes, I've seen your videos before, seen you with Ralfy, but a friend of mine mentioned your recycled reviews and after catching up on them I'm starting from the beginning and watching everything (except the vPub long videos).
@@alexk3088 the short form, edited videos have me and they have whisky, but the vPubs have the community. Not everyone’s bag but give it a try if the mood and time should ever allow. I’ve removed monetisation to remove ads for people who cut them into listening chunks, podcast style. Thanks Alex.
@@Aqvavitae oh, I'll watch them. I just meant I can't sprint through them like the shorter ones :)
Very interesting... There's a 31 year old invergordon single cask I've been eye balling around here for $100, which is the same price as Hedonism here as well.
Very interesting video, please do more reviews.
Jez Bhatti Thank you Jez, I'm on it!
Excellent... can I buy this in India
If you're looking for an older single malt that comes anywhere near 27-30 years old, check out the Glenfarclas distillery. I found a Glenfarclas 21yo for £65,00 or a Glenfarclas 25yo for £87,35.
Patrick van Gerwen thanks Patrick, it seems like we agree www.aqvavitae.com/evangelism/best-value-whisky-2017/ Although those prices you found them at are way lower than retail, you scored bargains there. ( in that blog post there is one distillery which is, arguably, even better value still! )
Both of these whiskies are available where I live in the US and retail for $120USD AND $160USD (that’s roughly 90 and 120 UK Pounds). You got a great deal!
Clubman AHHHHHHHHHHHHH. Good point though. Good Vid bud
Late comment, but isn't that exactly what blends do so well; lifting "weaker" whiskies to a higher level?
I'd imagine (also given the lesser scores of the remaining flight) this applies especially to grains, as they usually are criticised for simpler and superficial expressions compared to the malts (pot vs column etc).
40% proof? You mean 40 % or 80 proof...
You mean Vatted malt and Vatted grain
+ed salisch nope. Blended. I did make a wee mistake in the video but I definitely mean 'blended'. Cheers Ed!
Someone renamed the category... When I was coming up it was called Vatted... I was never big on organizations changing how I speak... Slange!
+ed salisch Yes, you’re correct, we still say ‘vatted’ malt sometimes and in the context of the conversation we know the meaning. ‘Vatted’ was confusing, you can ‘vat’ malt whisky and still have a single malt. Hope you enjoyed the other parts of the video Ed, thanks for taking the time to comment.
Hedonism advert
Haig club is shit. Better getting a supermarket bottom shelf blend