The Water of Life

... or whisky!   There have been at least two other whisky threads on PA, both were locked, both posted before I began enjoying the stuff more regularly.   I'd say I'm mainly a scotch man (must be the Scot in me); bourbon is good but a mite strong; I like brandy sometimes but the really good stuff is expensive; and rye, well ...

One thing I have noticed in my meager few years as a whisky appreciator is that the cheap stuff is never worth it.   Inexpensive scotch is missing the deep smoke and peat flavors and has an artificial aftertaste that I find vile.

Now that they're saying any moderate consumption of alcohol can be beneficial, I say that's good news 'cause I don't drink wine.   I already know we have numerous whisky drinkers here, so let's hear your favorites, your expensive treats, your worst ever - -

You don't drink wine? Shame on you!

Unfortunately, I have very a very low threshold for alcohol, and spirits are not good for me. My dad, however, used to like high-quality whisky, and I think we still have some impressive bottles stashed away in the family home in Rome.

My favourites -

Being a Scot, most people think it tantamount to high treason when I profess to heartily loathe the stuff. Anything held in close proximity to your eye that makes it water, I ain't gonna put inside my body.
Love bourbon though (Jack Daniels) and red wine (Merlot) but stopped drinking beer when my Irritable Bowel Syndrome kicked in a few years ago.
Most Scots of my generation (I'm 52) never drank whisky, (we viewed it as old man's drink or something that only tourists were gauche enough to pay through the nose for) It was just lager/heavy, vodka, cider, Guinness and (very rarely) real water from a tap.

David, I was just thinking of a new thread for spirits, so we don't have to infringe on the beer thread.  Perhaps this can be it. 

Like Raff I can't handle too much but I enjoy sampling very fine spirits. 

The interesting thing of late is discovering how great fine bourbon is for cooking.  I use a touch of that Woodford Reserve in my crabbapple sauce recipe and people rave about it.  Really nice, distinct edge it brings, along with the brown sugar, cinnamon, and ginger.

Finnforest wrote: David, I was just thinking of a new thread for spirits, so we don't have to infringe on the beer thread.  Perhaps this can be it.  Like Raff I can't handle too much but I enjoy sampling very fine spirits.  The interesting thing of late is discovering how great fine bourbon is for cooking.  I use a touch of that Woodford Reserve in my crabbapple sauce recipe and people rave about it.  Really nice, distinct edge it brings, along with the brown sugar, cinnamon, and ginger.

Absolutely, let it be a spirits thread (I think 'the water of life' can loosely apply to most of it).

Yes bourbon for cooking is brilliant!   I've done a steak au poivre that can use bourbon or brandy, it's scrumptious.   You crust a small fillet (mignon or close) in coarse ground black pepper then pan fry it to perfection before removing it and making a sauce of the drippings, some cooked-off whisky, a bit of heavy cream, and salt till reduced.   Yum.

Wake me when they find Whisky on mars.

Sorry, I just throught this thread was going to be about finding water on other planets. My post seemed  seemed like a fine observation in my estimate.

I figured.

I wish I never did either...but I have a group of friends who are into the stuff...it became most unavoidable.