Hello, and happy New Year! I apologize for my long absence. I hope that this year will allow me to be more consistent in my posting.
Every January, I attend a Robbie Burns Day dinner and Scotch tasting. If you’re not familiar with this, Robert Burns was a Scottish poet born on January 25th, 1759. There is a tradition of celebrating his life and poetry with a dinner, usually held on that date, or a Friday or Saturday near it. Traditional Scottish food is typically served, along with Scotch whisky.
As luck would have it, his birthday falls on a Saturday this year. If you’ve never attended one of these dinners, I encourage you to look for one near you. They are a lot of fun – a chance to meet some great people, and try some good food and good whisky – even if you don’t like haggis.
In February of last year, I attended a tasting event at a local distillery comparing and contrasting various whiskey styles, including Bourbon, rye, and single malt, where we sampled 10 different expressions. By the end of February, it occurred to me that I had tried over 30 whiskeys that I had never had before. With that number under my belt, and the year only 1/6th over, I set a goal of tasting 100 new whiskeys by year’s end. I was certainly on pace to do that, but could I maintain it?
What followed was an exercise in seeking out new sources for different whiskeys, beyond what you see in every bar, in every liquor store. I found several restaurants in my area whose bars had whiskey lists ranging from above average to extraordinary. If I was going somewhere new, I would look ahead and see if there were any promising options in the area.
I visited local craft distilleries that made whiskey. I began looking closely at the miniature “airline” bottles in liquor stores, in case they had something new to me, and I could check off another box while spending just a few dollars. I went to more tasting events.
I made it a point to look for the one option on a whiskey menu that I hadn’t tried before. It got harder and harder as the year went on. (At this point, I must offer a word of thanks to every bartender and waiter who endured my more-specific-than-usual questions.)
I tried some things that I wouldn’t think of as a dram to be sipped neat, but it wasn’t just to add another tally. I had a genuine interest in being familiar with these, in case they come up as an answer to the “what do you usually drink?” question. I was pleasantly surprised by several of them.
While I have always been more of a Scotch and Bourbon drinker, I expanded my knowledge of Irish and Canadian whiskeys. I tried examples from countries that are less well-known for their whiskey, including France, Wales, and South Africa.
I reached my goal of 100 at the end of July with a very special sample, Pappy Van Winkle 20 Year. I slowed down, but didn’t stop. After a tasting event in October, I reached 130, and thought I might be able to get to 150 by the end of the year. On New Year’s Eve, I sampled whiskey number 160, Jameson’s 12 Year Old.
It’s been quite a ride. I met some great people. I drank some great whiskey. I learned a lot. Mostly, I learned that I still have a lot to learn.
Why am I telling you all of this? It’s not because I expect to try over 100 new whiskeys in 2020. I certainly plan to continue to seek out new experiences, but I also plan to go back to ordering old favorites more often. And it’s not because I expect you to try 100 new whiskeys this year. But I do hope that I can encourage you to try something new if you have the chance. You just might find a new favorite.
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