Product Review: Old Pulteney 12 year

Old Pulteney Single Malt Scotch Whisky Aged 12 Years, 70cl

This is my personal favourite from the "Under 50UKP" whisky category. I first sampled it around 12 years ago now, coincidentally. My then girlfriend (now wife) bought it for me as a Yule present. She had wanted to buy me a bottle of whisky, but had no specific one in mind. She went into Manchester Oddbins (now sadly defunct) and asked the assistant for advice. He gave her a few options and told the story of each. This one appealed to her. Most northerly mainland distillery in Wick. One time only accessible by sea. She isn't a whisky-drinker herself, so the story was all she had to go on.

The whisky itself has a very distinctive taste. Quite a pale whisky, it has a pleasant initial burn, quickly giving over to an interesting aftertaste. Perhaps it is my imagination, fuelled by the "Maritime Malt" tagline, but I feel it is somehow a "briney" aftertaste - which is much more pleasant than it sounds. It certainly conjures images of the sea.

This usually retails around 35-40UKP per 70cl bottle. I would encourage anyone to try it.

Whisky Voice review: 5/5

Whisky hits the information superhighway

I've noticed recently a few whisky-themed apps in my Android/Google Play Store. Some are imaginatively titled, like "The Whiskey Companion" and others are clearly going for that burgeoning yoof/urban market with "Whizzky". I've yet to find one that I'd actually bring myself to use, though. I'm not really sure what I'd want from a whisky app. I did used to use "Untappd", the Real/Craft Ale beer app, but gave it up when I realised it was doing little more than adding some time-consuming admin to my otherwise enjoyable pub time.

The whisky apps I've seen so far seem to concentrate purely on providing a (usually limited) whisky database and allowing the user to record what whiskies they have, which they have tried and maybe type a little review or two. Personally, I'd prefer to see a little more interaction/social media content (talking to other whisky drinkers could be nice) and maybe a facility for recording/reviewing/listing any pubs that have particularly good stocks of whisky and/or knowledgeable bar staff.

I'll be keeping an eye out for such an app - and crossing my fingers that Father Christmas brings me a nice single malt for being a good boy this year!

Jim Morrison and the Doors

Every time I picture Jim Morrison in my mind's eye, he has hold of a half-swigged bottle of Jack Daniels or similar bourbon. While he might not be the greatest role model, he was certainly a quintessential rock star, poet, shaman and icon. Perfect for this blog. What's more, he wrote a song or two which involved whisky.



"Whiskey, Mystics And Men"

Well, I’ll tell you a story
of whiskey and mystics and men,
And about the believers and
how the whole thing began.
First there were women and
children obeying the moon,
Then daylight brought wisdom
and fever and sickness too soon.
You can try to remind me
instead of the other, you can.
You can help to insure
that we all insecure our command.
If you don’t give a listen,
I won’t try to tell your new hand.
This is it can’t you see
that we all have our ends in the band.

And if all of the teachers and
preachers of wealth were arraigned,
We could see quite a future
for me in the literal sands.
And if all of the people
could claim to inspect such regrets,
well, we’d have no forgiveness,
forgetfulness, faithful remorse.
So I tell you, I tell you,
I tell you we must send away.
We must try to find a
new answer instead of a way.

Plans for Burns Night 2017

"Robert Burns (25 January 1759 – 21 July 1796), also known as Rabbie Burns, the Bard of Ayrshire, Ploughman Poet and various other names and epithets,[nb 1] was a Scottish poet and lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland and is celebrated worldwide. He is the best known of the poets who have written in the Scots language, although much of his writing is also in English and a light Scots dialect, accessible to an audience beyond Scotland. He also wrote in standard English, and in these writings his political or civil commentary is often at its bluntest."

~Wikipedia on Robert Burns




Okay, so my family has very few (if any) connections to Scotland. There may have been a few ancestors with names like Hay, Scott and Young, but I don't consider myself to have any, meaningful Scots heritage.

That said, my family and I do celebrate Burns night. First of all, because celebrations that honour poets are few and far between. And, well, any excuse to drink whisky, right?

We have haggis bought from Sainsbury's with a nice whisky sauce. And I was lucky enough to be bought some Glenfiddich for my birthday. As well as a blended whisky, in case the wife wants to drink whisky with a mixer.

We'll recite a little poetry and drink in honour of the man and his work.

To be honest, I'd probably eat haggis all year round, too, if I could...

Okay, so it's bourbon, but...

Maxim: Orphan Barrel Rhetoric 22-Year-Old Bourbon Is A Top-Shelf Triumph. http://google.com/newsstand/s/CBIwpdHM_CQ

About the 'Whisky Voice' blog

The concept of this blog is all captured within the name. Not only will whiskies be discussed reviewed and generally revered, but the voice aspect covers whisky-voiced vocalists (past and present) and music related to or otherwise inspired by whisky.

I also hope to include what I pretentiously term in my head as 'whisky culture'. Whether that be how whisky has influenced artists, how it plays a part in a traditional Burns night or simply how prevalent (or not) particular labels are in pubs and restaurants. There will also be the occasional sideways glance at the mystique and pretention that gravitates around the average whisky connoisser or whisky-themed event.

After all, there is an awful lot of nonsense to be found on the subject.

What first attracted me to whisky?

So, for my first post on this blog, I started asking myself the question of what first brought me to whisky and, just as importantly, caused me to elevate it above other drinks? I am, for example, a fully paid up member of CAMRA, the Campaign for Real Ale, and one of my great joys is a dark, full-bodied stout or porter.

Looking back, a couple of my best friends in childhood had scots ancestry. So, I came to know quite a bit about Scotland from quite an early age, and I have to admit that part of me back then wished I could uncover some hitherto unknown scottish ancestry of my own.

Then, in my teens, I saw the film Bladerunner. I loved sci-fi and the famous scene of Deckard drinking some Johnnie Walker Black Label might well have left its impression upon me.

Indeed, a couple of Yule season's ago, my wife bought me a whisky tumbler made in the same style and by the same designer as those tumblers that appeared in the film. I had intimated to her that I had always wanted a square-based whisky tumbler, just because of that scene in that film. Clearly she was listening to me.

So, now here I am a middle-aged gentleman of discerning taste, living in the north west of England and I have elected to write this blog to keep you, dear reader, updated with the whisky news that comes my way. I will also review what few whiskies I am lucky enough to sample from here on.

Welcome!