Category: Articles

Does Whisky Appreciation Have a Lifespan?

The Scotch NoobArticles 9 views

I feel like I’m falling out of love with whisky appreciation. Not whisky – I still enjoy a good deal of whisky from all over the world. No, I’m talking about falling out of love with the pursuit of new bottles, new distilleries, new information. The prospect of Rosebank distillery reopening used to excite me, now I just shrug and think about all the limited edition “not quite there yet!” bottlings that are going to retail for $150 and I just can’t get enthused about it. I hear about a new craft

Musings on Sauternes

The Scotch NoobArticles 6 views

I should really title this post “Musings on Sauternes as it relates to whisky,” or, “Random utterances designed to shirk my responsibility to write a real review post.” But… you know, that’s pretty long. I don’t know much about Sauternes, the French wine. I know it’s made from three white-wine grapes (Sémillon, muscadelle, and sometimes …

Book Review: Malt Whisky Yearbook 2023

The Scotch NoobArticles 5 views

Okay so “book review” might be a stretch since this is just an update, but I now review The Malt Whisky Yearbook on an annual basis and because it is the one whisky-related publication that I still read regularly, I’m sticking with the title. If you don’t know whether you should own a copy of the Yearbook… well, you should. But if you want proof, read my very thorough review of the 2021 Yearbook. Of course, the Yearbook changes in content every year, but the structure remains the same and the le

Bourbon Face-Off: Blanton’s vs New Riff

The Scotch NoobArticles 6 views

Last week we did rye. This week, bourbon. As a reminder: my favorite retailer and all-around whiskey personality, David Driscoll, recently offered a package deal at Mission Liquor in Pasadena, California, to showcase New Riff’s flagship bottled-in-bond range. He offered a deal on a bottle of Blanton’s (which is perennially hard to get these days) for anyone willing to buy all four pictured bottles. He suggested we do a comparative tasting to see how New Riff stacks up against the Biggest of Boys

Rye Face-Off: Sazerac vs New Riff

The Scotch NoobArticles 5 views

Today, something a little different. My favorite retailer and all-around whiskey personality, David Driscoll, recently offered a package deal at Mission Liquor in Pasadena, California, to showcase New Riff’s flagship bottled-in-bond range. He offered a deal on a bottle of Blanton’s (which is perennially hard to get these days) for anyone willing to buy all four pictured bottles. He suggested we do a comparative tasting to see how New Riff stacks up against the Biggest of Boys in the whiskey game

Fire Dept. Coffee: Spirit Infused Coffee

The Scotch NoobArticles 407 views

Fire Dept. Coffee is a veteran-owned business out of Illinois that hires and is run by active and retired firefighters. They support first responders through the Fire Dept. Coffee Foundation by giving back to those who have been injured on the job, mentally or physically, or who are facing other serious health challenges. They offer a wide variety of coffees (ground, whole, or in pods) as well as a monthly subscription club for their spirit-infused coffees (rum, tequila, Irish whiskey, etc.).

Book Review: Malt Whisky Yearbook 2022

The Scotch NoobArticles2 Comments 6814 views

The Malt Whisky Yearbook is an annual “field guide” to the world of malt whisky and the malt whisky industry. Author/Editor and Keeper of the Quaich Ingvar Ronde started in 2005 – and every year thereafter – compiling 12 months of news, facts, and figures from the industry while also managing to capture the overall trend and feel of the marketplace. In a way, it’s like a whole year of whisky magazine issues compressed into one compact and concise guidebook.

Musings on Why I Bother

The Scotch NoobArticles17 Comments 1773 views

So why do I continue to pan every whisky that I either dislike or think is overpriced for its intrinsic value? Why not take the easy road and say everything tastes like Heather in Springtime and be done with it? Why do I continue to expose my sensitive ego to every Keyboard White Knight who just can’t handle a negative review of their house dram?

Flaviar Membership: One Year Later

The Scotch NoobArticles4 Comments 19833 views

So what’s my opinion of the service, one year in? Despite their slightly spammy marketing practices, they’ve matured a lot as a company. They fulfill orders via local US retailers, now, so shipments arrive quickly and they ship to a much longer list of states (see below). They’re good at reminding me via email when one of my included membership perks is ready (time to choose some free whisky? Yes please!) and they aren’t too pushy about their other optional offerings, which are plentiful.