I want to buy my first IB

[blacksabb]

Hi everyone. My usual liquor place has an IB called "Hart Brothers" featuring a good range of distilleries. Some that are not avaliable here in Australia through stores and some that are.

I never really gave much thought to this until today when I saw a liquor ad for one of the Hart Brothers bottlings featuring the Bowmore distillery. I got excited because the ad said that all the Hart Brothers bottlings are cask strength whiskies, non chilled filtered and coloring free.

I was thinking of getting a Springbank and Macallan 15yrs, amongst others. Strangely enough, the OB Macallan whiskies avaliable are the 10, 12, 18, 21 and 30 yrs-but not 15yrs! And I've read how much a step up the 15 is over the 12, and as it's cask strength, it should be really nice.

I know that I'm being bitten by the single malt bug now. I wasn't interested in IB's before but am getting excited by the prospect now. I would love to taste a Dalmore cask strength or Glengoyne, Springbank, Macallan etc.

So IB's, here I come!

[blacksabb]

Oh boy oh boy oh boy. I just remembered. There's also a Hart Brothers Cragganmore distillery. I can't wait to try a cask strength Cragganmore!

[peat-chaser]

What are you asking for?
The IBs aren´t worse than the OBs, just they are almost always single cask bottlings, so they might be very different from the distilleries batch-bottlings. The usual differences are single cask instead of batch, unchillfiltered, not coloured, cask strength.
"Different" may very well be better. But for there´s no garantie, so if possible try before buying, if that´s not possible check it out if affordable ....

[Wave]

Not all Hart Bros are at cask strength, I have a Mortloch 17yo Hart Brothers bottling @ 43% and have had a Port Ellen at the same ABV. Choose your Hart's wisely!


Cheers!

[johan brugge]

What are you asking for?
The IBs aren´t worse than the OBs, just they are almost always single cask bottlings, so they might be very different from the distilleries batch-bottlings. The usual differences are single cask instead of batch, unchillfiltered, not coloured, cask strength.
"Different" may very well be better. But for there´s no garantie, so if possible try before buying, if that´s not possible check it out if affordable ....

I couldn't have said better myself. Spot on!

[borgom]

blacksabb, there are a few older cask strength HB around but most are bottled at 46%.
If you're curious about any particular bottlings some one here is likely to have tasted it.
Of the HB range i've had Caol Ila 10 & 11, Ardbeg 17, Laphroaig 18, Rosebank 15, Springbank 11 Portwood, Bowmore 10 & Talisker 13.

[dramtastic]

I tend to buy IB's in Australia because they give me a chance to often try distilleries that don't have an OB range available here.


Sometimes for no particular reason, such as in the case of the HB Springbank 11 borgom mentioned, it's also cheaper than any OB Springer you can buy here.

You may find it harder to find reviews of particular IB's, so just start buying and trying.

[borgom]

dram, if you had to choose between Springbank 11 PW or Longrow CV which would you go for and why?

[dramtastic]

dram, if you had to choose between Springbank 11 PW or Longrow CV which would you go for and why?

Thanks, you couldn't asked me a harder queston about whisky's if you tried.

I was going to go by just memory to point out the differences but when I looked at my notes on the Springer they read like a CV review. They both have strong maritime qualities such as brinyness and kippers. In fact I had never found what others describe as kippers until I tried these two malts.

If anything the nose of the CV is slightly more briney, which I like and the smoke comes through stronger also leather and shoe polish. The Springer has more soft fruityness on the nose like honey dew and lychee.
Problem is when I look again at my notes on the Springer after a while the other qualities I found in the CV come through as well, just not with the same force.

As I've noted before the Springer would make a great Longrow.

Now the smoke in the Longrow is to me quite different to that of an Islay. I'ts far more like a smokehouse of smoked meats than peat smoke. The Springer has that quality also but more subtle. On the palate the smoke in the CV comes in straight away where as the smoke in the SBK has a delayed reaction and comes in after a few seconds somewhat like a Yoichi. It's not that sort of smoke that wafts gently over the top but presents itself with assertiveness when it happens.

I guess the Longrows flavours are a little more accessible though I wouldn't class it as any less complex. It is easier to know whether you will like the CV faster than the SBK. In fact I could understand if someone had a dram of the SBK at a pub that it could easily be passed over as average, it takes a little more time to understand the depth of it's qualities.

I have never had anyone I know not love the the taste of the CV. In the end your talking about two of my favorite drams and I'd always like to have a bottle of each open. I actually poured a dram of each as I've been writing this and just found some peanut butter in the SBK. First time for that.

So in conclusion if I had to pick only one it would be..................the CV
.............no maybe the Springer................. but on the other hand???

[borgom]

Awww, I'm no closer to deciding now. I've got a bottle of the Springbank open now which I'm loving, I just can't decide if to go for a CV or another Springbank. Don't make me buy both!
Did your Springbank have any sediment in it? Wasn't sure if mine did or it was just broken cork.
Anyway I can see my ccard taking a beating next month.........darn it!

[dramtastic]

In truth I'd never really looked for sediment in th SBK, but now you mention it there is some. I drank the first bottle without looking and didn't find anything untoward in the taste right down to the last dram.

If you decide to buy just one next time buy the CV, I'd be shocked if your disappointed.

But in reality I'd buy both. Sorry!!

p.s I noticed a bottle of G&M Longmorn 12 at a Dan Murpheys the other day for $80, have you tried this? Seeing Longmorns are thin on the ground in OZ and that's quite a bit cheaper than the OB 16 nicks sells, I thought I may give it ago. I've never had Longmorn before.

[dramtastic]

Just to throw another spanner into the credit card works. I noticed today at my local vintage cellars, Laga 12 CS special release 58.5% for $120.
Nicks has it on for $175!!!

They have plenty of stock so I might wait awhile and see if they have another buy two or more SM's and get 20% off. Back to Japan in three weeks so I need to budget for some more Japanese whiskys as well. Oh well it's only money!!

[Knolly]

Just to throw another spanner into the credit card works. I noticed today at my local vintage cellars, Laga 12 CS special release 58.5% for $120.
Nicks has it on for $175!!!

They have plenty of stock so I might wait awhile and see if they have another buy two or more SM's and get 20% off. Back to Japan in three weeks so I need to budget for some more Japanese whiskys as well. Oh well it's only money!!

DUDE - get the Laga 12 - you know that life will be an incomplete, depressingly boring, soulless existence without it!!!!


And maybe some Yamazaki 18 as well in a few weeks.

[borgom]

Sorry dram I haven't tried that Longmorn. I have a Murray McDavid Longmorn 15 which is quite nice but I'm not sure how much of that's the whisky and how much is the wine finish.
I'll check out VC here in Melb, $120 is a fantastic price for the Laga CS - I've had to pay $175 for the last two!

[Swedish Chef]

Just got a Longrow C.V. today, after reading this thread I'm really looking forward to tasting it.

On the subject of IBs, the goverment monopoly have about 3-400 that you can order. Problem is that the younger (10-18yo) ones are about 50% more than the OBs. It's not untill about 25+ they get competatively priced.

[borgom]

On the subject of IBs, the goverment monopoly have about 3-400 that you can order. Problem is that the younger (10-18yo) ones are about 50% more than the OBs. It's not untill about 25+ they get competatively priced.

Wow, that's terrible SC, IB's are generally much cheaper than OB's here. Coal Ila's a great example where I can get IB 10 to 12's for $50 to $80 but the OB 12 costs around $100.

[Swedish Chef]

Very strange, the OB is 65 AUD here the cheapest IB - a 10y/o from Alchemist - is 108 AUD. I did managed to get a G&M Caol Ila Sherry wood earlier this year for 100 AUD.