How do you choose your whisky

[corbuso]

Since the last few years, the number of new bottling is exploding and then I go to a whisky retailer I have always a problem for selecting a whisky.
I am quite fond of the Brora, but when I bought a bottle last week (a D. Laing of 1983), I had no idea on how it would taste, since no tasting notes are provided and the peat level of Brora is known to be very variable.
My question is how do you select your whiskies?

thank you for answering

[Aidan]

I go by distillery really, but lately, I'm trying to get stuff I have not tasted before. I also collect, so I go for rare stuff if I think I'm getting a good deal. It's a combination of lots of things and it changes all the time, I think.

[ikendal]

similiar to aiden. "It's a combination of lots of things and it changes all the time, I think."
but add to this the opportunistic element, I look for bargins and buy accordingly. I got hold of a arbeg 1977 for £33 a long time ago.

and also, since reading this forum I get a sense of what is good and what I want to try, for example my next big purchase (unless opportunity knocks) will be bowmore 17yr. all because of the thread 'what I drank last night'

[edjohnb]

I'd go with the notes and then finish off the decision with any production notes or specifications. For the lack of whiskies in Singapore, I can't really buy whiskies so very often. when I comes to getting a friend to purchase one from a European airport, the choice I make is very crucial. I have had the fortune of trying some CS/IB bottlings and would say that if I had the selection and the money, i'd go for them.

[Deactivated Member]

I grab a fistful of Scrabble tiles out of a sack and see what I can spell.

Actually, there are a variety of reasons why I might buy a specific bottle. Certainly there are specific distilleries whose product will always interest me. I may have read about something that sounds good, or tasted it in a place like the Bow Bar. Recommendations from persons whose opinion I respect (like most of youse, or a knowledgeable retailer like Joe "Thirstin'" Howell) will play a part. I don't have a try-first policy, because then I'd hardly ever buy anything; I don't feel that a sample is a fair trial, anyway. I get the occasional clinker, but that's part of the game.

[ikendal]

what and where is bow bar - mentioned a couple of times on various forums - is the whisky drinkers insider knowledge

[Deactivated Member]

The Bow Bar is in Edinburgh, just off the Royal Mile and above the Grassmarket. It's mostly been I who have been flogging it--it's my favorite pub in Edinburgh. Just a rectangular room, no TV, music, or fruit machines, with about eight choices of real ale, including Timothy Taylor's Landlord, Caley 80, and Deuchars IPA as regulars, and a hundred or so malts. Good staff and friendly customers, a mix of locals and smart tourists (like me!). The two photos on the right below are from the Bow; the others are the Standing Order, the Tassie, and the Guildford Arms.

[Frodo]

Well, I think the variables that influance my choices are self-evident.

[Admiral]

For me, it's a combination of a few things, but it is never based on the producer's tasting notes or the garble printed on the packaging.

Nine times out of ten, it will be either because of a recommendation from someone whose palate I trust, or a price thing. I also sometimes go by try-before-you-buy, but I've tasted plenty of whiskies that I know I can never afford!

Cheers,
Admiral

[Paul A Jellis]

Usually I like to buy whisky that I have not tried before, or that I have tried a dram and wanted to explore further. Or a new expression of an old favourite.

I will sometimes buy on recommendation, if I trust the judgement of the person recommending it to me. I always trust LFW, they have never let me down, if they say it's good - then it's good!

Cheers

Paul

[patrick dicaprio]

you should have more suggestions!! i guess i would have to say i buy based on tasting notes but that really isnt correct. i keep a running written list in my wallet and if i get recommendations from this site, or from reading or from friends that is what i will buy. also if it is one i know very little about i will usually buy it. this is to my chagrin often, as i am in the middle of a bottle of Littlemill 17 yo, and i sure wish i had saved the money and could buy a half bottle

Pat