djakarta dream drams

now that is a mouthful to say but in djakarta, as the locals spell and say it, there is a small but vibrant single malt community.
heck, this is where i learnt to swig laphroaig for tea!
the small and vibrant community that i came across is the two of my friends who work and live in djakarta. and since i was in town, they cleared the decks and made last weekend dedicated to whisky.
we started out with cups of tea and local delicacies before the bottles and crystal tumblers made their appearance in front of the flat screen television on mute as a record-player turntable cranked out music from ravi shankar.
the first bottle was the entry-level 12-year-old glenfiddich. enough said about this pleasant single malt but one of the friends grumbled that he wanted something older, and yes, smoother.
so we soldiered on and finished the little balance that was left in anticipation of something better.
our host then brought out the 15-year-old french oak reserve glenlivet. by the way, glenlivet is one of the better distilleries around and its bottlings are always a pleasure to imbibe.
with that in mind, i uncapped the bottle with a flourish and poured for my friends as the bouquet wafted through the living room in a cosmic tango with ravi shankar's mystical music.
the 15-year-old smelled like a princess in summer with vanilla, strawberry and cream all rolled into one. the french oak had something to do with that, i thought as i started the first sip of many.
it was medium-bodied, easy on the palate and quite fresh in a smooth way. the finish was just tender like a little princess hugging you as you bid goodbye.
too many little princesses in the picture... guess that is what happens when you leave loved ones behind and decide to come out to djakarta.
well, a single malt like the glenlivet dulled the ache of separation for a bit.
before long, we finished half the bottle as discussions centred on the other single malts to keep us warm in the lonely nights of djakarta.
any excuse to drink is a good excuse to drink! now, where are the other bottles again?