malt follows me

been going past this place outside my office in jakarta and was wondering why it had a sign that simply said malt.
it became clear last night. the lights was on, there was a single girl inside and so, i dropped by.
turns out that malt is a bar and resto, thats restaurant in indonesian parlance. and guess what, they serve single malts. posters of lagavulin, oban and other familiar brands draped the walls around a cosy island bar filled with fine chairs and candle lights.
but no drinks were available last night. and i did not bring along my camera.
but there is a special open night tonight. single malt - either highland park 16 years old or a glenmorangie quinta ruban - together with a partagas cigar for rp375,000++.
pricey.
but i'll be there. at malt. no 2, jalan haji agus salim, jakarta.
tongue ready. camera ready.
and a whole lotta other things to update about.
cheers.

glen bangkok

as this is written, another group of guys are flying to bangkok for another stag holiday. unfortunately, i am not one of them.
damn! work and life gets in the way of the stag. not that it is much of a stag these days with more of drinking and eating and bit of this and that, here and there.
the last stag in november 2007 was quite a revelation as far as the single malts that we imbibed to while away the day as we await the night's outing and entertainment.
almost everyone - we called ourselves the dirty dozen - brought along a single malt. some brought white spirits but those were not even consumed. a pity. but that's how it is these days. everyone is a single malt snob.
and lo! and behold, most of the single malts had the word glen on the label.
the first glen was the glenlivet 15 years old which everyone agreed was the definitive single malt of the stag.
as written earlier, it is a rather summery creamy whisky that leaves one refreshed and most of us swigged on it as we made our way through the warren of streets in bangkok for our night out.
suffice to say the glenlivet 15 year old whetted our appetite for the night.
we had another 15 year old, not that we were paedophiles but this was the glenfiddich 15 year old single malt. it used to be called the solera but the new bottlings do not have that on the label.
despite that, the whisky is still vatted in the solera vat which is never emptied but is always kept at least half full tp create a single malt with character and intense complexity.
and that is why the sweet speyside 15 year old made good company for us in bangkok.
it had a spicy side that went well with all things thai - the land of the birds eye chilli and other hot happening things that make life truly wonderful.
the last glen that made it to our lips and onwards was the glenmorangie port wood finish which is one of the better glenmorangie bottlings ever. it combines my two favourites - single malts and port.
with a certain fruity nose, the 43 percent alcohol by volume single malt is smooth and sweet with a tinge of brine to eventually lull you into a wonderful state of relaxation.
the straw-coloured single malt has a lingering finish with hints of spice to make it a wonderful dram and a great ending to a fantastic night. which some of us had in bangkok.
unfortunately, this 12-year-old single malt has been discontinued in autumn 2007 and is now known as the quinta ruban, after the quintas or wines estates which provide the port pipes to mature the single malt.
fact of the matter, glenmorangie now has new bottlings with new names that could also mean new expressions that might not satisfy the palates. well, if you can get your hands on the port wood, keep and compare it to the new expressions.

fresh and green

we had a party this week to celebrate a wedding of friends, one of whom is from drinkdrankeat, and the bottles came out fast and furious.
among the bottles were a glenmorangie cellar 13, a laphroaig 10 year old, a macallan 12 year old, a johnnie walker black label 12 year old and a glenfarclas 12 year old.
not that we were single malt snobs but the black label was left untouched through the night.
so the ones that garnered the most attention were the laphroaig and the glenfarclas 12 year old, a speyside single malt with 43 percent alcohol by volume.
glenfarclas in the local gaelic lingo means valley of the green grass and the single malt itself is a pale and slightly greenish in hue, in keeping with the colour of most 12 year old whiskies.
the fruity, nutty and oaky notes in the bouquet give way to a peatish and still strong oaky palate with a short and spicy finish that leaves you hankering for more.
heck, it was the first bottle to dry up in the course of the night.
which left us with the rest of the bottles to finish up with the food at the jolly little restaurant called tanners in bukit tunku.
a discourse on dining at tanners will follow soon enough.

whisky in burgundy

there are whiskies and there are whiskies, the taste of which varies with the beholder.
been trying to get to tasting a few new ones around town but time and work have got in the way of the dram.
no worries. the frisky whisky fridays are set to continue in the next few weeks.
the last one that we had in a quiet corner of damansara heights saw me bringing out the glenmorangie burgundy wood finish, one of the bright sparks from the scottish highlands, that unfortunately has just been discontinued in the summer of 2007.
am afraid only a few bottles will be available around the world but if you do get one, it has a toasty and not quiet peatish nose. nice and redolent of wine as it has been casked in the cote d'or burgundy casks after initial casking in american oak.
the soft and sweet palate comes masks the 43 percent alcohol by volume single malt leading to a nice slightly dry and toast and oak finish.
it is a great 12-year-old single malt and the one-litre bottle drained rather quickly as the night went on, just like the madeira and cellar 13 did earlier this year.

majestic madeira

the range of single malts can be bewildering at times. more so from the sixteen men of tain, or rather the glenmorangie distillery.
yes they only have sixteen men working at the distillery but they produce a wide array of single malts finished in a variety of woods from the sherry to burgundy casks. and of course, slightly salty single malt from cellar 13.
a notable part of the glenmorangie collection is the glenmorangie madeira wood finish - which spent some time in the cupboard but finished quickly, thanks to thirsty friends who were quenched by its majestic sweetness.
the 43 percent alcohol by volume 12-year-old has a sweet nose with a hint of salt.
it tastes remarkably sweet and smooth turning spicy with a hint of chocolate.
the finish is short with a peaty tail and a lingering sweetness long remembered thanks to the madeira finish.
a great single malt that shows character despite the overpowering madeira.
there are others in the collection - sherry and portwood casks - that will be opened in the coming months.
cheers!

worthwhile whiskies

'twas the night before christmas, when all through the house... i was looking for whiskies to drink.
found a few that was to last the sultans of single malts for just under a week between christmas and new year's eve - which everyone ensured was a week dedicated to the single-minded pursuit of single malts and other beverages too. mostly single malts.
we started with the glenmorangie cellar 13, a single malt from a single cellar.
it is different from the glenmorangie 10 years old single malt as aging in bourbon casks for 10 to 12 years in cellar 13 - a warehouse near the sea that brings a saltiness to the sweet single malt.
the 43 percent alcohol by volume single malt is pale yellow and we opened the bottle by the poolside as others started on their christmas eve dinner.
the nose was sweet with the scent of vanilla and wood and a hint of menthol as we swirled a tumblerful. there was the vanilla and honey and a taste of toffee - nice!
the finish was long and juicy with certain flowery fragrance. we drank more and savoured every wee dram of it.
christmas came by and other bottles of single malts were opened, among which were glenfiddich 12 year olds and a bottle of chivas brothers royal salute 21-year-old.
the chivas brothers were grocers and not distillers and therefore produced a blended whisky to smooth out the spectrum of taste that the single malts had during their time and led to the creation of chivas regal in 1909.
anyway, the royal salute 21-year-old is a super premium blended whisky that was created as a tribute to the coronation of queen elizabeth II in 1953. it is a 43 percent alcohol by volume whisky that is bottled in a collectible ceramic decanter complete with its own velvet sack.
it has an old world feel about it, like being dressed in a smoking jacket and having port with cigars but really, it is markedly different from other blended whiskies with an intense smokiness on the nose.
smooth with a rum and raisin taste on the palate, the finish is mellow with a hint of spiciness. it grows on you.
but the coup de grace for the week was the 17-year-old islay mist. it was a revelation of one of the best blended single malts of all time and what has been hailed as the perfect balance of oak, grain, malt and peat.
we could only agree as i opened the bottle and all our whisky dreams came true. it was smoky, salty and sweet.
that must be thanks to the fact the islay mist started off as a tribute to the 21st birthday of the son of the laird of islay house in 1922. it was considered such an important occasion that the good lads felt that laphroaig was too heavy and decided to blend with other highland malts like the glenlivet and grain whisky. that was the beginning of islay mist.
anyway, the palate was nutty and earthy enough you just wanted to slosh it around your mouth to experience complete relaxation like a day on a hammock in a white sandy beach with women with-or-without-bikinis tending to your every wish.
the finish was a light smoky one with a dash of salt and pepper like one of the best steaks you've ever had. satisfying to the hilt as the bottle finished in no time.
so, anyway, happy new year! hic!