Bringing this thread back from the dead.
I had the chance to indulge myself (and my family) with lots of tasty alcohol over Christmas break with the family. I had a $40 bottle of Belgian beer that was simply amazing (Scaldis Prestige - my brother in law got it from one of his clients), I tried a bottle of Caol Ila 17 year Cask Strength single malt that was just amazing - smoky & peaty but so refined, with the smell of smoke and the sea all in one. I also had the chance to compare Macallan 12 to Glenlivet 12. There is no comparison - Macallan hands down. Glenlivet tastes pretty unrefined and a bit gasolinish in comparison.
And then there was quite a bit of wine to be had:
Rosenblum 2005 Rockpile Road Zinfandel -
Lucien Albrecht 2006 Gewurztraminer Reserve (had this one at Thanksgiving, too)
Porter Creek 2005 Reserve Pinot Noir
Hartford 2005 Land's Edge Pinot Noir
2005 Zabrin Atteca Armas (Spanish Garnacha) - holy crap this was good!
1998 Merryvale Profile - My sister bought a case of this when her first daughter was born. Very tasty stuff.
2005 Chateau Doisy-Vedrines Sauternes - if you've never had Sauternes I highly recommend it - it's a white dessert wine from Bordeaux that is just amazing. Probably my favorite drink of the holidays.
Amazingly no one got drunk (or hungover), but there were quite a few of us who were pleasantly buzzed for much of the evening!
And just today I've had the chance to compare the Macallan to a brand new bottle of Lagavulin 16 (it's New Year's eve, and I deserve something special!
). As nice as the Macallan is, the Lagavulin is on an entirely different level. Much more complex - smoky, spicy, peaty but oh so smooth and balanced. Reminds me a lot of the Caol Ila, actually (both come from the same region). Turns out I'm not afraid of peatiness.
Anybody else indulge in some good stuff over the holidays?