When Did You Start

[kazemi]

i got two question out of pure curiosity

how old were you guys when you started drinking/enjoying whisky...?
and what started your interest in whisky..?

as for my self i started enjoying whisky ( single malt whisky) about 3 weeks ago at the age of 20.

i have always like whisky but i mostly use it for Irish coffee but after going to a few party and trying some really good whisky and finding out that not all tasted the same as the jack daniels old no 7 that had at home for Irish coffee,
so after finding a good liquor shop with a lot of different whisky i when in asked them if they could find me a whisky that i would like and went home with a nice and smokey Dun Bheagan islay 8 year(cant remember what distillery its from but they had tested it and found out where it was from).

guess that's how it started for me

[michael]

Welcome to the forum! In answering your question:

I use to sing in a R&R band in NYC and Hollywood. I drank saki to warm the vocal cords but after falling off the stage a few times I decided to drink Dewars instead. I've been upgrading my palate ever since. Just so happens one night in 1994 I was at the Whisky a Go Go and decided to register Whisky.com for the owners of the club who were my friends. They turned down Whisky.com and decided to register www.WhiskyaGoGo.com. I am glad they did. I had offered it for free.

[bowmore440]

Originally Posted by kazemi

how old were you guys when you started drinking/enjoying whisky...?

My first interest was around the age of 18. I didn't really like beer back then, and tried a few whiskies (blends mostly).

Only later on (about 12 years ago now) did I get into the finer stuff.

[snikt]

I'd say like 21-22 for me with drinking the cheap crap like Jack Daniels. I think the first decent stuff I got was Wild Turkey rare breed.

I didn't start getting into scotch and higher quality stuff until like 28-29.

I guess the highest end stuff I've had to date was a shot of 30 year Macallan, and Johnny Walker Blue King George V blend

[Islay Peat]

For years I've had a shot of whisky, if that's what everyone else was having, but this last summer it came to me that better whiskies were worth drinking for the pure enjoyment of both taste and smell.

Now having delved into whiskies a bit further, I accidentally found out that I have a strong preference for the Scottish spirits, and it's a journey just started that keeps leading to new opinions and revelations, almost daily at times.

[LostBoyScout]

Interesting that it's such a young crowd in here. I'm 31 now, I had been drinking Chivas 12 for years but didn't get into the single malts until about 2 years ago. Not interested in Chivas anymore!

The single malts I've had in this time:

Ardbeg 10
Ardbeg Uigeadail
Talisker 10
Talisker Distiller's Ed
Cragganmore 12
Laphroaig 10
Jura Superstition
Laphroaig Quarter Cask
Balvenie 14 Golden Cask
Balvenie 15 Single Barrel
Oban 14
Lagavulin 12
Lagavulin 16

And there's a LONG list of those I'd like to try! Glenlivet Nadurra and Aberlour Abunadh are next on the list, both cask strength and sound like great values!

[Islay Peat]

Originally Posted by LostBoyScout

Interesting that it's such a young crowd in here. I'm 31 now, I had been drinking Chivas 12 for years but didn't get into the single malts until about 2 years ago. Not interested in Chivas anymore!

The single malts I've had in this time:

Ardbeg 10
Ardbeg Uigeadail
Talisker 10
Talisker Distiller's Ed
Cragganmore 12
Laphroaig 10
Jura Superstition
Laphroaig Quarter Cask
Balvenie 14 Golden Cask
Balvenie 15 Single Barrel
Oban 14
Lagavulin 12
Lagavulin 16

And there's a LONG list of those I'd like to try! Glenlivet Nadurra and Aberlour Abunadh are next on the list, both cask strength and sound like great values!

Nice list that you might want to add the Signatory Vintage bottling of 1982 Port Ellen 25 year to.

[oscarswanson]

I just turned 59 Years old.
I was turned off by Scotch Whisky at an early age of about 20.
I was invited into a customers home and he offered me a scotch and water.
This was my 1st and last drink of Scotch
What he gave me was a Johnny Walker red in a tall glass filled with ice and water.
I did drink it as I am a somewhat polite type.
That drink tasted like crap.
A new friend a few years back reintroduced me to Single malts.

I now have injoyed many Scotch Whisky's such as
Laphrog
Lagvulin
Ardbeg
You see where this list is going. I am all over the Islay Whiskey's
I have also tried some other regions.
Recently purchased 6 bottles of Belvenie Tun 1404 Batch 6.
I was told that none of this was allocated to minnesota by one store ownwer?
Don't know if that is true but I see that the LAWS and others had a love afair with it.
Maybe someone here knows?
Oscar

[Islay Peat]

Originally Posted by oscarswanson

I now have enjoyed many Scotch Whisky's such as
Laphroaig
Lagavulin
Ardbeg
You see where this list is going. I am all over the Islay Whiskey's
I have also tried some other regions.

My three favorites right there!

Much mellower, but if you ever get the chance to try Yoichi 10 year, I think you'd like it as well.

[PerfectCellar]

I've always thought that whisky is an acquired taste.. so those above the age of 20

[oscarswanson]

Much mellower, but if you ever get the chance to try Yoichi 10 year, I think you'd like it as well.

Yoichi is hard to find round these parts.
I'll keep looking as it sounds great from what I read.

[Islay Peat]

Originally Posted by oscarswanson

Yoichi is hard to find round these parts.
I'll keep looking as it sounds great from what I read.

Virtually impossible, but I've got one bottle at present and another on the way - one of my favorites.
If you were closer to Alaska you'd be welcome to sample it anytime I've got a bottle.

[Fer]

I started at the age of 26, and until then I do not used to drink anything. I started a project of taste everything (almost) and to know. I liked Whisky, Tequila and Wine. And now I try to taste something daily (usualy 2.5 cl). I am 29 y/o now and I continue learning...

[cato]

My first foray into Scotch was about 23 yo. I started with Chivas Regal and moved on the single malts a few years later. I'm 50 now and have a massive collection.

[john_b]

My early ventures into Tennessee whiskey were in my youth, where the goal was simply to get drunk, and involved foul tasting cheap stuff. There was one unfortunate episode with a bottle of Cutty Sark that was rapidly passed back and forth between 3 of us until it was empty. And of course in those days there was lots of beer. Lots and lots of beer.

Then, in my early 30's, I stopped drinking completely for about 20 years. By then, I had tapered off to having a beer occasionally, and there just wasn't enough money in the budget for beer anymore.

The journey into better taste actually began in my mid 40's with custom roasted coffee, and the realization of how much better that was than the mass market coffee I typically consumed. That lead to trying micro brewed beer and imported ales, to see if the flavor was an improvement over the mass marketed stuff. To me, the difference was profound.

The beer search ultimately lead to trying good whisky just a few months ago. After trying a decent bourbon (Woodford Reserve), I decided to give a bottle of Macallan 12 a go, and was instantly hooked on Scotch. I've only tried about 10 so far, each with its own unique flavors. I'm 56 now, and have discovered a simple pleasure later in life. Sitting back with a glass of Scotch is a (somewhat) affordable luxury that I enjoy immensely.