Single Malt Scotch

hwchoy · November 10 2016 at 8:13AM

you are getting the hang of it now @thommes :smiley:

another point I would like to bring up about the age statement, which is easy for novice to get confused about.

an older whisky is not necessarily the same as a younger whisky aged longer. e.g. an 18 year old is not simply a 15 year old aged for a further 3 years. an 18 yo bottling may be (purely as an example) 1/3 ex-bourbon + 2/3 ex-sherry, whereas the 15 yo may be 50% ex-bourbon and 50% ex-sherry.

thommes · November 12 2016 at 4:33PM

@SlàinteMhath

@kroma

I got a bottle of Highland Park 12. A very fine scotch from my perspective. I'm not tasting the sweetness that so many vlogs state that this whisky has. However, I love the finish. Is that peat?

Also saw Lagavulin 16 at the supermarket! Didn't realize that it was $100 USD. Will have to try that before I actually buy a bottle.

One thing I'm missing is how people are finding out if the coloring is natural or is added. I've looked all over the bottles and the boxes (with my glasses on) and don't see where it's mentioned.

Slàinte_Mhath · November 12 2016 at 5:25PM

@thommes
I am glad you are enjoying your Highland Park 12yr! The finish is probably a combination of peat and cask influence. You might have noticed that it arrives rather sweet and turns dry towards in the finish.

Natural color is a difficult issue.

Distilleries like to claim they only use E150a to adjust natural deviations prior to bottlings. But it's certainly more complicated than that. Use of 3rd or 4th refill casks results in weak natural color (white wine). E150a is naturally occuring and comes from the oak wood, so by adding more of it to the malt, a distiller 'just' increases its concentration. However, high amounts of artificial coloring results in an orange/amber glow. Talisker, Jura and Dalmore are examples for extensive (over)use of E150a.

Some distilleries are known not to use E150a. Ardbeg, Bunnahabhain, Tobermory/Ledaig and also Highland Park are good examples. Many bottles state 'natural color' on the label - but unfortunately not all. If you don't find 'natural color' on the label, it does not necessarily mean that it has additional E150a.

Now it gets even more confusing. Some bottles do not contain artificial E150a although it says so on the label. Good example is Lagavulin 8yr Limited Edition. On the label (EU) it says 'with artificial color' but you can just tell by looking at it that it is natural color. Diageo's brand ambassador confirmed that. Reason is international laws on food production - especially crazy in the EU. Retailers simply add 'artificial color' to the label to avoid legal troubles. If they don't know, they just add it.

Bottom line, it's very difficult to say whether it is natural color or not, unless you see it on the label or you are dealing with a distillery that is known for not using E150a.

[Deleted User] · November 12 2016 at 8:11PM

@thommes

Perhaps I am a bit too cynical, but I assume that a malt contains caramel color unless it states otherwise on the label (and this is doubly so for a distillery owned by Diageo). The producers who don't use it usually make that fact a selling point and try to point it out to the customer.

Unless the whisky is a pale white wine color from an inactive cask, it is difficult to tell by sight that it hasn't had a little caramel coloring added. Johnnie Walker Black is a good example of what adding a lot of coloring looks like.

I wouldn't get too hung up on it either way. I prefer the idea of no coloring, but I don't let the addition of it stop me from buying a whisky.

thommes · November 15 2016 at 2:24PM

@Carlton

I agree. I wouldn't let coloring prevent me from buying a scotch. I just noticed that in the vlogs that I've been watching, the reviewer will be able to tell from the label if artificial coloring has been added. I look at the bottle and can't find any mention of coloring. I wasn't sure if there was a symbol being used that I didn't realize or perhaps even a different label altogether for the version sold in the USA?

hwchoy · November 15 2016 at 3:49PM

@thommes

only certain countries have requirements to list food colouring additives on the label, such as Germany. in those instance you would see something like the bottom two lines of text in the picture, which means with "with caramel colour to adjust colour uniformity".

the absence of such a statement does not mean there is no colour additive.

[Deleted User] · November 15 2016 at 9:59PM

@thommes

Unfortunately, the USA doesn't require that the producer disclose caramel color. The only way we can be sure here is when the producer states on the label that it has not added color.

rainbow79 · November 16 2016 at 11:51AM

Does anyone know why they always state that in GERMAN, regardless the final market of the bottle??? I've noticed that....

hwchoy · November 16 2016 at 7:25PM

@rainbow79

because most consumers doesn't read german? :lol:

bedlamborn · November 16 2016 at 8:22PM

@rainbow79
Because in Germany one has to write it according to the law and by writing it in German they don't need to print different bottles and boxes.