I was a student in Japan in 1991. I landed a job as a bartender in the high-end bar of a dead-end town. I had never worked in a bar before, but there was no training required: 95% of the customers ordered the same drink, mizuwari (水割り). Whiskey and water.
I was a great bartender. About 50% of the Japanese suffer from Alcohol Flush Reaction, and they cannot drink that much. I, on the other hand, with my evolved Irish liver, could drink people under the table all night long. While working there, I developed a taste for good whiskey (and bad karaoke).
Back in the U.S., I befriended a chap in the U.K., Rod Fine. He was coming out for a visit, and he asked if I drank Scotch. I said no. He said he'd fix me. To get ready for his visit, I went straight out and bought a little tasting kit from Trader Joes, with 4 single malts in it. I sat down one evening and started to develop my own taste in Scotch. The photo is from my visit to Rod's beautiful English countryside.
Since then, I have been to Scotland, and imbibed many interesting Scotches. Recently, my friend Sara expressed some interest, and I thought it would be great to recreate my first tasting experience. But as I started to do so, I realized that standard Scotch categories are senseless. Then I found a great site, Whiskey Classified. I love what David Wishart has done, but I want to take it further. I created an introductory tasting session, and I'd like to share it with you.
The wine world is full of bullshit posing as discriminating taste. The vodka world is even worse. Scotch Whiskey is not as bad, but people spend too much time imitating the people around them, and not enough time figuring out what Scotch THEY like. Let me help you out. I'm your Scotch buddy.
