Thank you, Ralfy. I am about to enter my 6th decade on this planet and have only just very recently embarked on my whisk(e)y journey. I truly appreciate your sage words of insightful wisdom. They help this malty traveler in my journey to economically discover the joys of a truly wonderful pour. Cheers!
The algorithm found me this channel a couple of weeks ago. I've been binge watching & have been inspired to start my single malt journey. Best wishes to you Ralfy.
I often look up your reviews or other trusted channel reviews of the wiskeys I own and first enjoy them by my self and then with the review, to try and understand the wiskey better
My journey is real slow, tasting the differences and especially putting it into words I find extremely difficult. I have only reached the stage of I know when I like a dram and when I don't.
Your comment about perfume reminded me of Hannibal Lector - a character with highly attuned senses. In all seriousness though, I think your general approach is useful in any kind of sensory appreciation. I know how difficult/rewarding it is to learn a musical instrument for example. Brilliant philosophical commentary as usual. Thanks Ralphy!
Bad liquors usually have overt raw alcohol flavor, green under aged notes, heat, or a noticeable rough edge to the flavor profile that disrupts it. However, there are liquors that do none of those, yet are bad because they are simply too “smooth” and flavorless and/or sweet to deliver an interesting experience. This is how I have come to view things.
Lots to savour there Ralfy; a melange of thought provoking, malt inspired wisdom from the bothy. I whole-heartedly agree with your observations and comments....there is joy to be had on each individual journey; I hope many more tune in for these 'pearls', as your reviews and extras are the very essence of a good road trod. Keep 'em coming Ralfy 👍.
This is, of course, something that I've heard many times over the last years with Ralfy, but I'm immensely happy to see so many new enthusiasts who are discovering Ralfy these days. Thank you one more time, old friend, for everything that you've done for this community!
I've always been a moderately- to firmly-impatient person, so this journey is a true test for me. I think what I need to do is to sit down with no distractions and pour a flight of various drams and compare. I did that once a while back, was a big help. But haven't done it recently. I do think I'm less impatient than I used to be but that comes with age I suppose. On music, it does help me at times to clear my mind so it can be more open to distinguishing flavors.
Try it with another Person and talk about what you smell and taste what it reminds you while sipping. Drinking alone makes lonely. The Best Whisky in the World is a shared one.😎🤘
i know that feeling, or rather i like to do stuff/get things done. with friends its good coz you spend time with them, but alone i tend to watch a movie/series or play games and when i have downtime or from time to time i take my short time to sip, and enjoy the whisky, analyze it etc. with that i do stuff i enjoy and have whisky i enjoy, and a 2-3 cl glas lasts me the whole evening. just put something on your glas on top so it doesnt evaporate :D
My personal experience with Aerostone has been less than enjoyable. It tastes too young and very harsh,but that has been just my opinion. The price is good though. To each his own.
Sorry to do this mate, was going to get the 12yr Edradour Caledonia but after the review on the indi Signatory, I made a change and I'm blown away it is a belter and keeps getting better. So after the three P's add L for listen , nice one and enjoy the season.
Hi Ralfy. I could see your breath as you're talking during the video in the bothy. It must be chilly. Time for the fireplace to be on mate. Don't want to catch a chill.
We're drinking whisky here ralfy not practicing the viola. A lot of practice for the viola, not so much for the whisky. Patience is a virtue of course. With a little practice, not a lot, and some patience the perseverance should come naturally. Proper equipment then becomes important. A good instrument makes for a nice experience. P.S. It looks like the bothy could use a small fire in the stove. Thanks ralfy. I hope your holiday season is merry and bright.
I started my whisky journey with a teeling, needed some time to adapt to whisky in general, after that i got a bunna 12, and got around it. Next was Edradour Caledonia, compared that to some other whiskies, like glenlivet 12, singleton 12. Never enjoyed them, they were so boring. From there on i got a quinta ruban, glen scotia, glencadam, mortlach, and nowadays osbscure bottles in addition, like auchroisk, linkwood etc. id say im a pretty good cook and made alot of recipes myself and i always do this by smell, you can smell what fits in cooking. so i got bored of tasteless whisky very fast, always wanting to seek the next weird one^^. i do enjoy good standard bottles, and i try to test my smell and taste with some blind tastings, in food or whisky. You can also help with your mind memory by a mind room, or with synesthesia. Having certain smells, tastes, voices, described with a colour, which helps remembering things. Glenmorangie has for example for me a bright pastel orange character, and if you encounter a similar taste, you know very fast that its near the same colour as glenmorangie :D
Not sure I agree completely as I could truly work through a very complex whisky prior to the virus smacking my sense of smell and now it is far more difficult and surely I am missing things and thus the experience is not as ‘full’. “Just sayin’”.
I also was considered a German Shepard in terms of my sense of smell and ability to discern flavors and details. After the virus killed my sense of smell I haven’t been able to get back to that level again sadly. I mean I still enjoy tasting and still have a better than average snout for it, nuts it’s not the same. I hope we both get it back, cheers!!
I feel your discomfort. I think I may smoke too many cigars and this has damped my ability to differentiate scents and flavors. IDK I still can know what's good and not so good but it's a limited experience I fear.
Hey Ralfy, what do you think of whisky tasting courses, like Edinburgh Whisky Academy? Worth or just waste of time & money? Is there any recommendation of yours? Thx
My 2 cents Ralfi = brushing teeth and mouth cleansing before whisky tasting goes a long way towards helping decipher details within a whisky as well as among whiskies. Cheers.
Marketing Idea: For some younger entrepreneurial person. What if there was a scent package of the various smells of good whisky? Not whisky itself but examples of these smells. Maybe packaged as IDK swatches of cloth or cotton balls or something? Just what is 'malty'? What exactly does this or that fruit smell like? Yes we can do this on our own but it's hit and miss. With this 'scent package' we could quickly train ourselves to recognize the individual scents and flavors. Personally I'm scenting/tasting all kinds of things in my whisky experimentation but mostly I don't know what they are. I do sense what is good. I mean pleasant or really tasty. But I can not single out the individual elements.
These samples packages exist. Helps in a great way. Mine has approx 50 scents in it. Do not recall the name, just travelling. Can check back in two days. Ingo
The only issue you may run into is scotch often reference flavors of things that aren’t pleasant were you to sniff them directly. Things like glue, furniture polish, rubber tires, musty books, and rotting wood. The notes that bottles describe on the label don’t mention these of course, they always say “vanilla” and “cinnamon” and “chocolate” but honestly those simple notes could almost be said of any whisky. Ralfy mentioned a guide on sensation examples once, and that might be more useful. Examples of bitter, sour, salty, sweet, and savory (and in my opinion spicy).
@@Balkonwhisky I know, and Ralphy and many other malt enthusiasts drink whisky for many decades without much damage, but everyone should sincerely consider their ability to control alcohol consumption and I am pretty sure I´d soon have hard time doing that. I already drink many beers every day and whisky would surely ruin me in several years since it is such a delicious and strong liquor ;-)
@@DayKlight I know, I just don´t think playing with hard alcohol with 40 - 60 abv is worth the risk. I would love to nose and taste all the great budget whiskies, but I feel I really can´t. My daily drinker Czech beer has 4.1 abv and it´s just about the optimal strength for me to handle ;-)
ralfy, looks like you tube deleted my post about Mike Rowe's ( Dirty Jobs ) new whiskey and the story behind it. Great story. It's in the Washington Examiner paper online.
Hmm, if you go to a whisky tasting you are offered a limited number of glasses and a speaker will talk you through them. They can be informative and enjoyable and they are reasonably affordable. If you go to a whisky show, such as the one that the Honourable Artillery Company used to host, you pay your money and go in and it's up to you to find things to drink. You are on the clock say 2pm to 5pm. You also have to get the stallholders to provide you with a sample. Some of them just spend time chatting to their pals and neglect the customers. Rated whisky stands also get mobbed with people. So a mixed experience. I refuse to pay a three figure sum for a whisky show like a pal of mine. However, he did say stallholders were more attentive and he himself was spitting out whiskies so as not to get inebriated. Me, I will just stick to tastings.
Glengoyne 10, and Glenkinchie 12 were my biggest upsets to date. They both smell and even taste like tequila. From the first sips, to the end of the bottles. 👎🏼
I like tequila but this two are bit too expensive 😋. Both whiskies are bad examples whisky should not be. 40% chillfiltred and colour added. Never tasted them. Glengoyne 12 is quite nice. Just spend your money more reasonably. Get the research watch some review to ensure whiskies you want to buy are worth of it and you spend your money well. 😁🥂🙋🏻♂️
is this where it's at now ? The channel is just pandering to people coming into whisky ? I see why more and more long time viewers are no longer watching. It's almost insulting and as if they are being spoken to as a children and have little awareness. Ralfy is a good place to start but I don't know if it is really a place anymore for people with years of experience. I guess it's pandering to new watchers in order to get even more Patreon subs. I much prefer the Ralfy of a decade ago
Since discovering Ralfy I honestly haven’t bought a bad bottle of whisky. For that I thank you sir.
Aye✋️
Good Luck for you.😅
I had few not so good ones, but all where integrity Bottlings on the Label. 🤷
Things happen
I bought a bottle of Jim Beam in a moment of desperation. Never again!
Sage advice as usual Ralfy. Well done.
Thank you Ralphy, just starting out again with whiskey, after 20 or so years, and have learned more in 2 days from you than ever before
Thank you, Ralfy. I am about to enter my 6th decade on this planet and have only just very recently embarked on my whisk(e)y journey. I truly appreciate your sage words of insightful wisdom. They help this malty traveler in my journey to economically discover the joys of a truly wonderful pour. Cheers!
I love listening to you and enjoy single malt whisky!
What a wonderful collection of thoughts, glad I found your channel on my whisky journey!
The algorithm found me this channel a couple of weeks ago.
I've been binge watching & have been inspired to start my single malt journey.
Best wishes to you Ralfy.
You, me and a whole raft of others. 😀🤣😇
That‘s almost like a lottery win. You are welcome. Ingo, Germany.
Another quality video. BRAVO!
I often look up your reviews or other trusted channel reviews of the wiskeys I own and first enjoy them by my self and then with the review, to try and understand the wiskey better
Wise words.👍🏻🏴🏴
Thanks Ralfy, Happy Holidays! Good looking chap on your glencairn glass! Cheers
ooh, that one got me Ralfy, well percolated
My journey is real slow, tasting the differences and especially putting it into words I find extremely difficult.
I have only reached the stage of I know when I like a dram and when I don't.
Your comment about perfume reminded me of Hannibal Lector - a character with highly attuned senses. In all seriousness though, I think your general approach is useful in any kind of sensory appreciation. I know how difficult/rewarding it is to learn a musical instrument for example. Brilliant philosophical commentary as usual. Thanks Ralphy!
Very sound advice which is applicable to so many of life's journeys aside from whiskey.
Bad liquors usually have overt raw alcohol flavor, green under aged notes, heat, or a noticeable rough edge to the flavor profile that disrupts it. However, there are liquors that do none of those, yet are bad because they are simply too “smooth” and flavorless and/or sweet to deliver an interesting experience. This is how I have come to view things.
Lots to savour there Ralfy; a melange of thought provoking, malt inspired wisdom from the bothy.
I whole-heartedly agree with your observations and comments....there is joy to be had on each individual journey; I hope many more tune in for these 'pearls', as your reviews and extras are the very essence of a good road trod. Keep 'em coming Ralfy 👍.
Thank you Ralfy for what you do. You’ve been an amazing guide on our whisky journey and we’ve given you a special malt mention on drampath. Thank you
I think the malt mention was repeated from the previous video.
. . .well spotted. A blooper 😊👍
sage advice
Thank you! You discripe a way we should more follow! Thats more than Whisky Reviews, thats philoshophic. Thanks for your x-tras!
I am KEEN on this!!!
This is, of course, something that I've heard many times over the last years with Ralfy, but I'm immensely happy to see so many new enthusiasts who are discovering Ralfy these days. Thank you one more time, old friend, for everything that you've done for this community!
I've always been a moderately- to firmly-impatient person, so this journey is a true test for me. I think what I need to do is to sit down with no distractions and pour a flight of various drams and compare. I did that once a while back, was a big help. But haven't done it recently. I do think I'm less impatient than I used to be but that comes with age I suppose.
On music, it does help me at times to clear my mind so it can be more open to distinguishing flavors.
Try it with another Person and talk about what you smell and taste what it reminds you while sipping.
Drinking alone makes lonely.
The Best Whisky in the World is a shared one.😎🤘
i know that feeling, or rather i like to do stuff/get things done. with friends its good coz you spend time with them, but alone i tend to watch a movie/series or play games and when i have downtime or from time to time i take my short time to sip, and enjoy the whisky, analyze it etc. with that i do stuff i enjoy and have whisky i enjoy, and a 2-3 cl glas lasts me the whole evening. just put something on your glas on top so it doesnt evaporate :D
Would be interested in your thoughts on Aerstone 10 (sea or land cask).
My personal experience with Aerostone has been less than enjoyable. It tastes too young and very harsh,but that has been just my opinion. The price is good though. To each his own.
Very good advice, Ralfy. You brought up some points I've never considered but make perfect sense. Cheers. 🥃
Thank you Ralfy excellent advise as always of the whisky community 👏👏👏
Perfect guide to becoming a whisky connoisseur ! 💪🏽
Interesting Malt Mention after the cat appearance last Ralfy video.
Sorry to do this mate, was going to get the 12yr Edradour Caledonia but after the review on the indi Signatory, I made a change and I'm blown away it is a belter and keeps getting better.
So after the three P's add L for listen , nice one and enjoy the season.
The Caledonia is excellent and shouldn't be overlooked. By the way Signatory own Edradour so it's not a true independent bottling
Hi Ralfy. I could see your breath as you're talking during the video in the bothy. It must be chilly. Time for the fireplace to be on mate. Don't want to catch a chill.
Thank you for those words of encouragement. Now I feel blessed to have an average palate.
Ralfy do you always put water in your dram ?
Hi Ralfy where can I purchase that Glencairn glass with your head on it like the one in this vlog ???
We're drinking whisky here ralfy not practicing the viola. A lot of practice for the viola, not so much for the whisky. Patience is a virtue of course. With a little practice, not a lot, and some patience the perseverance should come naturally. Proper equipment then becomes important. A good instrument makes for a nice experience. P.S. It looks like the bothy could use a small fire in the stove. Thanks ralfy. I hope your holiday season is merry and bright.
I started my whisky journey with a teeling, needed some time to adapt to whisky in general, after that i got a bunna 12, and got around it. Next was Edradour Caledonia, compared that to some other whiskies, like glenlivet 12, singleton 12. Never enjoyed them, they were so boring. From there on i got a quinta ruban, glen scotia, glencadam, mortlach, and nowadays osbscure bottles in addition, like auchroisk, linkwood etc. id say im a pretty good cook and made alot of recipes myself and i always do this by smell, you can smell what fits in cooking. so i got bored of tasteless whisky very fast, always wanting to seek the next weird one^^. i do enjoy good standard bottles, and i try to test my smell and taste with some blind tastings, in food or whisky. You can also help with your mind memory by a mind room, or with synesthesia. Having certain smells, tastes, voices, described with a colour, which helps remembering things. Glenmorangie has for example for me a bright pastel orange character, and if you encounter a similar taste, you know very fast that its near the same colour as glenmorangie :D
Not sure I agree completely as I could truly work through a very complex whisky prior to the virus smacking my sense of smell and now it is far more difficult and surely I am missing things and thus the experience is not as ‘full’. “Just sayin’”.
I also was considered a German Shepard in terms of my sense of smell and ability to discern flavors and details. After the virus killed my sense of smell I haven’t been able to get back to that level again sadly. I mean I still enjoy tasting and still have a better than average snout for it, nuts it’s not the same. I hope we both get it back, cheers!!
I feel your discomfort. I think I may smoke too many cigars and this has damped my ability to differentiate scents and flavors. IDK I still can know what's good and not so good but it's a limited experience I fear.
Hey Ralfy, what do you think of whisky tasting courses, like Edinburgh Whisky Academy? Worth or just waste of time & money? Is there any recommendation of yours? Thx
. . . personal decision. Not something I would pay for.
@@thewhiskybothy thx
…..and loads of pennies to support the journey.
The sensible Ralfy
My 2 cents Ralfi = brushing teeth and mouth cleansing before whisky tasting goes a long way towards helping decipher details within a whisky as well as among whiskies. Cheers.
Marketing Idea: For some younger entrepreneurial person. What if there was a scent package of the various smells of good whisky? Not whisky itself but examples of these smells. Maybe packaged as IDK swatches of cloth or cotton balls or something? Just what is 'malty'? What exactly does this or that fruit smell like? Yes we can do this on our own but it's hit and miss. With this 'scent package' we could quickly train ourselves to recognize the individual scents and flavors. Personally I'm scenting/tasting all kinds of things in my whisky experimentation but mostly I don't know what they are. I do sense what is good. I mean pleasant or really tasty. But I can not single out the individual elements.
These samples packages exist. Helps in a great way. Mine has approx 50 scents in it. Do not recall the name, just travelling. Can check back in two days. Ingo
I just checked: one package is called: Le Nez du Whisky 54
The only issue you may run into is scotch often reference flavors of things that aren’t pleasant were you to sniff them directly. Things like glue, furniture polish, rubber tires, musty books, and rotting wood. The notes that bottles describe on the label don’t mention these of course, they always say “vanilla” and “cinnamon” and “chocolate” but honestly those simple notes could almost be said of any whisky. Ralfy mentioned a guide on sensation examples once, and that might be more useful. Examples of bitter, sour, salty, sweet, and savory (and in my opinion spicy).
I know whisky is one of the best hobbies in the world, but I´m afraid it would destroy my wealth and health, so I decided to miss my whisky journey...
Alcohol only destoys People which Drink too much or/and too often.
A Malt Journey is about drinking less but better quality.
@@Balkonwhisky I know, and Ralphy and many other malt enthusiasts drink whisky for many decades without much damage, but everyone should sincerely consider their ability to control alcohol consumption and I am pretty sure I´d soon have hard time doing that. I already drink many beers every day and whisky would surely ruin me in several years since it is such a delicious and strong liquor ;-)
@@mulatokudzava7797 maybe either have beer or whisky, and some skip days :) but you probably know that already^^
@@DayKlight I know, I just don´t think playing with hard alcohol with 40 - 60 abv is worth the risk. I would love to nose and taste all the great budget whiskies, but I feel I really can´t. My daily drinker Czech beer has 4.1 abv and it´s just about the optimal strength for me to handle ;-)
ralfy, looks like you tube deleted my post about Mike Rowe's ( Dirty Jobs ) new whiskey and the story behind it. Great story. It's in the Washington Examiner paper online.
Rowe's making whiskey? I'm definitely going to look for it. Thanks for the info.
Hmm, if you go to a whisky tasting you are offered a limited number of glasses and a speaker will talk you through them. They can be informative and enjoyable and they are reasonably affordable.
If you go to a whisky show, such as the one that the Honourable Artillery Company used to host, you pay your money and go in and it's up to you to find things to drink. You are on the clock say 2pm to 5pm. You also have to get the stallholders to provide you with a sample. Some of them just spend time chatting to their pals and neglect the customers. Rated whisky stands also get mobbed with people. So a mixed experience. I refuse to pay a three figure sum for a whisky show like a pal of mine. However, he did say stallholders were more attentive and he himself was spitting out whiskies so as not to get inebriated.
Me, I will just stick to tastings.
Glengoyne 10, and Glenkinchie 12 were my biggest upsets to date. They both smell and even taste like tequila. From the first sips, to the end of the bottles. 👎🏼
I like tequila but this two are bit too expensive 😋. Both whiskies are bad examples whisky should not be. 40% chillfiltred and colour added. Never tasted them. Glengoyne 12 is quite nice. Just spend your money more reasonably. Get the research watch some review to ensure whiskies you want to buy are worth of it and you spend your money well. 😁🥂🙋🏻♂️
👍❤️🥃
Bluffers….so true
Not trying to be critical, but you misspelt perseverance. Please take no offence, I love your channel.
hhhhhhhwhy :D
is this where it's at now ? The channel is just pandering to people coming into whisky ? I see why more and more long time viewers are no longer watching. It's almost insulting and as if they are being spoken to as a children and have little awareness. Ralfy is a good place to start but I don't know if it is really a place anymore for people with years of experience. I guess it's pandering to new watchers in order to get even more Patreon subs. I much prefer the Ralfy of a decade ago