Commercial reviews?

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RadicalEd1
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Commercial reviews?

Post by RadicalEd1 »

I've been thinking, and while this site is already a tremendous resource, it's missing one element: real world experience. You can tell me that a whiskey has some delightful peach notes, but how am I supposed to really grasp that without tasting it?

So the best way I can think of experiencing these things, short of shipping each other our likker, is to suggest commercial examples that have those desirable or undesirable characteristics. I would therefore suggest to the group that we have a "Commercial Reviews" forum, or perhaps a subforum of the existing "resources and reviews" forum.

A new thread could be posted for each label of liquor, with posts within following a basic scoresheet and verbal description. I've seen one or two sites that kinda have this already, but none of them are from distilling sites. Looking at liquor from the distilling standpoint changes it quite a bit.

I've always been a real 'hands on' learner, and I think that this would benefit me. What do you guys think? At the very least it could collectively help us to expand our horizons if somebody posts up a something new and interesting.
Hawke
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Post by Hawke »

Good idea, but everybody's sense of taste and smell are different.
I have seen revues for wines where they claim a slightly sweet, fruity flavor, and all I taste and smell is vinager.
rad14701
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Post by rad14701 »

I see the shipment of illegal spirits as a whole additional realm of federal criminality... Using just about any method of shipping any illegal device or substance, at least in the US, spirals matters to monumental levels... And, even worse, it automatically implicates both the shipper and the receiver... Oh, not to mention the monolithic mentality of "mandatory minimum sentences"... Novel concept in theory - bad idea as far as practical application...
Uncle Jesse
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Re: Commercial reviews?

Post by Uncle Jesse »

I like the idea of a way to review commercially available spirits. It would take some thought and some doing, however. You'd have to have a form or something with a lot of info and a number of questions, then people could fill it out according to their tastes and so on.
If only the best birds sang, the woods would be silent.
RadicalEd1
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Re: Commercial reviews?

Post by RadicalEd1 »

Rad14701-I'm not sure what gave you the idea, but I was never advocating the shipment of liquors. In fact I think that it would be a bad idea on several counts-first, it's illegal, second it's potentially dangerous should a bottle break, third, it could bring undue attention to the distiller if the bottle broke, and fourth, very few people here would be trusting enough to ship illegal substances to strangers. Hence, the reason I'm advocating a commercial review sub forum.

A decent general form might be the one used by Aidas in his UJSM time trials thread, located here.
OK, I waited all of 5 days before pouring myself a slug. I'm writing this post as I'm tasting it. I emphasize "tasting", as this is the first, and last, drink of the day, so I'm going to savor it.

Color: Just a touch. The wine world would call it "straw"

Nose: A little too alcohol-y, i.e. still smells a bit raw. Something fruity is trying to get through, but I'm not sure what it is. Maybe rasberry. No vanilla, no caramel, no oakiness.

Taste: A lightly rough start (alcohol-y) in the front of the mouth, then a hit of honey towards the middle and back. Smooth going down. There's really something there, but it's obviously (to my taste) way too young.

Now I'm adding a splash of water (50 m. deep well water - iron filtered out and then reverse-osmosised under the sink -- this is the same water I use to dillute).

Nose: the over-alcohol-y nature is gone. The fruit is still there, but now it's maybe more kirsch-y. No oakiness, no vanilla, no caramel.

Taste: Sweet from the get-go. Sweetness goes from the front of the mouth all the way to the back, where a slight burn starts and then immediately fades as it goes down.

The slight oiliness that I tasted right after making it is no longer there. That's a shame, as I've never tasted that in any other grain...

There you go. First impression. I wouldn't say that I'm bowled over. I hope it gets better.
A numeric scoresheet, along with a general corresponding explanation of what should be expected for that category, would be awesome but beyond my humble knowledge. Fortunately, I seem to be surrounded by some liquor masters, here :D.
rad14701
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Re: Commercial reviews?

Post by rad14701 »

RadicalEd1, I did read your initial post correctly, and did see the "short of shipping each other our likker, is to suggest commercial examples" part... However, considering how easy it could be for some people to mis-read, or read into the idea, I felt it best to err on the side of caution and make mention of the implications - although I can see now how one might assume that I was commenting on your initial post, directly... I read every post here, just like in my own forum, whether it is of personal interest or not... It's just a trait that carries over from running my own forum... I have to admit that this forum has a greater percentage of members whose primary language is English, unlike what I deal with elsewhere...
RadicalEd1
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Re: Commercial reviews?

Post by RadicalEd1 »

It's all good. I just didn't want to be fingered for advocating shipping our precious aqua vitae around. :D
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