Just popped in to see what was new and there they were sitting in the glass case.

arrow said:

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Man I haven't posted here in a while but I was just about to ask if anyone had seen Springbank. I was getting worried they were shutdown. I love the 10.

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I have an older bottle of the 18 in my cabinet. Fantastic stuff.

Laphroaig Elements 2.0 Cask Strength got Whisky Advocate's whisky of the year, have yet to see it in TX but we did get the 1.0 so hopefully it makes it to the shelves.

Some other single malts in the top 10:

Bruichladdich 18 in second
Lagavulin 12 year 'The Ink of Legends' 2023 special release in third
Glenmorangie 16 year Nectar in eighth

Has anyone tried the Glenmorangie tale of ice cream? I have been eyeballing it for a while now thinking about pulling the trigger

A local store has had a Laphroaig Elements 1.0 in the case for some time. I hadn't heard anything about it, and it was a bit pricey, so never picked it up. I'll probably grab a 2.0 if I see one. Just got a backup 2024 Cairdeas the other day, it's a good one.

I've had a couple drams out of my bottle, and I am really happy with it. I'm not very adept at tasting notes, but I can't disagree with the description the Concierge program provided below. It's fairly light and sweet. I'd recommend it if you enjoy that style of scotch.

Our Tasting Notes: Nosing this whisky is like stepping into an old-timey ice cream shop. A burst of Manuka honey and vanilla greets you, followed by lush waves of lemon butter candy, baking raisin bread, and candied orange peel. On the palate, the texture is gloriously thick and creamy, serving up a cavalcade of flavors brioche, honeycomb, fudge, lemon sherbet, and coconut, with a hint of cinnamon. The finish lingers with notes of toffee popcorn, inviting you back for another sip.

The Specs: To create A Tale of Ice Cream, Dr. Bill and his team selected Glenmorangie's first single malt aged in high-vanillin casks; married it with whisky matured in bourbon casks for added depth and complexity; and carefully balanced the blend to achieve the perfect harmony of sweet, creamy, and traditional whisky notes.

Was gifted a Kilchoman Sanaig for Christmas! Anyone here try it before?

Nice, I have yet to get that one but I bet it's good, in the same lane as Uigeadail I believe.

I cracked it open for a pour on Christmas evening. It was great! Exactly what I was wanting. Something peaty from Islay that had a different (read: richer, spicier) body than other Islay scotches that I have explored recently. I was getting over a cold so I don't have better tasting notes right now, but when I have some again I'll try to remember to grab some mental notes and come back here.

Alright, it's on my short list based on that, thanks for the feedback!

I recently opened a bottle of Kilchoman PX Sherry Cask Matured. I normally get the Loch Gorm, but my whiskey guy talked me into giving the PX a try. The PX is a fantastic pour with the perfect blend of sweetness to contrast the salty-peat. I can't wait to enjoy it during the next cold snap.

Glenmorangie: Repackaging their lineup so if you see the 18 year Infinita, it's not new juice just a new label/packaging design, just a PSA. With that said, it is a couple bucks cheaper than the old packaging, I picked one up just to have on the shelf. Total Wine has dropped the price of the 12 year Palo Cortado finish (2023 release) to about 78 dollars, I presume an inventory move. The 12 year Calvados finish (2024 release) still sitting just under 90. Tale of Ice Cream sitting on shelves at most stores, right beside Tale of the Forest and Tale of Tokyo, wonder how many more Tales they will drop with such little movement.

Ardbeg: Looks like they will be dropping up to five 'special' releases this year. The re-release of the 17 year is still around, as are the 13 year and 14 year Anthology releases. I did some shelf rearranging at home and realized I have a couple Ardbeg distillery releases from the time Brown Forman was listed as importers, I guess from before the time LVMH acquired them in the Glenmorangie plc purchase.

Laphroaig: Elements 2.0 will hopefully be in TX soon, it is available in the NE and Cali. Batch 17 of the cask strength is out now with a 10 year age statement.

I'll try to do some digging to see what other new releases are coming for the scotch realm, been a busy year so far with too much work and insufficient play (and dry January). The Glenfiddich Grand series dropped a Grand Chateau 31 year last year but 2 grand is too much chateau for my taste. In Houston the Grand Couronne 26 year is north of one thousand but with a trip to San Diego starting to materialize for April, had a look and Total Wine out there has it for half the price, I may just bring one home.

Glenmorangie Tales of the Forest is a great pour. As for the Ice Cream one, I get why it isn't moving. That doesn't sound appealing at all based on name only, and I am sure I am not alone in that.

Great post!

Good info!

I really like the Tale of Ice Cream. It's a kinda goofy name, but Tale of Cake apparently sold pretty well compared to Forest and Tokyo. I'd buy another one, but I'm trying to resist. I need to open my Forest sometime and check it out.

I talked to Spec's Cedar Hill a few weeks ago about the Laphroiag Elements 2.0. They looked it up, and said it would be at the big stores like south Ft Worth and Dallas on I-75, not at the smaller stores, at least for now. I was at the big Dallas store on Friday, and they've had it and sold it. So it's around, just have to catch it at the right place and time, as usual.

Thanks for the 2.0 details, the Spec's folks down here I spoke to at various stores had no idea on status but seems it won't be long now before it arrives.