Nuclear bomb tests help to identify fake whisky

[Azathoth]

Although being a non-drinker, I tend to wonder sometimes at the near-obsessive lengths to which people will go at times when it comes to wine.

It is a case of emperors new clothes. After about 30 quid a bottle wine doesnt get any better. You are paying for a label to show off once you go over that

[mistermack]

GOOD whiskey is overrated. It's only slightly nicer than cheap shit, but many times the price.

I wish that was true. At my tastings I always make a point to add in at least 2 cheaper whiskies, and while not bad they will never be on par with the more expensive ones.

No, not on a par, but how much worse? So long as the whiskey isn't harsh, I find the difference tiny between cheap stuff and good stuff. GIve me the choice of two bottles of cheap, versus one bottle of good, I'm going to go for the two.

Obviously, others go the other way, so they must get something out of it that I don't.

I got a liking for whiskey with ice-cream when I did stint driving an ice-cream van, which sold VERY high quality ice-cream. I think with that drink, it's the quality of the ice-cream that's much more important.
The only problem is that it's so moreish, it goes down too fast.

[leo-rcc]

GOOD whiskey is overrated. It's only slightly nicer than cheap shit, but many times the price.

I wish that was true. At my tastings I always make a point to add in at least 2 cheaper whiskies, and while not bad they will never be on par with the more expensive ones.

No, not on a par, but how much worse?

That depends on the whisky of course, some are okay, others are leaps and bounds worse. Specially the artificially coloured stuff. If "okay" is good enough for you then you are welcome to it, but that does not mean that good whisky is therefore overrated.

[Svartalf]

If you find whisky overrated, you clearly haven't drank enough. Open another bottle.

johnnie walker, ballantine and chivas definitely are overrated... give me a 12 yr Bunnahabhain or Scapa any day.

[mistermack]

That depends on the whisky of course, some are okay, others are leaps and bounds worse. Specially the artificially coloured stuff. If "okay" is good enough for you then you are welcome to it, but that does not mean that good whisky is therefore overrated.

No, of course not. It depends who's buying it.
It's overrated to me, because I don't drink it neat any more. Mind you, I never detected much advantage in more pricey stuff anyway.

But what I think doesn't matter. If it sells, it's obviously not overrated to the people who matter.

Poteen seems to be odd stuff. I've had some that was absolutely dire, you wouldn't take it for free, or mix it with anything, or even give it to animals. But other stuff has been really nice. One bottle my uncle had was just about as good as any whiskey I've ever tried. And it was clear, like vodka.
I'd like to know who made that, and how.

[Svartalf]

Poteen is not whiskey...

First, real poteen is moonshine, made clandestinely, often by non professionals, which goes a long way to explain why the most authentic stuff has more kinship to paint remover than to anything supposed to be fit for human consumption.
Of course, since they relaxed the rules, there has been 'tourist' poteen, distilled to more professional standards, and usually less offensive.

Second, poteen is usually made from potatoes rather than malted barley, which give it a different basic taste

third, whisky is a brown spirit, that is supposed to age some time in wooden barrels before being bottled, while poteen, like vodka, is the white kind, diluted to the desired alcoholic degree right out of the still and bottled straight away.

So there's no surprise that poteen drinking is a very different experience than whiskey drinking, unless you focus only on the amount of alcohol drunk.

[mistermack]

I think the potato whiskey is pretty much a myth. I've never EVER come across it, or heard it mentioned as available in Ireland. I suppose it may have been made, in really hard times.

Proper poteen is proper whiskey, made from barley malt. Irish whiskey is generally made in "pot" stills, hence the name poteen. Whiskey isn't a brown spirit, it's a clear spirit, like vodka.
The colour soaks out from the wooden barrels that it's aged in. If it's not aged in wooden barrels, it remains clear.

Properly made poteen can be extremely good. I know, I've had it. But it can be crap as well. I've tasted that too. But it's all proper whiskey. Made from malted barley. I've never come across any other, anyway.

[Svartalf]

I don't know what modern tourist poteen is made from, but I can vouch that traditional moonshine was mostly potatoes, grain was too valuable to make booze from, especially moonshine that you couldn't sell.

and whiskey is brown spirit. Proper whiskey is aged in wooden barrels and takes color there. The only clear whiskey is new spirit, that is not supposed to go straight to consumption yet.

Also, I'd like to know how you 'know' that poteen is supposed to be malted barley, like whiskey, and how you'd know barley clear spirit from wheat or potato spirit when you tasted it.

[mistermack]

I don't know what modern tourist poteen is made from, but I can vouch that traditional moonshine was mostly potatoes, grain was too valuable to make booze from, especially moonshine that you couldn't sell.

and whiskey is brown spirit. Proper whiskey is aged in wooden barrels and takes color there. The only clear whiskey is new spirit, that is not supposed to go straight to consumption yet.

Also, I'd like to know how you 'know' that poteen is supposed to be malted barley, like whiskey, and how you'd know barley clear spirit from wheat or potato spirit when you tasted it.

Like I said, I've tried various poteens over the years, and mixed with people who know how to make it, and where to get it. Potato whiskey is NEVER made, as far as I know. Malted barley is the only type made. Maybe a hundred years ago, in times of real poverty, they may have tried potato.

As far as barley being too valuable, I don't know where you get that idea from, or how they can possibly afford to feed it to horses, if that's the case.
And in any case, the spent mash is sure to be used as animal feed, not wasted.

Like I said, whiskey is clear, unless aged in wooden barrels. That's not what you said originally.

How do I know what went into the poteen? The same way you know what went into commercial whiskey. It's what I'm told. But Irish people know their whiskey. If you think you could pass off any old rubbish as proper whiskey, you're mistaken.

In any case, If I'm going to risk making illegal poteen, and risk arrest, I'm not going to just knock out rubbish that won't sell. You take the same risk for rubbish, as you do if you do it properly.

If someone makes shit, it won't sell, and the word goes around not to buy from that source.

I've never tried the legally made poteen, I don't see the point.

[Svartalf]

Back in 90, I got poteen that I was told was tattie, not barley. I do suppose the guy could have been pulling my leg, but I don't see why he would have done so.

and I tried legal stuff because, I wanted to compare with the other stuff... and some of it is pretty tasty too. More my style than vodka.

[mistermack]

Back in 90, I got poteen that I was told was tattie, not barley. I do suppose the guy could have been pulling my leg, but I don't see why he would have done so.

and I tried legal stuff because, I wanted to compare with the other stuff... and some of it is pretty tasty too. More my style than vodka.

Like I said, I find the quality varies a lot, but the best was absolutely excellent, even though it had no colour. The best stuff came from county Mayo, my dad came from the mountains near Castlebar.

The worst stuff was bought in County Clare, where my mother is from, and actually, forty or fifty years ago, the farmers there used to use the shit stuff as a traditional remedy for sick animals, so maybe they didn't care so much what went into that.

They sell legal "poteen" in Bunratty Castle, about twenty miles from my mother's home, but I've never tried it, although I think my sisters once bought a bottle. Can't remember if it was any good.

I prefer the idea of illegal poteen anyway. There's a tradition involved.

[Svartalf]

Bunratty poteen is sold in France, and it's shit. I was offered a bottle, several years ago, and it's not kept because it's delicious but hard to replace... It's still in my cabinet because I can't get myself to finish it off... maybe I should use it to spike coffee next winter.

[mistermack]

Bunratty poteen is sold in France, and it's shit. I was offered a bottle, several years ago, and it's not kept because it's delicious but hard to replace... It's still in my cabinet because I can't get myself to finish it off... maybe I should use it to spike coffee next winter.

That doesn't surprise me. Bunratty is a tourist folk park, built around an old castle.
I would think the Bunratty poteen is just knocked up at one of the big distilleries, and just gets the Bunratty label stuck on. It's not got any history, as far as I know. There's definitely no distillery there.

Changing the subject, I was over there three weeks ago, and drove my car there and back.
In Clonmel, there is a GIGANTIC factory, making Bulmers and Magners cider.
Right in the middle of it, one of the entrances has a big sign over the road, saying "Welcome to the home of Tullamore Dew", my brother's favourite Irish whiskey.
He got a shock when I told him it wasn't made in Tullamore.

[MiM]

GOOD whiskey is overrated. It's only slightly nicer than cheap shit, but many times the price.

I wish that was true. At my tastings I always make a point to add in at least 2 cheaper whiskies, and while not bad they will never be on par with the more expensive ones.

No, not on a par, but how much worse? So long as the whiskey isn't harsh, I find the difference tiny between cheap stuff and good stuff. GIve me the choice of two bottles of cheap, versus one bottle of good, I'm going to go for the two.

Obviously, others go the other way, so they must get something out of it that I don't.

I got a liking for whiskey with ice-cream when I did stint driving an ice-cream van, which sold VERY high quality ice-cream. I think with that drink, it's the quality of the ice-cream that's much more important.
The only problem is that it's so moreish, it goes down too fast.

What is your definition of cheap. If 10 yo Laphroig fits into it, then I totally agree. But anything much cheaper than that I find little use of, except Irish for toddies and coffee. I'll have 1 bottle of Laphroig + 4 bottles of cheap vodka (for the boozing) before 5 bottles of any blended Scotch. Another thing, is that I might search specifically for a very light blended, if I want a cool drink with lots of soda in the summer.

[Svartalf]

LOL, Laphraig isn't cheap where I'm concerned... it's 1/3 of my weekly budget, and I've been meaning, but unable, to put aside some budget to buy one for months.