>>> Malt Maniacs #015 - February 2001
New Years Resolutions
prE-pistle #2001/01 by Davin de Kergommeaux, Canada
Davin informs us about his new year's resolutions for 2001 - which include an attempt to sample one new single malt whisky each week.
That's at least 52 new whiskies this year - should be doable... ;-) So,
a few other maniacs decided to join him in his quest.
What does Birch Whisky Taste Like?
prE-pistle #2001/02 by Lex Kraaijeveld, England
Lex likes to investigates the 'roads less traveled'.
This time he tracks an obscure tale about birch whisky in the book that whisky writer Alfred Barnard wrote over a century ago.
Bowmore Darkest
prE-pistle #2001/03 by Jeff Jaskolski, USA
Jeff Jaskolski wonders why he loves his bottle of Bowmore Darkest so much while I seem to loathe the latest expression.
Jeff provides an alternative to my Distillery Top 10 with his personal Top 10.
Batch Variation
prE-pistle #2001/04 by Johannes v/d Heuvel, Holland
I've learnt some time ago that batch variation is an important issue with large batch malt whiskies like the Bowmore Darkest.
These days they sell thousands of bottles each day, so the distillery has to make a
different batch every few weeks.
Earls of Zetland January 2001 Report
prE-pistle #2001/05 by Craig Daniels, Australia
Another tasting report from down under from Craig Daniels. The Earls of Zetland keep spreading the gospel of malts in the colonies.
And
apart from drinking the stuff, it would seem they produce malt whisky in Australia as well these days...
Auchentoshan & Glenfiddich
prE-pistle #2001/06 by Johnny M. Lawcock, USA
Johnny was surprised that I recommended the Auchentoshan 10yo
as a dram for beginners and offers some suggestion for alternatives.
Responsible Response
prE-pistle #2001/07 by Johannes v/d Heuvel, Holland
In response to Johnny's comments, I provide some additional comments about my purely personal favourite single malts.
Malts of Distinction
prE-pistle #2001/08 by Christer Sundin
I wrote about the fairly undistinguished 'Malts of Distinction' in a few recent liquid log entries.
Now Christer Sundin has discovered a
new range of bastard malts; 'Malts of Scotland'. The same thing?
Malts of Indistinction
prE-pistle #2001/09 by Johannes v/d Heuvel, Holland
Christer's message inspired me to dig a little deeper
(just a little,
mind you) into the truth behind Invergordon's 'bastard malts'.
>>> Malt Maniacs #016 - March 2001
Amsterdam, The Second Time
prE-pistle #2001/10 by Klaus Everding, Germany
German malt maniac Klaus Everding dropped by in Amsterdam for some casual dramming. Well, not that casual actually; we did some heavy tasting and his fried Michael managed to find a bottle of Saint Magdalene 1979 in
the UDRM series. I had owned the bottle for quite some time already but never gotten around to opening it. Thank heavens that Michael did, because that gave me the opportunity to discover my new #1 malt whisky while I still
could acquire a few spare bottles for my 'reserve stock'.
The Oldest Still
prE-pistle #2001/11 by Lex Kraaijeveld, England
Professor Kraaijeveld takes a look at the long history of distillation and argues that the first stills were invented in East Asia.
Interesting enough, there are similarities between the typical design of a
so-called 'Mongolian Still' and the type of still that's used in Ireland to create their version of moonshine whiskey called 'poteen'.
How To Choose The Blind
prE-pistle #2001/12 by Craig Daniels, Australia
The capable nose of our Australian maniac Craig Daniels has helped him win quite a few blind tasting competitions in the past.
He decided to share some of his knowledge and experience with the rest of the whisky
loving world.
In this E-pistle Craig explains which rules apply for choosing the blind and how you can make it a fair test.
Tasting Session on February 15, 2001
prE-pistle #2001/13 by Roman Parparov, Israel
Roman Parparov reports from one of the 'developing countries', at least when it comes to the appreciation of single malt whisky.
Due to the
strong theocratic tendencies in the state of Israel, local malt whisky enthusiasts might just as well be living in an islamic country.
Harlem Tasting 2/16/01
prE-pistle #2001/14 by Klaus Everding, Germany
We've wrapped up this little 'special edition' of Malt Maniacs with a scattershot report from our German correspondent Klaus Everding.
>>> Malt Maniacs #017 - April 2001
Whisky Au Bain Marie
prE-pistle #2001/15 by Lex Kraaijeveld, England
Whisky professor Lex Kraaijeveld kicks off this issue of Malt Maniacs with a closer look at hot water baths - and he's not talking about the type that sometimes contain one or more naked women...
Unleashing the Clynelish
prE-pistle #2001/16 by Krishna Nukala, India
When Krishna went on a pilgrimage to the Highland Park distillery on Orkney, he passed by the location of the new Clynelish distillery and the old Brora distillery. What a great excuse for a small E-pistle...
Latest Notes from Down Under
prE-pistle #2001/17 by Craig Daniels, Australia
Our Australian malt maniac Craig keeps us informed about his malt whisky adventures down through his 'Earls of Zetland' reports.
Vox Populi & Reply
prE-pistle #2001/18 by Johannes v/d Heuvel, Holland
One reader commented that he would like to see me write more about stuff like cigars.
I'll try to explain why I feel that would be a
bad idea; just like chocolate, a cigar can ruin a perfectly good malt whisky.
Earls of Zetland February Report
prE-pistle #2001/19 by Craig Daniels, Australia
Apart from his faithful tasting reports, Craig looks ahead to two momentous occasions; the Millennium Malt Convocation (a gathering of the
three public malt clubs in Adelaide) and the Australian National Malt Tasting Championship of 2001.
February & March 2001 Malt Update
prE-pistle #2001/20 by Davin de Kergommeaux, Canada
At the start of this year a few malt maniacs accepted a challenge from Davin; to try and sample at least one new malt whisky for each
week of the year.
Now Davin reports from his end of the '52 Challenge'...
Shetland Whisky
prE-pistle #2001/21 by Lex Kraaijeveld, England
These 'reconstructed' issues of Malt Maniacs are built from snippets from the old forum and older musings from the maniacs.
When Lex wrote this column, the (mostly imaginary) 'Blackwood' distillery on the Shetlands was still just a glint in Caroline Whitfield's eyes...
Earls of Zetland March Report
prE-pistle #2001/22 by Craig Daniels, Australia
In his latest EoZ Report Craig writes about a blind tasting that he didn't actually attend himself.
On offer: Cragganmore 12,
Glenfiddich 15, Glenturret 12 and Highland Park 12.
Ardbeggeddon II, Las Vegas
prE-pistle #2001/23 by Louis Perlman, USA
The annual 'Ardbeggeddon' event in Las Vegas from the PLOWED crowd is only in its second year, but it's already acquired a legendary status.
Louis flew all the way from New York to report on the second instalment of this 'over the top' private whisky festival.
Freezing Spirits
prE-pistle #2001/24 by Lex Kraaijeveld, England
Distillation works because alcohol has a different boiling temperature than water. Whisky professor Lex Kraaijeveld points out that the freezing temperatures of both liquids differs as well. This means that it is
possible to produce a strong spirit through freezing temperatures.
>>> Malt Maniacs #018 - July 2001
Hungry Fungi
prE-pistle #2001/25 by Lex Kraaijeveld, England
The angels are taking their fair share of the whisky; the 'angel's share of whisky that evaporates from the casks is said to be more than 100
million litres of whisky each year. But there's another group of parasites that leech off casks of maturing Scotch whisky...
Earls of Zetland May Report Card
prE-pistle #2001/26 by Craig Daniels, Australia
This time the EoZ tasters organised a 'horizontal' tasting; three eighteen years old malt whiskies from three different distilleries.
Winter Peat Monster Bash
prE-pistle #2001/27 by Louis Perlman
According to Louis, there is nothing like a good dose of peat for internal central heating when the cold weather is around.
Millennium Malt Convocation
prE-pistle #2001/28 by Craig Daniels, Australia
Sometimes the tasters from Australia put fairly obscure whiskies on their menu, but this time they tasted mostly whiskies that are fairly
widely available; including Aberlour A'bunadh and Lagavulin 16.
Malt Comment & A Suggestion...
prE-pistle #2001/29 by Ken Seton, Canada
Since I closed down the old forum, the number of meaty contributions from 'foreign correspondents' has dwindled.
Fortunately, Ken Seton accepted
my invitation to share any comments about this website.
A Lengthy Response...
prE-pistle #2001/30 by Johannes v/d Heuvel, Holland
Ken Seton's submission deserved a proper response. I was forced to admit that I'm very much against combining food and single malts.
Update from the American Novice
prE-pistle #2001/31 by Patrick Whaley, USA
Patrick is our junior whisky judge (he is still in school). His latest review covers a few 'standards' like Aberlour 10yo and Laphroaig 10yo.
The Dangers of Tea
prE-pistle #2001/32 by Lex Kraaijeveld, England
In the past, various religious and idealistic organisations have fought against liquor and its detrimental effects on society.
But did you know that there were also groups that felt tea was just as dangerous?
Dramming - Russian Style
prE-pistle #2001/33 by Pavel Alexandrov, Russia
It's hard to believe that it has been a little over a decade since the Berlin wall fell. One of the advantages of the political changes in
the USSR is the fact that single malt whiskies became available behind the iron curtain. A report from a foreign correspondent in Moscow.
Some Words on Inferior Liquids
prE-pistle #2001/34 by Johannes v/d Heuvel, Holland
Pavel's message inspired me to write a few words on 'inferior' alcoholic spirits like bourbon, gin and vodka. Conclusion: they're not
inferior.
>>> Malt Maniacs #019 - July 2001
Earls of Zetland; Bourbon Peat Monsters
prE-pistle #2001/35 by Craig Daniels, Australia
Craig's Australian whisky club pitted a Longrow 10yo (a Campbeltown malt whisky) against three peat monsters from the isle of Islay.
The Victorian Whisky Capital of Scotland
prE-pistle #2001/36 by Lex Kraaijeveld, England
Our resident professor of Xenomaltology takes a closer look at the history of Scotland's smallest malt whisky region; Campbeltown.
Cask Strength Vintage Highland Malts
prE-pistle #2001/37 by Craig Daniels, Australia
Another tasting report from down-under.
MM Inter-continental Tasting Event
prE-pistle #2001/38 by Louis Perlman, USA
Quite a few malt maniacs appear to be enthusiastic global travellers. This time, Roman Parparov hopped from Israel to New York.
The First American Whisk(e)y
prE-pistle #2001/39 by Lex Kraaijeveld, UK
What was the very first spirit from American soil? As Lex explains, it was probably not whiskey, brandy or applejack - but tequila.
Impression of a Major Tasting with Louis
prE-pistle #2001/40 by Roman Parparov, Israel
After Louis presented his side of the story, Roman himself reports on his recent whisky tasting trip to New York, USA.
Glenfiddich Australian Championships
prE-pistle #2001/41 by Craig Daniels, Australia
The Earls of Zetland monopolised the prizes, apparently.
Whisky on Jersey
prE-pistle #2001/42 by Lex Kraaijeveld, UK
Interestingly enough, the small British island of Jersey had quite a few distillers operating during the 19th century. Lex tells us more...
Yes, I Still Drink Whisky!
prE-pistle #2001/43 by Davin de Kergommeaux
The world-wide travels of Davin enable him to sample a wide variety of (sometimes exotic) whiskies. After his latest trip,
Davin could add
tasting notes for 30 new whiskies to his little black book.
Close Encounters of the malty kind
prE-pistle #2001/44 by Klaus Everding, Germany
It's interesting to see how some of the more 'junior' maniacs still have difficulty with coming up with scores for the whisky they taste.
...
And that's it for now - more articles and issues will be added in the foreseeable future...
- - - - -
As far as 2001 is concerned: We managed to fill five issues with articles about malt whisky
in 1999, and another five in 2000.
This year, we've doubled our efforts and I think I'll be able to 'distill' a total of ten issues out of all the prE-pistles that were submitted.
However, so far I've only managed to finish five of those issues; MM#15, MM#16, MM#17, MM#18 and MM#19.
You can find an overview of all
prE-pistles from 2001 that have been published (so far) below:
Ah, the year 2001... We remember that year vaguely...
And that's because our archives for this year haven't been completely reconstructed yet. During the first 15
years of
our collective malt mania we produced over a thousand E-pistles about (single malt and/or Scotch)
whisky, but a bunch of those articles may have been lost due to a few massive site crashes
over the years.
When MM founder and editor Johannes van den Heuvel retired in 2012, he finally had the opportunity to try
and collect all the old content in one, easily navigable archive - or rather in part 1 and part 2 of the archives.
So far, all E-pistles from 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 were recovered.
