20th Whiskey Tasting!

Update: text Jay (512-656-8677) or email Amber for the exact address of Amber’s new home (near Franklin’s Barbecue).

Update: Food truck dinner (optional) location is Tony’s Jamaican on E. 11th St (very near Franklin’s Barbecue). If you’re interested, join us around 6:45PM for dinner before the 8PM tasting event.

Update: whiskey list below is being updated as I hear about guest contributions.

Friends, thanks to you and to the spirits, the whiskey tastings have been awesome: entertaining, educational (no, seriously :-)), with many new friendships forged and even a few professional relationships initiated–but above all, increased appreciation for whiskey. They started as small gatherings of friends who enjoyed talking and drinking together, and quickly became events exploring and celebrating specific spirits: Scotch, Irish whiskey, bourbon, rye, Japanese whiskey, and even corn whiskey & moonshine, and occasionally non-whiskey spirits like gin, tequila, rum, and absinthe. Over time, they have grown into larger events, drawing 50-75 people and 20-25 varieties of the featured spirit per event. I don’t think it’s overstating things to say these are now the most important, influential social events of the year! Ok, maybe that is overstating it a little bit,  but they’re certainly fun.

The next one will be our 20th, so we are planning a very special evening or spirits-fueled entertainment. On Saturday, May 25 at 8PM, the amazing Amber Allen will host to the 20th Whiskey Tasting in her new home with 4 stories in central Austin–and we’re going to use all four stories fro four whiskey events! Floor by floor, we will explore and enjoy:

• Scotch whiskies*
• bourbon whiskeys*
• Japanese whiskies*
• other whiskeys*!

So come join us to learn a little, taste a lot (whiskey/whisky list below), and enjoy a wonderful evening with great people. It’s open to all of our friends, but you must RSVP for this (via the comments section below) to help us plan/prepare!

When & Where

Time & Date: 8PM on Saturday, May 25, 2019
Location: Amber Allen’s new home! (I’m not publishing her address for safety reasons, but will be provide by email or text to those who RSVP)
Dinner: Amber’s new home is near an outdoor food court, and since dinner is recommended before any whiskey tasting, feel free to come early and enjoy dinner outside beforehand any time before 8pm. (Again, location will be provided when you RSVP.)

Some Details

• As always, several different whiskeys will be provided by the hosts that cover a range of taste profiles for comparison.
• As always, if you wish to bring a bottle to expand our comparison set and share with others, please do (not required!)–but if you do then you must take your bottle home with you to enjoy on your own later!
• Whiskey provided by the hosts will be posted below, along with whiskeys being shared by guests as we learn about them (let us know)
• You do not have to love whiskey (yet) to join us and have fun–just be willing to taste and learn a little. We’ll provide some wine and beer, but feel free to bring your favorite beer/wine if you’re not into whiskey but sstill want to join the fun.
• There will be some snacks, but you should eat a full dinner first if you’re serious about tasting and learning. And again, Amber’s home is near an outdoor foot court, so people are welcome/encouraged to come early and enjoy good food together beforehand (completely optional!).
• Street parking is available in the neighborhood. However, we recommend Lyft/Uber/RideAustin so you can really focus on the tasting. Nobody drives home intoxicated.

RSVP

We hope to see you on May 25, and we ask that you RSVP by commenting below (with # attending) so that we can plan appropriately and send you the address of Amber’s home and the food court. Two things:

1. Comments won’t appear until I get a chance to approve them, since the number of bots out there is astounding… so be patient.
2. If you decide to bring a whiskey, please also share it in the comments below so other people know what not to bring.

Whiskey list

I will update it regularly starting on May 19, and then throughout the week.

Scotch whiskies so far:

1. Auchentoshan Single Malt: 12 years old, lowlands region – Jay
2. Balvenie Double Oak: 12 years old – Eric
3. Bunnahabhain Single Malt: 12 years old, Islay region – Jay
4. Glenmorangie Quinta Ruban Port Cask Finish: 12 years old – Hope
5. Spingbank Single Malt: 10 years old – Alicia & Bruce Bogart
6. TBD Scotch whisky – Mike Carr

Bourbon whiskeys so far:

1. Belle Meade: finished in XO Cognac casks – Jay
2. four Roses Small Batch Select – David
3. Noah’s Mill: 114.3 proof – Jay
4. Rowan Creek Kentucky Bourbon – Velvet
5. Smooth Ambler Big Level Wheated Bourbon – Christopher
6. Willet Reserve Bourbon – Frank & Kelli Barbella

Miscellaneous whiskeys so far:

1. 9-Banded Austin Whiskey: local! – Barbary
2. Clyde May’s Special Reserve Alabama Style Whiskey – Rebecca & Karl
3. Corsair Quinoa Whiskey: yep, quinoa and malta barley – Jay
4. Dad’s Hat Rye – Ant Dina
5. Hibino Japanese Whisky – Brian & Amy
6. Koval Oat Whiskey: made in Chicago – Jay
7. Nikka Coffey Grain Whiskey (Japanese) – Frank
8. Suntory Japanese Whiskey – Walker & Laura
9. TBD – David Bjork

Remember: all whiskey bottles brought by guests must be taken home to continue enjoying after the event!

---

*whisk(e)y is generally spelled without the ‘e’ by the Scots (plural: whiskies), while the Irish and most others usually include the ‘e’ (plural: whiskeys). So bourbon and rye are usually ‘whiskey,’ but the Japanese admired and copied the Scotch style (and bought some of the Scotch distilleries!), so often use the Scottish spelling (no ‘e’). There is no strict rule on the spelling of whiskey, unlike the rules for making them!