Want your own cask of scotch?

Glenglassaugh gives scotch drinkers something to enjoy on a more personable touch. Made by men who distinguished themselves at places like Highland Park, Scapa, Glenmorangie, and Balvenie (I attended a tasting of Balvenie a few months back). From UrbanDaddy.com's email newsletter:

Introducing Glenglassaugh's Cask Ordering Service, a radical new concept that lets you order up a full cask of scotch now and drink it down in the future, available now.

Essentially, it's something you've always wanted: an epic amount of scotch, all for you. The brand sets you up with an octave—basically, a 50-liter cask—of hooch, and then lets it age for at least seven years. (You can let it go as long as you want—and you can even fill it up with the raw stuff yourself, if you happen to be in the Scottish neighborhood.) The price tag is a little more than 800 big ones, though it averages out to about 16 bucks a bottle—think of it as a blue-chip investment.

After that, just sit back and wait. Every year, they'll send you some samples just so you know how things are coming along. Then, when time is up, they'll bottle it for you and ship it your way—so in seven, maybe 12 years, you'll get a knock on the door from whatever hybrid of FedEx-DHL-UPS is still around, ready to drop off nearly 50 bottles of your very own, ready-to-drink scotch.

UrbanDaddy Boston also gave me the inside scoop for The Macallan's recent tasting at Cyclo-Rama.

The Macallan Fine Oak vs. The 18

I had the opportunity to compare The Macallan 17 Fine Oak to The Macallan 18 tonight. I find the 17 to be slightly darker than the 10 year Fine Oak, with a much more pronounced flavor as compared to the 10 year Fine Oak; however, in retrospect, I find my flavor profile much more accommodating toward Macallan when it's strictly aged in sherry casks as opposed to a blend of bourbon and sherry cask aged scotch. The Macallan 18 has more color and a much more complex flavor profile; granted it's of NO comparison to the 25, but it still has a smooth, soothing finish that's hard to beat. I can't, nor will I, ever choose to compare it to more normal everyday scotch (Walker Black), but given the evening which I've had the chance to really put the two side-by-side, I'd go with the 18, bar none.

On another note, I met the son of the owner of Toscano, Andrew, this afternoon and we had a nice discussion about Nebbiolo and the beauty of Italian wines. I'll have to splurge for the Casanova di Neri next time I'm in.

P.S. As Jon said this evening; NEVER SETTLE. Find The Best and GO FOR IT.