Hard Drinkers, Lets Drink Hard (Spirits, Liquors and Cocktails)
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@Jett129 there is so much to see in Barca and it depends on how long you are visiting, and the things that are of interest to you.
The architecture of the city is dominated by Gaudí and a lot of it is brilliant, weird and wacky.
A must see is La Sagrada Familia ( the Gaudi designed cathedral that they are still working on which is probably the biggest tourist attraction in the city but well worth visiting. I strongly recommend booking tickets in advance to reduce your queuing time. I’m not one for guided tours but did hire the audio headsets which were great.
Tour books will suggest Park Güell and Casa Milia and they are both worth visiting as they are so different from anything you’ll find in any other City.
I don’t know if you like soccer but as a football fan myself, a trip to the Camp Nou is a must see. It’s the largest soccer stadium in Europe, and although you won’t get to see a game in June, the stadium tour and museum is worth seeing.
I love food markets and the Mercat de La Boqueria on La Rambla is great with lots of little tapas bars.
There are a couple of hop on hop off bus routes and they are a good way of getting an overview and just jump off at any place that catches your interest.
There are lots of little neighbourhoods each offering a different vibe. Probably best to check out something like Lonely Planet to get a rundown on some of them and see which most appeal to you.
It will be hot in June, so don’t try and do too much, and be aware of pickpockets.
Last tip is don’t refer to the locals as Spanish! They are fiercely proud of being Catalan ( there is an huge independence movement there) and have their own language although do speak Spanish.I bet there are others on the forum who are much more familiar with the city and will be able to offer lots of good tips.
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@IrishHeart Thank you,Thank you,so much for taking the time to write that. Definitely will be helpful. Also thanks for the heads up about the pickpockets. Very easy to let your guard down and get complacent on vacation.
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¡Dixeebe!
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@mclaincausey I saw where someone said,recently,that Fortaleza is the new Pappy. I’m starting to think they’re right.
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@Jett129 Supply seems to be on the uptrend around Denver. I got the last one and it was limit one per customer at a reasonable price. I like the reposado but the blanco and especially still strength blanco are preferred. Not really an anejo guy. So at least they don't have to age mine unlike the Pappy!
The lower price point for something so delicious is yet another strike in favor of agave spirits. I still love whiskey but find I get a better "ROI" with agave
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https://www.sazerac.com/our-brands/sazerac-brands/mister-sam.html
Speaking of that, here's a $2k+ bottle. I love Sazerac and especially their antique collection and I'm sure this is amazing.
Interesting story and you may recognize the last name of Mister Sam (Bronfman). His descendants who are Seagrams heiresses got involved with that NEXIVM MLM self help cult and one of them (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clare_Bronfman) is a convicted felon for her involvement. Their Seagrams money I think was a major factor in NEXIVM,
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@mclaincausey I’m totally with you on that,as I’m tired of fighting for bourbon,and the allocations etc. Agave based spirits is where it’s at for me as well. There’s so much really wonderful tequila and mezcal out there at reasonable prices. My local store just put all their agave spirits on sale for 15% off and I bought 2 bottles of Primo 1861 for $52 each.(Out of Nom 1579) I told the salesman I felt like I was stealing.
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@mclaincausey I had heard about that scandal when it was happening,and remember the Seagrams connection. I’m a little confused. Does Sazerac own Buffalo Trace,as I thought some of those brands were theirs.
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@Jett129 indeed Sazerac owns Buffalo Trace and a number of amazing brands.
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@scooter That’s one I’ve actually never tried. I’m not sure how the whole double oaked thing works as bourbons such as the Old Forrester 1910,and the Elijah Craig toasted barrel are not “officially “ designated as Double Oaked,although the bourbon has spent some time in a second oak barrel. Possibly because the barrel has some level of a char on it. Once a year Woodford releases it’s Double,Double Oaked which is supposed to be really great. Unfortunately it’s a distillery only release.
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They toast and then char the second barrel I think for that designation.
Then there’s the double wood thing Balvenie does.
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@Jett129 said in Hard Drinkers, Lets Drink Hard (Spirits, Liquors and Cocktails):
@scooter That’s one I’ve actually never tried. I’m not sure how the whole double oaked thing works as bourbons such as the Old Forrester 1910,and the Elijah Craig toasted barrel are not “officially “ designated as Double Oaked,although the bourbon has spent some time in a second oak barrel. Possibly because the barrel has some level of a char on it. Once a year Woodford releases it’s Double,Double Oaked which is supposed to be really great. Unfortunately it’s a distillery only release.
There is no criteria that I know of. Any whiskey removed from it's original oak barrel, and aged further in a second oak barrel would seem to qualify. From what I've read, Woodford DO uses a heavily toasted, lightly charred second. 1910, and Peerless use a second charred new oak barrel, like the first. For my money, I think that's the way it should be...
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Picked up this weeks new Bruichladdich 18yo release. very nice it is too, very easy to drink, light in colour from predominantly bourbon cask finish.
Bruichladdich releases like this one are not peated. The Port Charlotte and Octomore offering are the peated offerings from the distillery.
Comes in an interesting cardboard fitted sleeve which I have not seen before.
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Here are the last two Bruichladdich Port Charlotte Heavily Peated bottling bottlings around 40ppm phenol (peattiness)
2011 release PAC-01 finished in Pauillac red wine casks from Bordeaux
2012 release SC-01 finished in Sauternes casks.I have a slight preference for the SC-01, a bit smoother and sweeter, but both very drinkable, draming whiskies.
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Lastly is one of last years Bruichladdich Octomore limited releases, the 14.2. This one is finished in Olorosso sherry and Amarone wine casks. Bottled at 57.7% cask strength and 128.9ppm phenol, this is not for the faint hearted. Bruichladdich are very clever in how they finish their heavily peated series whiskies and they do not have that immediate smokey punch that some whiskies like Laphroaig are known for, despite the Octomore numbers for peatiness being way up there. The finishing takes off some of this edge and smooth it out.
This bottle was a drunk purchase from a Bruichladdich whisky tasting evening. Mrs Trash came along for the fun and she does not like whisky so I was double dipping all night drinking her drams. I say a drunken purchase, it is really tasty and not a huge amount of arm twisting was required to purchase this bottle on the night.
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Lastly is a Pedro Ximenez sweet sherry finished peaty offering from Ardmore. Ardmore are unique in so much that they are a Speyside distillery that pretty much only make peated whiskies. This is unusual for Speyside as Speyside whiskies are generally non-peated. Have not opened this one yet so unable to comment but I am hoping it to be sweet and smokey.
