One of my top 3, for sure.
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Iām a Negroni guy, but the best negroni I had was in Paris and I canāt replicate it. I think I need just the right measurements and the right vermouth and gin. Bombay London Dry is the standard, I think.
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I definitely get a lot of goofy looks when I order it around here. Most waitresses āhave to askā the bartender. At least the bartenders know what they are doing.
Speaking of rums and whiskeys, I got this pre-made bottle of Rum & Rye for a friend, but we didnāt get to try it. Looks really neat (but you should try it with ice) 
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Itās not alcohol, but a friend of mine visiting the exotic faraway nation of America saw this, and thought of me. Itās not half bad, and Iāve certainly been using too much of it, to the extent that my mouth feels like itās glowing like a bossā weak point. My fondness for Polish sausages has another partner in crime now, and the 74% mechanically reclaimed turkey has never tasted so fiery.
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Mrs. Doublebullout has discovered Drambuie and fallen head over heels in love. She prefers to use it for highballs with Fresca. Sacrilege, says I. But on the bright side, it looks like Iāll have a dependable supply for Rusty Nails.
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Has anyone tried any Japanese whiskeys? I was eying them in the shelves but have yet to try one lest Iām disappointed.
Nikka are worth a look. Coffey Grain is particularly nice while being less expensive. Chichibu are also very good, Malt & Grain being a very solid offering.
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Iāve had Nikkaās coffee malt and quite liked it, but Iām no connoisseur of this stuff.
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Ah, I had the coffey grain in my hand and now regret not grabbing it. Next time Iām out.
Thanks!
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Weāre planning a trip to Japan this summer. General tips and suggestions are welcome, and specific recommendations for whiskeys, bars, distilleries, and such are doubly appreciated. Tokyo, Yokohama, and Kagoshima will be on the itinerary. So is Osaka, but weāll likely spend most of our time seeing shrines and castles there. (Iām particularly interested in seeing Himeji Castle due to its appearance in You Only Live Twice.)
Japan is an amazing experience, especially if you are from the West; everything is so vastly different that it truly feels foreign yet at the same time it is accommodating enough to foreigners that it is navigable, at least in the more urban and tourist areas.
Try everything. Some things youāll love, some things youāll hate, but you wonāt know unless you try. For me, katsudon was my top surprise; a true comfort food.
As for drinks, chu-hi is not just fruit juice, no matter what it tastes like, lol. Also, if you are staying with a host family in the mountains and their Buddhist monk son comes over for dinner and offers you some tequila, he means the entire bottle, but thatās a story for a different time, lol.
There is also a proportional relationship between how rural you get and how relaxing an onsen is. I couldnāt care less about them in Tokyo, for example, but up in the mountains near Nagano was excellent.
Iām jealous; Iād love to get back some day with my family. Enjoy!
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Iāve had the Hibiki, Yamazaki, and Nikka Coffey Grain. They were good, but not really my taste. I prefer a super peaty whiskey - Ardbeg 10 or Corryvrecken, Laphroaig, or the Octomoreās when I can find them (and afford them). I owned and drank a bottle of the Coffey Grain once and enjoyed it, but not enough to go hunting it down again.
The Japanese ones were good whiskey, but not scotch per se - they didnāt have that smoky, peaty flavor that I enjoy. I was planning on picking up a bottle a few years back until I saw the price point, around $80 iirc, which turned me off as I can find a bottle of Corryvrecken for around that price and would prefer to drink that.
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Yep, peat is a minority of Japanese whiskies and not something they do particularly well. Nearly all of them are a different character to Scottish.
Oh, thatās good to know, then. I need loads of smoky peat flavor in my single malt.
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A man after my own heartā¦ this discussion made me search the latest Octomore; alas, the 13.3 isnāt really available stateside, and shipping from the UK is $60+! (yes, I see the irony in spending 200 on a bottle of scotch but being reluctant to drop 60 for shipping)
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This immediately made me check out my go-to mail-order liquor spot, Astor in NYC. They have listings for Octomore, but all out of stock 
However, their search tool brought up a comparison to Port Charlotte, so now Iām curious what you and other folk think of that.
Iāve had the Port Charlotte and remember it beingā¦ unrememberable. Not enough peat for my liking, despite it being billed as a peaty whiskey. The comparison is probably because they both have peat, much in the way that a Ferrari and a Honda both have engines.
Oh, Iāve forgotten about Caol Ila. Great bottle for the price.
Lagavulin 12 is delicious too, but hard to find as itās a once a year release. I was excited for the Lagavulin 8 and bought 4 bottles of what turned out to be barely drinkable piss. Huge disappointment there.
Ardbeg U (I can never spell that one) is nice if you like a sherried cask, but for the comparable price Iād rather have the Corryvrecken.
Kilchoman is pretty decent for peated whiskies, but hard to find in my area and their latest stuff has been hit or miss. Drinkable but not worth the effort of hunting it down.