[Closed] what booze for STW hip flask? entry level alcoholic requires advice

Currently sporting Ardbeg 16 YO

this was a replacement sent to me by the Oban distillery after the flask i purchased there leaked Caol Ila 18 all over the Oban YHA floor 🙁

neat tequila is my preferred flask filler

pick two attributes you think you'd like from the following table then choose from that. You can adjust to your taste as your collection grows:

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Personally anything in the top 2/3rds will do me

Laphroaig Quarter Cask (with tangfastics on the side).

hmm just finished my quarter cask, do I wait until my birthday (6 weeks)or top up now?

I did get a taste for Ardbeg on a recent trip to Peebles, lovely stuff.

If you want something smooth and mellow, you could do worse than Bushmills malt.

Very nice, but much more approachable than a lot of Scotch single malts IMO.

Top left suits me. But a hipflask seems like desperation to me, can't imagine a time I'd ever need to bring a few sips with me.

are single malts the order of the day then? are there any good blended malts?

:SPLUTTER:

GOOD blended malts?

😉

It of an Oban man myself, nice drop it is too

Meths

🙂

yes there are

the vast majority of the islay malts go into Johnnie Walker blends.

Don't tell anyone on here i said that though

^^^^^^^^^^^

Good blended Malts.........................Ye Gods Man

Harsh and smoky for taking out riding. When you're sheltering behind a wall in a storm at midnight do you want to drink something that gently massages your throat as it trickles down or takes half your throat lining off before exploding in your stomach?

Talisker.

single versus blended, is this like saying SS versus gears 🙂

samuri - got a bottle of Kilchoman New Spirit downstairs, i suspect i should save that until the snowdrift has covered the wall and all hope is lost

I suspect the average STW punter couldn't tell the difference between a blend and a single malt without the aid of a label on the bottle 🙂

😡 scandalous

mrmichaelwright why is bunnahabhain in the delicate and light section on that map? surely this is a mistake? its definitely towards the smokey end of the table?

Jagermeister is always nice easy sippin' to get started with. Maybe a bit too drinkable though...

not tried bunnahabhain, the miniature we bought on Islay got consumed by mrsmw then promptly exited mrsmw via the same point onto the beach in the morning along with the previous night's oysters 🙂

Gotta be homemade, anyone who puts commercially made spirit in a hipflask for riding clearly has no imagination, therefore mine has homemade sloe gin

Another vote for Ardbeg here, it's smoky and mellow and I love it.

*dusts down hipflask*

My father in law is a massive fan of Glengoyne. It's neither smoky nor rich but quite a nice drop in my humble opinion.

Blended? I've yet to try one that works for me.

I suspect the average STW punter couldn't tell the difference between a blend and a single malt without the aid of a label on the bottle

28 years of highlands hill walking and supping the stuff is enough for me

The chart that MMW posted is very useful but only represents a fraction of the choice available.

Blended whisky is not just a number of different inferior malts, but also includes grain whisky as well, and will typically be bottled for the legal minimum of 6 years as opposed to the normal 10 minimum for single malt

the only blend i have ever really enjoyed is Johnnie Walker Green Label, i was given it as a corporate gift and was actually surprised by it's complexity but then it does contain Caol Ila, Talisker and Craigenmore amongst others and is aged 15 years

Another vote for Sloe Gin, if you don't have any homemade then the Sloe Motion gin is pretty good (avoid Gordon’s unless your mixing it, incidentally it's very nice with ginger beer).

Gotta be homemade, anyone who puts commercially made spirit in a hipflask for riding clearly has no imagination, therefore mine has homemade sloe gin

Did you actually make the sloe gin, or just put some berries and sugar in some gin you bought from the shop? 😉

My hip flask has glenmorangie in it - I like to save the really nice stuff for being drunk out of proper glasses.

morgan spice rum is one of the few spirits i can take neat so that would be my choice

Mine has homemade cider in it.
Ok it hasn't as I don't have one, but for the sake of this argument it does 🙂

single malt for riding (though Johnnie W is acceptable), sloe gin / contreau for snowboarding.

incidentally a couple of the Japanese malts and a Bretagne one I tried were pretty reasonable if you want something different. Welsh and Irish don't work for me. And don't get me started on the colonials.

passed a sign for a distlillery near thetford on the way to Norwich on saturday. Preconception says i shouldn't like it but i'm going to pop in nest time i'm up that way

ok so it seems we'll have to wait until at least 2014 to get a taste of a proper whisky from them, a bit like Kilchoman

Jagermeister, tis what it was originally created for. Taking a nip from a flask on cold days/nights out hunting, not mountain biking.

Unfortunately, I don't seem to get on with Whisky, I blame a youthful experience of Tesco's value whisky. Good Irish Whiskeys are good though, like a nice old Bushmills single malt, mmm.

Remy Martin
Ian

Good Irish Whiskeys are good though, like a nice old Bushmills single malt, mmm.

Irish Whiskey? whisky for vodka drinkers - no flavour

Home made sloe gin is indeed perfect a hipflask, providing it is not too sweet. The Gordons sloe gin is an abomination

Another excellent winter warmer is The Kings Ginger. It's a ginger liqueur but dry rather than sweet - made by Berry Bros.

Two flasks. One filled with Caol Ila. The other filled with Watson's Trawler Rum.

Marvellous. 😛

hhmmmm cider......scrumpy! ofcourse how can someone born'n'bred in the Wez Cu#ttree not think of scrumpy!?! none of this fizzy sh!t I want a warm apple/alcohol based beverage please.

[door slams, followed by footsteps in the direction of Bargin Booze]

Seriously though, does no-one think they've crossed some sort of line when they pack an alcoholic drink while going for a ride? 😀

absolutely

and it's a line i like alot 🙂

Knowing you and your usual "Metrosexual Drinks" you go for I suggest Creme de Cassis

Absinthe?

Another vote for sloe gin

(Scrumpy? ridiculous idea unless your hip flask holds a pint)

Coffeeking: the line is crossed when your camelback is full of real ale O_o

ignore Flash, he fills his camelbak with Black Tower, (Blue Nun if it's a night ride)
I'm gonna try scrump and then venture onto the harder stuff. Flash, curry at our place?

Here's one to annoy the whiskey lovers, bramble whiskey. that'll be in my hip flask come the colder months.

Running low on the sloe gin from last year, 4l obviously wasn't enough. Picked my sloes this evening for this years batch. Hip flask currently sporting Aberlour 10yo, which is very nice. I've had a few odd looks on the STW rides if it comes along with me. I believe it to be compulsory on night rides though...

Grappa, preferably Barolo

Thread closed 😆

Picked my sloes this evening for this years batch.

Hence why you run out so quickly - you CANNOT pick enough sloes in one evening for a years supply! Get back to work and pick more!

Sainsburys have put up the price of their own brand gin - bastids!

Bramble whiskey sounds ace!!!! where can I get some?

Cant find any sloes 🙁

found some stuff in norway one year when out there winter climbing dont remenber what it was called but it got referred to as the liver warmer g

Anyone who came on the South Manchester Massive bonfire night ride last year will testify that Absinthe is simply the only ingredient required.

It was an interesting ride home. From what I remember. There were a lot of unidentified drinking injuries reported the next morning. Unsurprisingly enough

A couple of the guys I ride with have whisky mac which is fantastic and makes a nice change from the single malt I carry.

Port makes another good alternative.

Riding in winter you need something that can cope with being cold!

Flash - curry update, how do you fancy a Koala Lumpa instead? I've left a message on their phone re: 8pm Sat

decent quality absinthe....make sure it's got the wormwood in it (hapsburg is good) makes the night rides even more "intersting" 😀

Sorry to go against the flow a bit but consider Lidl. If your riding is a solitary affair consisting of classic rides with beautiful sunsets and warm afternnons in the hills by all means consider a good malt. I would. If however you tend to cold wet winter slogs in mud or across god farsaken rain sodden hills then might I suggest some cheap rum or brandy from the above retailer. a) you won't care what it is so save some money and b) why waste the good stuff on your mates who will be sure to help you finish it. In fact you can try this once or twice, whilst sampling their 18th centuary malt of course, and then get a reputation which will stop them thieving it agin. You then switch back to malt. Actually rum is very nice in the hills. Cheap Korean whisky is very good to take to the bath. 1 pint glass. 2" whisky, 1" Ribena. top up with hot water. 😀

There are some nice "pure malts" which are blends containing only malt whisky. The problem with common-all-garden "blends" is the large grain whisky content which is bland and harsh (and cheap). Saying that, some are agreeable and most mix well. I enjoyed the Loch Fyne blended and the Ben Nevis blended with a little water.

But I don't like drinking whisky when it's chilled. I'd put navy rum in the flask.

Loads of recipes on the web the bbc site has one. Basically brambles whiskey and sugar.