Tasting #21 Recap: Saratoga Race Track Tasting

Tasting #21 Recap: Saratoga Race Track Tasting

Tasting #21 Recap: Saratoga Race Track Tasting

On Saturday, July 28, the Saratoga Whiskey Club held its first whiskey tasting at the Saratoga Race Track on Jim Dandy Stakes Day. We had a great group attend and this will definitely become an annual tradition at the track. We couldn’t use our fancy Glencairn glasses, but there was still plenty of whiskey to be tasted. Now if we could only get the wagering to be better!!

Here are the whiskies that we tasted. Scores are posted on the Scores page.

  • Aberlour A’Bunadh – Batch #62 – 59.9% ABV
  • Glengoyne Cask Strength – Batch #5 – 59.1% ABV
  • Benromach – Gordon’s Single Cask – 60.6% ABV
  • The Macallan Edition No. 3 – 48.3% ABV
  • The Glenlivet Code – Limited Edition – 48% ABV

Here are photos from the event:

Looking forward to next year already!

Tasting #20 Recap: Irish Whiskey-Paired Dinner

Tasting #20 Recap: Irish Whiskey-Paired Dinner

Tasting #20 Recap: Irish Whiskey-Paired Dinner

On Monday, July 16, 2018, the Saratoga Whiskey Club was invited to a great Irish Whiskey-Paired Dinner at Harvey’s by Sinead O’Hagan, the Irish Whiskey Ambassador from Kilbeggan Distilling Co. It was a great night of food and Irish Whiskey. We would like to thank Sinead and Kyle Gilligan from Beam Suntory for hosting us on this fun evening.

Here are the whiskies we tasted and the food that was paired with each:

  • Tyrconnell Single Malt – paired with Shrimp Crostini with an Irish Whiskey Sauce
  • Kilbeggan Single Grain – paired with Ginger Whiskey Glazed Pork Belly served over house-made Cole Slaw
  • Connemara 12 Year Peated Single Malt – paired with Roast Chicken over Blistered Tomatoes and Peppers and Mashed Potatoes topped with a Whiskey Cream Sauce
  • Tyrconnell 15 Year Single Malt Madeira Finish – paired with Brownie Topped with Whipped Cream and Whiskey Caramel Sauce

It was a great night of whiskey, food and company!!

Tasting #19 Recap: Drams For Fams

Tasting #19 Recap: Drams For Fams

Tasting #19 Recap: Drams For Fams

On Wednesday, May 23, 2018, the Saratoga Whiskey Club took part in a North American initiative started by the Edmonton Scotch Club in Canada called Drams For Fams (#Drams4Fams).  The purpose of the initiative is to raise money for a local food bank or other charity in the form of a whiskey tasting.  Many different clubs in Canada and the United States took part in this and a lot of money was raised.  It was great to be a part of this and we look forward to making an even bigger contribution next year.

The format for our tasting was a lot of fun.  Bottles were donated by members and the club for this tasting.  All money raised went directly to charity.  Participants were able to taste up to 10 different whiskies of the 13 that we had available for the group.  Henry Street Taproom provided us a great spot in their restaurant and some awesome appetizers as well.  It was a perfect night for tasting a lot of whiskey (but then again, when is it not the perfect night!).  All in all, we had 22 people attend this great evening.

Here are the whiskies we tasted and the scores they received:

  • Blood Oath Pact #4 Bourbon – Score of 88 (avg. of 10 scores)
  • High West American Prairie – Score of 83 (avg. of 5 scores)
  • Michter’s Barrel Strength Rye – Score of 85 (avg. of 9 scores)
  • Elmer T. Lee Bourbon – Score of 87 (avg. of 6 scores)
  • Glenmorangie Lasanta – Score of 75 (avg. of 3 scores)
  • Ardbeg Auriverdes – Score of 83 (avg. of 6 scores)
  • Boone County 12 Year Single Barrel Bourbon – Score of 84 (avg. of 7 scores)
  • Glenmorangie Spios – Score of 82 (avg. of 5 scores)
  • Whip Saw Rye Whiskey – Score of 82 (avg. of 9 scores)
  • Pikesville Rye – Score of 84 (avg. of 2 scores)
  • Weller Antique 107 – Score of 79 (avg. of 4 scores)
  • Laphroaig Cairdeas – Score of 83 (avg. of 3 scores)
  • Johnnie Walker Blade Runner Director’s Cut – No Score

A fantastic evening was had by all.  We can’t wait for next year!

April 2018 Tasting Recaps

April 2018 Tasting Recaps

April 2018 Tasting Recaps

The Saratoga Whiskey Club had a very busy Spring in 2018 with 3 different events in April.

On April 11, Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits had Pete from Pernod Ricard in Saratoga Springs for tasting #17 at Bailey’s.  Four different great whiskies were tasted along with great appetizers from Bailey’s.  Thanks to Meghan for putting this together for us!!

Throughout April we also had home screenings of the Bourbon documentary NEAT: The Story of Bourbon.  This was tasting #18 for the club.  We paired different bourbons with different parts of the documentary which was a lot of fun.  Each house was very different with food & drink.  It’s a great documentary and we highly recommend it.

At the end of April the Saratoga Whiskey Club filled its own barrel of whiskey at the Albany Distilling Company.  We had a great day distilling whiskey for our barrel and learning what it takes to fill a 53-gallon barrel.  We all got to sign the barrel and now get to wait at least four years to decide what to do with it, other than drink it!

May is turning out to be a very busy one as well.

It was a great month!  Stay tuned for more from May.

Cheers.

Tasting #15 Recap: Jameson’s Ambassador Dinner

Tasting #15 Recap: Jameson’s Ambassador Dinner

Tasting #15 Recap: Jameson’s Ambassador Dinner

The Saratoga Whisk(e)y Club had Tasting #15 on Tuesday, February 20, 2018, at Harvey’s Restaurant & Bar.  The ambassador from Jameson walked us through the history of Midleton and how each whiskey was made.  This was paired with a 5-course dinner which was a fantastic surprise! We had about 20 people total who attended this event that was provided to us by Meghan from Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits.  We appreciate the education, whiskey and food very much.  Thanks!!

Here is a list of the whiskies that we tasted:

  • Jameson Irish Whiskey Caskmates – IPA Edition
  • Jameson Irish Whiskey Caskmates – Stout Edition
  • Jameson Blender’s Dog
  • Redbreast Lustau

What a great night, whiskey and food!

Please sign up for our quarterly newsletter if you are interested in learning about future tastings. Sometimes there are extra spaces available for non-members.

Here are some photos from the dinner.