A nice whiskey for the old man?

OU812

My dad is reaching a milestone birthday in January, He has a glass of whiskey a day for "medicinal purposes". Although not a connoisseur, he appreciates a quality product.

I 'm going through Dublin Airport next week & was thinking of picking up a decent bottle for him for his birthday (note: He drinks any whiskey, from Lidl to whatever). Have about €100 - €120 to spend, may stretch it a little if it's worthwhile.

I was leaning toward getting him a bottle of "Jack Daniels: Frank Sinatra Select" (loves Frankie), but am open to suggestions.

mik_da_man

Does he drink Scotch/American whiskey or just Irish?

If he favours one particular style I'd stick to that, you may end up spending 150 on something that he wouldn't like...

Graniteville

With so many promotions in the supermarkets, you'll probably find it cheaper locally unless you are flying outside the eu.

OU812

mik_da_man wrote: »

Does he drink Scotch/American whiskey or just Irish?

If he favours one particular style I'd stick to that, you may end up spending 150 on something that he wouldn't like...

He's pretty much style agnostic.

Graniteville wrote: »

With so many promotions in the supermarkets, you'll probably find it cheaper locally unless you are flying outside the eu.

Good point

khaldrogo

Does he sip it? Does he mix it? Ice? Water?

Different whiskey for different ways of drinking.

Wailin

Redbreast 15 is a top class Irish whiskey in the price point you mentioned and would probably taste better than anything he's had before. It would be in a different league to any Jack Daniels.

OU812

khaldrogo wrote: »

Does he sip it? Does he mix it? Ice? Water?

Different whiskey for different ways of drinking.

Over ice mostly

TomOnBoard

If he's gonna be 60, get him a selection of 5 bottles of 12 Year old or 4 bottles of 15 Scottish Single Malts.. 5*15 y.o. for 75 etc.. Dress them up in a nice wicker hamper and he'll be delira... The point here is getting him his age's worth in whiskey years. Steer clear of the airport and pick them up in special offers, or order them from the North.....

L1011

Graniteville wrote: »

With so many promotions in the supermarkets, you'll probably find it cheaper locally unless you are flying outside the eu.

Definitely, DAA are not cheap for spirits. If you are going duty free the other end is probably going to be cheaper too although the Irish range can be awful

Losty Dublin

To be picking one at Duty Free you have the hassle of carrying it overseas and then taking it back home again without anything happening to it en route. I appreciate that it's a big birthday and all but that sort of money would go a long way in Drinkstore or Grafton Street, two shops who would guide you well selection wise and less stressfully at that.

Also, if you are flying via the US or onwards and transferring to a Domestic flight then you will not get the bottle through carry on as it will be subject to security check and the liquid limits. I almost lost a Writers Tears this way last year until a nice check in girl "forgot" to charge me for an extra bag; thank you Irish accent

20/20

Midleton whiskey is a very good Irish whiskey from Cork. https://www.mchughs.ie/midleton-very-rare-2018
It comes in a lovely wooden box even though some shops forget to give it.
Someone who knows about whiskey will drink it neat. Not even ice.
Your father will always feel special when it appears on restaurant menus at €40 per glass.
Its not cheap but I think it can be bought in some branches of Tesco at not to bad a price and maybe get extra off with the €10 voucher from weekend papers.

Wailin

Midleton very rare is €180 so well outside his budget of €100-120. It's also not worth the extra over Redbreast 15.

run_Forrest_run

Wailin wrote: »

Midleton very rare is €180 so well outside his budget of €100-120. It's also not worth the extra over Redbreast 15.

€170 in O'Briens at the moment.

Wailin

**** me I'll buy 2 of em...

fret_wimp2

if he's not particular and really into his whiskey then spending much on a bottle is a waste.
Even a 40 quid bottle is a waste on someone who isnt really into whiskey, will just use it for a few hot ones or with a mixer or not sit and consider it.

For my milage black bush is the best value to quality whiskey going.
It is also one of the few where even non whiskey people will recognize by taste as being "good", as its in the same price bracket as regular bushmills/jameson but is much tastier and noticeably so.

Unless you just want to spend the money for the sake of it, or have been requested something specifically, i wouldnt go any further.

run_Forrest_run

Wailin wrote: »

**** me I'll buy 2 of em...

the more you buy the more you save.

jh79

run_Forrest_run wrote: »

€170 in O'Briens at the moment.

150 euro in Joyces supermarkets in Galway

Apollinaris

Glendalough 13 Mizunara finish. Case closed.
Make the old man happy!

Wailin

Have to agree with that! Smashing whiskey.

Apollinaris

When people recommend MVR makes me smirk. Really overpriced, watered down to 40%, chill filtered, caramel added blend. Clever marketing though! To refer to it as a good buy? LOL

Jimmy Bottlehead

I treated myself and a friend to a celebratory Redbreast 12 Year Old after hearing so much about it. Neither of us could differentiate it from a Jameson

CJay1

fret_wimp2 wrote: »

if he's not particular and really into his whiskey then spending much on a bottle is a waste.
Even a 40 quid bottle is a waste on someone who isnt really into whiskey, will just use it for a few hot ones or with a mixer or not sit and consider it.

For my milage black bush is the best value to quality whiskey going.
It is also one of the few where even non whiskey people will recognize by taste as being "good", as its in the same price bracket as regular bushmills/jameson but is much tastier and noticeably so.

Unless you just want to spend the money for the sake of it, or have been requested something specifically, i wouldnt go any further.

That's the spirit!

Wailin

Jimmy Bottlehead wrote: »

I treated myself and a friend to a celebratory Redbreast 12 Year Old after hearing so much about it. Neither of us could differentiate it from a Jameson

Lol, drink whiskey much? Jameson is like piss compared to redbreast.

Apollinaris

Wailin wrote: »

Lol, drink whiskey much? Jameson is like piss compared to redbreast.

Have to ask the same it's the same distillery but very different quality products, it's like saying all cars are the same they all have 4 wheels.
Redbreast 12 I would actually recommend to the novice whiskey drinker, the strong woody vanilla slightly peppery nose and the punchy vanilla, custard honey taste is really pleasant. The very first Irish whiskey I tasted! But this is only my humble opinion.

Wailin

Having a dram of redbreast 12 year cask strength now and it's glorious. Same basic notes and taste of the standard 12 year but ramped up a few notches.

If someone can't differentiate between a jameson grain blend and a 12 year old single pot still then I don't think they should be drinking whiskey.

TomOnBoard

Wailin wrote: »

Having a dram of redbreast 12 year cask strength now and it's glorious. Same basic notes and taste of the standard 12 year but ramped up a few notches.

If someone can't differentiate between a jameson grain blend and a 12 year old single pot still then I don't think they should be drinking whiskey.

What a ridiculous, elitist and condescending statement!. It is surely a matter of personal choice as to whether a person should be drinking whiskey, and a mAtter of personal taste as to whether they can differentiate between styles or ages or have a preference for one over another.

decky1

ah , a nice drop of Haig, lovely.;)

Wailin

TomOnBoard wrote: »

What a ridiculous, elitist and condescending statement!. It is surely a matter of personal choice as to whether a person should be drinking whiskey, and a mAtter of personal taste as to whether they can differentiate between styles or ages or have a preference for one over another.

Eh, ok. So what whiskey would you recommend to the op, getting back on topic?

TomOnBoard

Wailin wrote: »

Eh, ok. So what whiskey would you recommend to the op, getting back on topic?

Posted my rec. on page 1... A selection of Scottish Single Malts with combined bottle ages adding up to the special age being celebrated. The gentleman would have a journey he could travel across the moors and isles of Scotland over a period of months, and would salute his son/daughter on a nightly basis every time he took his 'medicine'.

tuxy

Off topic but I tried redbreast 12. Made me break out in a rash on my face, no food or drink has ever done that to me. Any whiskey expert have any idea what's in it that would cause that?
My guess is some kind of colouring they add to it but what do they add and why?

Seve OB

OU812 wrote: »

My dad is reaching a milestone birthday in January, He has a glass of whiskey a day for "medicinal purposes". Although not a connoisseur, he appreciates a quality product.

I 'm going through Dublin Airport next week & was thinking of picking up a decent bottle for him for his birthday (note: He drinks any whiskey, from Lidl to whatever). Have about €100 - €120 to spend, may stretch it a little if it's worthwhile.

I was leaning toward getting him a bottle of "Jack Daniels: Frank Sinatra Select" (loves Frankie), but am open to suggestions.

Before I finished reading your post I was going to recommend JD Sinatra

If your old man loves a bit of Frankie it makes it a bit more special.

I don't think you'll get a better reception from your old man.


Oh yes and I think you can buy in DA on your way out but leave it there and collect on your way home. Worth checking out.