CDG Duty Free Wall of Whisky

Shopping for scotch at Duty Free locations isn't as easy as it sounds. Few Duty Free shops have a website where they list the different whiskies they sell. Many Duty Free locations have a very poor selection of whisky. Travelling to Paris, I wanted to know what whisky is available at the Charles de Gaulle Duty Free.

I wanted to come home from Paris with something special. I wanted something unavailable in North America, or Canada at the very least. I knew I was making a trip to La Maison du Whisky for one bottle most certainly. But I didn't know if I should buy a second, or take my chances and pick up my 2nd bottle at the CDG Duty Free. What if their selection was terrible?

My CDG Duty Free internet searches came up empty, so I asked on Tripadvisor. One fellow was aware that they sold the Macallan, but nobody else could offer anything. In fact, other people in that thread also began wondering what was available. I decided I'd help everyone out by posting some photos.

The Charles de Gaulle Duty Free was actually surprising. Their selection was the best I'd ever seen in a Duty Free store. Tags showed the price and compared it to common prices paid elsewhere in France. Glenlivet 21 y.o. was €94.40, compared to €107.50 elsewhere. Glenfiddich 12 was €34.90.

Here are some more from CDG, as of May 2012:
Balvenie 21 Portwood: €122
Chivas Regal 18 €80.10 (750ml) and €134.30 (1L)
Dalmore 18: €99
Highland Park 1990: €105
Johnnie Walker Double Black: €37.50 (1L)
Johnnie Walker Green: €48 (1L)
Johnnie Walker Gold: €60 (1L)
Johnnie Walker Blue: €166 (1L)

If you're looking for something I haven't listed like Jura, Cragganmore or Talisker, take a look at these photos I took. Photobucket will not allow me to upload a high quality image, so I've done my best to show as much as I can. Click on the links and you will see what's available and, in some cases, the price.

CDG wall of whisky 1
CDG wall of whisky 2
CDG wall of whisky 3
CDG wall of whisky 4
CDG wall of whisky 5

The biggest surprise for me was The Balvenie 40 year old. I'd photographed it earlier at Les Halles. Check out that hefty price tag. It was available at the CDG Duty Free at the bargain price of €3000.

So world travellers, there you go. I hope I've been able to help.

La Maison du Whisky, Paris

The LCBO's Whisky Shop is a valiant effort to duplicate what France's La Maison du Whisky perfected decades earlier. The Paris shop opened in 1956 and sells extremely limited, special and rare bottlings of whisky along with many regulars.

After an hour or so of walking in the rain, I found LMDW tucked down a little street north of the Champs d'Elysees, just west of La Madeleine. 20 Rue d'Anjou to be exact. It's a beautiful corner store filled with beautiful rare bottles, with a beautiful custom "MW" push to open the door.

When I entered I spun around, a la Julie Andrews, to take in the views of all that was on offer. I guess my excitement was apparent. Despite being dressed in my laziest pair of jeans and grungy old running shoes the amazing staff seemed genuinely happy I was there. Like I was an old friend.

I realize how cliche that sounds but it's difficult to explain the feeling when I was allowed into their private collection room to take photos. It's a small room with bottles to the ceiling, so I used my wide angle lens to capture a few that meant something to me. I can only assume they were for sale, but I didn't ask.

Although a small store by North American standards, La Maison du Whisky is full of incredible bottles. How incredible? What do they have? How about a Glenfarclas Family Cask 1965 just shy of 500 Euros? Or the 1957 Auchentoshan 50 year old? Or Glenmorangie Pride?

If you want it, La Maison du Whisky (probably) has it. Unless you happen to be looking for the 1975 Auchentoshan 35 year old.

Sorry. I bought the very last one - the display bottle.

The Balvenie DoubleWood 12 year Single Malt

Every time I try a new scotch I learn something. The more I drink, the more I learn. Sounds wrong, but it's true.

I have very few friends who drink whisky. In fact, only three do. That doesn't leave too many opportunities to talk about or try new ones. I asked a friend what her favourite scotch was at the moment. The Balvenie DoubleWood was her quick reply. The packaging leaves no mystery as to where the name DoubleWood comes from. It has been matured in two different casks; 12 years in traditional oak whisky casks, followed by a few months in European oak sherry casks.

When my parents returned from Florida, they bought me a bottle of The Balvenie DoubleWood at the Duty Free. One litre bottle, $50.

On the nose I detected a fruity, slightly strawberryish note. It was sweet and very warm.

The taste was similar. It was fruity and sweet, a little bit like honey-covered strawberries and apples, along with a hint of wood. It sounds contradictory, but it has both rich and mellow qualities. A splash of water brought out more "fruit salad."

The finish was long. It was sweet but dry (the sherry), very mellow and a bit nutty & smoky. It's excellent all around, but if I were stuck on a desert island, I'd probably take Auchentoshan Three Wood.

What I've learned is that I tend to like whiskies with a sherry finish. I'm looking forward to trying everything in the current Balvenie lineup, and anything else David Stewart dreams up.

DoubleWood is like a no-nonsense DeLorean. It's not a flashy turbo and it hasn't been lowered. But it has all of the updates done and no cracks in the dash.

Duty Free: $50
1 litre
43% (86 proof)

www.thebalvenie.com

Why Crispin Glover Was Fired

Crispin Glover isn't normal. Some say he's a recluse. I can understand why that rumor started. He hasn't exactly been in too many summer blockbusters lately and his autograph is a tough one to get.

I met Crispin Hellion Glover this week, in Toronto. I had a preconceived notion he'd be wild and loud. Zany even. And his performance (of his books) was exactly that. We then watched his film, What Is It? and attended a Q&A session. During that lengthy period he only answered a handful of questions, but his passion for and knowledge of the film industry were obvious.

Important to him more than money was ethics, both business and personal. He recounted his firing from Back To The Future.

For years, at DCS shows, Bob Gale told our group Crispin's demand for the same salary as Michael J. Fox was the primary reason (among many) for his firing. Crispin tells it differently.

According to Crispin, he was fired for questioning a number of things in Back to the Future Part II, including scenes of the alternate 1985 where the families were rich, and had black house slaves. He said the message portrayed was that money would buy happiness, something inappropriate to convey to kids.

The movie was undeniably edited, but Crispin was gone. He admited he was young and idealistic at the time. When he confronted Bob Zemeckis about making the script changes, he recalled Zemeckis saying: "Crispin, I know you like to make weird movies. I've made weird movies too. There's one called Used Cars. And you know what happened after I made that movie? I didn't work for FOUR YEARS! I want to be rich!"

Take what you will from that.

He and Zemeckis have since reconciled, and he continues to work in the film industry. But his zeal lies with his own work. What is it? is full of things that are wrong. Things the viewer should be questioning. Actors with down-syndrome kill snails (it's real) and attack each other in a cemetery. They bury a muse alive. Puppets present (actual) racist albums and Charles Manson's (actual) music plays as naked women in monkey masks do sexual things to Steven C. Stewart who (truly) has cerebral palsy.

And then there is Nazi Shirley Temple.

You've never seen anything like it. If he comes to your city, watch the movie in awe at how his mind works. Crispin Glover isn't normal.

A Whisky Contest for Bender

"Good sir, what has your Bender costume been up to lately?"
- Random Internet People

In a word (plus an article of speech), a contest! Bender's been battling for one of the coveted top five positions over at World Whisky Day's photo contest. Master Blender Richard Paterson will then choo-choo-choose the winner from those five photos.

During the first week I was actually surprised to find myself in the top five but that didn't last long. Over the Easter weekend my photo slipped to sixth and then seventh place despite Blair Bowman himself connoting on Facebook that my photo was brilliant!

It took some perseverance, but I pulled through and am currently mid-pack of the top five.

Many of the photos in the running are really great. Excellent even. And I'd be happy just to finish in the top five. But let's face it. It would be even sweeter if I actually won that fantastic prize.

Can Bender pull it off? I think so. After all, my photo encompasses more of the whisky-drinking marketplace than the others, as mine is the only top photo to feature women. And I am sure Mr. Paterson recognizes that the whisky market is more than men. Because someone wise enough to have blended what's been declared the world's best blended scotch in TWO prestigious competitions is surely wise enough to include men, women AND robots.

I sincerely thank everyone who has voted for me. A HUGE thumbs up from your favourite spirit-chugging robot, Bender!

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You can click here to see what Blair Bowman said.
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Update May 2012: My photo did not win. The winner was a great outdoor photo by Klemen Saje from Slovenia. My congratulations to him!

World Whisky Day 2012

Tuesday March 27, 2012 was the first ever World Whisky Day (despite the fact that it's also the 5th "International Whisky Day", a lower-key celebration, started by friends of the late revered reviewer Michael Jackson).

It trended on Twitter and the website even crashed! The idea was simply for people to get together and enjoy some good whisky, anywhere in the world. What's better than that?

Although that was a rhetorical question, it actually has an answer; a contest!

The prize offered is a bottle of Whyte & Mackay 30 year old blended whisky. It's not available at the LCBO so I checked a few websites and found its value to be between 137 and 162 British pounds. That's nearly $300 Cdn. Not too shabby!

And the contest isn't over yet. In fact, it hasn't even started. Deadline for submitting a photo was March 31st. Now, the folks at World Whisky Day are going to upload the photos to the WWD page on Facebook. The five photos with the most 'likes' will then be judged by Whyte & Mackay’s Master Blender, Richard Paterson.

I decided to invite a few friends over and don my old Bender costume for a photo op. After all, Bender is fuelled by alcohol so it seemed appropriate. So what does Bender drink? Well, he definitely enjoys The Balvenie Doublewood. And so did the meatbags. Happy World Whisky Day! Or International Whisky Day!

Jameson Irish Whiskey

With St. Patrick's Day just behind us, it's about time I got around to my first Irish whiskey review. Although there are countless Jameson reviews, mine is likely a bit different and I suspect most people will disagree with me.

Because of all the triple distilled scotch I've been drinking of late, I thought Jameson's might have a similar quality. (Irish whiskey is all triple distilled, helping distinguish it from other whiskies.)

There aren't a lot of choices when it comes to miniatures or small 200mL bottles at the LCBO, but that's exactly what I found. 200mL bottle, $10.

If I could sum up Jameson's blended whiskey in one word it would be "weird." This is a strange whiskey to me. On the nose I detect vegetables. After a butterscotch punch in the face, I get peas and corn.

The taste was similar. The butterscotch was very subdued, but I did get strange sweet vegetable flavours, some floral, very thin honey and raw corn-on-the-cob. It went down easy thanks to the triple distilling. Quite smooth. I could get used to this if I had to drink on a budget. Maybe.

The finish was dry and sweet, not very long. I tried and tried, but it was a bit of a mystery to me. I couldn't really detect any specific flavours. Does whiskey have a generic finish flavour? If so, Jameson's has it.

LCBO: $10
200 mL
40% (80 proof)

Toronto St. Patrick's Day Parade 2012

Toronto held its 25th annual St. Patrick's Day Parade on Sunday in the record heat, under clear blue skies, drawing approximately 300,000 cheering spectators.

I'm not sure how the decision came to be, but sitting in the staging area with seven other DeLoreans, my buddy Ken told me I was lead car. "We're saving the gold one until the end," he said. "It'll be the pot o' gold!"

And so, sometime after noon, I rolled forward out of the St. George Street staging area and onto Bloor with a pack of DeLoreans behind me. "DeLoreans! Attack formation!" I yelled. The sun glinted off our stainless panels and the crowds stared in awe. They took photos, video, and cheered. As we cruised by, doors up like a flock of metal seagulls, they asked questions, ran along side us, and even jumped inside for a quick photo.

We were happy to oblige. We were mini celebrities without the drawbacks! No expensive security, no bulletproof glass, just the friendliest bunch of proud Irish folk and wannabees smiling & waving.

Yonge is downhill, and we enjoyed the chance to coast in neutral. Rounding the corner onto Queen my clutch leg was aching. As I approached the review stand and saluting officers, I realized the end of the BEST day was at hand. That's when a City TV news crew saw me.

Peter Kim did a take as I rolled alongside him. He didn't like it and attempted another. He then asked if he could sit in the car. He hopped in, we talked for a quick second and they did another couple of takes. He interviewed me very briefly, thanked me and exited the car. The interview was cut (hopefully not because of my supreme retardation), but the rest of the clip made the 6 p.m. newscast! You can view it here.

What a way to make my parade debut!

Made In Ireland

When someone says Ireland to you, what comes to mind? Triple Distilled Irish whiskey? Sure. Four-leaf clovers? Sure. Bare-knuckle boxing? Maybe. But what about cars?

One of the most loved, well-known cars on the planet was lovingly built in Ireland. Think about that for a second. The United States is famous for open roads and the Mustang. Germany's got the Autobahn and BMW. Italy's busting at the seams with all manner of supercar like Ferrari and Lamborghini.

And Ireland has the DeLorean.

2012 will see Toronto's 25th St. Patrick's Day parade and if the weather holds there will be 10 gorgeous stainless steel cars smack in the middle. We'll be cruising, doors up, in front of the 300,000 spectators.

In preparation for the parade, I have begun construction of the banner that will adorn my windshield. I purchased green and white Bristol board (sorry! English, I know) at the Dollar store for 50 cents. The lettering I'm cutting will spell out: MADE IN IRELAND. And if that doesn't attract enough attention, I've also acquired a jaunty little green top hat to add some flair to my dull personality.

So if I've disrespected you with my rotten rants and half-witted insults and you'd like to fight it out like an Irishman, I'll be cruising down Yonge St. Sunday, March 11. In fact, here's the parade route, so you can thoroughly plan your attack. After you beat the snot out of me, just do me a favour and buy me a Redbreast 12 and I'm sure we'll be fast friends.

Throwback Sody Pop

Wow, I feel like I'm power-blogging with my pretty regular and absolutely whopping one-post-a-week schedule. You'd almost think it was 2007 or something!

I know Throwback Pepsi and the other retro beverages are old news. I'm not trying to be some soda hipster breaking the news or bragging that I'd bought it X many years ago.

There are two types of people in this world: Soda pop connoisseurs, people who're indifferent, and people who can't count. A friend, a self-proclaimed pop connoisseur, always offered me a Throwback version of Pepsi, Mountain Dew or Dr Pepper. And I always accepted. After all, they contain less sugar than their high fructose corn syrup counterparts, yet taste better. It's like magic!

Ah, if only we could infuse the retro magic of the 80s into everything we eat, drink, touch and drive. I'm about to go off on a small tangent about how cars today have the most uncomfortable fake "sporty" suspension and the numbest steering in history, so if you don't want to read about why I love my iconic 1980's sports car more than anything any manufacturer is putting out today, you can skip to the next paragraph.

Too late.

Oh I nearly forgot. I'm also mad. My Throwback supply is nearly diminished and there have been no reinforcements sent to Canada from PepsiCo.

A press release I read somewhere indicated PepsiCo applied for and was granted permission from the FDA to add Throwback soda pop to its permanent product line. So they'd better make haste and ship those bitches up here soon. I need a premium product to mix my musty Maker's Mark with.

Auchentoshan Three Wood Single Malt Scotch

Whisky is expensive. And the longer it sits in barrels or casks, the more expensive it gets. You're not really paying for the sweet liquid inside, but rather time. As they say, time is money. Think of it as renting space to store something until you're ready to get it. You're also paying for the expertise of the Master Distiller as he nurtures it over those years.

In Canada whiskies get even MORE expensive when the "free healthcare" taxes are included. So, when one has fallen in love with it like I have, one has to make very wise purchasing decisions. No one wants to get stuck with a $100 bottle they don't like. Thankfully there are people like Ryan at Value Whisky Reviews to help. And there's more help at the LCBO. Every 30 days they put their juice on sale, but the savings are typically not much more than $1.50 a bottle. If you're lucky, you'll save $5, and if you've got horseshoes up your ass, it might be $10.

I loved my Auchentoshan 12 y.o. so much that I was willing to take a chance and buy the Auchentoshan Three Wood at full price. It is the only other Auchentoshan available in Ontario and I was dying to try another triple distilled scotch. Did the LCBO's devious little plan work? You bet. Full price: $77.

Three Wood is special in that it has been matured in three different casks. First it spends an entire decade in ex-bourbon casks, then a year in ex-Oloroso sherry casks and finally, finished for 1 year in ex-Pedro Ximenez sherry casks.

The sherry gives the Three Wood a deep bronze colour, and more. The nose made my mind race, searching through file after file of scent memories, trying to find a match. Wood, butterscotch and grapes, and maybe more. It seems similar to the 12 year old only amped up and fruitier.

The taste is very much influenced by the sherry casks. It's an amazingly rich mix of dark fruit and sweetness. Mulberries, grapes, maybe a hint of tobacco and toffee, followed by the same tiny punch of smoke as the 12 year. No, a bit more smoke. Just perfect.

The finish is dry thanks to the sherry casks, a bit grassy, fruity and long. It's not very strong, just perfect. Again, it's similar to the 12 year, only drier and smokier. Even after brushing my teeth I was able to taste it! The finish really is fantastic.

After my first drink I was in love. To me, this is worth a bit of a premium over the regular 12 year. It's like paying extra for a DeLorean... because it has the gas flap hood! Huzzah!

LCBO: $77
750ml
43% (86 proof)

www.auchentoshan.com

Wild Turkey American Honey

I've been drinking Southern Comfort since I was a wee child. It is still one of the staples in my house, but in recent years I had become bored with it. About the only thing I hadn't mixed it with, was milk. Scratch that. Just tried it. Don't do it.

And so, on a Vegas vacation a few years back, I found myself shopping at a grocery store in Henderson with my friends. While they shopped for nutritious things to sustain us, I took a detour into alcohol alley. I asked one of the employees if there was a bourbon-style drink that was sweet like Southern Comfort yet not quite as sweet. I wanted something more bourbony. One of the suggestions he made was Wild Turkey American Honey.

That sounded great to me, and I admit since it was not available in Canada, the cool factor (read: "I have something you don't, nya nya!") played into it a little too. I bought a 750ml bottle for the equivalent of $26 Cdn.

American Honey is Wild Turkey bourbon mixed with real honey. And the nose doesn't lie. I smell bee barf, nectar, a strong sweet citrus, and something bitter like orange peel.

The taste is just a tad different. The light golden sunshine liqueur is hugely sweet, but not like Southern Comfort. It almost has a candy-like sweetness to it, honey, a faint bourbon quality and fleeting citrus.

The finish is sweet and dry, I still taste honey and something else. Something weird. Kiwi?

The honey overpowers the bourbon, but not entirely. And because of its versatility, it's pretty great. Bourbon and Scotch drinkers won't want to drink this neat, but if you're new to this it is a very good place to ease into your whisky sipping journey. And it's even perfect for mixing, adding a sweet corny honey taste to cola or root beer, and probably ginger ale and milk too. Yes, super sweet American Honey is perfect for the bourbon wuss.

NV grocery store: $26
750ml
35.5% (71 proof)

www.wildturkey.com
www.americanhoney.com

Maker's Mark Kentucky Straight Bourbon

I'm back again, polluting the internet with my amateur whisky reviews. While my posts aren't ill-conceived, the notion that I know whisky probably is. However, whisky is a very personal thing.

Reading reviews I find I'm sometimes baffled by the elaborate or curious descriptions given. Chocolate? Creme brulee? Baked goods? In whisky? Well, sure. And I probably smell things that other people don't too. It's just how your brain interprets the scent.

On my way home from Costa Rica, which smells like bananas and Mr. Clean Magic Erasers, I made a pit stop at the airport's mega-tiny Duty Free. When I say small, I mean it. I've been in bathroom stalls bigger than this place.

The store was so small, I was not able to shop. I had to get in line and shuffle along as the line moved forward, viewing what was on the shelves as I passed them. After about 10 minutes, I saw the very last 750ml bottle of Maker's Mark and grabbed it. Duty Free price: $26.

By most accounts Maker's Mark Straight Kentucky Bourbon is aged between 6 and 7 years. The rich orangey amber bourbon is a "small batch" whisky which means each batch is made from 20 or less barrels.

When I peeled the trademark red wax off the top and poured it, the nose wasn't what I expected: Thick wood, almonds, a hint of spice, and alcohol. But it was all fairly muted. I tried many times, but found it difficult to get a smell of something good and solid.

The taste was much better yet still simple. Caramel, vanilla, pepper and Portuguese cork notepad. Wha??? Yeah, I also noted a very odd flavour - it tastes the way my Portuguese cork notepad smells; kind of musty, but not in a bad way.

The finish was spicy and peppery, which is strange because there's no rye in this bourbon. I'm not sure where the taste comes from, but it's very distinct and strong.

Overall, I didn't like this one as much as I thought I would. I guess the hype this brand has built up around itself backfired. I discussed this with a coworker and he convinced me to give it another chance. But over and over again, there was something about it I didn't love. It really threw me. So I decided to *gasp* try mixing it.

I made two of my favourite drinks, the first using Retro Pepsi, the second using Rootbeer. The Maker's Mark added a creamy vanilla flavour to each one, making them THE best Pepsi & bourbon and Rootbeer & bourbon I've ever had. They were so fantastic in fact, that I will happily sin again. If you think I'm a monster, leave me a comment and let me know!

Duty Free: $26
750ml
45% (90 proof)

www.makersmark.com

Four Roses Kentucky Straight Bourbon

In my first house, one day, I suddenly became aware of a gas leak. I called our gas company who sent a man to our house with some sort of portable gas detection tricorder. I showed him where I could smell the gas and he pointed his tricorder around until he found the leak.

"You can SMELL that?" he asked incredulously. The leak was so small, he said, it was nearly undetectable by his tricorder. So you'd THINK I have a good lil sniffer, eh? Not really. And what does smelling gas have to do with whisky? The 'nose' (sniffing the scents of the dram) is half the experience! But just because my shnoz is good for gas doesn't mean anything in the whisky world.

Today I'm taking a step backwards from my Auchentoshan review and talking about Four Roses Kentucky Straight Bourbon. If you read that rookie whisky review, which you most certainly didn't based on the staggering number of comments, you'll already know that I don't know what I'm doing and you're about half way through a big ol' mess.

Preferring to spend as little as possible without leaving my country or robbing any old grannies, I had a friend snag me a 750ml bottle of Four Roses bourbon at his LCBO at significant savings. Sale price: $23.

Four Roses has recently returned to Canada from a decades-long vacation, so I was excited to try the medium copper coloured bourbon back to back with my others. Opening the bottle, I was intoxicated by the aroma, which was primarily of sweet cedar mixed with a slight sherry note. After a time I could detect flowers too - but what kind? I dunno. White ones.

The taste was very similar: strong wood, floral, honey. Sweet on the tip of my tongue, then got hotter as it moved back. It finished with more barrel wood, a little sweet & spicy.

If you love the smell of fresh cut wood (who doesn't?), this might be a super bourbon for you. It's like a bunch of beardy lumberjacks bottled sweet Alpine forest just for you. Thank you lumberjacks! I'm going to have another. And maybe grow a beard.

LCBO clearance: $23
750ml
40% (80 proof)

www.fourroses.us