[MM-MALTS-L] Australian Malt Whisky Competition

[cdaniels]

Hi Lex

The way it basically works is that one a competitor has registered and paid
the entry fee, the competition organizers release a list of 30 common
commercially available OBs about 4 months before the Competition.

Ideally, in preparation for the competition I'd try and taste and re-taste
all the whiskies on the list.  However buying 30 bottles of malt is beyond
my pocket so I made sure that I bought and wrote notes for the 'new'
whiskies on the list, basically those I didn't have any notes for.  I
memorize these notes as you're not allowed to take anything into the
competition with you other than what's in your head.

I ended up buying 12 and trusting 'palate memory' for the rest.

On the day they pick 10 names out of the 30 and then 8 of those end up in
numbered glasses on a tasting mat.

Having an extra two names makes things quite a bit more difficult as some of
the whiskies are very close in profile.

The reason for putting quite a lot of practice in beforehand is to try and
get what I call 'malt markers' for as many of the malts as possible.  To me,
some whiskies have particular characteristics that help me identify them and
on the other hand some are either very bland or can be chameleons that tend
to take on different characteristics in different company.

During the first round, there was only one that was a giveaway to an
experienced taster and that was the Bushmills 10. The grassy characters made
it stand out amongst a bunch of malt scotches.  The other one I was pretty
sure about was Glen Rothes Select Reserve - I get tinned peach and pear
syrup and found it on the day.  I was also pretty confident about Johnnie
Walker Green as there weren't any Islays on the table and JWG has a hint of
mustard cress and sterile bandages that suggests a little bit of Islay in
the vatting and my little bit of luck was working out that Whisky Number 6
was Balvenie 12 and not Strathisla 12, which are pretty close if you put
them side by side. It's much harder to work out which is which when one of
them isn't there as you're only referencing palate memory. I thought I'd
found Glenlivet 12 but it was actually Tamdhu NAS. Poured from the bottle
and nosed straight away, I wouldn't get them wrong, but if you let them sit
for about 20-30 minutes they do become similar as the slightly funky earthy
note in Tamdhu burns off and it gets much cleaner.

Two of us got 4 right. In the taste-off I got Bushmills 10 and Glenmorangie
10 right and once again misidentified Tamdhu NAS as Glenlivet 12.    

I've attached a link to the issue of Feints & Foreshots which has a review
of the Competition and an interview between myself and the Editor of F&F.

http://www.mwsoa.org.au/web_images/FEINTS_AND_FORESHOTS%2024%20Sept.pdf


If the link doesn't work google www.mwsoa.org.au and search for Feints and
Foreshots # 1 post Sept 2008 aka Edition #25.   

Craig Daniels
Chairman
Malt Whisky Society of Australia
Organisers of Australia's Fourth Malt Whisky Convention Hobart 28-30 August
2009 


-----Original Message-----
From: mm-malts-l-bounces at grsnet.net [mailto:mm-malts-l-bounces at grsnet.net]
On Behalf Of Kraaijeveld A.R.
Sent: Sunday, 2 November 2008 8:08 PM
To: MaltManiacs operated former 'MALT-L' Whisky List
Subject: RE: [MM-MALTS-L] Australian Malt Whisky Competition

Congratulations, Craig! And yes, please fill us in on how it all went.


slainte, Lex
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Fly, you greatest fool
Why can't you say what they want you to
Why can't you do what they taught you
And show what they wanted of you

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Rivers of milk are running dry
Can't you hear the dolphins crying?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dr Alex R Kraaijeveld
Lecturer in Ecology & Evolution
School of Biological Sciences
University of Southampton
Building 62, Room 6031, Boldrewood Campus
Southampton SO16 7PX
Tel: +44(0)23 80593436
Fax: +44(0)23 80594459
Email: arkraa at soton.ac.uk
Website: www.sbs.soton.ac.uk/staff/ark/ark.php
School Website: www.southampton.ac.uk/biosci

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

... men ought to be fully assured of the truth of the effect
before they venture to explicate the cause.
(Webster, 1677. The Displaying of Supposed Witchcraft)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
________________________________________
From: mm-malts-l-bounces at grsnet.net [mm-malts-l-bounces at grsnet.net] On
Behalf Of Davin de Kergommeaux [maltmaniacsdavin at gmail.com]
Sent: 01 November 2008 22:06
To: mm-malts-l at grsnet.net
Subject: [MM-MALTS-L] Australian Malt Whisky Competition

Does everyone know that among us we have the winner of the above-noted
competition?  Malts-L's own Craig Daniels won the competition earlier this
year, his second win as far as I know.  This is a competition where malts
are tasted blind and the winner is the person who guesses correctly the
largest number of originating distilleries.  It sounds pretty intense - they
have half an hour to sort them out and this year had to do a run-off to
break a tie.  Craig, if you're out there - care to fill us in on the
details?
Davin

p.s. - I'm deliberately asking this on Malts-L given the encouraging rumbles
a few weeks ago.


_______________________________________________
MM-MALTS-L mailing list
MM-MALTS-L at grsnet.net
http://lists.grsnet.net/mailman/listinfo/mm-malts-l




-- 
No virus found in this incoming message.
Checked by AVG. 
Version: 7.5.549 / Virus Database: 270.8.5/1755 - Release Date: 29/10/2008
5:27 PM