FIX MY DRINK
Each week in this space, we better our beverages together.
For those who associate scotch with heaviness, oiliness and smoke, talk of lighter options probably sounds oxymoronic — something like “diet lard.” Fair enough, but some scotches are lighter- bodied than others. Some reek of smoky peat and others don’t, and plenty are seasoned for many years in sherry barrels, which lends them a sweet and Christmascakey flavour, not to mention an oily character that’s potentially off-putting to some.
It’s the time of year for Robert Burns celebrations, when novices and occasional scotch drinkers join the whisky fiends in a toast to the dead poet. Many people who are new to scotch will follow the common advice to start with something light, and for some will prove be most fruitful course. But don’t restrict your explorations on the say- so of common wisdom. On the basis of personal experience, I say plenty of whisky newbies enjoy smoky, spicy, or sherrydrenched scotches — they can be easier, in their heavy-stepping ways, to “understand.”
Whenever the fancy to try lighter, smoke- free scotches strikes you, a few brands will probably be there waiting — certain big ones seem to be everywhere. One ubiquitous whisky is The Glenlivet 12 ( creamy, custard, slight citrus), which is reportedly slated to disappear from the market; its replacement, The Glenlivet Founders Reserve, comes off a bit flatter-footed. Another light and popular number is Glenmorangie Original (citrus, other fruits and gentle vanilla). If you’re inclined to lighter whisky, keep their names in your back pocket. And I’m otherwise sticking to recommending single malts here, but popul ar, l i ght blends i nclude Dewar’s, Ballantine’s and airy-as-meringue Cutty Sark.
Looking at some deeper cuts now, every whisky fiend can name Auchentoshan as one of the lightest single malts, which it partially achieves via an unusual third distillation, an extra palate cleansing over the usual two. Auchentoshan American Oak ($ 60, Ontario prices given throughout) picks up some of the banana-coconut character of the American white oak bourbon barrels in which it is aged, and clovey spice too — but not too much.
Glengoyne is making a renewed push to win hearts and minds in Canada. Some older expressions are luxuriously redolent of oily, spicy sherry, whereas t he 12- year- old ($77) makes its own youthful statement: vanilla and green apple on the nose, and a silkysmooth feel on the palate and just a tickle of spice.
Finally, a repeat recommendation from last year: for people who take their tributes to Robert Burns literally, there’s The Robert Burns Arran Single Malt ($53), which offers a light profile of nuts, apple and not-overpowering sherry. Funnily enough, Burnsie himself never would have recognized anything this light as whisky, having lived in a time when the stuff was little more than rotgut firewater.