In continuation to my previous post, Black Dog Triple Gold has its own tasting notes. While we may discover some of the ingredients, an average human cannot discern more than 30% of the ingredients that go into anything, well, unless he has made it himself. While you try to get all the juicy details that may have gone into making the scotch, below are the tasting notes of my favorite Black Dog Triple Gold Reserve.

COLOR: Enchanting Antique Gold

NOSE: Lovely balance of matured wood and rich malt touches the senses. Smoothness of Vanilla and butterscotch are skillfully embedded on layers of honey, creamy caramel, cinnamon and marzipan with a subtle hint of citrus fruits. Delicate aromas of cracked spiced pepper are perceived even in the rich complexity of the blend.

PALATE: Elegant wood flavors caress the palate as they slowly unfold. Sweet whispers of caramelized peaches and vanilla add to the complexity of wood elements. Even in its intriguing complexity, all flavors are wonderfully balanced with a delicate spread of medium sweetness at the end.

Now while you wonder what could have gone into making the Black Dog Triple Gold Reserve “The Black Dog Triple Gold Reserve”, let me add that it is no simple process! While the whisky is a blend of Single Malt and Single Grain Whisky, the maturation process and the art of blending followed is entirely different. No longer is the whisky subject to an age statement. The single malt and single grain are matured separately in Red Oak Bourbon casks. Once they reach maturity, the scotch is blended by a master blender who holds the secret running in his family heirloom since time immemorial.

This blended scotch is once again left to mature in a Oloroso Sherry Casks. This triple process of maturing not only brings out a uniqueness to it, but also brings out a lot of flavors that would have otherwise gone unknown or unnoticed!

Disclaimer: The content featured above is only for people aged above 25 years. Underage drinking is illegal and against the law. Drink sensibly and carefully and please never drive under the influence of alcohol.

Several people whom I have met have often asked me what the right way to taste a scotch is. While different people have different ways, perceptions and taste recognitions, the right way is often different from what we generally follow. While most of us prefer to have Scotch or Whisky with ice/cold water/soda, the right method follows a much more mellowed and sensible approach. It involves caressing the smell, rolling the liquid and much more like detailed below.

No matter what Scotch you’re drinking, there’s definitely a best way to taste. The four things to look for are color, nose, palate, and finish. Don’t just pick up your glass and look at it to get the color, but hold it up to natural sunlight or a strong white light.

While many people drink single-malt Scotch from a typical whisky glass, the proper glass to “nose” with is in fact a sherry copita, which resembles a tulip. It is perhaps not the most masculine shape for such a masculine spirit, but practical and effective. With your mouth open so that you can breathe non-boozy air while you sniff, take a long pull of the Scotch and see what flavors you smell.

Adding water opens up the flavors and cuts down on the alcohol burn. The master distillers we’ve met always use a splash of quality-bottled water and sometimes even ice so that they can taste the different phases of the Scotch as the ice melts.

Some experts even claim that a sip of strong coffee or bite of dark chocolate helps in the appreciation process. We say, why not?

The palate is how it feels and tastes when you take your first sip, and the aftertaste and finish are the flavors you get afterward. No matter what, take your time.

Source: http://www.askmen.com/fine_living/wine_dine_archive_60/81b_wine_dine.html

Disclaimer: The content featured above is only for people aged above 25 years. Underage drinking is illegal and against the law. Drink sensibly and carefully and please never drive under the influence of alcohol.

Post dinner desserts is one thing that every person would look forward to. Cakes, pastries, puddings etc. are all very common. However, there are very few desserts that go well with Black Dog Triple Gold Reserve. Scotches are generally paired very well with chocolates and anything to do with chocolate. But that is not always the case. There are many other kinds of desserts that go well with Scotches.

Here is a short description of what goes well with what kind of Scotches.

For smokier whiskies:

Dark Chocolate

The bitter flavors of dark chocolate bring out the sweetness of a smokier whiskey, and enhance the flavor. In turn, the smoky whiskey adds robust flavoring and the punch of alcohol to the chocolate. Try both a grittier chocolate like Mast Brothers and a smoother chocolate like Green & Black’s.

Even Better: dark chocolate covered espresso beans.

The smoothness of the chocolate, the grittiness of the bean, the aroma of the whiskey. This is a magical combination. You can find them at Trader Joe’s and Ghirardelli also has one.

Pecan Maple Pie

Pie is great, and when pairing with an earthy scotch, we look to a pie with sweet, earthy flavors. The pecans give the nutty body, and the maple gives natural sweetness.

For fruitier whiskies:

Sliced Fresh Pears

Pears are the slightly tangy cousin of the more common apple, and that fruity tang makes all the difference with the strong flavors of a whiskey. Take care to choose a ripe and crisp pear, slice, and enjoy!

Cheese Plate

A good cheese plate is delectable and satisfying–like ice cream for adults. Your cheese plate should have at least three cheeses, and full-flavored cheeses will make a better pair with a whiskey. Here are some suggestions: Choose different cheeses that are within the same family, be it blue cheeses, Gouda, or cheddar. Or, choose one cheese of cow’s milk, one of sheep’s milk, and one of goat’s milk. Also think about textures, and you could choose one soft cheese, one hard cheese, and one in the middle. Your local deli manager will be able to help.

Source: http://brode.co/pair-scotch-dessert/#.U3jpyNySw1k

Disclaimer: The content featured above is only for people aged above 25 years. Underage drinking is illegal and against the law. Drink sensibly and carefully and please never drive under the influence of alcohol.

John McLaughlin was in India and I had to be there. There is something mesmerizing about this idol of mine who is spiritually very Indian! He performed in Chennai on the 4^th of April, 2014 and Mumbai on the 5^th of April. Luckily enough I was in Chennai on the night of the 4^th of April due to an official meeting. Travel was never a prerogative to me but then since I was there, I managed to source a pass through a friend who was in Chennai already. I had to pester and butter him before he actually agreed to go across and get a pass for me. Online, all the passes were sold out and there was no way I could have gotten in. VIP pass was what the need of the hour was and he managed it for me.

The event was sponsored by Black Dog and known as Black Dog Easy Evening with John McLaughlin and the Fourth Dimension. This was his first tour in Asia in the last 5 years and with his longest standing band – The 4th Dimension, featuring multi-instrumentalist Gary Husband on Piano and drums, bassist ‘extra-ordinaire’ Etienne M`Bappe, and powerhouse Indian drummer Ranjit Barot.

The event, sponsored by Black Dog Easy Evenings, meant that patrons and connoisseurs would be lapping up an evening of refreshments and straight-up jazz fusion. The mini-bar set up by the event sponsors, serving the all new Black Dog Triple Gold Reserve, sure did keep spirits alive. But absolutely nothing could steal the limelight away from these legendary showstoppers who were about to mesmerize us for the next few hours.

In his usual playful self, McLaughlin set off, digging into his setlist. Since the band is currently touring for their latest album, The Boston Record, Saturday’s set was packed with many compositions off the album. His guitar yielded the deepest and most intricate of jazz scales moving from ‘Raju’, ‘Little Miss Valley’, ‘Senor C.S.’, etc. to ‘Abbaji’ and many others. ‘Abbaji’ had Ranjit Barot stepping in on vocals, with backing vocals provided by the rest of the members. It was a confluence of several kindred spirits – not just genres, but different emotions as well. A land where the soulful, yet, turbulent sounds of the electric guitar meet the bouncy rhythm of the bass and the fluid, clinking keyboards – all held together by the percussive, pounding notes of the drums.

While their set came to an end, the band bowed and exited the stage, leaving the crowd hungry for ‘that one encore song’. People just refused to vacate the auditorium. I am sure McLaughlin hit those notes on the first chord, and somebody in the crowd yelled, ‘You Know You Know’…. What next? The shrieks wouldn’t just stop for the next few minutes. The next four minutes was a roller coaster ride back in the 70’s, when I wasn’t even born, after which they finally exited the stage.

I was so deep in my thoughts that before I knew it, I was back at the hotel with thoughts about work filling me up deep!

Image Credits: http://www.liveinstyle.com/detail/black-dog/lis/we-know-we-know-john-mclaughlin-the-4th-dimension-live-from-st.-andrews-184

Disclaimer: The content featured above is only for people aged above 25 years. Underage drinking is illegal and against the law. Drink sensibly and carefully and please never drive under the influence of alcohol.

I often have chocolate cravings. I dunno but at such a time, the kid in me is generally craving for chocolate so much so that I feel like throwing a tantrum. However, the combination of Liquor and Chocolate is one such heavenly combo that you cannot stop having until you are forced to. How about combining Black Dog Triple Gold Reserve and my favorite chocolate in one. Something that I can carry anywhere and have any place! I found one such recipe on the net and am sharing the same with you!

Liquor filled chocolates

Yield: 90

1. Prepare chocolate shells in molds which will provide a stable vessel. (Do not use molds with a rounded top). Set aside.

2. Bring water and sugar to a boil and boil for a full minute. Let cool to room temperature.

3. Measure 8 oz (240 g) of the cooled syrup (set remaining amount aside). Add an equal amount of Grand Marnier to the measured syrup.

4. Place a piece of candied orange peel in each chocolate cup. If using a very small piece chances are that the peel will float to the surface. Use a small amount of crystallized chocolate to “Adhere” the candied peel in the cup and thus prevent floating.

5. Fill the cups with the liquor syrup ensuring no dripping on the edges.

6. Cream the butter with the fondant and warm the mixture to make it very runny.

7. Pipe a thin layer of the mixture onto the syrup which will automatically flout to the surface. Allow to firm at room temperature-this will only take minutes.

8. Seal the chocolates with a small amount of chocolate thinned with the addition of 15% of grapeseed oil.

9. The chocolates do not need to be refrigerated.

Source and Image credits to Chef Eddy: http://www.chefeddy.com/2010/09/liquor-filled-chocolates/

Disclaimer: The content featured above is only for people aged above 25 years. Underage drinking is illegal and against the law. Drink sensibly and carefully and please never drive under the influence of alcohol.

Dinner at our place is generally a very quiet and formal affair where liquor is not really a part of the food. However, when we are out with friends, we try to make best use of the freedom that we get. Most of the time it is being boisterous and loud with little care about what people have to think about us. It is for this reason that we generally choose a place that has no qualms hosting us.

There was this one time the last month when it was a guys’ night out and all of us boys from college had met up to have fun and catch up on a little about each other’s life. After all, we could not make it to meeting every day! Going with the way we generally end up deciding where to go, we ended up meeting at a friend’s place. He was one of those lucky few who still lived a bachelor life. Whenever we pestered him asking why he was not getting married, he always told us he was too young to get hitched!

That aside, we ended up ordering spicy Andhra style meals from one of the famous restaurants near his house and we pooled in for a couple of bottles of Black Dog Triple Gold Reserve. We were all meeting in the evening and had already planned to spend the night at his place. So there was no worry about driving responsibly or about getting back home to the warmth!

The food arrived and the bottles were opened. Spicy Andhra food and TGR went as well as us friends with each other. Mixing like salt in water, you can never make out how the two are different, yet they give each other a body and a great taste!

Disclaimer: The content featured above is only for people aged above 25 years. Underage drinking is illegal and against the law. Drink sensibly and carefully and please never drive under the influence of alcohol.

One of the biggest arguments that my brother and I have is about pairing Scotch with food. While he believes that it would go best with only spicy foods I have a belief that it is not necessary that the two items should always be made for each other. There are some food items that compare with scotch like the earth and water. The two never seem to mix. However, if you look closely, water is found within earth and there are several particles of earth that are often mixed in water without realizing.

Something similar would be about mixing ice cream and Triple Gold Reserve. Some people may think of this as a weird combination. However, I do not think so. We have all had a coke float at least once in our life. This combination that I am talking about is something similar. While Scotch can be had on the rocks, with water or soda; there are several of us who love to mix it with Coke/Pepsi/Thums Up!

Now this is where the twist comes! When you pair an ice cream with scotch, you get a divine combination of something that’s sweet yet bitter. Something that will awaken your senses, yet mellow it down. There are some things that we must try as a hatke. It makes life a lot more fun. This kind of a float can be had at parties and is sure to have your guests eating out of your hand and even asking for a second, third or maybe even a fourth serving.

Let me know what you think of such a combination. Interesting, outrageous or down right out of this world! Personally, this happens to be one of my favorites when I am alone and with only my adult friends and no kids around!!!

Disclaimer: The content featured above is only for people aged above 25 years. Underage drinking is illegal and against the law. Drink sensibly and carefully and please never drive under the influence of alcohol.