Well I just went and got a bottle of 12yo Glenlivet!

Since visiting my good man hUGH on the weekend with bEN we enjoyed a tasting of 5 scotches, Speyside malts they were, and all slightly different characters, some jocular and gentle, some like a velvet gloved truncheon, but all worth the price of admission. Seemed to encourage us to drivel and laugh and think that we were being smartpantses. I took over my Dalwinnie courtesy of Dredgey, and it was a darker less subtle kind of drop, but lovely still. hUGH's knowledge seemed to know no bounds, it's a very new world which throws up unfamiliar nuances and there's quite an excitement with each new taste...

And the feeling dropping it slowly down the throat, it's a nice warming, very right for the wintry nights we have had here, in fact it's cheaper than running a kero heater and smells better too, plus you can feel flushed with the red cheeks, knowing you're being green too.

So, the Glenlivet:

First glass – left it with a dash of water in it for 12 minutes (no I wasn’t timing…) and it made me rather glad and all these smells started to emanate…

My freshman palate could only get lots of honey, such a gentle warmth on the palate and down the gullet, some pepper and a lovely richness with some savoury note there I couldn’t quite put the finger on.

Actually I related the experience to my father in the UK - him being rather partial to the odd tumbler of the single malt.

As the shot went on, suddenly I was less daunted by the scotch, decided that it is more gentle than JB or cougar or the bourbons.

So, go Scotch go!