ralfy review 733 Extras - The colour of Bowmore !
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- Опубліковано 2 лип 2018
- whiskyscience.blogspot.com/201...
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Amazing that your caramel added to water came out looking virtually identical to the 18yo Bowmore!
. . . real-time reproduction ! which lets you see just HOW MUCH E150a can be in your dram.
50 shades of Caramel
I actually don't drink Scotch whiskey, but I find Ralfy and his videos fascinating, entertaining, relaxing, and informative.
Dalmore is a giant culprit as well. I am sure Dalmore owns stock in E150. All distilleries should be forced to put E150 and CHILLFILTERED in huge letters on the label of their whiskies.
I absolutely dislike dalmores presentation and marketing. I don't care if it tastes good- It's overpriced and panders to uninformed rich people who buy by looks.
Good grief that Bowmore looks like it’s laced with freakin’ CRANBERRY juice. Nearly cherry red on my iPhone. Yech. And chill filtered? Seriously? There ought to be a law, there should.
A pure product, with no funny business, honest labeling, modest sensible packaging, with the producer investing in the smell & taste rather than flannel & foo-foo folderol. Respect the Malt & respect the Consumer. Is that asking too damn much?
Apparently, yes :-(
The trouble is the marketing types know their public all too well, and know that what will sell to the mass market is precisely "piss-farty" packaging, fake colouring and superficiality generally. Us "customers" (not consumers, as Ralfy says) are a comparatively rare breed and therefore economically unimportant to them. It's economics as much as anything imho.
Great Vlog Ralfy. I'm going to make that home-made E150a colouring. It will make a great party-piece at the next whisky club meeting.
I like these extras... I learn a lot.
Is this why my 12 year old Bowmore tastes like Barley Sugar?
Didn't used to.
I was in “your neck of the woods” last week on a solstice cruise (from Florida). Awesome place and fortunately excellent weather. Did the little cruise on Loch Ness. Cheers!
You've inspired me to experiment Ralfy. Thank you for the insight!
So THIS is where it came from!
Whisky Review meets Top Gear. Love it Ralfy.
I'm there. I'm interested in flavors. I've only reached that level in the past year and I'm pushing 70. I LIKE Bowmore, but have not paid much attention to color. I got to Bowmore because I'm averse to the typical Islay peat flavors (Caol Ila, Ardbeg, Laphroaig, Lagavulin, Talisker), but I liked 'modest' and more 'campfire' type peat flavors. After first stumbling across it in Highland Park's Einar, I found Benromach, but then I was pointed at Bowmore. When I tried the Bowmore 12, the flavor was far more similar to Benromach than any of the Islay labels. It was promising enough that I purchased the 15, which has yet to be delivered. In the meantime, on a wild hare, I took the plunge into Port Charlotte 10 and it turned out far different than I expected. I liked it. Enough that I keep going back to it, 'sampling'. Y'know, 'just once more'? It will displace the Talisker in my modest selection.
I'm at the point where higher ABV expressions are displacing the 40% malts I had.
Hello Ralfy, like always i love your review, thanks. We (a good friend and I) added some E150a to uncoloured, unchillfiltered Whiskys, e.g. Talisker, Laphroaig.... What we found out: The Whisky smells and tastes older with E150a, fruits turns darker (citrus to orange and so on), more tannic, more toffee. We think thats THE reason why they add caramel. The colour of Whiskys with E150a isn´t that attractive when you know how Whisky looks without colouring. Slainte.
I suppose that's true to an extent. But just imagine, if you will, if there was a wee E150a fairy hovering behind your shoulder with a spray bottle of the magic stuff making everything taste "older". I.e. you're eating some fresh grapes and "poof" - they taste like raisins. You're eating a fresh salad... "poof" - it tastes like kale chips. Eating a nice steak? "Poof" - now it tastes like jerky made from leather armchairs. Now, I don't know about others, but before long I'd be reaching for my own spray bottle of insecticide and a fly swatter :)
Talisker is most certainly coloured
Very informative and insightful. Thank you.
“Infofuntainment” Brilliant!
I do not drink much Scotch either, but Ralfy had me hooked ever since he did the "Bourbon" reviews. which were phenomenal. You can't help but learn something every time you watch his videos.
e150a always has that familiar orange hue. My Bowmore, Clynelish and Glen Garioch are all the same similar orange. Lately I've been sticking to buying independent bottlings to avoid the stuff.
This Bowmore looks pink more than orange to my eye...but agree that the orange glow is easy to spot once you’ve gotten a look at it one time. Ought to be banned. Malt needs E150A like a hen needs a trombone! 😉
Ralfy is a sage.
The Original Gamer And Onion
I'm new to Patreon. Very enjoyable video, that was an eye opener.
funny, i did really like the 10yr dorus mor. havent tried the 15 but i think the presentation of the 10 is more appealing anyways. any plan to try / review it?
Class. Thanks Ralfy
I was involved in an online conversation with a 'brand ambassador' for a very well known Highland distillery about E150A. Basically the comment was 'it's just a little bit of cooked sugar that doesn't taste sweet' and then went on to point the finger at Japanese whisky for buying Scottish distilled whisky and calling it Japanese after maturing it in Japan as if to say 'it's OK there are other less transparent as us' . I found it a staggeringly ignorant comment. The fact it purportedly has no taste is barely the issue for the modern day and discerning punter. Sugar is now getting very close to being as big a risk to health as tobacco and we have comments like that from people who represent brands. I did point out I would rather a 46% non-chill filtered, naturally coloured product without the addition of cooked sugar than worrying about whether the Japanese whisky was entirely made in Japan.
Where can I read more of this news of Japanese maturing new-make-sprit distilled in Scotland. I did a Google and cannot find any reference.
By the way, you are hardly going to get a Brand Ambassador to admit that E150a colouring is a bad thing. You should really speak to the Master Blender who often takes a very different view to the marketing department to which the Ambassador belongs.
What really anoys me though are the UA-cam videos of distillery reps standing by a whisky cask with a glass of the latest expression in their hand saying something like "Ah just look at that dark golden colour which tells you of the complexity of the whisky.....". No it doesn't , it tells you of how much E150a they have poured into the final vatting.
See here for example:
ua-cam.com/video/1Y2pTFHXy-4/v-deo.html
"When you take a look at the colour here, you can see that it really is quite dark. It gives you a good idea of just how complex this whisky is".
Iain Macallum, Master Blender of Bowmore.
Agree with you mostly. "Brand ambassadors" can be clueless mascots. IIRC Glenfiddich has some kilt-wearing Russian dude as their BA. The stuff your BA told you also seems silly. To defer to what is done in Japan to defend the lack of integrity in Scotch whisky? Really? I am guessing even the corporate owners wouldn't approve of such silly comment. They may think so but wouldn't readily say so out loud.
Just one comment: e150a is not just "cooked sugar". It is the product of chemical reactions called "caramelization". It is no longer sugar and I'm certain it is not harmful to your body and in the amounts used less so than sugar allegedly is. Caramelization is a myriad of reactions that change sugars to aromatic organic compounds. It's just that confectionery caramel still has lots of residual sugar in it, so it's sweet. e150a reportedly is not sweet but bitter - think cotton candy without sweetness (nasty!). Besides, there's a lot more sugars in aged spirits from the cask than from e150a. I've read that an active cask can add a couple of pounds of sugars to the spirit over 5 years. That's why we taste sweetness in aged spirits (I don't know if any of the maltose or other sugars migrate from the wash to the distillate). But it's not a lot of sugar per dram to even consider as far as health issues (for a healthy person). Most likely the alcohol calories are more of a measurable metric to those concerned.
I don't like e150a in spirits because it insults my intelligence and tries to dumb all of us down. It's disingenuous in suggesting that Scotch for some reason needs to strive to look like bourbon or cognac or tea or maple syrup. I love the color of Ardbeg 10 in the glass! And Balvenie and Arran. And if a malt is naturally dark, great! But I want batch variations and scotch mist and even cask debris in the bottle (well, maybe not big splinters).
And just about every comment to that video calls them out on it. Of course, the "brand ambassador" is typically just a bloke with a Scottish accent, a mascot.
I agree and you even spelled colour correctly! :)
most informative ralfy
Ralfy! I have a question. I'm a newbie when it comes to actually buying bottles of Single Malt Whiskey off the shelf- I do get a wee dram in the pub from time to time of Jura or Glenfiddich. However, I bought for the first time a 12yr bottle of Bowmore, it was on offer, good choice and any advice? Cheers mate! From Manchester.
It’ll be a happy day when e150a is done away with in Scotland. Am I dreaming, Ralfy? Canada repeals its 1/11 allowance, USA a minimum ageing standard for all whisky, and Japan a law whereby Japanese whisky contain only Japanese whisky.
Cheers Ralfy🥃🥃🥃
Mark
. . . wishful thinking, a serious collapse in Global sales relating to dimishing quality of products is the most likely encouragement.
ralfydotcom a correction of sorts. That would be good for the Mortlachs and Longmorns out there!
It was Bowmore 12 yr that started my jolt into Whisky World...25 years ago...
Totally different drink this week.
Got the Bowmore triple 20 cl bottles for fathersday. Now that i’m seeing this, don’t know if I can optimally enjoy. Thanks for the info Ralfy
Hi Ralfy
Can you help
I am coming to the end of my bottle of 2013 Middleton very rare. What single malt comes closest to matching the smooth easy drinking quality of this?
Bowmore on its day can be one of the finest malts money can buy. However, I totally agree with you that Bowmore's presentation is holding back what could be a stunning malt.
Another great blog great information and so honest
Pissfarty! OMG I almost peed myself. I'm going to use that one Ralply. :)
I really love the "extras" where you tell about production and philosophy. And also i just read about the manx, the cat. But also people from the Isle of Man are called manx, according to wikipedia in my native language...
Hmm...Right on the button as usual, Ralfy....many a times I've passed up buying Bowmore and bought some other Malt...don't regret it😀Something just doesn't look right with these....and now, thanks to you, I know
Nice one! Which whisky do you recommend that has been matured in "real" Ex Sherry casks. I think most are matured in casks which have been industrially produced with not the best available sherrys. Which ones give us this romantic ideal feeling drinking a spirit influenced by excellent old sherry casks?
The Bowmore Darkest for me is an excellent example of a maturation (rather 3 year finish) in "reloaded" refill casks using rather cheap sherry.
And I think you cannot compare home made caramel with industrial e150. Yours will probably have more taste. Still a bad habit of the industry...
Highland Parker Dalmore :-D
Love the reference “piss farty” you use to describe some of the “up themselves” shops and retailers 🙈👍
one of my favorite whiskys is Bowmore dorus mor 10 year old I stocked up on this and I don't think you can get it now
A tip on a interesting topic is all these "new" peated malts where old brands are remade to accommodate a trend. Some brands, like fx ancnoc makes a complete line of peated malts.
In my honest opinion a 5yo Laphroaigh was the best peated whisky I have ever tried. Unchillfiltered and pale like white wine but darn what a taste....
Great, informative video again! I am new to whisky and your channel is the richest in knowledge that I found. I have seen some of your first videos earlier and I am curious if you have some new books to recommend. And what is your opinion on the Jim Murray's Whisky Bible. Maybe it is time for a re-review of books recommendation? ;) Greeting from Poland
. . . I don't buy the Whisky bible ! Stick to general knowledge whisky books by Charlie McLean and Dave Broom. Thanks for watching !
I watched this while drinking an Usle of Arran 15 YO single cask - the colour of golden barley, or the shade on one of those urine charts which shows that you are slightly dehydrated.
Very interesting. Thanks.
Hey Ralfy! Great content of discussion as always.... Please if you see this consider doing a review of the Ardbeg AN OA.... I would absolutely LOVE to see what sort of nosing and flavor notes you report.... CHEERS SIR & A GOOD DAY TO YOU!!!!
Hello Ralfy, would you mind if I added a link to my “what is caramel anyways” blogpost here in the comments? Excellent information by the way! Cheers! Rombout
Ralfy can you do a review for the famous grouse 18 years? I heard it's a great whisky for its price but I'd like to get your two cents!
The grouse has made an appearance!
I tried GRANTS Sherry Cask the other week...
Tastes like Grants...with SHERRY in it!
Hi ralfy
I commend you on your Xtras about coloring whiskey, I take it that distillers can add one drop to there whiskeys of coloring and say it's no color added, and get away from declaration on the box or bottle that no added color is added, I mean this is possible to do legally and get away with it, maybe I took it wrong, but I think I'm correct, tell me if I'm wrong, another great 👍 video either way, well done 👏 ralfy, cheers brother 👍!!!
Thank you, Ralfy!! I am a Scots lass new to whisky and am busy having a great time trying different ones. So far, in my limited experience, I seem to like Islays and bourbons, but am open to be proven wrong, and surprisingly have found that Bowmore is a very sippable whisky; subtle for an Islay and the smoke only comes out after consumption of something sweet (it goes especially well with creme brulee, or butterscotch Angel Delight, depending on your taste or budget). I think Bowmore is going to be a staple in my cabinet, suitable for guests... I just need to find The One.
P. S. I would never wear perfume or lipstick to a whisky tasting.
Former for the tasters, latter for the bar staff. X
Which year Bowmore are you speaking of? Genuinely interested..
@@malteygo84 the 12 year.
Thought you were going to say "really..... pish"...Cheers for the interesting video and information! 👍
G'day Ralfy :-)
Hi Ralfy, the issue of E150 is one that really needs settling. I can see that the addition of E150 is for cosmetic purposes (but I dont agree with that reason). However, if it impacts on the flavour then it must be declared as an ingredient. SURELY!!!! Anyway, I like that you made the point about the whisky community, sharing information and opinion etc. I am taking the plunge and creating my own blog which I hope to make available online by the end of summer. Inspired by you and some others in the online whisky community! Very conscious of the balance between coming across pretentious, which doesnt do the whisky scene any good, but also trying to give helpful advice. I think you have the balance spot on. I have been taking notes. Cheers Ralfy!
I'm not Ralfy ( or Shirley), but I can say that I can tolerate some malts that are slightly tinted to maintain batch consistency (still wrong but I'm willing to overlook if the reviews and value are good). But I'm really put off by the likes of Bowmore where they shove their over-tanned whisky in my face and brag about it. I'll actively avoid paying for these.
Which whiskys are not colored ? Please tell me ?
How is Caol Ila 12 years nowadays ? Hope it doesn’t follow the Bowmore way :s
12:05 It would now @Ralfydotcom!
Royal Brackla 16 up next!
I have two bottles of glendronach 18, one bottled in 2012 ( most likely 6-7 years on the shelf ) and one bottled in 2018. The one bottled in 2018, according to wordsofwhisky.com/glendronach-is-a-lot-older-than-the-label-says/ should be 23 years old but it's a lot brighter in color ( that's saying somethin since the glendronach 18 is very dark on it's own ). The one bottled in 2012 is not even dark amber anymore, it's dark red. As for the taste , it's similar, but the 2018 has a lot more punch, almost as if it has a higher abv. Also, the cork on the 2012 seemed poorly sealed when I first opened the bottle and the aluminum wrapping was a bit uneven, with distorted print. Is my 2012 bottle a fake? Is it possible to copy the taste of a whisky this old? Or was this bottle the victim of bad storage?
Blair Athol 12 - I’m getting tomato juice first ont nose ?
Ralfy. You do lay it on the line.
Did you re review the 12 year Old recently?
Some brand ambassadors have the unenviable position, not of showcasing quality, but of convincing their audience that quality is really there - it's as much about shaping/changing perceptions as it is meeting conventional expectations. Young is the new good, primarily because it's what the industry can (or is willing to) provide in quantity, so it then follows that age must not matter - except at the high end, where no one will tell you that a 30 costing thousands can be outclassed by someone's 4 (unless they're in the business of selling the 4 and not the 30).
Love these Extras!!
Good day Dear Sir! Looking in good spirits today..have been concerned the last couple of videos as you seemed a bit in poor spirits...and glad to hear you are giving thought to a 10 year acknowledgement of sorts! hope all is well at the Bothy! Love the new Ralphy-ism.... can't wait to find a way to fit "piss-farty" into my conversation somewhere. 🤣 and enjoying seeing a bit of the ole "chanty rastler" appear in this video... always be honest but civil and polite when telling someone how "piss-farty" their product is. 😉 guess i didn't have to wait that long after all! Have a wonderful week! Best of luck with that moody 16 year old ... looking forward to hearing about it next malty Monday!
totally worth every moment just for 'pissfarty'.
Just imagine: if Bowmore decides to release a port finish... they'll need its color to stand out from its "usual" bottlings. THAT might lead to a shortage of e150a and perhaps cause the industry to stop using it! #BowmorePortFinish ;)
That was a 1970's bottle of not illegal pack surret? Paksurett? Pack Syrup? I can't spell it, so I can't google it - I've never heard of the stuff. Cheers, Ralfy!
paxarete (?)
www.maltmaniacs.net/e-pistle-2007050-paxarete-the-unloved-saviour-of-sherry-casks/
@@sergeimalynovskyi4940 thanks for that, it is obscure enough that google autocorrect was helpless
Ralfy is hipped to the jive!
I think the only answer is that the industry stops with the e 150 or we go back to the days of bootlegging and making our own whisky. That way we can control the things that are actually going into our whisky
I'm definitely no whisky anorak but i think i do appreciate a nice tasting whisky.
Please answer; Is the Black Bowmore colored as well then?
If it is it must have a damned whole lot of E150a added! :-O
. . . I cant confirm or deny !
They all are unless stated otherwise! And that's the sad part.
Thanks for at least answering ! Subbed !
Hi Ralfy, You are amazing, KEEP TELLING THE TRUTH! I have educated thousands of cigar smokers for the last 10 years about the same problems of adding SUGERS' and other stuff to the fermentation or filler tobacco in even some of the most expensive cigar brands, not to forget chemical/cooked darkened wrappers called MADURO of which 90% are fakes. Maybe you can help me....., I'm looking for information about how to make my own "PEAT SMOKE" liquid for cigar cocktails. Any hint on this?
Hey Ralfy .
yup th oxygn n a botle certinly can altr a spirit.
I'v had notes of peach n mushroom frm a 3 mo
botl of Teachers 3/4 gone...serius, & not bad at all! haah
How do you spell that, paxorect?
spankmeister paxarette
bowmore 12 yo was my first scotch back in around... I don't know, 2009, 2010? It was a good dram definitely. Then I bought a 12 y.o. enigma because hey, it was a 1L bottle and it seemed good value for money. But it was really a mess on my palate, sherry coating a rather bland whisky and not even the smokiness could save it which any other islay distillery does better than bowmore in my opinion. I tried the legend at a friend's and it was hot ****. A sample of the darkest was the best bowmore of all of the recent ones.
At the premium prices they're sitting on and considering my recent experiences, I just don't have the time or the money to find out if they've done anything decent since then. Probably not when you look at that range that tries to impress with appearance. Besides, word would have gotten around. Like with springbank. Like with glendronach and glenallachie, with arran and glencadam. Try harder bowmore.
. . . it the journey we take with scotch !
Would you ever buy a bottle of whisky that you knew had no(absolutely) intrinsic quality, but KNEW(with any doubt) had high after market value? I am kinda torn by this.
. . . some young Karuizawas' !
Hi ralfy
I couldn't disagree with you more, and I never disagree with you on your ratings or reviews, but I get a mineralized taste and the big downside to bowmore 15 is the fishy taste I get on this bottle, and I have given it 6 months to come around, but I can only give it a 81 points at best, I won't be buying anymore of this bottle, I will stick to my laguvulan or ardbeg that is phenomenal compared to this bowmore 15, thanks for the review, good as always, cheers brother 👍!!!
they really should start listening to social media, because I was about to buy a Bowmore for the first time, went out of my way to see what ralfy has to say about it, and now I will not be buying a Bowmore.
Does Dalmore not do the same ? They overload on the colouring and its damned expensive....
. . . agreed !
Colouring ok, but inner staves a no no **Face Palm** + the other cask trickery, just bizarre! Enlightening as ever
this is insanity. e150 definitely ruins the taste with a kind of coating on top. was gonna buy a small bottle of Bowmore 10 (or is it 12?) next week, but now, i think not. it's too bad, cause i do like Bowmore character.
i miss Benromach.
That's how you hack the spirits!
I'd rather that E150a was done away with, but I don't understand people who get bent out of shape over caramel if they accept that the age of what they're drinking somehow doesn't matter - people who can taste caramel should also be able to taste the difference age makes to whisky. With colour, they're looking for product honesty and transparency, the importance of which is relatively small compared to product age which is more and more frequently concealed. Ironically enough, most caramel is added to change colour to take advantage OF people's perceptions of the effects of age and/or casking finish - something that's dark(er) is normally taken to be older or more heavily sherry finished.
It's true that the whisky industry has pivoted off the credibility that serious whisky customers bring to their product, but it's mostly been rewarded by telling those customers that they don't know what they're talking about when it doesn't serve the contradictory narratives that the industry uses to sell its products at both the high and low ends of the spectrum - age matters here, but not over there, and producers decide which just by labeling.
Unfortunately, I don't agree with the increasing importance of the niche consumer except in the context of a whisky market collapse, where it will be the niche consumer who keeps single malt alive. It's been in the burgeoning whisky market of today, and maybe tomorrow, where the niche consumer has been able to be drown out and marginalized and why industry consumer "education" boils down to indoctrination of the idea that "whatever you personally feel about whisky is correct" - so the industry, and its new consumers, can just make up, or discount, influences like age as they go along.
. . . good point, well presented !
Hear, hear...
Am I muted from the comments?
I like to think I made the best Malt Mention EVER...
within the comments of your Salt Flats Motorcycling Video Comments....
😢
No, you're here (all 8 of your comments), dw :')
At 1:35 a spirit anomaly flies past the camera o.O
This is an epiphany, in the secular sense. 😏 It is amazing and disturbing to see how easy it is reproduce the look of different whiskies.
I wish I could Patreonize you...
But I have it all on finding Whisky on Offer in Supermarkets...
I should do a "Frugal Whisky" Channel.
This just reminded me of those spray on tans but for whisky to pretend you just came back from somewhere exotic. Sad for people and for whisky!
👍❤️🥃
Just imagine if PewDiePie was the only Social Media Voice?
This 50 year old is......Nice....
About 10-15 years ago I bought Bowmore 12 yr and Bowmore 17yr, the 12 was not so good and ended up in mixers, the 17 was phenomenal, I went to buy another bottle of 17, and lo and behold was replaced with a 15yr. Not as good. Still sits on the shelf 3/4 full.
My question is, with Bowmore being so varied as to quality from bottle to bottle, how can a review be that useful?
Bowmore Surf :-( same disappointment
Here too
. . . OK then, First too !
I'm being disappointed by Bowmore 12 as I watch this! Yay! I think...
. . . you too !
JURA just pissed me off.
With their "New" range for "New Whisky Drinkers"...
Get your Jura 16 years and Prophecies before they are gone imho.
W P Yes, I really enjoyed them... Not seen them on the shelf since the sudden rebrand...
I'm sorry, but I don't believe Ralfy was ever a teenager.
Ralfy- have you ever seen this movie? "This is the Last Damn Run of Likker I'll Ever Make" ua-cam.com/video/glQjCKAI4gA/v-deo.html
. . . yup, loved it !
A new microphone, please!! It will be more clear to understand for everybody.
All sherried whisky marketing. Seen as premium, hundreds of years old oak butts from Spanish or French midevil forests that matured Oloroso or Pedro Ximenez for 50 years. Sounds better then white oak from a tree farm in North America juiced with Fino or Cream sherry with E150 added because the distiller couldn't get the colour.
and how!!
Bowmore: Dewey, Tint'em & Howe :-)
Ralfy, the caramel that you make and that commercially available to the industry are extremely different, especially in taste. There are companies which have spent decades researching actively how to make caramel with specific sensory and chemical properties, so you should first learn about that before believing you have an expert opinion.
Infuntainment! 🤭
Are you going to talk all night or are you going to drink