One of the things that I enjoy — and thus will be writing about — is good liquor. To be honest, the majority of my imbibing in the past has been of the mixed drink variety. It's the typical avenue for most people who want to enjoy liquor but don't want to deal with the harshness or the base taste of it straight. Put something else in the drink to make it a little more palatable and pass me the glass.
I've wanted to broaden my knowledge of liquors for quite some time. I do occasionally partake of something neat, but it's rare — and the question is always, what would actually be a good liquor to drink by itself? A friend of mine was a single malt whiskey lover and had quite the collection. He enjoyed his single malts and, to my knowledge, never used them in a mixed drink. Always neat.
If you're going to walk into a bar, you should have some idea of what you might like to drink. Am I going to have a mixed drink or something solo? Do I want the solo liquor neat or straight up? Some liquors are not distilled for solo enjoyment — most of what the bartender has behind the bar for regular pours are downright awful by themselves. But what they have on display may be just as bad solo as what they use for a regular pour. How do you know what you might like to drink on its own? You can spend quite a bit of cash and get seriously drunk visiting the local bar and sampling what's on the shelf.
Enter the subscription box
There are alternatives to this now, thanks to the internet and some forward-thinking individuals. Companies that offer alcohol subscription boxes for you to try different types of liquors. The majority of these are of the mixed drink variety though — you get a monthly box with a quality liquor or two, the appropriate mixers and additional ingredients to put together a mixed drink from the recipe provided. I tried one of these subscription services for a few months but was not satisfied with what I received. I was going in a different direction.
Then I came across Flaviar. Flaviar is a quarterly membership that provides one tasting box per quarter and free shipping on one bottle per month. Their membership is not cheap at $60 a quarter — and from what I found, this was a recent change in their structure. It used to be $40 a month and you received five sample bottles in the box instead of three. The sample bottles are 1.5 oz each, so you get a large pour per bottle essentially. There are other perks as well — free shipping per month for a single bottle purchase, and I liked the amount of information found on the website and in the sample packs.
The Welcome Box
My introductory Welcome Box contained three different whiskeys — bourbon, rye, and scotch.
The bottles were labeled A through C so you could conduct a blind taste test, but since we were dealing with three different types of whiskeys it didn't matter to me. There was a lift-up tab at the top of the cylinder with a clay coaster on the very top, and under that three paper coasters with the name of the distillery on one side and a tasting spiral on the other. The lift-up tab had links on one side for how to taste spirits and how to organize a tasting, with a link on the other for more details about the particular tasting box.
Gina and I set up our little taste test on the kitchen table.
Previously I'd mentioned the sample size: 1.5 oz. For me, splitting this with Gina was enough to get a good taste and evaluate the liquor. So off we went.
The tasting
Sample A — Bourbon
Both of us being rather new to the practice of taste testing liquor, we referred to the enclosed tasting spiral frequently to see if we could distinctly identify the individual flavors.
This bourbon was smooth and had a nice vanilla and honey taste to it. I completely missed some of the other flavors called out on the card, which shows I need to do this a little more often to train my nose and tongue to discern different smells and flavors. We both felt it had a sweet finish, although not over the top. This bourbon would be pleasant as an after-dinner drink as well as just something to sip when sitting around and relaxing.
Sample B — Rye Whiskey
I'm not a big fan of rye whiskey, so right away this one started out challenged. It did not feel good on the tongue — a little too tingly — and the hint of rye flavor and pepper took it down a further notch. As mentioned, I missed out on quite a few of the other flavors called out on the tasting spiral, which may have made this a little more pleasant.
Gina liked this one. She likes rye whiskey. But it was not an overwhelming favorite for her either.
Sample C — Single Malt Scotch
Right away this scotch hits you with its smoky nose and flavor. I could smell it before I even held it up to my nose — I love smoky flavors, so we were off to a good start. The smoky taste coupled with the peaty taste made this a new flavor for me and a pleasant one. I also picked up a little of the vanilla flavor in this, while Gina picked out the white chocolate. This scotch has a pleasant sweet finish as well, but the smoky flavor held on to the very end.
Of the three, the Machir Bay was by far my favorite — and one I would probably purchase. We enjoyed the challenge of the tasting and trying to discern the different smells and flavors.
The verdict on Flaviar
I'm going to keep the membership in place. The value is there — the selection of samplers, the information on the website available to members only, and the opportunity to try unusual liquors that may not be available at your local liquor store. If you're looking for an online discount liquor store, this is not the place. Their prices are similar to what you'd pay at other online retailers; the difference is usually made up by the monthly free shipping for a single bottle. I like the idea of being able to try a liquor before I buy it and trying it in comparison to others of a similar type. It's also a fun way to learn about distilleries around the world — from large operations to small craft producers.
I plan on doing a monthly feature of a sampler from Flaviar — subscribe so you don't miss the next installment. I need the additional training. I also need to get some better glasses for tasting.
Also, I apologize for the quality of some of the photos. I am still learning the nuances of photography for blogging.