Meeting Minutes – January 2010

 Minutes of the Meeting
of the
Old Scotch Nosing or Tasting Society
(Old SNOTS)
January 9, 2010

Members Present:                                                     Single Malts Present:

Bruce Card                                                                        Talisker 18
Gary Machovina                                                                Caol Ila 12
Don Halpin                                                                        Talisker 10
Jim Dice                                                                             Lagavulin 16
Bobby Fowler                                                                    Bruiladdich Peat
Gail Wojtowicz                                                                  Bowmore Dusk
Dan Eckstrom                                                              
Steve McAllister                                                          
Mike Russel
Mark Caslen
Mo Veling
John Arsenault
Mark Richardson
Teri Newman (V) 

1.  The Old SNOTs convened at the residence of the Dice family in scenic O’Fallon, Illinois.  Despite the winter chill a rousing group of Old SNOTS braved the single digit temperatures to attend this edition of the winning Scotch playoffs.  Yes, this was the tasting of the winning Islays (itself a dichotomy), which guaranteed to put hair on everyone’s chest and leave you gasping (or gagging) for breath.  There was serious consideration to sneaking in a blind tasting of Sheep Dip, but then it was realized that most probably wouldn’t notice the difference.  Joining us for the first time, hence the virgin designation, was Teri Newman.  Teri is from Highland and shares an affinity for Scotch, though she deserves special acclaim for joining us on an Islay night. 

2.  Owing to the single digit temperatures, and Jim not thrilled at the idea of setting up a charcoal grill inside the house, the grilling of steaks was dispensed in favor of a couple of briskets from the oven.  Same result, large portions of dead bovine liberally seasoned and consumed by Scotch-loving carnivores.  Following dinner all settled down to sample some interesting selections.  As these were Islays, it was decided that we could just put down “iodine nose” and “peaty flavor” on all the tasting notes.  Wojo summed it up when she stated, “Anyone got any cuts or bruises?”

 3.  The tasting notes:

a.  Talisker 18
“Smells like a garden I used to have”-Teri;  “Ouch!  My lips are chapped”-Jim;  “Please, water, quick”-Mark R

b.  Caol Ila 12
“Holy cow, where did it go?”-Steve (Steve was referring to the flavor; he hadn’t yet lost contact with the his faculties);  “No nose”-Wojo;  “Long follow”-Dan;  “It’s the Sheep Dip”-Don;  “A little peppery…not too bad”-Wojo;  “No nose”-Wojo;  “No nose bleed”-Dan

c.  Talisker 10
After nosing..”This one’s gonna be strong; I don’t have any nose hairs left”-Jim;  “Nose hairs are overrated”-Teri;  “Don’t spill it on your lap”-Wojo;  “I really like this one”-Steve;  “You would!”-Jim;  “I like this one, it doesn’t mug you and take your lunch money”-Mike  “Is this #3, I’ve lost count”-Mo

d.  Lagavulin 16
“Lost the nose again”-Steve (Let’s just not go there);  “Lingers a little”-Wojo;  “Some caramel in there”-Mo;  “It ain’t too bad for an Islay”-Jim  It should be noted that Mark R enjoyed this so much, we had trouble getting him to relinquish the carafe.

e.  Bruiladdich Peat
“Butterscotch in that one”-Mo;  “No finish at all”-Steve;  “A little peppermint”-Wojo;  “Not a lot of nose”-Teri;  “Bad Scotch, bad Scotch, go to bed!”-Don

f.  Bowmore Dusk
“Not a lot on the front end”-Wojo;  “It grows on you”-Steve;  “The nose is abrasive, the taste is terrible”-Mark C;  “Nice finish”-Mark R (not sure if he meant the Scotch or Mark C’s comment)

 4.  With our palates now fully paralyzed we got down to selecting the best of the not so best.  The winner with six first place votes was the Lagavulin 16 and the silver medalist with eight second place votes was the Talisker 10 (I guess 8 more years in the barrel doesn’t help).  By now the group seemed genuinely intrigued by the selections and proceeded to empty all but one of the carafes in an effort to develop a taste for Islays.  Sorry Steve, just ain’t gonna happen. 

 5.  Our next gathering is tentatively planned for February 20 at Wojo’s house in the great northern territory of Glen Carbon.  This will be the highly-celebrated battle of the grand champions and will bestow on the winner the crown of the ultimate Scotch…or at least the best Scotch that a bunch of cheapskate Air Force dudes can afford.  Stay tuned sports fans, this is going to get good!

 “Cab for Bean?!”