The Glen Parker Single Malt

     Let us a raise a glass in Birthday cheer to Miles Davis. He was born on this day in 1926, and in his 65 years on this earth he influenced generations of musicians leaving us with some of the worlds greatest music ever created. There is no better way to salute an artist I would say than to toast them with the a dram I have never heard of while listening to their least successful (in terms of sales) album.

     "On The Corner" was released in 1972. It was apparently raked over the coals by critics and commercially a flop. In recent years it has gained greater acceptance. According to Wikipedia It is now touted as a precursor  "of post punk, hip hop, drum and bass, and electronic music". The article goes on further to say that Davis claims to have created the album to reconnect with his young black audience who were now more interested in rock and funk music than jazz. I find the album to be very rock and funk tinged, which is what makes it so interesting. Fusion at its best.

     The dram today is the Glen Parker Single Malt. The critics from what I have read were not kind to this one either. Perhaps in time it will be recognized for its style, proven to be ahead of its time like Mr. Davis. Being the open minded person that I am as well as committed to my advent calendar I will reserve all criticism giving it every bit of respect one would have for any stranger.

Nose:   Right away I am struck by how new this smells. Like bread dough. There is also a honey sweetness and some floral notes. The feel on the nose is soft and creamy with no hint of burn or sharpness. So far so good.

Palate: Very muted and understated. At first I was unsure what was going on. After several seconds the whisky revealed notes of oak followed by huge honey. This whisky may be like the wall flower that just takes a bit to open up.

Finish: The finish is very clean and the honey lingers on.

It just goes to show that you can't believe everything you read, and that critics are not always right. Is this dram of the year? NO; however, for the price (under $50.00) you can't go wrong.      

Ballantine's 17 Year Old

Since this is a blended whisky I decided that some fusion music would be fitting. So Miles Davis Bitches Brew it is. A fantastic album that uses many styles and "blends" them into a whirlwind of sounds and rhythms.

I think that it is important for me to clarify here that I am not saying that my musical recommendations are specifically chosen to accentuate the whisky in any way. The whisky will always have to speak for itself. I just really enjoy music and like to include it in almost every thing I do.

Nose: Delicious. I could smell this for hours. Initially I got molasses and then creamy chocolate with vanilla. On second try I got honey sweetness with some mouth watering fruit.

Taste: Smooth creamy chocolate with honey and wood. There is also a slight smokiness.

Finish: The finish is very long. The tongue tingles with a spiciness for some time. I mostly get oak, but the smoke remains in the background. I also detected a slight licorice tang.

Overall this is a good whisky. I think the nose is perhaps one of the most beautiful I've encountered, and the taste is nothing to complain about either. I did find the spicy tingle on the tongue during the finish to be just a bit much. Other wise thoroughly enjoyable.    

 Happy Labour day, and may all of your labour dreams come true.