Better Bourbon and Scotch

[FPP777]

1 hour ago, dominicr said:

This is a good thread that I want to follow.  I’m interested in trying to find some blantons gold and straight from the barrel on our next cruise which isn’t until next May.  From what I saw on some posted bar menus the bourbon selection should be fine.  I saw buffalo trace, four roses single barrel, and whistle pig 10 year rye.  All of those are decent enough to have a few drinks at night.  The boat also had templeton on the menu and even though it’s a cheap MGP product it still makes a good cocktail. 

If your cruise is going to St Marteen, stop in at Gulmohar's Whiskey Paradise. You can get a SFTB for 100USD and Gold for around 90. They drop it to the ship and you get it the night before like other duty free purchases.

 

My last two cruises, summer of 17 and 18, I was able to find Blantons in the pub on the promanade deck.

[suesnake2002]

Alfaeric, those are great points you make! And would be a money maker for royal. 

[dominicr]

4 minutes ago, alfaeric said:

Eh, I would not really say they cater to wine people- I'm an older wine person, and the selection of really good wines isn't there.   It's ok, but not anything more than the selection of whiskey relative to the rest of the selections we all love and cherish.

 

And what I like about liquor- they can afford to get one bottle that they can charge $20/shot and just let it sit in the one bar that they would serve it at- unlike wine that would go bad, especially after opening.  So maybe we should all suggest it on the surveys post cruise.

 

I'm a neat drinker, too- and would really like it if they could get some better glasses than the heavy duty tumblers where a shot barely covers the bottom.

 

We should all remember to mention that after our next cruise.  They do have some very high end cognacs, afterall. It's not as if this whiskey movement is going away anytime soon.

 

(and are any of you magnificent bastards, or wannabes?  🙂 )

 

I am not a “magnificent bastard” fan.  I used to subscribe to that YouTube channel but found better reviewers out there.  

[dominicr]

2 minutes ago, FPP777 said:

If your cruise is going to St Marteen, stop in at Gulmohar's Whiskey Paradise. You can get a SFTB for 100USD and Gold for around 90. They drop it to the ship and you get it the night before like other duty free purchases.

 

My last two cruises, summer of 17 and 18, I was able to find Blantons in the pub on the promanade deck.

 

I wish our next cruise was going through st marteen.  Maho beach is one of my favorite places on earth.  I’m a huge airplane nerd.  

 

My next cruise goes to cozumel, costa maya, and roatan.  

[FPP777]

4 minutes ago, dominicr said:

 

I wish our next cruise was going through st marteen.  Maho beach is one of my favorite places on earth.  I’m a huge airplane nerd.  

 

My next cruise goes to cozumel, costa maya, and roatan.  

Yeah, those are not the best places for duty free finds. Hopefully you can find some Blantons or other decent bottles on the ship. Some of the MGP juice is not bad at all.

[Sea Dog]

2 hours ago, dominicr said:

templeton on the menu and even though it’s a cheap MGP product it still makes a good cocktail. 

A little story here, I too was very disappointed when I heard that Templeton got out sourced to MGP. I have a friend who knows someone, who knows someone from the original Templeton family who makes the original recipe out of his home. If you remember Templeton Rye was the drink of choice for the famous gangster Al Capone, who called it "The good stuff." When Templeton first tried to get licensing, from my understanding the FDA  would not grant it so they had to change the recipe to meet FDA standards. I was lucky to get a bottle of the original recipe and all I can say is "WOW." it is a little darker than the bottled Templeton, so much smoother and has a higher alcohol content. I do like Templeton but when you have tasted the orginal recipe there is no comparison.

[alfaeric]

2 hours ago, crewsweeper said:

Be interesting if that was the Blantons sold in the shops, but I don't know.  Gold is restricted for sale in "selected international markets" what ever that means.  Not even sure if it's carried at any of the ports.  But then Hennessy White is carried on board the ships so....

 

As a preferred rye over bourbon drinker, I would go for Whistle Pig and maybe Rittenhouse, but never Templeton.  Way too much hype for a lower end rye.

There are a number of shops in Phillipsburg that has Blantons- with international releases that we can't get in the states.

 

And since you get there after the ship's shop opens, you can price check before buying.  One of these days, we we have a direct flight back home, I plan on getting a bottle or two from one of those shops.  Just not sure which one, and what.

[dominicr]

21 minutes ago, Sea Dog said:

A little story here, I too was very disappointed when I heard that Templeton got out sourced to MGP. I have a friend who knows someone, who knows someone from the original Templeton family who makes the original recipe out of his home. If you remember Templeton Rye was the drink of choice for the famous gangster Al Capone, who called it "The good stuff." When Templeton first tried to get licensing, from my understanding the FDA  would not grant it so they had to change the recipe to meet FDA standards. I was lucky to get a bottle of the original recipe and all I can say is "WOW." it is a little darker than the bottled Templeton, so much smoother and has a higher alcohol content. I do like Templeton but when you have tasted the orginal recipe there is no comparison.

 

I’d love to try some of the original.  MGP does make some decent ones though.  The whistle pig old world is from MGP I believe and that is one of my go to bottles right now.  

[crewsweeper]

Well supposedly Templeton is going back to Templeton with liquor coming out in 2022. (Seems about right for aging).  But I think the main reason for the move to Indiana was the purchase by MGP to be able to overcome the shortage after distribution went outside of Iowa in 2007-08.  MGP changed or could not obtain the original formula so added all the flavor agents to mimic  the original.   Nothing to do with the FDA.  Just that MGP was falsely pushing the myth of Capone, claiming small batch from Iowa not Indiana.

 

[crewsweeper]

15 minutes ago, alfaeric said:

There are a number of shops in Phillipsburg that has Blantons- with international releases that we can't get in the states.

 

And since you get there after the ship's shop opens, you can price check before buying.  One of these days, we we have a direct flight back home, I plan on getting a bottle or two from one of those shops.  Just not sure which one, and what.

Wondering if the big store in Havensight, St Thomas has these too?  Realize it's a trek from Crown Bay but.

 

Unfortunately appears the Western C swings more to rum and tequila in bigger stores.

[jascruise]

13 hours ago, Sea Dog said:

I've had the Balvenie Peat Week Aged 14 and liked it. I'm a sweet guy so I like the Balvenie 12 and I have have had the Glenmorangie Nectar D'or which was real sweet. Since they have Templeton Rye I will drink a lot of that but that's my rye that I drink at home so I would love to mix it up a little bit.

 

Here's the bourbon collection I'm starting.

Oh my.  Reminds me of our bourbon tours to Kentucky.  Can't find Weller in Massachusetts.

[boscobeans]

1 hour ago, alfaeric said:

There are a number of shops in Phillipsburg that has Blantons- with international releases that we can't get in the states.

 

And since you get there after the ship's shop opens, you can price check before buying.  One of these days, we we have a direct flight back home, I plan on getting a bottle or two from one of those shops.  Just not sure which one, and what.

 

I check out all the smaller liquor shops in Phillipsburg and have found a number of hard to, if not impossible to, find items....

Prices may not be super special but the selection is often very very good.

[Sea Dog]

1 hour ago, dominicr said:

 

I’d love to try some of the original.  MGP does make some decent ones though.  The whistle pig old world is from MGP I believe and that is one of my go to bottles right now.  

Yes I agree. I wish there was a bar on board that had the Whistle Pig Boss Hog so I could taste it and see if it worth $500 a bottle.

[dominicr]

26 minutes ago, Sea Dog said:

Yes I agree. I wish there was a bar on board that had the Whistle Pig Boss Hog so I could taste it and see if it worth $500 a bottle.

 

Local liquor store here in St. Louis has the boss hog available for tasting but I believe they want like 25-30 dollars for a .75 ounce pour or something like that.  Whatever it was I thought it was a rip off and am not going to pay it.  I’d rather eat the 500 if it’s a bad bottle and have the whole thing than get reamed by tasting prices.  

[Sea Dog]

2 hours ago, crewsweeper said:

Nothing to do with the FDA.  Just that MGP was falsely pushing the myth of Capone, claiming small batch from Iowa not Indiana.

 

Thank you for the clarification! I remember reading about all the lawsuits. I did not hear about the possible move back to Iowa, that would be very interesting.

Edited September 17, 2019 by Sea Dog

[Sea Dog]

Not being a big wine drinker I'm sure the wine aficionado's could chime in as to the degree that RCI carries really high end and respected bottles of wine. That being said, with bourbon and whiskey now becoming more popular, I would love to see Royal make more of a effort to cater to us whiskey and bourbon snobs 😉

 

On our Harmony cruise in a couple of weeks I am going to splurge and buy a glass of Louie XIII for $145 just because I have always wanted to taste it and my wife would kill me if I spent $3K on a bottle.

[fla gang]

16 hours ago, Sea Dog said:

I've had the Balvenie Peat Week Aged 14 and liked it. I'm a sweet guy so I like the Balvenie 12 and I have have had the Glenmorangie Nectar D'or which was real sweet. Since they have Templeton Rye I will drink a lot of that but that's my rye that I drink at home so I would love to mix it up a little bit.

 

Here's the bourbon collection I'm starting.

I love the Wellers and the Buffalo Trace. Hope they have it on the Navigator in a couple of weeks. My supply ran out. Time for restocking!

[fla gang]

Four Roses small batch is also my favorite.

[shellunderwater]

21 hours ago, skittlesdfw said:

 

Hi there! Just wondering, when was your sailing on Freedom?  We leave on her in the next few weeks, and one of our travel mates was really keen on getting Blanton's from the ship

Freedom for us was week after Thanksgiving. 

 

BTW, on Majesty during Hurricane Dorian, the shops had one bottle of Blanton's Gold for $89.  I didn't buy it.....  kicking myself.

 

Bought a bottle of Peanut Butter Tequila in Cozumel... security didn't catch it on the way on the ship.  Friends had one too and it wasn't confiscated.

Edited September 17, 2019 by shellunderwater

[rusty nut]

20 hours ago, George C said:

Not really a bourbon guy but drink a lot of scotch, most ships have 18 year old chivas regal as part of the package , lots of good single malts also included, all of the 12 year old single malt was included. Only thing we paid extra was for Johnny Walker blue which is 21 year old

JW Blue doesn't have an age statement. The only thing Diageo  will tell you about the scotch is that it contains over 20 rare single malts in its blend. There is a rumor floating around that it's youngest spirit is 28 years aged. 

[oshoguno]

16 hours ago, Sea Dog said:

I may be tempted to buy a bottle since I can never find one in my home town. The only problem would be packing it for the airplane ride home. Suggestions or tips anyone?

 

I bought a Highland Park 25 in St. Thomas one time and packed it in my checked baggage for the ride home.  I wrapped it in layers of my clothes and put it in the center of the bag with lots around it.  Made it home safe and sound and is waiting for my daughters wedding before I plan on opening it.

[Goofyfanatic]

Here is my current collection. Mostly light on the Peat. Love the barrel strength bottles. 

 

Proud to say that I have the last two "Whiskeys of the Year" in my rotation right now. The Elijah Craig Barrel Proof (Barrel B517) got me into more of the Bourbons than I had liked before. The Nikka from the Barrel is smooth as can be. The rest are a collection from all around...lol. Some Scotch, some Bourbon (even one from my home state of NY), a bottle of Rye from Long Island (ok not my favorite in the bar), and a couple that I use for cooking...LOL.

[Sea Dog]

49 minutes ago, Goofyfanatic said:

The Nikka from the Barrel is smooth as can be.

I heard of it but now from your recommendation I must see if I can find a bottle. Great pic of your collection.

[Nado44]

It isn't often that we get an informative, educational RCI thread!  Woot.

 

I'm a bourbon drinker myself. Best onboard bourbon, in my opinion, is Bulleit Bourbon (orange label). Wish they'd carry the Bulleit Rye (green label) - and have that available on the Diamond menu. Jack Daniel manhattans aren't the best.

[Nado44]

Curious. What RCI ports are best for buying bourbon/whiskey - and what stores?

I recently purchased Woodford Reserve (1L) for $30 when the Allure was in Roatan. Not sure if that was a good deal.