Thom,

You just decribed all the symptoms that I have when I open my pay check. :)

Allergies are a female dog....I have a similar reaction, but my eyes don't swell up.

Hope you carry an epi pen with you.

-Tony

my god, man! it brings me to tears, to tears to think a man from Oregon of all places is allergic to the "nectar of the gods"
for shame, Thom for shame

have you tried Hefe-Weizen? no hops or barley just yeast and wheat (as the name implies :)

Hi Justin,

I routinely decant the wine 'o choice (always red, but anyway) into a clean 750ml PET supermarket drinking water bottle, careful to evacuate the last bubble of air when closing it down. Into a ziplock bag for leakage insurance and stowed deep in the pack during hot weather.

I've never noticed any plastic taste leaching into the wine and it's never turned on me ["I never liked you!"]; of course, it NEVER makes it past night #2, so I can't recommend the decant method for drift boxes or food drops.

When it does survive night #1, a partial bottle can be collapsed to evacuate the air or it can simply be transferred into a second, smaller bottle.

I don't go the Platy route because it inevitably leaves a flavor that I'd later notice tainting water, but that option would certainly do the trick as well (just keep one dedicated to the task). I'm curious as to the Platy wine containers linked to earlier in this thread. Perhaps they're lined with an impervious inner layer?

I can't recommend going through the effort highly enough. Lots of indelible hiking memories include sipping wine from titanium (of course :-) while eating dinner as the sun sets.

Edited by halfturbo on 01/13/2009 17:38:20 MST.

Nothing better than sitting at the end of the day and sipping on some single malt while watching alpineglow. That my friends is a wonderful way to end a hard days hike.


Don't we have a few threads on alcohol and backpacking here???

Drink of the Gods. Bunnahabhain Single Malt.

Hi Roger,

> 5 litre casks for as little as $10
"Well, maybe, except that I have never seen one in the last 10 years. maybe I don't look in the wrong places?"

Bottleo in Hervey Bay just before xmas. I only noted it because I was flabbergasted at the price. Obviously a special deal.

I'm a bit anti cask wine because I've never tasted any I liked... some of the stuff I've tasted has been quite unpleasant to drink. But I haven't tried many so I probably shouldn't generalise. It's rare though to find a bottle under $10 that I would like to drink (not through want of trying, because I'm a poor uni student).

Having said that, the Penfolds Koonunga Hill Shiraz Cabernet 2007 is a surprisingly good vintage and on special for $8.50/bottle in a six pack at Dan Murphy's today... I'm going to be picking some up. I will keep my eye (and mind) open for some decent cask wine.

Mike, I have never tried that before. Love Islay's...must check this out!

For you single malt guys, consider Glenlivet for the summer (light, refreshing);& for the colder nights, cask strength Laphroiag (peaty, smokey, warming). Cask strength iterations of single malts allow one to carry less whisky & hence lighten the weight. For you Islay enthusiasts, consider Caol Ila, which is similar to Lagavulin but much less expensive. I carry mine in a Nalgene flask which has a 1 ounce measuring cap & graduated indents on the flask so one always knows how much Scotch is available ;) No worries about spoilage or cooling. Just a "splash of H2O & you're good to go"

splash of water???? Neat for me! Nice suggestions.

Mmmmmm. I'd love to get my hands on a bottle of that, michael!!! My go to tequila is correlejo reposado. I'm not a fan of blanco (mostly meant for mixing, which I don't do) and anejo tends to be a bit too aged and carmalized for my liking. but if you havn't tried it, and you like tequila like I do, I would really recommend correlejo. it's not that expensive either, which is always a plus. :-)

Edited by judach on 01/13/2009 18:52:24 MST.

that's a great choice for a "go to".
ive already collected that one... a authentic Mexican bottle (NO english) that I brought back from Rocky Point many years ago. Back then, I just liked the bottle. Then about 4 years ago I purchased another for a friends birthday. I helped him drink it :)
some other bargain tequilas are
Cazadores, Rep
El Tesoro, blanco (not a mixer, drink straight trust me)
Trago*, Rep (comes in goofy lipstick looking bottle, but its great)
Zaffarancha, Anejo (kentucky oak, not french)
Corazon, all
Casa Noble, anejo

there are most likely about 40 more bargain (read: low advertising, not by taste) bottles but I cant list them all. Just remember, Cuervo is not tequila and Patron is severly overpriced and they dont even grow their own agave, they buy it! WTF! :(

*Trago is obviously trying to reach a different market, as most tequilas are modern, full mechanical facilities they are still marketed as some tiny farm where a dude picks agave by hand... trago actually still uses the jimador method and disregards that fact by going for the Cosmo crowd. The bottle alone is quite laughable at first, but distinct at least. Check out the "oh-so-hip" website: http://www.trago-tequila.com/htm/home.htm
here's another kickass collector bottle: http://www.beveragewarehouse.com/images/products/2131.jpg hand painted in 24k gold by Guadalahara locals

guy 1: i got sick on tequila once and i still cant touch the stuff!

guy 2: oh yeah? what tequila was it?

guy 1: Cuervo Gold

well, folks there you have it.

Edited by mikeinfhaz on 01/13/2009 19:58:33 MST.

Funny, I got sick on tequila once, and I think it was called Bob's. Twenty five cents a shot. Haven't had one since.

At last! Someone who knows and loves tequila as much as I do!!! It sounds like we have very similar tastes when it comes to tequila. I couldn't agree more about the patron! WAY overpriced! On my honeymoon, we went to the mexican riviera and I got a chance to take the tequila tour. All of the tequilas were hand made from start to finish and we got to sample all of it. Delicious!

I like your tequila list. I havn't tried the trago but from your description, I will definately be on the lookout for it.

Couldn't agree more with you on the jose cuervo. It's basically a vodka disguised to taste and look like tequila with artificial flavorings and dyes... If you're going to go with cheap tequila, go with sauza. At least it's 100% agave for about the same price as jose crappo.

Thanks for the suggestions michael! I'm always on the lookout for good tequila.

Ken, Bunnahabhain (bun-a-ha-vain) is not so 'peaty' as most of the Islay malts. It's a nice, smooth and mellow malt, perfect for chillin'. :)

Ken,
I used to drink my scotch neat but over the last couple of years have come to appreciate how a splash of water improves the "nose" & brings out the complexities of the malt, particularly the "finish". When drinking scotch neat, especially at cask strength, the tongue can become quickly "numb" or at the least, less sensitive. Scotch is all about the full spectrum of our senses including sight, smell,& taste. Try the splash of water(never chlorinated)& see what you think. I have been told this is how many Scotsmen drink their scotch. Any thoughts on this Mike?

Edited by jameslantz on 01/14/2009 15:55:27 MST.

I was "instructed" by the tour guide at the Glenlivet distillery that the preferred method was drink your whisky "neat". If water was desired, then a MAXIMUM of water equal to 50% of the volume of whisky was the recommendation (and never ice...). Having tried it both ways, I observe that the taste is different, not necessarily better or worse, depending on the choice of water.

I also learned that "whisky" is the spelling reserved for single malt Scotch...and "whiskey" is for everything else in the world. =-)

William, I envy you. One of my dreams is to experience the "Whisky trail" in Scotland. My use of a splash of water is a very small amount, certainly not approaching 50% but perhaps maybe only 20%. I agree that putting ice in single malt scotch would be blasphemous! If the whisky is nonchillfiltered, even cold water could turn the malt cloudy. The late Michael Jackson of "Guide to Single Malt Scotch" fame liked to start with the malt neat & then add water to open up new aromas & flavors. He would also cleanse his palate between sips with water. To each his own. If you really think about it, it's a matter of semantics since the typical single malt whisky is 43% alcohol & 57% water. However you drink it, the Benedictine monks had it right when they nicknamed it "Aqua Vitae", the water of life! Cheers!

I don't think it's always right or wrong to add water to whisky. I sometimes do with cask strength Isla whisky as the taste is too strong. With some more delicate Highland or Speyside whisky I think water might dilute an already subtle taste. If I do add water it's never more than 25% of the volume of whisky and it's always fresh Highland water that hasn't been treated in any way (but then I do live in the Highlands and have my own water supply).

I live in Strathspey with masses of distilleries all around, most of which I have still to visit. My favourites are Islay malts however. A few years ago I went to Islay and visited the Ardbeg, Lagavulin, Laphroaig, Bowmore and Kilchoman distilleries. Oh, and I also hiked up the highest hill on Islay and the Paps of Jura - it wasn't just a whisky trip!

A few mates an I took a 2ltr cask of Banrock Station Cabernet Merlot on a trip in the KNP last month. They have the same wine available in bottle or cask. You choose the packaging. I'm no wine buff, but we enjoyed it..sitting outside Valentines hut, sipping wine from plastic mugs (GSI Soloist) and eating a nice sharp vintage tasty with bikkies... The only problem was I somehow drew the short straw to carry the bladder up there !!!

well william, that may be true but there are a handful of whiskies in america, bourbon to be exact, that use the name "whisky"
I drink maker's mark, and its right there on the label. mike

Edited by mikeinfhaz on 01/14/2009 19:47:11 MST.