Grean Meanie

Not all LCBOs are created equal

Most times when I walk past the institutionalized, neutral-toned, and calming facade of the LCBO I feel a slight chill as our bureaucratically-laced overlords dictate what we can and can't drink. They've done a bang up job of keeping us in the dark ages with clean lighting, wood-warmed vintage sections and staff donning ties. If you've ever shopped for wine or whisky south of the border or in Europe in one of their super-boozemarts, you know this pain I speak of.

But it ain't all bad. If you do your homework and scour the city you can find some great selections. My favourite LCBO in K-W for whisky is at Ottawa & Home Watson (721 Ottawa Street South) in the Alpine Centre. I've spoken with the manager Greg there, and he has a good understanding of whisky and seems to be proactive in his stock selections. Greg also recommends a drive to another great LCBO in Guelph that has an impressive selection located on Stone Rd West across from the Stone Rd. Mall (615 Scottsdale Drive).


Well anyway, as I was restocking some of our more popular whiskies like Jura Superstition, I happened across a little green gem from the Isle of Mull: Tobermory 10 yr old. For some reason the island whiskies seem to have grabbed the hearts of K-dub so I said 'what the hell, let's give Toby a shot in the big leagues.'

Sitting off the west coast of Scotland, north of Jura, sits Scotland's fourth largest Island. Tobermory (formerly Ledaig) is a neat 'little' guy. Bottled in a 700ml format like our Bruichladdich Organic, this Island single malt hits on the central sweet spot on our flavour map. The Tobermory single malt is distilled from unpeated malted barley and matured in oak casks for ten years. A peated whisky is also made in Tobermory, named Ledaig for the original distillery name.

Don't be afraid to add a little water to this one. It'll cloud over due to it's un-chill filtered production but will soften the spicy notes. The nose is soft and will mislead as to it's true nature. I get a kick out of a scotch that plays tricks on you. There are only a few of these sneaky devils out there. You'll find this 'green meanie' just south of the smoky meridian and heavier on the rich notes than on the light notes.

Overall, another happy addition to the DVLB line-up kids!