So I've turned 40.
As a gift, my wife took me out to the Jack Rose Saloon in Washington D.C., the greatest Scotch Bar ever crafted by the hands of man.
jackrosediningsaloon.com/
They carry 2,400+ different bottles of Whisky, with ~1,800 of them being different Scotches, mostly single-malts, some exceptionally rare.
And she said "have whatever you want, drinks now, dinner at seven, then drinks all night".
:tears of joy:
To start off, I enjoyed a dram from a shuttered distillery near where I was born, Rosebank, a limited edition 21 year old.
Amazing dram, light, floral, slightly sweet, delicate as a flower. Brilliant.
Followed it up with a 37 year old single malt from another closed distiller, Banff, born when I was.
This was an awesome expression, sweet and deep at first, then a striking smoky layer on top. Like two brilliant malts in one, a sweet Speyside with a hint of smoky Highland on top.
We broke for dinner (a brilliant pimento cheese, bacon and caramelized shallot topped burger).
During dinner I met the owner of the Jack Rose, a man of true taste and passion, who could talk Scotch single-malts for as long as you liked, and you'd never tire of it. He wished me a happy birthday, asked my taste preferences, and set about searching his collection for some perfect choices.
Upon return to the bar, I began again with a second helping of the lost Rosebank, this time a younger expression. Given that the cheapest bottles of Rosebank often go for $500+ these days, the opportunity to try two expressions was like a dream come true for me. Literally a taste of where I come from.
What follow.....I almost have no words.
The owner selected a special dram, a 1966 Tullibardine one-off 40 Year Old expression, specially made for the World Cup. A legitimate 40 year old dram.
The owner poured a small sample for himself, and we drank it together, discussing our favorite malts and what we were experiencing. I simply cannot describe how good it was. Complex, dark, toasty and intense, sweet in almost a rum-like way but deep and broad across the palate in a way I've never experienced.
A true dram to make a moment special. One dram, from a total of only 300 bottles ever released of this expression. Awesome.
The night was getting on, so a few more to close out the night.
First, a Balvenie 17 year old Madiera Cask aged expression, no longer available.
Like so much of Balvenie, it wasn't as bold as I'd have expected, more subtle in it's sweetness, with the Madeira influence notin your face, but kind of floating around the core Balvenie malt.
And finally, one more trip to the "closed and never coming back" distillery group, this time Imperial, a 15 year old expression.
Sadly, I cannot find an image of this one online...
All in all, a very special, fulfilling and wonderful way to spend my 40th, with my beloved wife, who made it all possible and somehow has managed to tolerate me for almost 20 years now.
An experience I will not soon forget, and one that I would strongly, wholeheartedly, and without reservation recommend to any Scotch fan who visits the D.C. area. The Jack Rose, and it's owner, are the absolute real deal.
The selection was one thing, but getting to meet the owner, discuss single-malts with him, share a 40 year old dram with him, was something above and beyond. I cannot recommend this place strongly enough.
I was so deeply happy, it was truly the perfect way to spend my birthday.
