Guest: Shannan Custer
Co-Host: Meredith McLinn
Expression 1: Kamet
Expression 2: Royal Tiger

Guests: Sam Landman and Derek Lee Miller
Expression 1: Glenmorangie Malaga Cask 12yr
Expression 2: Wemyss “A Matter of Smoke” 15yr

Guests: Sam Landman and Derek Lee Miller
Expression 1: Nantou Omar
Expression 2: Kaiyo The Peated 2nd Edition Mizunara Oak

Guests: Angela Fox and Michael Bloom
Expression 1: Glenmorangie A Tale of the Forest
Expression 2: Laphroaig Cairdeas 2020 Port and Wine Casks

Guests: Angela Fox and Michael Bloom
Theme: MN Single Malts
Expression 1: Brother Justus Cold-Peated
Expression 2: Dampfwerk Batch 1

Guest: Nicole
Expression 1: Tomatin Pedro Ximenez 12yr
Expression 2: Ballechin Manzanilla 11yr

Guest: Nicole
Expression 1: Aerstone Land Cask
Expression 2: Aberlour Casg Annomh

Guest: Ken
Expression 1: Glenmorangie 13yr Cognac
Expression 2: Lagavulin Offerman Edition

Guests: Kirsten Erickson and Robin Rayfield

Expression 1: Method and Madness

Expression 2: Teeling Black Pitts

Guests: Kirsten Erickson and Robin Rayfield (aka Syd Thunder)

Expression 1: Glenmorangie Cadboll Estate 15yr

Expression 2: Islay Gold Orla

Also, if you want Girl Scout Cookies, this link should work (until it doesn’t):

https://app.abcsmartcookies.com/?fbclid=IwAR0biJuecTFnFqf1CILIAW2a_6xlqYht3ru1ZCUrF1Jex0FqS3VrW-HjT5o#/social-link-payment/676c9a2d-0b31-4e90-b160-ba9e8cfe8c9e

Guest: Dani

Expression 1: Shieldaig Olorosso

Expression 2: Cooper’s Choice Laggan Mill Single Cask Secret Islay

Guest: Dani

Expression 1: Kaiyo Sherry

Expression 2: Glenlivet Enigma

Guest: James

Expression 1: Kilchoman 11yr Single Cask

Expression 2: Laphroaig Cairdeas Triple Wood (2019)

Guest: James

Expression 1: Glen Allachie 12 yr

Expression 2: Aerstone Sea Cask

Apologies for the extremely late posting–I recently bought several Assassin’s Creed games and have been letting them rule my time.

Kyrie’s back and we sample the Glendullan Singleton 12yr and Bowmore Dorus Mor Small Batch 10yr.

Die Laughing Silent Auction winner Puck and returning guest Carly, with her roommate Bailey, join us for a celebration of American single malts.

Sorry for the extremely late posting–February is kicking my ass.

Sorry this was so ridiculously late. Cetius takes complete and total blame, as there was no reason it should have been late at all, let alone this late.

Sorry this is so late folks, and that it’s being posted well after Twin Cities Horror Festival ended (contrary to the episode’s content). We also failed to mention that Top Valu Liquor in Columbia Heights is again running their 15% off all single malts sale, so if you’re a local, please swing by and purchase some tasty whisky.

Sorry we’re late with the show posting, but we’ve been preparing for CONvergence!

May the Fourth be with you!

Reminder–Scott has this to say about his upcoming show:

On Friday, April 28th, the Cedar Cultural Center will host a very special event: Michael David Matheny, a well-known figure in the Twin Cities Irish Music community, is releasing his long-awaited solo album, “El Dorado.” Unfortunately, Michael won’t be performing at the show, because he died of cancer in 2012 at the age of 45.

Over the course of a 25-year career, Michael David Matheny performed as a singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist with bands including Gallowglass Irish Trio and The Long Straight Forever. When he was diagnosed with cancer in 2010, he began cataloging his original songs, “while undergoing chemotherapy and taking advantage of good days and nights as they came” as he wrote in a letter to his family. In late 2015, after more than two years of heartbreaking work combing through Michael’s music, his family brought in producer Scott Keever to complete the task of finishing Michael’s album.

“El Dorado” features 16 tracks, some completed by Michael before he died, and the remainder finished by Scott, with additional performances by Michael’s friends and former bandmates. The songs showcase Michael’s ability as a songwriter, singer and performer in the Celtic tradition, on guitar, mandolin and mandola, and the album is both an emotional farewell to the man and a fitting tribute to his skills.

In celebration of the release of the album, there will be a concert at the Cedar Cultural Center on Friday, April 28th, This concert was made possible by contributors to an Indiegogo campaign launched in November 2016 which raised over $6,000. Although Michael himself won’t be there, the performers from the album will. The set list will include most of the songs from the album as well as songs from Michael’s back catalog. The performers will be Lojo Russo, Raymond Yates, Scott Keever, Dayna Jean Wolter, Ken Larson, Eric Pedrotty, Matt Ogden and Matt Miller. It promises to be an evening of tears, laughter and really great music.

Doors will open at 7pm, with the show starting at 8pm. Tickets are $12 in advance and $15 at the door.

We’d also like to invite you to watch Die Laughing 4, a fundraiser for Fearless Comedy Productions. Those who can appear in person have a chance to win a Silent Auction entry for a guest appearance on this show.

Scott would like to promote the following:
Michael Matheny CD Release/Tribute Show – Friday April 28th at the Cedar Cultural Center
Sweet Colleens CD Release – Sunday June 4th at the Parkway Theater
(OBI) Orkestar Bez Ime – Balkan Party band
The Sweet Colleens

Aaron would like to promote the following:
Just Enough Trope
Enterprising Individuals

It just occurred to me that I hadn’t yet posted the second episode this month, so here’s our X-mas episode
Jessi returns to help us taste the Auchroisk 20yr and Bunnahabhain Darach Ur.

Also, please check out former guest phillip andrew bennett low’s new podcast, Not So Silent Planet and like it on Facebook.

Sorry for the late posting. I’ve been worse than usual with time management lately.

P.S. Due to my being a poor time manager, this is post both late and unedited. Blame Blizzard

Apologies for the lateness on posting and light editing, but CONvergence was early this year.

Sorry for the lack of editing, but my schedule is extremely busy this week.

In case you see this right away, Bill will be hosting Powerpoint Karaoke, an improv comedy show, tonight at the Fantasy Flight Gaming Center in Roseville and again at Fearless Comedy Production’s Die Laughing 3, which is coming up April 8-10. Bill and Sharon will also perform in a few events–check the schedule on the website for details. I (Cetius) will be performing & volunteering here and there throughout the weekend and also auctioned off for a date Friday evening (probably). You can also bid on a guest spot on this show during our Silent Auction, so do please come out to see us.

Reminder:
If you go to their website and use code “scotch” during checkout, you’ll get 10% off your entire order.

True Stone Coffee Roasters have also given us–and you–a special treat. If you go to their web site to order any of their amazing blends and use the coupon code “scotch”, you’ll get 10% off your order–no limit, no end date (or so I’m led to believe). Our thanks to them and happy roasting!

Also, the Minneapolis distiller I was thinking of was indeed Du Nord.

Even though this show is posting a bit late, there’s still time to see Caucasian-Aggressive Pandas and Other Mulatto Tales at the Bryant Lake Bowl this weekend. If you are a Twin Cities local, you really should check it out. This is the final weekend.

As for the drams this show, we’re doing another independent bottlers episode, this time featuring Montgomerie’s (an Angus Dundee label) Ben Nevis 18yr and Scott’s Selection Glen Mhor 1978.

Oh yeah, there’s some scotch tasting too–Tomatin 25yr and Ardbeg Supernova.

We also talk about the Encyclopedia Show, a monthly collection of performances based around a single topic, to which both Matt and Natalie are frequent contributors. He also tells us briefly of his monster presentation archive Rev. Matt’s Monster Science. Both of our guests are also members of Green T Productions, who will be at this year’s MN State Fair (on certain days anyway).

But this is our show, Xtreme Tasting League: Scotch, and so we also need some special guest star whiskeys. This month, that means Cragganmore Distiller’s Edition (2011) and Glenfiddich Age of Discovery.

I’d also like to apologize for how quickly we wrap our show this month. We had to rush the ending somewhat as Natalie needed to get Matthew to a rehearsal. This is what happens when you schedule actors during one of the busiest performance week’s of the year.

We taste the Glenfiddich Cask of Dreams (2nd American edition) and Glen Garioch 21yr.

This months expressions: Clynelish 14yr and Tomatin 18yr

Ghoulish Delights is the theater troupe Tim works with.
Twin Cities Horror Festival is an annual series of horror plays that Tim helps organize.

St. Manna the Destroyer returns and tells us a couple of stories: one with a bunny, one with garlic farts. Then she talks a bit about burlesque because burlesque. We also sidebar briefly to discuss how awesome all of our guests have been while we taste the Old Pulteney 17yr and the Longrow Peated.

Update to the update in the podcast:
Fully Believable! is actually Feb. 18, a week earlier than we say in the show. There was a double-booking hence it moving to be sooner.

We forgot to mention it during the show, but Josh has a YouTube channel where he sings:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCl0lTWhO2DxydRcj_NAoJrg

Also, BBC Radio 4 did an audio-dramatization of “Good Omens” which is worth a listen. It’s only live on the site for free until mid-January, so listen soon:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04knt4h/episodes/guide

Sorry this was posted late.

We also drink the Bunnahabhain Toiteach and The Dalmore Cigar Malt.

Sorry this was a day late, but I’m still on vacation.

Episode 3

Guests: Andrew McKay, Matthew Ebel, Joseph Scrimshaw

Episode 2

Guests: Andrew McKay, Matthew Ebel
Music: I Wish I Were & Everybody Needs A Ninja by Matthew Ebel

Episode 1:

Guests: Andrew McKay, Jim Kakalios, Matthew Ebel, Scott Lynch, Elizabeth Bear, Emma Bull, Will Shetterly

As if that weren’t enough (although it does explain the runtime), we also drink some scotch…go figure, right? This time, we sample the Caol Ila and Lagavulin Distillers Editions.

This is a long one, folks, but well worth the listen. And seriously, if you’re local to the Twin Cities area and are free at all this weekend, come check out Die Laughing at the Airport Hilton–Cetius will be there all weekend.

Also to note, I pimp a few shows in the post-script:
Former guest of the show Jena Young’s “Memoirs of a Welfare Queen” will run March 7-8 at 7pm at the Bryant Lake Bowl.
Fearless Comedy Productions “Big Fun Radio Funtime” will run March 7 at 10pm (after Jena’s show–I’m doing the double feature).
Finally, I will be performing stand-up at Fearless Lab at Honey on March 11 at 7:30pm.

In this episode, we introduce our third permanent co-host, previous guest Perrin Klump. Joining us are the hosts of the Geeks Without God podcast–Nick Glover, Molly Glover, and Tim Wick (who takes a unique approach to score the scotch, as he’s not a drinker). Sadly, Dave’s injury from his ski trip keeps him from enjoying the Aberlour A’bunadh and The Arran Limited Edition Cognac Single Cask, both of which are cask strengths.

I’m going to apologize yet again for the lack of show notes and editing. No one’s commented to complain about the lack of either, but I feel I’ve been slacking off, and not just with the podcast. My New Year’s Resolution for you folks–I’ll start editing the show again, which will improve the show notes as well.

We’ll also be having a contest in the first show of Season 2 of the podcast, so keep your ears open for details in the next couple of episodes.

As mentioned in the episode, there will be a single malt scotch-tasting at Top Valu Liquor at 50th and Central in Columbia Heights, MN on November 6, from 5-8pm. I will be present from 6:15pm on and Dave will try to make it. From that day until the 30th, that store will have 15% off on scotch, so do make a point to stop in and say we sent you.

Also, I will be doing some stand-up comedy with our friends at Fearless Comedy Productions at their Lab show on November 12 at Honey in Minneapolis. This is only the second time I’ve done stand-up and should prove to be entertaining.

Sorry this is a day late, folks. Believe me when I say I wish my schedule allowed for it to be on time.

Bob was a somewhat recent guest on the Apropos of Nothing podcast and talked about Tékumel there as well. They are more adept at the show notes thing and actually have pictures: check it out!

We also launch our first official segment and decide to make a tradition of the closing toast.

Enjoy!

Enjoy.

Note: this was recorded in October 2012, so the November 30 steak and Scotch dinner Dave speaks of has come and gone–sorry. It’s likely the sponsoring group will do something similar again next year, and we’ll try to keep you posted.

Clarification:
Which Glenmorangie is which? We couldn’t remember, so here’s the list of what is finished in the varied casks.
La Santa – Sherry
Quinta Ruban – Port
Nectar d’Or – Sauternes

As the name suggests, we will be tasting Scotch whiskeys and giving you our opinions of them. We aren’t professional tasters but have been sampling Scotches seriously for a number of years and would like to share our experiences with you, the listener.

The original idea for this podcast was spitballed at a regular event we attended with some other friends, and the pilot episode was recorded with that group to see if we could step up our game, as it were. The other two members of our informal club declined further participation in the podcast, but Dave and I have pressed on, and we hope you enjoy what is to come.

What we plan to bring to you is greater knowledge so that you can make an informed purchasing decision. When we first started out, we had no idea what to expect out of many of the bottles we purchased, and while that’s still often true, we have a much better guess as to the likely flavors of the bottle before we even open it, based on our experiences. Hopefully you’ll come to know us well enough that you’ll be able to take us shopping with you, and having listened to our taste tests, be able to buy Scotch whiskey that you know you’ll enjoy.

But don’t think that we’re going to be complete snobs about our tastings. Oh, no. Don’t get me wrong, we’ll be pretentious now and again, but what we hope to bring is a bit of humor to the proceedings, at least enough to make our show fun to listen to.

We’re also hoping that some of you will play along with us, as we’ll be letting you know what bottles will be in our next show. Please feel free to buy a pour of one or both Scotches at your local pub and see if you agree with us and post your own findings in the comments section of each show.

Weclome to the Xtreme Tasting League!