There's No Place Like Keen's

I’ve been meaning to post about the whisky we drank at the Haters Ball; my problem, however, is that there is so much to say, and I haven’t felt as if I’ve had the time. But I’m going to get started on my review, regardless of how many postings it requires, mainly because I want to finish this process while I can still vividly recall how much we enjoyed that night.

First, the overview: as always, we arrived at Keen’s early. What’s the point of visiting this establishment if one can’t spend a fair measure of time in the bar? Admiring the whiskies lined up, six deep behind the bar; chatting whisky with the bartenders, or even with other patrons; lingering over the whisky listing; these are experiences you don’t want to miss. When we arrived, Danny was already enjoying a glass of a private bottling of Caol Ila -- I think it was a fifteen, and I can’t recall if it was cask strength. And honestly, because we drank so many that night, I can’t remember much about this malt, except I do know that we were all impressed with its quality. Beyond that, however, it’s now just a blur. Danny may want to fill us in – that is, if he can remember much of anything.

We drank in the bar for close to an hour, and enjoyed at least four different malts. More on that later. After dinner, we had two separate flights of whisky, so that was another eight malts. Of this dozen, we drank at least six whiskies we’d never before tasted in that particular bottling or age, a couple we’d never even heard of previously, and some that we’ve only tasted either at Keen’s or Federal.

Here’s one example of the extraordinary selection we enjoyed at the Haters Ball. On one of the flights, there was a Port Ellen 26. Now I recall from reading one of Jackson’s books, that Port Ellen was a town on the Island of Islay. But I had to go back to the books to learn that it was also, at one time, a distillery. Like Rosebank, it’s now extinct. It was closed during the eighties, apparently at a time when scotch consumption fell off sharply, perhaps in response to the new popularity of vodka, and all those fruity cocktails that are now termed martinis. Whatever, Port Ellen stopped distilling over 20 years ago, and is available today only in private bottlings.

After the Ball, after we had returned home, I sent Joe an e-mail at Federal, asking if he might have any Port Ellen in stock. I figured Federal was the only place I knew of that would have this delicious and soon-to-be-unavailable Islay malt. Sure enough, Joe had a 29 year old, cask strength, which he described as a ‘Gem’. Unfortunately, it was priced like a gem as well - $400 a bottle. Even though Joe reminded me that the price will only escalate, I took a pass. As much as I enjoyed the Port Ellen, and we’ll eventually get to that, along with all the other after dinner malts, I’m still not spending anything near that kind of money. I mention this detail, however, to highlight the quality of malts we enjoyed at the Ball. And considering Federal’s price, Keen’s is practically giving the stuff away.

Here’s the point – there’s no place quite like Keen’s. We’ve found some other great whisky bars, some of which offer terrific whisky at modest prices. And we’ve found some other pretty fair steakhouses. But there is no place that combines the enormous selection, the knowledgeable staff, the moderate pricing, and the ambiance of Keen’s. In other words, there’s no better place for the Haters Ball.

Check back soon for the details about the dozen or so wonderful whiskies we enjoyed last Saturday.