I just remembered, I wanted to throw in some tasting notes. Bear in mind that this only reflects my opinions; I'm not a professional by any means.
Blended scotches
Johnnie Walker Red: Nothing too special. No real complexity, and slightly acrid (un-smooth) to boot. Better to spend fifteen bucks more and get some decent single malt.
Dewer's White: Similar to the above in terms of complexity, but a touch smoother. Nothing to write home about.
J&B: Interestingly bad. This stuff is sort of like a car wreck that you can't stop looking at. The only reason I finished the glass was in an attempt to figure out if it was as awful as I'd initially assesed. It was. Too sweet, with a heavy taste of licorice or something similar. I'd sooner drink a glass of warm cherry NyQuil.
Single Malts (woefully inexperienced, here. I'll remedy this when I have more disposable income.)
Glenlivet, 12 yrs. old: Very enjoyable. This is where smelling the liquor starts to pay off. Try to pick out and identify the different scents; it's sort of like listening to a favorite tune over and over, concentrating on the bass line one time, then the drums, lead guitar, vocals. . . This stuff helped me to understand what was meant by "smooth". Noticable fruit flavors, maybe a touch of vanilla in there. A bit spicey on the finish for my tatses, though.
Glenfiddich Special Reserve, 12 yrs. old: Hands down my favorite drink so far. My sister bought me a bottle of this stuff for my last birthday (bless her heart,) and I drank
very slowly over about four months. Smoother than the Glenlivet, but perhaps not
quite as complex. I can't say for certain, as I've not tried the two side by side. It's long gone now, but I still break out the bottle every once in a while just to give it a whiff. Brings back fond memories.
Irish whiskeys
Jameson's: Pretty decent. A fairly solid reputation, and well deserved. Nothing too outstanding, but very drinkable. I'd consider this to be more of a "party" whiskey; it's something you can drink quickly and put in coffee without feeling guilty about it.
Jameson's 1780, 12 yrs. old: WAY smoother than the regular stuff, and better depth of flavor. Peppery towards the finish. It took twelve years to make; sip that stuff slowly, you heathen!
Bushmill's: Similar to Jameson's in quality, just a different part of the spectrum. Respectable.
Bushmill's Malt, 10 yrs. old: Right up there with Jameson's 1780. Smoother, more refined.
Killbegan: Not too bad, but not too great either. Something about this made me feel slightly dirty. Maybe it was the piss-yellow color.
Tullamore Dew: Honestly, I was too drunk to remember at this point. This one was fairly far down on the menu, and I'd hit the 1780 twice, to boot. Nothing outlandishly bad, that's for certain. I'll have to work from the bottom next time.
And there was one other that I can't remember at all. The name had consenants in all the wrong places, and the waitress laughed at me after I'd failed to pronouce it twice; I finally resorted to pointing at the menu like a twit. I recall it was fairly middle-of-the-road.
. I've drank dark rum before I think, the one I had was sweeter then bacardi from what I remember.
