bourbon

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SteveW

Trad climber

State of confusion

Apr 10, 2008 - 02:48pm PT

There's a great pub in Denver, a British place called Pint's Pub.
They brew their own brews, and carry probably the largest variety of scotch whiskey anywhere but Scotland, so they say.
Oh, they serve drams from about $8 to $500 for some that's from
a distillery that no longer exists. I keep to the $8 to $15 stuff, the Glenfarclas is awesome.
For those Wild Turkey 101 (is there any other, now really?),
drinkers, what you do is fill your shot glass with it, then
turn the lights down low. Light it with a match, it burns nicely with that alcohol content. Bring it up, drink it, blow it out at the same time, then swallow. Voila! Singed mustache, for sure. (I only did that when I was younger & dumber, now I'm just old and dumb). . .

ms55401

Trad climber

minneapolis, mn

Jan 10, 2015 - 05:37pm PT

premium bourbon?? really??? I'm guessing some Silicon Valley dipshit will lay down a Ben Franklin for "premium bourbon", but that guy is lame.

I ALWAYS get change from a $20 when I buy a 1.75-liter (plastic!!!11) bottle of Benchmark. That's the way to go.

[Apologies in advance to my friends in the Silicon Valley community. I validate your lifestyle and your choices as consumers.]

Peter Haan

Trad climber

Santa Cruz, CA

Jan 10, 2015 - 05:53pm PT

Well finally! We are back on topic!

Things winding down and all, I always thought a good name for a bourbon would be "Ole Offwidth".

Russ McLean (and I) would drink Old Overholt, saying repetitiously to each other "Ole Overcoat" squeezin' the last bit of funny outta there while marveling that a booze could still be decently good and still be affordable.

And yeah I agree with Karl B. that if piss would get you high, we all would have certainly developed a finely graded palette for it by now.

Salamanizer

Trad climber

The land of Fruits & Nuts!

Jan 10, 2015 - 07:35pm PT

Bookers is definitely one of the best. It's the only one that I know of off the top of my head that is un-cut from the barrel. Everything else is watered down, and that makes a difference.

Fat Dad

Trad climber

Los Angeles, CA

Jan 10, 2015 - 08:50pm PT

I found bourbon after tasting alot of good scotch and realizing I liked the sweeter, less smoky ones, which is more or less what bourbon's like. I like Woodford's (drinking some right now) and Knob Creek. Bulliett is OK, but has a higher rye content I believe and so tastes a bit spicier. Been meaning to try some older brands like Elmer T. Lee but haven't seen much of it around. My folks asked what I wanted for Xmas and had no idea so I told them just to buy me some bourbon. They're not drinkers and ended up buying me a HUGE bottle of Knob Creek from Costco. So I'll be drinking that for a while.

Srbphoto

climber

Kennewick wa

Jan 11, 2015 - 07:53am PT

"Bourbon needs to be produced in America and made from 51 percent corn, whisky does not," says Maker's Mark Master Distiller Greg Davis. Bourbon also needs to be stored in new, charred oak barrels whereas whiskey barrels do need to be oak but not new or charred. "Lastly, to be called bourbon, the liquid needs to be distilled to no more than 160 proof and entered into the barrel at 125." For other whiskies the liquid must be distilled to no more than 190 proof. David notes that this isn't just common practice — "it's actual bourbon law."

Bourbon regulations are strict because in the 1800's distillers spent a lot of time adulterating, diluting, and tampering with their whiskies. "Finally, they set some standards with the Bottle in Bond Act of 1897" says Davis. Essentially, the act requires the spirit to be the product of one distillation season and one distiller at one distillery. "It must be bottled and stored in bonded warehouses under the U.S. government supervision for no less than 4 years. The act has made the U.S. the guarantor of the whiskey's authenticity and therefore bourbon's."

Read more: http://www.mensjournal.com/food-drink/drinks/what-exactly-is-the-difference-between-bourbon-and-whiskey-20140905#ixzz3OWq5ZlgI
Follow us: @mensjournal on Twitter | MensJournal on Facebook

kpinwalla2

Social climber

Jan 11, 2015 - 08:14am PT

srbphoto - get thyself over to Jimgermanbar in Waitsburg and sample some of the 10 year Old Rip Van Winkle. Jim says he prefers it to Pappy 23, but I'm not so sure.... I had some there last night. The rock climbing in the Blue Mtns. may not be world class, but Jim's cocktail skills certainly are.

couchmaster

climber

Jan 11, 2015 - 08:21am PT

SBR has it. Lots of good choices upthread. I like them all. 2 points to add to the thread:

1st) The barrels must be new as said. After they use them once, many are sold to the Scottsmen to make Scotch. They clearly have more financial control and smarts than us yanks. Much like using everything including the squeal out of a pig, they keep using the barrels over and over.

2nd) Bourbon County was named to show gratitude and respect for the kindness of the Bourbon royals of France for the assist during the revolutionary war. A distinctive corn Whiskey was an early product of the county.

stormeh

climber

Jan 11, 2015 - 09:38am PT

I am a bit of a whiskey (especially Bourbon) snob and have a few things to contribute to this thread:

* I've seen reference that Jack Daniel's is not Bourbon. This is not true. Jack Daniel's meets the legal requirements to be called Bourbon but they have elected to use a different term on their label, Tennessee Whiskey. Tennessee Whiskey recently became a legal term and as was mentioned earlier in the thread, now refers to the Charcoal Filtration process than Jack Daniel's uses. It also must be produced in Tennessee. Another notable (and delicious) Tennessee Whiskey is George Dickel.

* Bourbon can be produced anywhere in the US, not just in Kentucky or Bourbon County.

* Try Bourbons made by Four Roses, they are delicious. Especially the Small Batch and Single Barrel, but the Yellow Label is good (and cheap, $18 by me) too. Buffalo Trace and Elijah Craig 12 Year are also great Bourbons for relatively cheap.

* Bookers was mentioned as the only available "barrel proof" Bourbon but there are quite a few on the market now, some tipping the scales at 140+ proof. Almost all whiskey is proofed down with water to a more drinkable strength, but you won't get as much flavor (as well as burn) on lower proof offerings. Other good barrel proofers now readily available are Stagg Jr, EH Taylor Barrel Strength, Four Roses Barrel Select, and Elijah Craig Barrel Proof.

Drink your whiskey!

wilbeer

Mountain climber

Terence Wilson greeneck alleghenys,ny,

Jan 11, 2015 - 09:44am PT

Not while I am drinking.

Evel

Trad climber

Nedsterdam CO

Jan 11, 2015 - 09:50am PT

I like Four Roses. Blantons is very good as well but somewhat pricy. Recently had a 10, 12, and 15 year old Pappy Van Winkle. Very Good!

KP Ariza

climber

SCC

Jan 11, 2015 - 09:53am PT

Rye-
Michters
High West (Utah)
Templeton
Old Overholt
Wild Turkey
Rittenhouse
Whistle Pig
Four Roses
George Dickel

Salamanizer

Trad climber

The land of Fruits & Nuts!

Jan 11, 2015 - 10:36am PT

* Bookers was mentioned as the only available "barrel proof" Bourbon but there are quite a few on the market now, some tipping the scales at 140+ proof. Almost all whiskey is proofed down with water to a more drinkable strength, but you won't get as much flavor (as well as burn) on lower proof offerings. Other good barrel proofers now readily available are Stagg Jr, EH Taylor Barrel Strength, Four Roses Barrel Select, and Elijah Craig Barrel Proof.

Not the only, just the only one I could think of off the top of my head. But now that you mention it, I've had the EH Taylor. It was good, but nothing special. Certainly not worth the 70 or so dollars a bottle it costs. Four Roses is consistently mediocre, too many spices and other crap that doesn't belong in a Bourbon IMO. I'll have to try out the other two you mention. As long as they're well under 100 bucks a bottle.

KP Ariza

climber

SCC

Jan 11, 2015 - 10:54am PT

Sal,
Check out Noah's Mill or Rowan's Creek. Both affordable and not overdone.

Johnny K.

climber

Jan 11, 2015 - 11:32am PT

Bulleit...with a dash of snowflake.<3

Roger Breedlove

climber

Cleveland Heights, Ohio

Jan 11, 2015 - 12:32pm PT

A few years ago, I starting switching from Scotch to bourbon. Partly it was just digging out of my own ruts, partly because my favorite Scotches were getting too expensive, and partly because bourbon is ‘Merican.

One of the most interesting things about whiskey, whether Scotch, bourbon, rye, or Irish, is that most are owned by only a few corporations, and most sell a series of labels, covering the palates of their customers. This says that whiskey can be made many different ways and among the well-made whiskeys there are many styles and price points—bad whiskey is bad whiskey, but you can always mix it with something sweet.

The 51% corn mash needed to make bourbon gives bourbon its basic taste. I call this “tractor pull.” Some folks think that this is the alcohol content, but there are very smooth 100 proof whiskeys with great taste but low “tractor pull” and there are 80 proof bourbons with great taste with high “tractor pull” I like to sip the low “tractor pull” whiskeys but I think that high “tractor pull” whiskeys do better in a Manhattan where the bourbon competes with the vermouth and the bitters. Bullet is a high “tractor pull” whiskey and Basil Hayden is a low “tractor pull’ whiskey. Bullet is made on contract by Four Roses, a great whiskey with a low rye mash bill’; Basil Hayden is a high rye mash bill made by the same company that makes Booker’s, Baker’s and Knob Creek.
At Christmas, my daughter purchased a bottle of Wathens single barrel whiskey for about $37. Nice sipping and mixing

I visited a liquor store in Brooklyn NY and asked for a recommendation. I now have a great bottle of Johnny Drum, single barrel, ($37). I haven’t figured out if there is a specific distillery or if this is contract whiskey. Nothing wrong with contract whiskey: Bullet is made by Four Roses which is owned the Japanese firm Kirin.

Interestingly he only pointed to a few of the well know whiskeys and only one costing more than $40, Blanton’s, from the same company that makes Buffalo Trace.

Gnome Ofthe Diabase

climber

Out Of Bed

Jan 11, 2015 - 01:04pm PT

J W Dant, and the two Dickels,

Over Thanksgiving my sisters kid now a man made a drink with Rye and a 100 proof ??

The liqucure, looked clear and was almost a dead ringer in taste to Angostonga Bitters??

If the drink fits wear it but of course many of the very best Hooches are made at home.

My Wife's Grandfather distilled several varieties of fruit. The best being a plum and also a cherry. That the crafty old Austrian batched, aged and,saved in a crypt. more than 700 bottles. The keys to the crypt doors he was going to leave to his grandson in his will, and then never had one! so It came to my wife (long routes).

It was a real privalige to help do the taste tests with the old man...

Not why I married into the family, but it was not a curse, to me.

SAlute' JHA? S

http://www.gq.com/life/food/201311/bourbon-whiskey-family-tree
long routes
Their are a number of sisters the Greedyist pack of vultures that have ever been seen . The Keys to the Crypt were overlooked While suplanting the will. The Karma of this went on as the crypt held an older very telling will . And 786 counted + bottles of various schnapps, Brandys, wines, ciders, & hooches.

EdwardT

Trad climber

Retired

Jan 11, 2015 - 02:08pm PT

Check out Noah's Mill or Rowan's Creek. Both affordable and not overdone.

That's why I drink Old Forester. Great price. I've tried other, more expensive bourbons. Nothing top shelf, but "better" bourbons. I always go back to Old Forester.

couchmaster

climber

Jan 11, 2015 - 06:34pm PT

Salmonizer said:

"Four Roses is consistently mediocre, too many spices and other crap that doesn't belong in a Bourbon"

Agreed, was shocked at how much better Jack Daniels Devils Cut (new product I just tried) was stacked right next to 4 Roses. Will never buy 4 roses again.