Me, I like Forty Creek Three Grain as my go to whisky. A very good Canadian Whisky. And made locally. 

 

Day in and day out, my sippin' whiskey is Woodford Reserve.

If we're talking about Bourbon, then it would be either Maker's Mark or Knob Creek.

Whatever you're buying. 

I've really enjoyed drinking my brother's Four Roses 2010 Single Barrel Limited Edition bourbon.

Before that I loved many of the "peaty" whiskies produced on Islay. Still have these bottles in my cellar, opened but untouched since a number of years; Ardbeg, Laphroag and Caol Ila. Now I'm drooling... maybe a small sip tonight, a wee dram?

 

The problem is not having just the one wee drop, the problem is that I know myself, which means I will probably have many more drops after the first... chances are big that soon after, my heartbeat will switch from zen to a wild voodoo mode.

I'm glad I joined a whisky tasting club many years ago. It's the best place to learn a lot about whisky and to be able to taste whiskies one would never pay individually. Like 50-60 year old Port Ellen and many others. I would highly recommend people who want to learn about whisky to join such a club, ditto for wine clubs!

 

Every whisky has a unique flavor profile. Overly chilling it covers up the subtlties of that flavor. If you're going to do that, may as well just go with the cheap stuff. 

 

Same with mixers. I mean, Coke & bourbon? For God's sake, gimme a break. Or even worse, Bourbon and Ale-8.

 

I've always felt that combining good whisky with anything but water or soda was done by people who really didn't like the taste of booze, but felt that had to drink. Indeed, that's true, IMO, with any cocktail.

 

And, FWIW, Jack Daniels is ok sippin' whisky. But it is not bourbon. It's sour mash whisky, and does not meet the legal definition of bourbon.

 

You would logically think that the legal defination emanates from Kentucky. In fact, it's federally mandated.

 

You might be interested in knowing that one of the things making Woodford Reserve so special is that it's distilled in open-pots. This is the same method used to produce good Scotch whiskey, and is the only bourbon made that way.

 

If you're ever down this way you might want to visit the distillery. Not just the pot stills, but the whole facility. It's absolutely beautiful---limestone buildings, emerald lawns, and the river flowing.

 

For that matter, there's a formally organized drive tour called the "Bourbon Trail," which lets you visit 7 of the 8 remaining Kentucky distilleries.

 

I'm not a Scotch drinker, so take that as a caveat. But, seems to me, a blended whiskey can never compare to a "single barrel" one. Thus, any single malt will have depths and nuances that a blend can never achieve.

 

There are high notes, sharps, and flats in the single barrel that a blend is designed to eliminate. The whole point of a blend is consistency. 

 

The thing about Woodford is that, due to the pot still method, it's a mass-produced bourbon with the characteristics of a single-barrel distilation.  

 

I agree, Jack isn't all that bad. Indeed, it's what I drank until moving down here and discovering what real bourbon could be like.

 

Not necessary, my friend. With one exception they're all in dry counties, and cannot provide samples as part of the tour.

 

It is hard for me to imagine, living in a Dry State ... or imagining that such outdated laws still exist in the southern USA ...

 

Which states are " Dry " states and does that include wines and beer ?

 

Thanks in advance,

Marge

 

In Kentucky, about half the counties are dry, semi-dry, or what is known in the South as "Baptist dry." 

 

It can get even stranger. When we first moved here, Madison Cty. was half-dry. The northern part of the county was dry, the southern half not. The wet half was the only place you could by beer, wine, or booze, by the bottle, between Cincinnati (OH) and Knoxville (TN). Liquor stores were a major industry in the southern half of the county for that reason.  

 

Thanks for taking the time, to explain dry, semi and not ...

 

Interesting ...

 

We have dear friends of many years in the Nags Head, North Carolina region, and if I recall, there is a mix of these county laws there too --- Blue Laws, they are called if I recall correctly ...

 

Liquor is big business ... People want to have wine or beer or cocktails, when dining ... If they cannot; they stay home and drink with their meals --- and I also recall Charleston, South Carolina which has quite an array of wine bars that open after 21.00 hours --- very Iberian in timetable !

 

Thanks again;

Marge.

 

Good advice for any top-shelf wiskey.

 

Sometimes it can go the other way. When I was in school I had a buddy who was a H&H Pinch drinker. Back then that was one of the top drawer Scotches. Bob drank a bottle a week of it. In those days a bottle ran around 12 bucks a fifth.

 

When I throw parties I stock two types of everthing: Top-shelf, for those who appreciate it, and low cost for all the others. For an upcoming party my liquor guy, at the time, turned me on to a new Scotch. Crawfords (which, it turns out, was a single malt before that became popular). Price: $4.50/quart.

 

Bob was visiting a few days before the party, saw the Crawfords, and wondered what it was. "Let's open it and find out," I said. Suiting deed to word we opened it and had a dram. Bob's eyes lit up, and he described it in glowing terms. And immediately switched from the Pinch to the Crawfords as his regular drink.

 

 

     now that was a fine drink!

   I bought the bottle for my brother, as a gift for some skilled work that he did for us...I may have to get a bottle of this for myself as well!