Bourbon
Bourbon is the unquestioned king of American whiskey, its production dating back to the 1700s. While bourbon is invariably associated with Kentucky, where 95 percent of all bourbon is produced today, in reality it can be produced anywhere in the U.S. (though only Kentucky Bourbon can include the name of the state on the label). By U.S. law, bourbon must be made from a mash of at least 51% corn; be aged in new, charred oak containers; distilled to no more than 160 proof, entered into barrel at no more than 125 proof, and bottled at a minimum of 80 proof. Contrary to popular opinion, there’s no minimum aging requirement for bourbon, although straight bourbon must be aged for at least two years and cannot have added coloring. One of the most popular spirits in today’s drinking world, bourbon prices have been on the rise as stocks have dwindled — although massive investments in the industry promise to ease those supply pressures in coming years.
Top Bourbon Posts:
Tips, Tricks, and Advice on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail
Top 10 Bourbons Under $20
Buffalo Trace’s Single Oak Project
Finger Lakes Distilling operates out of, you guessed it, the Finger Lakes region of New York, well known as an up-and-coming wine region but also a hotbed of craft distilleries, too. Finger Lakes makes two young whiskeys which we recently put to the taste test. Both are 91 proof. McKenzie Bourbon Whiskey – Double-pot distilled…
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Hailing from Madison, Wisconsin, this craft whiskey is a three-year-old Bourbon that is matured in small batches and small barrels. The mashbill (and other details) are not revealed by Yahara Bay Distillers, but the results speak for themselves. The whiskey is surprisingly dark, and the nose is heavy with wood, but otherwise typical of Bourbon.…
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One of the biggest success stories in recent years in the Bourbon world has been Bulleit, a brand that came from nowhere and has since become ubiquitous on back bars throughout the country. Bulleit is affordable, good, and easy to drink straight or as a mixer. It doesn’t hurt that Tom Bulleit is one of…
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The Buffalo Trace “Single Oak Project” experiment continues! This month we look at the seventh round of these unique, single-barrel Bourbons as we work to figure out what characteristics, exactly, make for the very best Bourbon. Previous rounds can be found here: Round One (including all the basics of the approach to this series) Round…
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Will you be at Drinkhacker HQ tonight? Here’s what you’re drinking… while supplies last! Adapted from this recipe at Serious Eats. The bay leaves are what sucked me in! Update: This punch was a huge hit and was gone in about an hour. There’s no way it serves 40. Maybe 20. I would at least…
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December is here, and that can only mean one thing: A new Evan Williams Single Barrel release. EW Single Barrel is uniformly one of the best values in the Bourbon world, and while the expressions vary from year to year — sometimes widely — you can’t deny that they’re always quality whiskey from top to…
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Better known for its exotic cacao liqueurs (we’re reviewing them in the coming weeks), Cacao Prieto also makes a highly regarded artisan Bourbon whiskey in limited quantities in its compound in Red Hook, Brooklyn. How then does Widow Jane come to say “Kentucky Bourbon” on the label? Widow Jane is distilled in the Bluegrass state…
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I’ve been turning people on to Angel’s Envy since naming it as one of my favorite whiskeys of 2010. While Master Distiller Lincoln Henderson prepares his next trick, this very limited edition bottling (600 bottles produced, available only in Kentucky and Nashville, Tennessee) of the Port-barrel finished Bourbon is being released: A cask strength version…
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The Col. Taylor juggernaut continues rolling from Buffalo Trace. For this sixth expression, Taylor plays it comparably simple and unchallenging: a small batch bourbon, made from batching seven-year old barrels from the hallowed sixth floor of Buffalo Trace’s brick warehouse. Like the other Col. Taylor bottlings, it’s bottled in bond at 100 proof. Heavy and…
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Bobby Fitzgerald is a restaurateur and bar owner in Chicago with a taste for exotic Bourbon. He’s one of those guys that collects single-barrel whiskeys for his establishments — entire barrels, not bottles — and at his Lincoln Whiskey Kitchen you can try a full seven different single barrel whiskey bottlings, from Elijah Craig to…
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