Bourbon, Whiskey News, and Covid

[noboundaries]

The Daily Beast: You'll Be Drinking this Whiskey in the Near Future.

You’ll Be Drinking this Whiskey in the Near Future

These barrel innovations will create a whole new generation of North American whiskies that will be on store shelves in the next few years.

www.thedailybeast.com

I'm a whisky, whiskey, brandy, and bourbon drinker, taking it neat or with an ice cube or two. $20-$50 is my favorite price range. Anything over that I put on my gift list. Got a bottle of Writer's Tears Double Oak this past Christmas that way. It's a decent Irish, but not worth $65. Maybe half that.

I've mentioned in another thread how I'll take a spirit I don't care for when I open the bottle, and doctor it with other whiskies/brandies to turn it into something I enjoy drinking. I usually do it in the glass, but have no problem doctoring an entire bottle if it is that distasteful or lacking in flavor.

I decided to start doing this after reading how blenders at distilleries identify missing flavor elements and use other whiskies to get the flavor profile they desire. Some are selling the blending elements as stand-alones. Well, heck, it they can blend whiskies, why can't I with stuff in the cabinet I didn't care for.

Recently, I saw a YouTube video where a guy used his oven to dry and toast oak wood chips. He then put them in a jar and added an Everclear-like 95% ethyl alcohol, a bit of water, and a little brown sugar. He sealed it up and a week later the clear liquor was amber brown. He said it tasted like a 10-year aged whiskey (insert scoffs here).

Or maybe not! I haven't done it, but then I read the above article where distillers here in the US are experimenting with basically the same thing. Now, I'm curious.

All I've got in the cabinet right now is stuff I enjoy (complex, smooth, multilayered), except for one bottle of Costco blended Canadian whisky I use for BBQ sauces or a lemon-lime drink when the mood hits in the summer. It's decent enough to drink straight, kind of two dimensional with the spicy element. Might have to try the oak chip thing with a little of it, but a cleaner, flatter whiskey would probably be better. Might have to fortify some Bushmills with Everclear and try the toasted wood.

Feel free to beat me to the punch if interested after reading the article. Covid isolation has certainly created some interesting non-traditional thinking.

Time for another sip,

Ray

 

[BandCollector]

noboundaries

My son bought me a small oak barrel last Christmas which I filled with the cheapest bourbon I could find. After the designated "aging" it was actually pretty good. Nothing like a Woodford Reserve, but decent. Picked up a hint of vanilla from the barrel.

John

 

[noboundaries]

noboundaries

My son bought me a small oak barrel last Christmas which I filled with the cheapest bourbon I could find. After the designated "aging" it was actually pretty good. Nothing like a Woodford Reserve, but decent. Picked up a hint of vanilla from the barrel.

John

Thanks, John. That's good to know.

 

[hoity toit]

You would be suprised at what you can come up with that tastes great. I have used Jack Daniels wood chips for smoking before to flavor my moonshine. I char it some more with a torch and add it to large container. I might add that putting it in cheese cloth or a thin clean sock will keep the particles to a minimal but you can always strain it. Works for me great. Same goes with rum except I use a little Mexican vanilla and cinnamon stikx to make a Spiced rum like Cap Morgan or Sailor Jerry. Hope this helps you in you pursuit of happiness.

HT

 

[noboundaries]

Jack Daniels wood chips

THAT'S A GREAT IDEA!

 

[BrianGSDTexoma]

I'm a whisky, whiskey, brandy, and bourbon drinker, taking it neat or with an ice cube or two. $20-$50

Our local distillery, Ironroot makes a great whiskey but getting where its hard to get a bottle anymore. At $60 a bottle it also getting to expensive for a everyday kind of whiskey. What are some of your suggestions?

 

[mneeley490]

I'm fortunate to live about 20 minutes away from the Woodinville Whiskey Co. Their stuff (bourbon, rye, straight whiskey) is pretty good, and most of it is in the $40-$50 range.

 

[bigfurmn]

Couple of very good distilleries in Minneapolis/St. Paul I've been to. A few years ago I got a 2 liter oak barrel at the state fair from a now (appearantly) defunked company. Loaded that with everything from whiskey to tequila, just soak in water for a few weeks in between. It's a very amazing little contraption.

 

[Torch&Tone]

Interesting article, thanks for sharing.

There's always a few small distillers looking to innovate (or take cheap shortcuts, depending on your perspective). One got a lot of press for putting their barrels on a barge, suggesting that the wave motion accelerated the aging process, which led to someone else aging their barrels entirely underwater. Another one I remember was putting the distillate in a big steel pressure vessel with some charred oak sticks and cranking up the pressure. I think another tried something similar but basically in a washing machine to agitate it! All made bold claims ("days instead of years!"), but - other than some initial articles in the press - I haven't heard anything more about them, let alone actually tried the end result. I would be curious, though.

More on the at-home front, Everclear is great for making all kinds of flavored extracts (including personal favorite, limoncello). There are other ingredients that you can smoke in order to impart flavor and then use in a simple cocktail. I rather like smoking maple syrup, for pancakes/waffles and for bourbon/rum!

Also, I have a friend who picked up one of those little table-top barrels... and used it to age his homemade hot sauce! Since that's his passion more than booze, I don't think it was a waste at all.

 

[bill1]

noboundaries
My son bought me a small oak barrel last Christmas which I filled with the cheapest bourbon I could find. After the designated "aging" it was actually pretty good...

Same story...my fine son gave me one! I top it off with Old Crow once a week and take about 4 shots from it in the meantime. Any faster rate and the flavor improvement is just not there. Mine is near 10 yo and I keep thinking I'm going to need to drain and re-char the barrel but it keeps working just fine. Whether it's devil's share or angel's envy, I put in a lot more than I take out...so it's costing a bit more than the price of what I pay...but well worth it.

My base bourbon has moved from Old Crow to Ezra Brooks (and I'm liking the $18/liter Kirland Small Batch) but I'm hesitant to change what I've been using in this old barrel. Has anyone tried changing what they fill their barrels with?

 

[bigfurmn]

I have done whiskey, rum and tequila in mine. I just fill it with water for a few weeks to a month in between the different liquiors. I aged the rum for my dad as a gift and he really enjoyed it. The tequila was a crap shoot since I used the left overs from about four bottles. Some Patron and a couple I bought in Mexico. It turned out better than I could have imagined when I started. I sip that like a good whiskey now.

 

[noboundaries]

This discussion, and the mention of tequila, reminded me a Super Bowl story. 2004, the infamous Janet Jackson half-time show.

Tequila had gone through a resurgence like whiskey is now. I was drinking anejo (aged) tequila at the time. The host knew that fact and handed me an unopened bottle of Don Julio 1942 tequila he was gifted by a client. I'd never tasted it, and was surprised it tasted like a fine scotch.

At the end of the party he gave me the bottle. I tried to refuse, but he insisted it would never be consumed because he hated tequila. I tried to tell him what I tasted but he said, "Take it or it's going down the drain."

Turns out blanco (white, unaged) tequila is kind of like new whiskey when aged in charred oak. It pulls flavors from the wood.

Man, I enjoyed sipping that bottle.

 

[bigfurmn]

Had friend a while back gift me a bottle of Crown Royal XR Red Box. I thanked him and thought nothing of it , especially since his "ahole brother in law" got it for him. Then I looked up the price of the bottle. I tried to give it back but he wouldn't take it.

 

[mneeley490]

Texomakid's thread with the rib roast and Eagle Rare reminded me of what I've been drinking lately.

Recently I was fortunate enough to locate a rare bottle of Jim Beam 8 year, in a clear bowling pin bottle. A gentleman was selling it unopened on craigslist nearby for $50. He said his dad had bought it, and it had been sitting in a box in his basement for years. The gold lettering on the front was a bit worn, but otherwise pristine. The old tax stamp was still intact, so I researched it a bit, and found that it was made and sold some time between 1963 and 1972. I saw that some bottles had sold for $350-$800 at some auctions, but I had no intention of flipping it. Instead, I opened last month with with some good friends, and still take a shot off it now and then. It's darned good bourbon!

 

[noboundaries]

I'm on an Islay scotch trend at the moment. I find scotch just more appealing to my palate. Islay scotches are an acquired taste. I like the heavy peat smoke on most of them.

My wife and kids got me 2 Islay scotches (Lagavulin 16 and Bruichladdich Port Charlotte 10 Heavily Peated, plus one less smoky west Highlands scotch - Oban 14. I literally just got back from Christmas with them all. As soon as I get the car unloaded, the Lagavulin 16 will be the first I'll open.

Cheers! Or more accurately Slàinte Mhath (pronounced Salan-cha-va)

 

[noboundaries]

Our local distillery, Ironroot makes a great whiskey but getting where its hard to get a bottle anymore. At $60 a bottle it also getting to expensive for a everyday kind of whiskey. What are some of your suggestions?

My sincerest apologies, Brian. I somehow missed your question.

My favorite cheap drinking scotch is Trader Joe's Finlaggan Islay Single Malt. It has a light smoke influence and mildly complex flavor for $19.99, 750ml bottle, 40% ABV. It is a VERY easy pour.

Another absolute favorite is Total Wine's Scarabus Islay Single Malt for $35, often on sale for $30. More smoke and complexity. 46% ABV. Long finish. It's been sold out locally in my area, but will probably be restocked in the Spring or Summer 2022.

 

[JckDanls 07]

I bought this special bicentennial bottle of Jack Daniels back in 1996... Back then being a dry county there was no taste testing at the end of the tour of the distillery ... but they sold this commemorative bottle for $65... Last I checked at auction it was going for $800-$900... I still have it unopened...

 

[uncle eddie]

I just got a bottle of Very Old Barton for Christmas. $13.99 per bottle. Very hard to find in Missouri. Scores are crazy high for all of them.

Very smooth and tasty - neat. Sipping some right now. What a surprise!

Next trip to KY will be buying a case or two.

 

[bigfurmn]

I bought this special bicentennial bottle of Jack Daniels back in 1996... Back then being a dry county there was no taste testing at the end of the tour of the distillery ... but they sold this commemorative bottle for $65... Last I checked at auction it was going for $800-$900... I still have it unopened...

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Took that tour about 8 years ago. Great history lesson along with whiskey lesson. Although I mean if you need help drinking it I can find my way around a smoker.

 

[PulledPorkSandwich]

I'm on an Islay scotch trend at the moment. I find scotch just more appealing to my palate. Islay scotches are an acquired taste. I like the heavy peat smoke on most of them.

My wife and kids got me 2 Islay scotches (Lagavulin 16 and Bruichladdich Port Charlotte 10 Heavily Peated, plus one less smoky west Highlands scotch - Oban 14. I literally just got back from Christmas with them all. As soon as I get the car unloaded, the Lagavulin 16 will be the first I'll open.

Cheers! Or more accurately Slàinte Mhath (pronounced Salan-cha-va)

I learned a bit about single-malt Scotch when I was travelling frequently to England on business about 25 years ago. One of the British guys I worked with set up a Scotch tasting at the bar of the hotel we were staying at. He set up bottles of Scotch from each of the 4 (or is it 5?) areas and we set about tasting from each.

I was immediately drawn to Islay malts, especially Lagavulin 16 initially. Then I had a taste of Laphroaig 15 and thought it was even better than the Lagavulin. If you try Laphroaig, steer well clear of their 10-year. It's bad. But the 15, I think, is excellent. They also started selling an 18 a few years back that I enjoyed as well.

I like a wee dram of whiskey (whisky?) every night, but, unfortunately, at about $100 a bottle, both Laphroaig and Lagavulin are too expensive for my daily drink. Instead, I'm drawn to decent but affordable rye whiskey, and occasionally some of the craft whiskeys from here in Texas. I have a bottle of Balcones Brimstone in my cabinet right now.

The idea of an oak barrel appeals to me! I've never tried that.