Whiskey Roundup
I think I've found my whiskey.
Jack Daniels Black is simply the best thing in my bar right now. Pour over ice, a small splash of water to dispel the vapours, and I'm good.
I started seriously drinking whiskey a year or so ago in order to be able to tell the differences in the various types. Tennessee? Bourbon? Scotch? Irish?
I really like my Bushmill's, too, but it's kind of expensive. I'll definitely keep buying it though.
The also-rans:
Dewars Scotch: I like it, but not enough to buy regularly. Scotch is definitely an aquired taste, and I will say I've aquired it to the extent that I can drink it without complaint. I'll probably keep a bottle around.
Jim Beam: I figured out what bothers me about it. It's got a cloying peppery aftertaste that makes it suitable for use only as a mixer. I haven't had any Maker's Mark for awhile - I really really liked it when I had it. But now that I've honed my taste a little, I think I'll try it again and see if that's a feature of Bourbon in general or just Jim Beam.
Update 13:58
I just realized, the phrase I was looking for to describe the Jim Beam is "green-woody." Makes sense since Bourbon is kept in wine barrels, right?
Comments
If you like the Irish, try Powers. It's the most popular whisky in Ireland, and for good reason. It's super clean.
As far as burbons go, I like the small-batch stuff. I like Maker's Mark, Knob Creek, Woodford Reserve, and that kind of stuff. In genreal, I tend to prefer the Kentucky pedegrees to the Tennesee. I tried some Blanton's once, when I was in Louisville, and I really liked it. That stuff is expensive around here, though.
As far as Scotch goes - single malts all the way! I just drank my way through a sampler pack of the "Classic Malts of Scotland" (6 little nip bottles). There were two that really stood out for me - Dalwhinnie, which is very clean and understated, and Craggenmore, which is somewhat more aggressive in its peat and smoke character, but still rather restrained compared to a lot of others. I think I'll probably buy a full-sized bottle of Craggenmore. The Dalwhinnie was so clean it almost seems to be redundant to have that AND Irish in the house.
Here endeth the booze-geekery.
Posted by: Guy Smilee | March 5, 2004 02:41 PM
Comments
Does the Rev. Smilee have any thoughts on "Old Rip Van Winkle" bourbons? Haven't bought a bottle yet (not much of a drinker, so not the highest priority), but the few times I've tasted it were FINE.
Posted by: Joe Martin | March 8, 2004 01:01 PM
Comments
Never tried the ORVW. I'll put it on my list for when the current bottle of Maker's Mark runs out.
Posted by: Guy Smilee | March 8, 2004 02:56 PM