Bourbons recommended at ToledoTalk.com

June 2013 TT post:
http://toledotalk.com/cgi-bin/tt.pl/article/154668/Elijah_Craig_Bourbon_Duel_at_Tippins

• Elijah Craig small batch
• Four Roses small batch
• Van Winkle 12 yr Special Reserve
• Heaven Hill
• W.L. Weller 12 yr.
• Very Old Barton (Bottled in Bond)
• Colonel E.H. Taylor

Other bourbons listed in this Fark thread that I mentioned in that TT thread:
http://www.fark.com/comments/7797607/Its-National-Bourbon-Day-So-grab-a-glass-of-Kentuckys-finest-sit-back-relax

• Old Forester
• Elmer T. Glee
• Double Oak
• Four Wood
• Woodford Reserve
  • http://www.woodfordreserve.com/
• Old Crow
• W. L. Weller Special Reserve
• Eagle Rare
• Black Maple Hill
• Wild Turkey American Honey
• Willett Family Reserve
• Maker's Mark
• Maker's 46
• John J. Bowman
• "If your local Costco can sell booze, this is the best deal in bourbon:" Kirkland Premium Small Batch Bourbon - ??
• Bullet Bourbon
• Evan Williams - "imo... the Evan Williams Single Barrel is the best bourbon for the dollar that you can get around here. I think it's a bit under $20 for a bottle."
• Booker's
• Rowan's Creek
• Knob Creek

http://www.nationalbourbonday.com/

Some say the rise in bourbon sales is due to the growth of small batch and single barrel bourbon in the 1990s, while others say it has to do with the resurgence in popularity of hard-liquor swilling characters and settings on television shows such as Mad Men and Boardwalk Empire.

For a whiskey to classify as bourbon it must be made in the U.S. While any state will do, most are made in Kentucky. In addition, its mash which is that mix of grains from which bourbon is distilled must comprise at least 51 per cent and no more than 79 per cent Indian corn. Most recipes use about 70 per cent corn, which gives it its nickname corn whiskey.

Besides corn, the other grains used in the making of bourbon include malted barley and either rye or wheat. Some Kentucky bourbon makers say the limestone spring water in that area of the state lends bourbon its distinctive flavor.

Bourbon must be aged at least two years in a new, charred oak barrel made from American White Oak. But many types of bourbon are aged four years or longer. Bourbon gains its color and much of its flavor from barrel aging. The charred wood provides caramelized sugars that add flavor to the whiskey. The barrels can only be used once for bourbon so many become furniture or firewood. Others are used for aging soy sauce, while most end up in the United Kingdom for their Scotch whiskies.

Bourbon barrels are stored in large, multi-storey warehouses called rick houses. The wood barrels expand and contract based on the weather outside which eventually penetrates these rick houses. Hot weather causes the pores of the wood to open up more and impart their flavor. The result is barrels on the top floor will have a slightly different flavor than those on lower floors.

Most distillers make their bourbon between 80 and 100 proof. This means it contains 40 to 50 percent alcohol by volume.

http://joonbug.com/national/firstcourse/Its-National-Bourbon-Day/GpAPT1PKS85

Bourbon-based cocktails include the classic Old Fashioned, Manhattan, Boulevardier, and mint julep, though purists will argue that bourbon shouldn't be mixed.

Tour bourbon distilleries in Kentucky along the Bourbon Trail.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Fashioned

Glassware:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Fashioned_glass

The Old Fashioned glass, lowball glass, or rocks glass is a short tumbler used for serving an alcoholic beverage, such as whisky, with ice cubes (“on the rocks”).

Michael Symon's B Spot restaurant serving bourbons:

• ELIJAH CRAIG
• JIM BEAM WHITE LABEL
• WILD TURKEY 101
• BASIL HAYDEN
• RUSSEL'S RESERVE
• WOODFORD RESERVE
• BUFFALO TRACE
• 1792 RIDGEMONT RESERVE
• BOOKER'S
• MAKERS MARK
• BLANTON'S
• BULLEIT BOURBON
• KNOB CREEK

Tried Bourbons

Bourbons that I have tried at home from acquiring my own bottle:

• Knob Creek - late Dec 2013/early Jan 2014
• Woodford Reserve - Jan 2014

TT user recommendations

From an e-mail by a bourbon fan:

As for recommendations, I have three that I think will provide a good starting point for the different grain combinations that distilleries are using. All three of these come from Buffalo Trace and should probably run between $20-35.

• Higher Rye Bourbon: Elmer T. Lee
• Lower Rye Bourbon: Eagle Rare or Buffalo Trace
• Wheated Bourbon: W.L. Weller Special Reserve or Old Weller Antique

These you may need to get in Michigan because I don't believe they are part of Ohio's Gestapo-like beverage control. I would recommend Flick's in Temperance off the corner of Secor and Sterns. If you want to stay local, I would suggest Maker's Mark as a replacement.

Distilleries

http://www.bardstownwhiskeysociety.com

• Evan Williams
• Elijah Craig

#beverage