I drink lots of wine and used to drink plenty of beer, but I’ve never been a big hard alcohol drinker, other than mixed drinks.
But tonight, I’m going to try Bourbon. It seems to be getting very popular. I’ll be at one of my favorite restaurants (eating at the bar), and they have a pretty good stock of booze, but the last time I was there I was talking to some folks about Blanton’s Bourbon, so I’m probably going to go with that.
Should I have it before or after dinner? I almost aways have wine with dinner, but have been starting off before dinner with a cocktail lately, just to mix things up. I often like to have a cappuccino after dinner.
Straight up or on the rocks? My inclination would be on the rocks, but will defer to those who know better about the proper temp to drink the stuff. I know the bartender quite well, so I may just have him decide.
Any other advice would be appreciated. I gave Scotch a go a few year back, but it never grew on me.
My suggestion would be to have the bourbon as part of a cocktail before/with dinner. That way you can ease into it. A Sour or Old Fashioned maybe. If you want to have the naked spirit, then I suggest having it neat (with a splash of water) with dinner. Blanton’s is produced by Buffalo Trace, which makes damn fine bourbons. You could do much worse.
In that case skip the first part of my post above. Neat with a splash with dinner.
But what you really need to do is find a friendly and knowledgeable bartender, a wingman, a DD and a free evening. Sample several different bourbons - wheated, high-rye, single-barrel, etc. Find what you like.
Really. With dinner? I wasn’t even thinking of that as an option, but I often have similar tastes as you in the food/drink CS threads, so I’ll try it. I’m used to pairing my wine with the food, but with Bourbon, do you just let it fly? Bourbon with your salad and appetizer… Bourbon with your halibut or rib-eye? Bourbon with your pasta?
My bartender is a good friend, so I’ll be seeking his advice, too. I just wanted to get more than one opinion. I’ll be walking, so no concerns about DUIs. I will be shocked if I have more than one, though. Wine is too tempting.
So, tastes are peculiar. For my money, my all-time favorite bourbon is Woodford Reserve, neat, sniffed and sipped over a long time.
It, more than any other bourbon I’ve tried, has a magnificent aroma, a little bit like a smoked caramel vanilla sundae. I almost prefer sniffing it over drinking it. When I drink it, I take tiny sips and keep them in my mouth as long as I can, to get maximum aroma.
Others prefer other bourbons, but I recommend trying this one at some point, for the smell if nothing else.
Yep, with dinner. That way you get all the different flavors accentuated. Sip before. Sip with salad and see how the dressing affects the flavor. Definitely sip with a rib-eye! But you said you would be eating at the bar, which to me means not something elaborate. I would expect it to be grilled in some fashion, in fact. Or fried. Both of which pair well with bourbon.
The bar menu is the same as the restaurant menu. I eat there often, and I usually try to eat on the healthy side, meaning some sort of fish, but I do have a good steak or pork chop there once a month or so. I think tonight I’ll let loose. Woo-hoo!
I’ve spent the better part of the holidays expanding my Bourbon palate.
I find Woodford Reserve to be very good. Better than many in that price range. Certainly better than Bulleit and Larceny. Only slightly better than Knob Creek. What I found surprising good, even better than Woodford Reserve, is … wait for it … Jim Beam Black Label (Extra Aged). I know. Not at all expected. It won awards in 2016. Ask your bar tender for some with a little ice. You won’t be disappointed.
I too love a good red wine with dinner, but sometimes I just stick to bourbon through the meal. Especially if it’s roasted or grilled red meat.
I just wonder why you, or anyone else, would be surprised. They have been making bourbon for sometime now and while Jim Beam White Label isn’t considered ‘top shelf’ or ‘boutique’ it’s still a good bourbon. It is my go to for mixed drinks. Woodford Reserve or JBBL for sippin’ whiskey.
I had the Blanton’s and… it was good! The first few sips hit me pretty hard, but mostly because I wasn’t sure what to be expecting. My bartender friend insisted that I have it on the rocks. More like “on the rock”, as he put one large ice cube in with the idea that it would melt very slowly. As I was waiting for the meal to arrive, I kept thinking: Man, this would go well with a nice cigar. I think next time I’ll have it after dinner so I can enjoy that cigar with it. Dinner was New York steak, not a rib-eye. The scotch went extremely well with the meat. The salad, not so much, but the Scotch + steak was very nice.
Drinking whiskey WITH the meal would be enough to get you kicked out of France. The French think Anglos and Americans are nuts for fucking their palates up with hard liquor at mealtimes, even as an aperitif.
I agree with the pre-dinner cocktail…a bourbon Manhattan would be a better choice than an Old Fashioned or a Whiskey Sour, more of a chance to taste the booze…and a glass of a different whiskey afterward, neat or with an ice cube or two, like having a brandy.
Interesting. I just had a friend – who was a member of a bourbon club for a number of years and is planning to start a new one this year – recommend this very one last night over dinner while I was enjoying a glass of Michter’s neat. I am also working on my bourbon game.
Since my own liquor thread, I’ve discovered I am very much a fan of gin, but tongue is still trying to figure out whether it likes whiskeys. I think the key is trying them several different ways – I started with whiskey-based cocktails and now I’m trying them neat, with water and with ice. Having a guide is very helpful.
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