# Please help me find a good sipping alcohol.
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147
**Category:** Cafe Society
**Created:** [February 18, 2017, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147 "2017-02-18T15:25:31Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)
#### Post date: [February 18, 2017, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147/1 "2017-02-18T15:25:31Z")
I’d like to find a nice “warm” alcohol to sip on cold evenings.
What should I try?
I don’t care for wine at all. I enjoy a good margarita, but I don’t like the taste of tequila for sipping.
Are there other questions I could answer that would help you in a recommendation?
Thanks in advance.
---
### Author:  [@K364](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/K364)
#### Post date: [February 18, 2017, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147/2 "2017-02-18T15:35:58Z")
a good Cognac fits the bill.
---
### Author:  [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)
#### Post date: [February 18, 2017, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147/3 "2017-02-18T15:44:08Z")
Sherry. I like Great Western dry sherry, not very sweet, a lovely warm nutty taste. They say all alcohol has the same effect, but wine gives me a headache, hard liquor makes me ill, beer revs me up. But sherry, like putting on warm fuzzy slippers.
---
### Author:  [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)
#### Post date: [February 18, 2017, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147/4 "2017-02-18T16:02:01Z")
I occasionally enjoy sipping a tumbler of amaretto.
---
### Author:  [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)
#### Post date: [February 18, 2017, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147/5 "2017-02-18T16:44:12Z")
Spiced rum or a Canadian whiskey.
---
### Author:  [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)
#### Post date: [February 18, 2017, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147/6 "2017-02-18T16:45:48Z")
A _good_ whiskey or bourbon can be a joy to sip, but they generally aren’t the cheap stuff.
---
### Author:  [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)
#### Post date: [February 18, 2017, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147/7 "2017-02-18T16:46:48Z")
Single malt scotch.
Most people think of it as a cocktail-like drink, but it’s best appreciated without ice and with a few drops of water – much like a liqueur.
Blended is acceptable, but doesn’t have the personality of single malt.
---
### Author:  [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)
#### Post date: [February 18, 2017, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147/8 "2017-02-18T16:57:52Z")
> [@DrFidelius](#):
>
> Spiced rum or a Canadian whiskey.
Exactly my choices, though not necessarily spiced rum.
Ron Zacapa Centenario is an outstanding, relatively inexpensive high-end rum (under $40).
Spiced, I just go with simple cheap Sailor Jerry ($15), but you can look up a more prestigious brand if you like.
Canadian whisky, I like Canadian Club Reserve ($20). Sometimes I’ll spend the extra few bucks and get Canadian Club Classic ($30).
---
### Author:  [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)
#### Post date: [February 18, 2017, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147/9 "2017-02-18T17:18:13Z")
Someone not particularly used to the taste of even fine liquors is probably going to find whiskeys and bourbons a little… harsh. Liqueurs are probably a better choice.
But try a decent cognac in a bar or restaurant setting to see if it suits, first. If it’s too strong or “medicinal,” amaretto/Tia Maria/Kahlua/Chambord or another liqueur with a stronger flavor-flavor over alcohol might be a good choice for the next step. Then cognac. Once you’re accustomed to that, try a few varieties and eventually try a good bourbon.
I don’t care for liqueurs myself - my rule has pretty much always been “if you can’t drink it straight, don’t drink it.” So getting away from blender drinks that are mostly fruit juice could be seen as saving a soul, here. 😃
---
### Author:  [@JustinC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JustinC)
#### Post date: [February 18, 2017, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147/10 "2017-02-18T17:43:23Z")
Sambuca, with three coffee beans (health, happiness and prosperity) and set alight is a nice sipping drink. I’m not saying this is the perfect drink for you, just that the options are very wide. Another nice sipping drink which isn’t drunk widely is Chartreuse - yellow or green - flavored with over 100 herbs, spices and flowers. It was initially produced in Voiron, France from a mixture prepared by Carthusian monks, the recipe was given to the monastery in 1605, although the first batch did not come out until 1737. That recipe has long been shrouded in mystery and, to this day, one of the monks who was asked what goes into that base elixir said “hamburger and goat cheese.” In other words: we’re not telling.
---
### Author:  [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)
#### Post date: [February 18, 2017, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147/11 "2017-02-18T17:55:42Z")
Bourbon for me. Knobs Creek, Woodford Reserve, Maker’s Mark.
mmm
---
### Author:  [@nachtmusick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nachtmusick)
#### Post date: [February 18, 2017, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147/12 "2017-02-18T18:36:51Z")
I like to sip a shot of Hendrick’s gin poured over one big ice cube, but that is the opposite of warm.
For warm, consider absinthe.
---
### Author:  [@ZonexandScout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZonexandScout)
#### Post date: [February 18, 2017, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147/13 "2017-02-18T18:41:41Z")
I’m not normally fond of sweet alcoholic beverages, but I do have a taste for Drambuie. It can take little getting used to, but I prefer it over coffee, mint, and other flavors.
---
### Author:  [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)
#### Post date: [February 18, 2017, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147/14 "2017-02-18T18:48:30Z")
> [@salinqmind](#):
>
> Sherry. I like Great Western dry sherry, not very sweet, a lovely warm nutty taste. They say all alcohol has the same effect, but wine gives me a headache, hard liquor makes me ill, beer revs me up. But sherry, like putting on warm fuzzy slippers.
Agreed. Or a good 10-20 year old Port; I’d recommend starting with Taylor Fladgate 10 year tawny. Wonderful aroma and nice fruit.
---
### Author:  [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)
#### Post date: [February 18, 2017, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147/15 "2017-02-18T19:11:44Z")
> [@Chefguy](#):
>
> Agreed. Or a good 10-20 year old Port; I’d recommend starting with Taylor Fladgate 10 year tawny. Wonderful aroma and nice fruit.
Boom! Sherry or port both fit the bill quite nicely.
---
### Author:  [@ThisSpaceForRent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThisSpaceForRent)
#### Post date: [February 18, 2017, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147/16 "2017-02-18T19:37:16Z")
I have found a beautiful "French Single Malt Whisky…may I introduce you to…
[Brenne](http://drinkbrenne.com)
A very unique single malt, with secondary aging done in used Cognac barrels.
ymmv
---
### Author:  [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)
#### Post date: [February 18, 2017, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147/17 "2017-02-18T20:01:54Z")
Bailey’s. I like it on the rocks. If you want warm, you can mix it with coffee or hot chocolate.
If you start there, you can work your way up to the hard stuff. 🙂
---
### Author:  [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)
#### Post date: [February 18, 2017, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147/18 "2017-02-18T20:39:49Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#):
>
> Bourbon for me. Knobs Creek, Woodford Reserve, Maker’s Mark.
You can buy me a shot any time.
Even as smooth and warm as a good bourbon is to an accustomed drinker, I think most fruity-drink drinkers will find it a tad “medicinal.” But it’s worth a try, especially something a little better than the JD tier of brown.
Just make sure SOMEONE drinks it and appreciates it. 🙂
---
### Author:  [@Purd\_Werfect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Purd_Werfect)
#### Post date: [February 18, 2017, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147/19 "2017-02-18T21:18:40Z")
[Basil Hayden’s Bourbon](http://whiskey.underthelabel.com/l/461/Basil-Hayden-s-Bourbon-Whiskey). Insanely smooth.
---
### Author:  [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)
#### Post date: [February 18, 2017, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147/20 "2017-02-18T21:19:42Z")
> [@Purd\_Werfect](#):
>
> [Basil Hayden’s Bourbon](http://whiskey.underthelabel.com/l/461/Basil-Hayden-s-Bourbon-Whiskey). Insanely smooth.
Ooh. Sounds good. I’ll look for this.
[Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-me-find-a-good-sipping-alcohol/780147.md?page=2)