*Decent whisky, of which I consume considerably more the health fascists at the British Medical Association recommends is good for me, should always be taken with a little water, as Anderson goes on to discover under the tutelage of Ian Millar, Chief Brand Ambassador for Glenfiddich.
Millar categorically states & who are we to argue ?
“The water releases the flavour compounds held within the spirit, & it takes time. Idealy you should buy your dram, add the water, then leave it on the bar for 20-30 minutes before drinking it. Of course, that’s hardly going to work in the pub. But you can do it at home.” *
Booker Noe always drank his neat with a small splash of water to “open up the nose.” If it’s good enough for Booker, I’m not going to argue either.
No disrespect intended, but that still strikes me as pretty shady in terms of chemistry, and I’d like to know a little bit more from that standpoint. I mean, sure Booker Noe did it, so that makes me think that there may be something to it, but I’d like a little more explanation than that. I mean, the culinary arts are full of pseudoscientific mumbo-jumbo that essentially boil down to either blind traditionalism or sheer superstition (“bruising” gin by shaking a martini? Uh huh,) and I’d love to know if this qualifies.
Hmmm…I wonder if Alton Brown would know…or, say, the master distiller at LaBrot and Graham. I may have to submit a SDMB Field Report.
Show me a man who expects to enjoy his whiskey more with water in it, and I’ll show you a man who enjoys his whiskey more with water in it. It might not survive a double-blind taste test, but what’s the harm?
I’ve heard that the notion originated with respect to cask-strength spirits (roughly 55% alcohol/volume). Drop a bit of water in that and the flavor will change as you move closer to the standard 40%.
Like I said, enjoy your bourbon any way you like it. No harm. I was just interested in the chemistry of the claim, and the idea behind it. To me, it seems that if you add water to your bourbon, then you’re simply diluting the spirit (by a very small margin, true,) so I then wonder why the standard concentration is 40%. Now, if there’s some really exotic organic chemistry going on when you introduce water to an alcoholic solution in equilibrium, then I would find that fascinating, and would love to learn more about it.
Now that makes sense to me. A more concentrated alcohol solution will necessarily taste different from a more dilute one.
I don’t know about the chemistry, but it seems to work. I poured myself a dram of Old Weller Antique (107 proof). Nosed and sniffed and sipped. Then added a drop or two of water. More nose, more oomph, and the flavors seemed to jumped on the palate. Not a double-blind test by any means, but it seems to back up the idea. I’m with** Ogre**…I’d like to know the chemistry behind all this.
I’ve heard in a couple of places that, if you’re not used to the strong taste of bourbon (or relatively strong, assuming you just aren’t used to strong alcohol), watering it down can give you a chance to taste your drink without it overwhelming you.
As for why they don’t add the water to begin with, I do recall reading that they used to water down the Rum on sailing ships just before serving it to the crew to keep them from saving their rations up. Apparantly the rum would go bad not long after being watered down. Maybe this applies to other modern liquors?
All I have open right now is a bottle of Eagle Rare 10yo. I am pretty sure there is a bottle of Woodford in the back of the cabinet.
2 years ago I asked for bourbons for xmas and got 6 different brands. I added a few more from the local liquor store and, over the next 2 months, did a lot of comparing and contrasting.
My verdict was that I liked Eagle Rare the best of the $20-$30 bottles. I know it has a bit of a “sting”, but for some reason I enjoy that.
I also drink my bourbon with a splash of water, and my favorite glass is a very heavy bottomed sort of triangular glass that I got free with a bottle of Chivas.
I’m definitely not a purist or gourmet. My absolute preference is Makers Mark on the rocks. I’ve tried Blanton’s and a couple of other “small batch” brews, but I guess my taste buds aren’t sophisticated enough to appreciate them.
I drink 'em all straight (or “neat” for you urbane types). I usually have a bottle of Maker’s Mark on hand, too. The Pappy Van Winkle’s was excellent, but at $90 a bottle it won’t be coming home with me again any time soon. Woodford is a very good and much more affordable standby. The Booker’s comes out when I’m in the mood for something with a bit more oomph.
I’ve heard the water bit about both bourbon and scotch from many reputable sources over the years, but no one has ever tried to explain it to me on a chemistry basis. I don’t do it myself, but I don’t deny that folks who do could be on to something.
Me, I figure if I want watered whiskey I can just drink Jack Daniel’s, which has been watered down at the bottling stage for the second time in my drinking lifetime – down to 80 proof now. The good folks at JD claim they did it because it tastes better that way, and not just to increase their margins. Uh huh. Now pull the other one.
Why am I always following you around in the alcohol threads? If I could, I’d snip you some mint from my back yard! I’ve got a field of it out there.
Makers Mark, neat, is what I usually like (and hey, I’ve been to the distillery several times) but lately my husband has convinced me of the superiority of Woodford Reserve. This I drink with an ice cube. Glenlivet is also lovely. Being in the heart of bourbon country, I’ve tried it all and truly, anyone who mixes it with coke is a heathen, in my opinion. (Many say this about mint julips as well, but hey, when in Kentucky at Derby time …)
Open right now: Maker’s, Woodford Reserve, Knob Creek, Elijah Craig 18yo. I also have an airplane-sized bottle of Booker’s that just has maybe one dram left.
Favorites: I love them all differently. Makers blends beautifully, Woodford is nice and round and complex, Knob Creek has a nice bite. I just got the Elijah, but I’m loving it. Booker’s is great, but it really needs a healthy splash or the alcohol just covers it all up.
I usually take it neat, in a rocks glass. (I have a set of rocks glasses from the Maker’s distillery and the Woodford distillery, both of which are mandatory stops if you’re a bourbon lover in this neck of the woods.) Sometimes I’ll do the Maker’s on the rocks, though it really blunts the nose. And like a good Kentuckian, I make a mean mint julep; I grow mint on the patio and have a large collection of Derby glasses just for that purpose.
My julep is always made with Maker’s. Sadly enough, Churchill Downs serves the Early Times julep pre-mix–and Early Times is not even bourbon! (IIRC, they re-use their barrels, which isn’t bourbon kosher.)
There are just so many wonderful bourbons out there…But I don’t have many around too long. I drink most of it faster than I can afford to buy it, but right now I’m in possession of a few bottles of Evan Williams (Hey, it’s cheaper than Beam and at leasts tastes like real bourbon. This is actually my stop gap replacement for Jack since they wussed out the alcohol content, but it’s a bourbon not a sour mash like Jack is). There’s also a bottle of Basil Hayden’s, which is good, but like Makers is just an upbranding of Jim Beam I believe.
I’m more of an Irish whiskey guy, so my boubons are limited.
You know I never actually thought about the science behind it before, but your post made me remember something about my own drinking habits. I only ever do this to bourbon that is 100 proof or higher. 80 proof bourbon I find doesn’t really benefit from the water (and it is already too close to water for my taste anyhow) so I wonder if it isn’t just lowering the proof by a notch or two. Of course it may just be that the only 80 proofs that I buy are cheaper lower quality drinks.
Testing must be done. Then repeated. And maybe a third time just for kicks.
Then wheat grass in the morning to cure that hangover.
Old Grand-Dad Bonded tonight. It’s amazing the difference 14 proof and a little aging can make. Regular Old Grand-Dad is crap. Mosquito repellant at best. But the 100 proof Bonded is a marvelous tipple. Lots of rye in the mash bill, so it’s light and spicy on the nose. Pretty cheap, too. I think I can get a bottle for $18 if I shop around. Makes a great julep, for those who are interested.
Alas, no, it came from a visit to Houston a while back. I haven’t seen it around here, but if I were to place my bets I would think Haskell’s could order it for you.
Drat. You mean a bottle the size that they give you on airplanes, don’t you? For a brief moment, I had a shining vision of a bottle of Booker’s the size of an airplane. Brings a tear to the eye, it does.
