My vote is for Mogen David 20/20. It has a consistency that doesn't matter which direction it's going in your gullet.
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My vote is for Mogen David 20/20. It has a consistency that doesn't matter which direction it's going in your gullet.
Good one Dane and good luck in your 'dusty' hunting. Last time I was in Denver was a decade ago and didn't find much in the way of Bourbon in the several stores where I looked, did find some great beers though.
Regards,
Squire
I find it hard to believe that wine aficionados, if these people really fit that description, would have such limited scope. This is not the impression I´ve gotten from experienced wine tasters.
Sweden´s No. 1 wine expert, Bengt-Göran Kronstam (who has won many international prizes) loves whisk(e)y. He even did an excellent write-up of Buffalo Trace in Sweden´s biggest morning paper, a couple of years ago.
Let´s face it. MM tends to receive high accolades from people without preconceived notions (The NY Times team were an exception, though). Also, it always gets high scores from notable writers like Jim Murray and Michael Jackson.
MM is nowhere near my top 5 (although my latest bottle saw a dramatic increase in quality) but it is simply not as bad as so many here wants it to be. I am unable to pinpoint the problem, however. Peer pressure, perhaps? High visibility?
Hedmans I'm not talking about professionals, the people in my anecdote are my friends and neighbors. Neither are they dummies, quite the opposite in fact, as they are all well educated professionals. I would not presume to criticize them personally just because they don't share my interests in distilled spirits. We who consume whiskey straight and then discuss and write about it are very much in the minority of consumers in general.
The point of my story is that these are precisely the affluent sort that Makers has targeted by providing a Bourbon that doesn't challenge the palate and arrives in a classy package. I'll give you an example, last Christmas a friend of mine who drinks only single malts brought me a bottle of Makers as a gift. He knew I liked Bourbon so he picked out what he perceived to be the best. A fellow who can afford anything in the market bought into the illusion created by Makers marketing because he simply doesn't think about Bourbon and so follows the common perception. This also put me in an uncomfortable position because I could not correct his perception without also criticizing his gift.
That and Makers pricing itself as the best when in fact it isn't is my gripe.
Regards,
Squire
good point, squire.
i actually don't think MM is terrible at all. i'd love a free bottle myself! but i do wonder, is MM really all about making great bourbon? or are they really comfortable with selling decent stuff that does allow others to continue to pull the wool over their own eyes...those bottles ARE attractive.
i would hope every bourbon maker would be going for quality. but then, i do slip into mega-naivete at times...:rolleyes:
anyways, the article is good for bourbon in general.
i still, though, read it as being more entertaining (and poor at that) than informative (average at that).
Thanks for pointing that out. Reading between the lines I suspected as much. Hope you didn´t read it as a put down of your friends.Quote:
Originally Posted by squire
Of course, I never see all these marketing gimmicks over here. In Sweden MM is just another bourbon. Even less so, considering that it is only available as a special order item and thus never seen on the shelves.
Unlike many people here, I seem to be born with a sort of non-disliking tasting gene, since I have yet to try a bourbon that I dislike. Mind you, all these budget offerings from Barton are not available to me. :)
Actually, I believe that MM is making exactly the product they want to and good for them. The present marketing and merchandising came after they were an established brand. I don't remember ever reading that anyone hated the product, just that many of us feel it's overpriced for what it is. Who knows, if not for the cost of marketing that they do so well with, the price might be more on line for those of us who think they mark it up too high. I might have actually opened the only only bottle I've ever bought (on sale) and ENJOYED it. As it is, I'm a bullheaded old fart who refuses to open it because I said I wouldn't one time.
Of course I would open it at the request of a guest though.
Hedmans thats interesting. I didn't know Makers was special order in your area. Does that make it more desirable to your fellow Bourbon drinkers?
Regards,
Squire
Repeat three times...Maker's Mark makes everything they sell, and they sell everything they make. Maker's Mark makes everything they sell, and they sell everything they make. Maker's Mark makes everything they sell, and they sell everything they make.
:toast:, to them.
JOE
Dane is right to point out there is substance behind the style. I was introduced to Makers at a tasting hosted by Bill Samuels Jr. back in the 70s. Based on that meeting I used and gave as gifts Makers almost exclusively for the next 15 years. I even clipped out the famous front page article in the Wall Street Journal. It was a chance meeting with Mike Veach while visiting the Getz in the early 90s that opened up to me the broader world of Bourbon.
Regards,
Squire