What bourbon are you drinking now?

[Gillman]

Tim has the Rittenhouse profile nailed. The menthol is an HH trademark seen in some of its bourbons, too. Only the Elijah Craig 18 year old shows enough age to efface that quality and bring out others. Bettye Jo had brought a barrel sample of HH bourbon to Gazebo Saturday night. I found the high proof and extra lignin sweetness of the uncut bourbon perfectly off-set the menthol quality. The more this kind of bourbon is diluted the less appealing (in my opinion) that menthol/camphor is, and so drinking HH rye or bourbon at 100 proof is an ideal way to taste it since this is high enough to retain the balancing quality I am referring to. But it was quite extraordinary to taste the full uncut version of this kind of straight whiskey, I have never had a whiskey so sweet and rich. Turning to Elijah Craig 18 year old, I tasted it at the tour we did on this trip with John and Linda Lipman of the HH visitor center. I was wowed as they were by the Center, a lot of work and thought went into it, it is a fine tribute to the HH business and whiskey in general in Kentucky. I found the Craig 18 year old very good, showing a complex nose and taste (a perfumed, integrated smokiness) which John said reminded him of certain historical bourbons he has tasted. John noted from the data on the bottles (distillation date and other information plus that received from the tour guide) that some of the 18 year old Craig was actually over 20 years old. The whiskey in the bottle he was inspecting at the tasting bar was actually 24 years old. So EC 18 year old is very well-aged but the samples I had (I also "borrowed" one from next to my seat since it was going unused) were very good, mature but showing no obtruding notes of tannin or smoke. Chuck Cowdery noted in his book that this kind of bourbon (as for Julian's products) beccome something almost different from what we normally think of as bourbon and really are prized specialities with their own characteristics.

Gary

[gr8erdane]

And for those of you who follow Gary's vatting experiments closely, YES he did create a small vatting of the Craig 18 and EWSB 95 right there in the tasting room. Take it away Gary......

[Gillman]

Yes I did, and it was good. We had a dry, elegant bourbon and a smoky perfumed older whiskey from the same house - I tried a 50/50 mingling and it worked well. In retrospect I think a 2:l (younger to older) might be better. Another mingling I did on this trip was in my room, a touch of ORVW 13 year old rye (now in Jeff's good hands) added to two fingers of 1993 Ancient Age bottled in bond. Wow. The result was a slight enrichening of the Ancient Age but without the full-on leather and smoke of the ORVW rye. Speaking of minglings, I am studying Dane's Dr. Bourbonstein vatting as I write. This has some 30 or 40 bourbons in it, added in either 1 ounce portions or, for some, a half-ounce. It is very good, a true bourbon whiskey, if one did not know what was in it one would never suspect the diverse origins. It has a good corn smoky base with a textured mouth feel and good follow-through in the taste, good length, that is. A worthy bourbon equivalent to, say, Johnnie Walker Blue Label with its 60 whiskies or so. Well done, Mr. Bennett.

Gary

[clayton]

I cracked open my first bottle of Ridgemont Reserve 1792 last night. I found it had a somewhat unusual taste -- a candy-corn sweetness on the palate but with a notable barbecue smokiness on the finish.

I'm not entirely sure how it fits into my hierarchy of preferences yet; it will require further tasting.

[matthew0715]

But I thought EC18 was a single barrel bourbon? So that one barrel is all one age, at least 18 years old, maybe 20 or 24. How can only some of it be older than 20? Is there another expression of EC that's not single barrel?

Back on topic, I'm drinking OGD BIB tonight. ($16 on sale last month) I've realized the best place to buy bourbon nearby is across the state line in PA. Even though the state controls the pricing, it's nearly all better than the stores near me in NJ. There is a premium collection store less than 30 minutes away. I'll be there soon as EC12 is only $14 this month.

I'm mentally preapring myself for the drive to Brooklyn tomorrow to see Chuck at Lenells. (It's not the distance, it's NYC traffic.) I'm trying to figure out what "three styles" of bourbon we'll be tasting. I thought there were only 2: wheated & ryed. Is straight rye the third type? Or will we sample 3 different distilleries (HH, BT, & JB)? Or maybe 80proof, 100proof (bonded), and barrel-proof?

Matt

[CrispyCritter]

Well, I started out with (off-topic) a bottle of Chimay Grand Reservé (blue label, 9%) - there's nothing like an ale that's been brewed for the glory of God.

Now, back on topic, some Stagg '05 to bring me to cruising altitude and beyond, accompanied by some bluegrass music...

[RedVette]

Tonight we started with Buffalo Trace, then a shift to Bulleit, then some more Bulleit and now a nightcap of Bookers. A night of "B's", trying not to think about what the morrow will bring.

[nysquire]

A little pour of Blanton's before bed....

[ratcheer]

That is always an excellent course of action.

Tim

[BourbonJoe]

Right now I'm enjoying Michters. Sells for about 50 bucks in PA.....well worth it. So far, have found few to equal it.
Joe