What got you started

[clayton]

My then-girlfriend bought me a tiny book about whisk(e)y. I knew nothing but had expressed an interest in at least learning a little about it. The book covered the basics of the various categories, but was mostly photographs. I was interested enough to buy a bottle.

My first was Power's Irish. A single malt followed: Aberlour 10. The third purchase was a bottle of ORVW 10/90 that I found while visiting Portland, OR. The bourbon was a clear favorite, but I liked them all. Many additional bottles followed, even though I swore I wouldn't become a collector. So I have this girl to thank for what will undoubtedly be a lifelong interest.

[chasking]

My wife works for a book publishing company. A few years ago I was hanging around her office after work one night while she finished something up, and pulled a sample copy of one of their books off the shelf to read to kill time. It was Jim Murray's "Complete Guide to Whiskey" or something like that---a little black book with a picture of various whiskies on the cover. Glancing through it, the thing that most intrigued me was Murray's waxing rhapsodic about rye. It made me want to try some. So, I took a copy of the book home, and began spending a lot of time in the whiskey aisles of local liquor stores. Initially I focused mostly on rye and Scotch, but I started picking up bourbons, too---mainly, I wanted to have an example from each of the active distilleries. That made a good theme for tastings, which I started holding for friends and family.

After a while I noticed that despite my extensive Scotch collection I often found myself turning to bourbon when I wanted a wee dram for recreational purposes. My initial round of bourbon buying had been fairly pedestrian expressions, but once I sampled a few premium bourbons, I became a much more enthusiastic bourbon consumer.

Just recently my American whiskey collection eclipsed in size my Scotch collection, although if rye is considered separately I still have more Scotch than bourbon. I still like Scotch, and rye, and Irish whiskey for that matter, but bourbon has taken a commanding lead in my estimation.

The main thing I have this board to thank for is discovering Old Granddad BIB, which is one of my favorite everyday pours now. When my current bottle is gone I'm going to try the OGD 114.

[bobbyc]

I guess after the cold winter of 1956-57, and some cold nights, hot between the sheets, between Thanksgiving and Christmas, 1956. I accompanied my mother to the bottling house at Jim Beam for the next 9 months. I couldn't see or smell much, but I do think the rarified air she was breathing was transferred to my bloodstream. The hums, whizzes,and whurring of the machinery and the clanking of the bottles, I believe I do have a recollection of, as well as getting bumped on the ass a few times with full bottles of Jim Beam. Yep, then and there, that did it for me!

[boone]

That's a awsome story, Bobby I just love it!

Bettye Jo

[BrbnBorderline]

I was a JD shots kind of guy in college. In fact, I did 8 shots in 45 minutes once, and THEN went to class!!!

After college I grew up alot, and when my wife and I went camping with my parents, my dad would always sip Wild Turkey 101 around the campfire. So, I tried it and liked it. But it wasn't until about 3 years later I decided to seriously explore bourbon. I did some pre-drinking research and chose bourbon due to the fact that it is uniquely American, and the only thing they can add to it is H2O. So, it's the real thing.

So for about the last 2 years, I've been exploring, and enjoying, bourbon.

This site has been a wonderful online knowledge base. Thanks.

[Sweetmeats]

Found this thread when searching for others. I might as well add my two cents.

I tried many things as a teenager. Jack Daniels and Dr. Pepper was a favorite as was Christian Brothers Brandy and Barqs Root Beer. Yeah, I know, weird mixers but I still love them to this day. So, not too long ago, I ran out of Barqs for the Brandy and decided to sip it straight. Interesting. Not bad. Around the same time, a friend gave me a bottle of Glen Moray Single Malt. I decided to sip that. Hmmmmmm, I like this sipping thing. So, then I'm at Sam's Club and see a giant bottle of Early Times for about 11 dollars. Great, I'll try that. See, I assumed that since Early Times was a whisk(e)y and Glen Moray was a whisk(e)y that they would be similar. Well, I liked the Early Times more. Especially how the glass smells like caramel after the drink was finished. From there it was Maker's Mark (like), Jack Daniels straight (don't like) and then started searching the internet and found this site.

Based upon what I read, my first bourbon was Elmer T. Lee Single Barrel. I've probably gone through 8 by now. It's been a fantastic discovery for me with more to come. Now if I can only get my wife to understand that it is okay to buy a new bottle of bourbon when there is one already open then I'm all set.

--Mark

[idpa2000]

I also started at an illegal and tender age. When I was 18 I would play golf with an old Scotsman. He was a wise man who many thought of as odd or ecentric. He had come to America after the Big One. During the war he had something to do with British intellegence. It was all a great mystery to me. Anyway, he enjoyed American Bourbon. He said that Americans did not appeiciate what they had right in thier own back yard. After golf he would enjoy some Old Grand Dad.
At 18 I was eager to go at life full throttle. He taught me to slow down and enjoy life. He is long dead but I still think of him every time I enjoy a glass of OGD.

[kbuzbee]

First taste was ~11 dipping a finger in Dad's Kentucky Tavern. Sweet! Good! Not the reaction I think he was hoping for. Snuck a taste or two over the next 7 years... College found me trying about everything I could find. Post college settled on WT101 then moved on to Rare Breed a few years later. Didn't really try anything exotic until the last few years. Now everything is fair game.

Ken

[RedVette]

When I was 16 (that seems to be a common age in this thread) I had a girlfriend whose parents were serious alcoholics. They drank at least a quart of AA every night, and they bought it by the multiple case. We figured they would not miss a single bottle so we absconded with one. That night she had a sip, I had the rest. Fastforward thirty years.
In 2002 I found myself underemployed, broke and bored to tears. On the internet on a whim, I started to learn about all types of spirits. I learned about cool things like reposado and pot stilled, and peat, and barley and casks and stuff. When I was offered employment again I decided that I was going to celebrate by buying a bottle of something. At my nearest Albertsons I carefully looked over the selections of Scotch, Vodka, Tequila, Rum and Bourbon. I spied a bottle of Knob Creek and it called out to me. Visions of the "incident" of thirty years before lept into my head, but I bought it anyway. I liked it, and then I found this sight. I'm at about 70 bottles now, and enjoy a pull or two (over ice) every night.

[brian12069]

I was always a beer drinker and about 3 years ago my wife and I were in a Ruby Tuesday. Behind the bar I saw a bottle of Knob Creek and it just looked kind of neat to me. I ordered a Knob Creek on the Rocks (don't think I ever ordered anything on the rocks before) and absolutely loved it. I remember tasting all these different flavors that I had never tasted in a whiskey before. That started it...now I love finding a new bottle of bourbon I have never tried before...it's a hobby.