Straight face drinking it straight

[Drunkonjack]

I find myself making a bit of a cringe type face when drinking my bourbon/whiskey straight up . But it is less by by time I get through a couple drinks.

Does it get easier with time as I train myself to drink it straight up ? Or is this just a common thing with all of us ?

[ggilbertva]

Your palate will adjust to the alcohol you are picking up which is typically the first thing a new drinker experiences. I drink 100 pf bourbon and don't really notice the alcohol.

[hectic1]

I find myself making a bit of a cringe type face when drinking my bourbon/whiskey straight up . But it is less by by time I get through a couple drinks.

Does it get easier with time as I train myself to drink it straight up ? Or is this just a common thing with all of us ?

Grow some...no "bitter beer" faces here! Although I do go bourbon on the rocks...something with drinking it a room temperature doesn't sit right.

[OscarV]

If your face cringes when drinking boubon neat or eating liver 'n onions, then don't do it.

(btw, my Mom made great liver 'n onions.)

Drink it the way you enjoy it and over time you will graduate to neat.

But don't force it.

Life is to short to force yourself to "acquire a taste".

[ElasticalGomez]

you'll eventually get to that comfort level where sipping is a beautiful thing. i look at people who mix ice, water, or cola with their bourbon as if they're dumping it down the drain...or lighting money on fire.

just a jaw-dropper of a moment for me. i realize there is room to move for some bourbons, but if i had guests and they did anything BUT drink some ETL straight i'd kick 'em right in the pants and that'd be their last shot of ETL i share with 'em!

[Drunkonjack]

I woul'nt sat I am not enjoying the taste.

It is like sour lemonade it tastes great but the sour makes you pucker.

Same with the burbon , I like the taste and the effects but makes me make a little face a bit.

I wonder If I practice with Ever Clear :hot: :grin:

[DoubleT]

you'll eventually get to that comfort level where sipping is a beautiful thing. i look at people who mix ice, water, or cola with their bourbon as if they're dumping it down the drain...or lighting money on fire.

just a jaw-dropper of a moment for me. i realize there is room to move for some bourbons, but if i had guests and they did anything BUT drink some ETL straight i'd kick 'em right in the pants and that'd be their last shot of ETL i share with 'em!

I admit I drink mine on the rocks most of the time but this is mostly because I want it a little cooler than room temperature (no more than 1 or 2 ice cubes for every 3 ounces). There are certain bourbons that, in my opinion, MUST be consumed neat and for those I drink it straight up.

Like ElasticalGomez, I too don't like to see people destroy the taste of a good bourbon with water or soda. I have friends who can drink it no other way than mixed. For those I simply keep a bottle of Old Crow in the house. My finer bourbons are under the counter in my bar, where my true bourbon drinking friends can find them (or put theirs) and the Old Crow sits on the bar for the rest. Watching them mix soda with that doesn't bother me as much.

[troyce]

I find myself making a bit of a cringe type face when drinking my bourbon/whiskey straight up . But it is less by by time I get through a couple drinks.

Does it get easier with time as I train myself to drink it straight up ? Or is this just a common thing with all of us ?

Try slightly blowing air from your nose as you swallow. This always works for me , even with the very high proofs.

[ggilbertva]

I attended a tasting a couple years ago with Fred Noe. His comment was that there's no wrong way to drink bourbon. I agree in part. What I won't do is if a guest wants a bourbon and coke or bourbon and ginger, I don't break out the good stuff obviously. They get a rail bourbon to mix.

Bourbon is meant to be enjoyed; mixed, cut, rocks, neat.....however you enjoy it is your business.

[callmeox]

It's your bourbon and you should enjoy it any way that you want.

Don't buy into the "straight or nothing" bologna.

[Drunkonjack]

One advantage to drinking neat is less trips to the bathroom.:fish2:

[independant]

I agree whatever way you take your bourbon is fine with me but can you tell a difference between them if they are mixed with coke.

[funknik]

Like Oscar said, drink it how you like it and eventually you will graduate to neat. Eventually you'll just want to drink 'em neat. One day I just forsook ice.

But, cowboy up and don't make silly faces.

[ILLfarmboy]

try smaller sips.

[Eth3rStrik3r]

The first bourbon I ever tasted was given to me by my sister. It was WT101, and I did not really know what to do with it, so I just drank it straight. I really liked it, and while I have tried bourbon on the rocks, I still prefer it straight. I guess I just got lucky, and never really had to learn to acquire the taste.

[p_elliott]

The first bourbon I ever tasted was given to me by my sister. It was WT101, and I did not really know what to do with it, so I just drank it straight. I really liked it, and while I have tried bourbon on the rocks, I still prefer it straight. I guess I just got lucky, and never really had to learn to acquire the taste.

What a good sister

[MikeDS]

Drink it the way you enjoy it and over time you will graduate to neat.

Seconded. I find I like some neat and some with ice. Sometimes I feel like less of a man but I get over it quick

[MikeDS]

Actually I guess it was seconded on page one. Fifthed!

[miller542]

I agree whatever way you take your bourbon is fine with me but can you tell a difference between them if they are mixed with coke.

[Drunkonjack]

I found it easier to drink "Neat" when she holds the glass between her breast :cool:

[MikeDS]

I found it easier to drink "Neat" when she holds the glass between her breast :cool:

LOL. Boob reference outta nowhere! :cool:

[JamesW]

Your palate will adjust to the alcohol you are picking up which is typically the first thing a new drinker experiences. I drink 100 pf bourbon and don't really notice the alcohol.

[Luna56]

I moved up from a Baby Saz to Booker's tonight, and the straight face is a little harder to maintain. I've gotten used to the higher proofs (100 and above) so it's not as painful as it used to be.

Here's a tip; when we eat or drink, our natural tendency is to press the tongue into the roof of the mouth. It helps distribute food and drink to the entire surface of the tongue, making all our tastebuds feel like productive members of society. If you can resist doing this when drinking kick-ass proofs at first you will have an easier time handling them. Soon enough you'll be able to coat your tastebuds in Hell Juice without flinching. Then you can begin working on your next challenge: Eating the Bottle. Your friends will be amazed.

Cheers!

[Mamba]

I have always consumed the vast majority of my whiskey neat from the very beginning. Only lately have I begun to understand the pleasure to be had in certain whiskey cocktails. I find bourbon + ginger to be a better alternative to neat drinking in social situations, for instance. I enjoy neat drinking more when I'm by myself.

I want to learn more about whiskey cocktails. I just haven't made the time yet

Proof-wise, I usually love any whiskey up to 120 proof. I can and have drank the Staggs and barrel proof BTAC's neat, but the flavor gets too concentrated and hot for me. And much less gentle on my head the next morning

I find that the more you drink straight, the better you get at drinking ultra-high proofs (and the better they start to taste). But if you take occasional breaks from all whiskey drinking like I often do, you will lose that tolerance pretty fast.

[B3Nut]

If you want to get some background on whiskey cocktails, a good start would be the videos on the Old Fashioned, the Manhattan, and the Sazerac by Robert Hess. I'm a fan of OF's and Mahattans, and I pretty much use his recipes as a starting point (I personalize my Manhattans by adding in a few drops of Fee's Orange Bitters, for example.)

http://www.smallscreennetwork.com/show/cocktail_spirit/

Neat is hard to beat, but I sure enjoy a well-made whiskey cocktail, especially a good Manhattan.

TP