Do you need to drink one bottle at a time to fully appreciate it?

[b1gcountry]

Simple question.

 

If got want to really get to know a bourbon, do you have to keep coming back to it night after night?

[LCWoody]

No, to many good bourbons out their.

[Harry in WashDC]

No, BUT -

 

When trying out a new one (which at my age is getting tougher and tougher to do except for LEs as I've taken my time and already tried a LOT of them), I will taste a couple times immediately after opening then, if I haven't made up my mind, going back every couple of nights while watching what I'm eating that might throw off my palate.

[Limegoldconvertible68]

Good lord, man!  What kind of crazy question is that?  If that was true I would have no need to own 100 bottles with 30 being open. 

[Vosgar]

Simple question, simple answer: NO

[flahute]

Like the others above have said........NO!

[Flyfish]

Simple answer...well, sorta.  I find that I don't have to devote every night to a bourbon until the bottle is empty. But I do need a lot more than a sip or two to come to an understanding. Some SBers suggest trying a tiny 50ml bottle of an unfamiliar bourbon to find out if you like it. I need at least half of a 750. (Not all at once. Usually.) Initial disappointment often gives way to appreciation. Sometimes, I am convinced that my initial negative reaction was probably correct but something happened to the bourbon itself. Stagg Jr., for example, got off to a bad start but subsequent releases seem world's ahead. I like to think it was this bourbon that changed rather than my palate. So far I have had five bottles and am happy with the results.  More typically, it was probably my palate that needed an attitude adjustment.

[musekatcher]

I think so.  You may not have to finish it, but I believe it takes almost half a fifth to appreciate all the flavor that is there.  After that, I'm also of the opinion, that open half-filled bottles have a shelf life before they begin to change flavor, so I try to finish them off in a few months.  As a result, I never have more than 2-3 open at a time.  Usually just one.  I guess I overcame the curiosity long ago, to rotate and compare a dozen bourbons at a time. 

[fishnbowljoe]

No. As the saying goes, "Variety is the spice of life."  If I pour from one bottle for too long, I feel that my palate tends to get slightly stale or burnt out. Having different pours seems to keep my taste buds fresher. It also helps me appreciate the individual characteristics of different bourbons more.

 

Example: I've been on a BIB kick lately. The other night I decided to switch things up. I haven't had any BT in quite a while, so I opened a bottle and had a nice pour. Dayuuuum! I forgot how good this was.

 

Cheers! Joe

[Richnimrod]

17 hours ago, b1gcountry said:

If got want to really get to know a bourbon, do you have to keep coming back to it night after night?

 

I'd say, for what it's worth, that everybody is a little different in respect to how they arrive at decisions about something as individually unique as rating a new Bourbon in relation to other known Bourbons.

That said, I believe returning to it with some regularity (albeit NOT 'night after night') is a good plan; but I'll add that 'subbing in' a few 'known Bourbons' as a check on differing palate variables is a good idea. 

So, if you take about 3-'knowns' and the 'new' Bourbon, add about a month of tastes every other night or so, never drinking the same one more than twice in a row; you should have a very reliable assessment by the end of that time.

 

NOTE: Harry makes a good point about keeping an eye on what you've eaten or drunk (not necessarily alcohol) before the tastings is a very good idea.    Eating or drinking something (especially something new to your experience) can effect the impressions of a dram even after several hours.

 

Good Luck.

Note: I do not follow the above advice very religiously, as I have yet to find more than a few Bourbons that I couldn't find a way to like.    The gift of an 'Iron Palate'.

The downside is, of course, I don't often get very many of the nuances noted by many here.    Oh, well; I just get to drink more different ones and enjoy nearly all of 'em to one degree or another.

Edited March 25, 2017 by Richnimrod
Duh! Grammar.

[Swoboda]

No.

 

(Finally, after all these years . . . I wrote the perfect sentence.)

Edited March 25, 2017 by Swoboda

[CaliER]

No. Besides, how would you ever do a SBS?

[b1gcountry]

You could still do a sbs...

I can't really get to know something in one or two tastes. It seems to take a good size pour, and I'll keep finding stuff about it if i just sit and keep sipping it. If I do it for a few nights, I start to pick up different things because my palate is in a different place.

With some bottles I don't know what to expect until the bottle is half way gone, and I still get different flavors coming through at different times of the year.



Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk

[GaryT]

Nope.  I've got bottles that I've had open for years.  In fact, last night poured from an ORVW 107 from 2011 that I opened the day I bought it.  I love the hell out of it, and in a blind sbs with the newer ORVW found this one stood out for me - so I'm nursing it along   In fact, I find that if I pour continually from the same bottle, I begin to appreciate it less - I loose the nuance.  Even if I'm going to have several pours in an afternoon, I'll almost always make each one different, as I find the changing up gives me more of an appreciation for their differences.  

 

But - not a right/wrong way - as long as you're enjoying your whiskey, I say whatever works!

[JoeTerp]

I sure hope not. 

[smokinjoe]

Regardless of how one chooses to circulate their tastings, bottle counts, or anything else, the important thing to do in order to form a learned opinion and appreciation of a whiskey IMO is to pay attention to what you're doing and Think about it.  And, do thisire than once.  Honestly, this can be a bit like work...which is the reason I seldomly do it!    

[musekatcher]

7 hours ago, GaryT said:

In fact, last night poured from an ORVW 107 from 2011 that I opened the day I bought it.

 

You are lucky to have a flexible palette!

[Paddy]

I enjoy getting to know a bottle.  If it's a new expression I'm unfamiliar with, I often will go to it several days in a row in order to become more familiar with it's wiles.  I find that this helps me to form a educated opinion regarding whether, or not I wish to pursue the relationship.

 

Much like a second, third or fourth date with a new girl would be. 

[Whiskey Dick]

any more than two at a time, it gets hard to hold them

[ModestGlutton]

Short and sweet answer, no.

 

Long version is that I try and space out a tasting from one bottle a far as possible. First, decreasing the amount of time and rate I allow air to be exposed in the bottle allowing a slow bottle maturation. Second, it gives me time to explore others and create a comparison with a more knowledgeable palate, also I take down tasting notes.

[Flyfish]

On 3/25/2017 at 1:58 PM, CaliER said:

No. Besides, how would you ever do a SBS?

If you were especially cruel, you could do a blind SBS with a friend in which you poured the same bourbon in both glasses. Then sit back and watch him discover the subtle differences he detects. Of course, you had been keep an extensive list of new friends because this particular friend would be lost forever.