G26GEN5 Posted March 8, 2019 Share Posted March 8, 2019 Did you like bourbon the first time you tried it or did you acquire a taste for it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishnbowljoe Posted March 8, 2019 Share Posted March 8, 2019 The latter. Biba! Joe 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G26GEN5 Posted March 8, 2019 Author Share Posted March 8, 2019 3 minutes ago, fishnbowljoe said: The latter. Biba! Joe I’m guessing that will be the case in most people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BadDayBlack Posted March 8, 2019 Share Posted March 8, 2019 Didn't like any alcohol at first but with bourbon it was like "this could be good, down the road..." 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evasive Posted March 8, 2019 Share Posted March 8, 2019 Sh!t no. I didn’t know how to sip. I thought you consume all liquids like milk, water, or Coke: take a mouthful and swallow it. Works for beer. The first time I actually liked it was when I thought I was the first to put Jim Beam white label in ginger ale. I was a sophomore in college. It was another 4 years before I discovered Bookers and Bakers and the joys of sipping good whisky. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyD Posted March 8, 2019 Share Posted March 8, 2019 It has taken years to gain an appreciation for whiskey in general. Not an overnight thing. And I learn new things every week. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lcpfratn Posted March 8, 2019 Share Posted March 8, 2019 Hell no! I hated beer the first time I tried it as a young teen. Whiskey, vodka and rum were things you mixed with juices or cola. Eventually a friend introduced me to a rusty nail, which in some ways is a lot like an old fashioned. That led to finally trying bourbon on the rocks, which led to trying whisky and other things neat, but we’re talking about a span of 20 to 30 years before I got to the point of preferring whiskey neat. It’s a journey, but I wish I had tried different things earlier than I did. Many things are an acquired taste, including many foods that I didn’t like when I was young and love now. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richnimrod Posted March 8, 2019 Share Posted March 8, 2019 I didn't hate Bourbon (or any other whiskey) at first. ...Mostly because I didn't drink it neat. I had usually mixed it with soda, or occasionally OJ, and liked it pretty well either way. First attempts at neat were less gratifying... until I realized very small sips provided the flavors, and a considerably more enjoyable experience than bigger quaffs. Once I learned to sniff Bourbon with an open mouth, I really started to enjoy the entire experience a lot more. Now, the nosing often is almost enjoyable as the sipping! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevinbrink Posted March 8, 2019 Share Posted March 8, 2019 I was already drinking cheap scotch when I tried bourbon for the first time, first pour was WT 101 on the rocks in what was probably 1998 or 1999 and I enjoyed it greatly on the time it tasted like a step up from the Dewar's and Cutty that were the better pours I was drinking prior. My first scotch/Beer/tequila on the other hand were all less than enjoyable experiences. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pyro273 Posted March 8, 2019 Share Posted March 8, 2019 The crowd I ran with growing up made it clear that it was a sin to mix JD; IT was to be drank on the rocks or straight. From then on I seemed to prefer all of my liquor neat or on the rocks. That said, my first couple of experiences with JD weren't all that great. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dcbt Posted March 8, 2019 Share Posted March 8, 2019 More of an evolution. Like many people I abused Jack & coke with no regard to the taste of what I was guzzling (be it Jack or anything else). Eventually I upgraded to GJ on the rocks, then straight, but so far it was all mostly for effect over taste, and then BT was the gamechanger. Eyes opened to how tasty whiskey could actually be. The rest is history. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fosmith Posted March 8, 2019 Share Posted March 8, 2019 The first bourbon I remember drinking neat was Evan Williams black label with 7 yr age statement. I was already drinking scotch and brandy neat and this was on sale for $12 for a handle so I decided to try it. I liked it because it was smooth and slightly sweet - easy sipping. Other bourbons I tried like Maker's Mark, WT 101 and Knob Creek were too hot and tannic for me so I went back to scotch and brandy for a few more years. Then, I tried Knob Creek again and really liked it and never turned back. But it was just something that I enjoyed. I didn't seek out anything. I didn't have a bunker and only had one bottle open at a time. It wasn't until I tasted my first barrel proofer (Booker's) that bourbon became a passion. Now it consumes more time, energy, money and liver cells than is probably healthy but f*** it! I enjoy it and my wife doesn't get on my case so it's all good! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beasled Posted March 8, 2019 Share Posted March 8, 2019 No, I couldn't stand the stuff but only considered drinking it neat. It was EC12 and as a first bourbon it was pretty harsh. A while later a friend said to try it with ice, which improved it immensely. Then over time I preferred it with less ice, less watered down, and now only occasionally with ice or more often with a splash of water. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRich Posted March 8, 2019 Share Posted March 8, 2019 I guess I’m the contrarian. Wine took time. Beer I’m still not a big fan of after 20 years. Bourbon (and scotch, rye, Irish) were great from the first pour. It’s like we knew that we meant for each other. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry in WashDC Posted March 8, 2019 Share Posted March 8, 2019 It took years of experimentation and waves of alternatives, each of which resulted in appreciating each for what each is: in order -- beer (Army in Germany), gin, mixed drinks, wine, bourbon. Notice the absence of single malt scotch although Irish whiskey recently has been added to the list, and lowland blended scotches are coming along fine. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThirstyinOhio Posted March 8, 2019 Share Posted March 8, 2019 2 hours ago, BigRich said: I guess I’m the contrarian. Wine took time. Beer I’m still not a big fan of after 20 years. Bourbon (and scotch, rye, Irish) were great from the first pour. It’s like we knew that we meant for each other. I'm with you, I liked it from the start 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jazzhead Posted March 9, 2019 Share Posted March 9, 2019 What I've never been able to develop an interest in is mixed drinks. Always loved beer, and first tasted bourbon neat, in a shot glass, as a beer chaser. A favorite from my high school days, I recall, were shots of Yukon Jack with a dash of lime juice - a "snakebite". It took me some years, though, before I developed an enthusiasm for sipping good whisky from a Glencairn. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markandrex Posted March 9, 2019 Share Posted March 9, 2019 (edited) I ended up with a boat load of liquor after filling in as bartender at my cousin’s wedding. Two handles of Old Grand Dad were the last to survive. After having my wisdom teeth removed I went back to college and fell in love with bourbon. Of course it could have been the codine the oral surgeon prescribed. That was 1979. Fourth years later and here I am. You be the judge. Edited March 9, 2019 by markandrex 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richnimrod Posted March 9, 2019 Share Posted March 9, 2019 10 hours ago, markandrex said: I ended up with a boat load of liquor after filling in as bartender at my cousin’s wedding. Two handles of Old Grand Dad were the last to survive. After having my wisdom teeth removed I went back to college and fell in love with bourbon. Of course it could have been the codine the oral surgeon prescribed. That was 1979. Fourth years later and here I am. You be the judge. Was that meant to say FORTY years later? (I'm guessing.) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeepCover Posted March 9, 2019 Share Posted March 9, 2019 If I’m only counting my first attempt at sipping bourbon (not shots and mixed drinks in college), then yes. I fell in love immediately. I’d been drinking scotch for a few years and I decided to try Pappy 20. I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. It had me...hook, line, and sinker. That said, I do not recommend starting at the top shelf like I did. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whiskeythink.com Posted March 9, 2019 Share Posted March 9, 2019 Back in the 80s & early 90s, when at a bar with friends, someone would always buy a round of shots of Jagermeister. I couldnt stand that cough syrup shit, so would always ask to make mine Old Granddad BIB or Beam White. It was always a more satisfying shot than everything else. Didnt start drinking it neat til a few years later. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markandrex Posted March 9, 2019 Share Posted March 9, 2019 6 hours ago, Richnimrod said: Was that meant to say FORTY years later? (I'm guessing.) You are correct sir. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brett Posted March 10, 2019 Share Posted March 10, 2019 Definitely been an acquired taste for me. Used to mix it, but now always neat. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulO Posted March 10, 2019 Share Posted March 10, 2019 I got really interested in classic cocktails back in the 1990s. One piece of advice was to taste the individual ingredients. I discovered that some brands of whiskey were great all by themselves. When I moved from bottom shelf 80 proofers to DSP 31 distilled JW Dant BIB - it was a revelation. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markandrex Posted March 10, 2019 Share Posted March 10, 2019 On 3/8/2019 at 8:22 PM, markandrex said: I ended up with a boat load of liquor after filling in as bartender at my cousin’s wedding. Two handles of Old Grand Dad were the last to survive. After having my wisdom teeth removed I went back to college and fell in love with bourbon. Of course it could have been the codine the oral surgeon prescribed. That was 1979. Fourty years later and here I am. You be the judge. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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