Do you always/usually dump the neck pour (like into an infinity bottle for example)?

[IamMatt]

Some people always pour a few ounces of a new bottle into an infinity bottle, partly to keep the infinity bottle going and partly to let the new bottle open up.  I have never done this, but I definitely find that many bottles improve significantly after getting some air for a month or two.  Thoughts?

 

The idea of an infinity bottle never appealed to me because it seemed like it would just be a random hot mess of a blend, but maybe that's another question.

[Kepler]

Because the "neck pour" is a silly myth I just drink it.

[Thomm]

Like in the movie Caddyshack when Spaulding turns to the diner seated next to him and asks, "Are you gonna eat your fat?"--I am now picturing @Kepler in @IamMatt's basement bar asking, "Are you gonna drink your neck pour?"

[Kepler]

1 minute ago, Thomm said:

Like in the movie Caddyshack when Spaulding turns to the diner seated next to him and asks, "Are you gonna eat your fat?"--I am now picturing @Kepler in @IamMatt's basement bar asking, "Are you gonna drink your neck pour?"

 

Well that would depend on the whiskey 

[JCwhammie]

I agree with Kepler. I don't buy in to the neck pour trend

I had an infinity bottle 5+ years ago. It wasn't that good, so I gave up on that. 

[flahute]

I am also not a believer in the neck pour. People drank bourbon for decades without anyone thinking bottles got appreciably better after some so called air time. In the past few years it's suddenly a thing. The people who talk about it the most are new to bourbon. I think they haven't had enough time to learn about palate variation from day to day.

[Jazzhead]

I love making and drinking infinity bottles (I have 3 in regular rotation),  but I never thought of servicing them with neck pours.  I can see the appeal - air improves whiskey so martyr the neck pour.   But I prefer to blend from whiskies I know.

[MM818]

I’ve never liked this 4R 2017 LE until this pour right now. Probably a dozen pours prior. It’s only palate? It’s only me and nothing in the bottle? I don’t want to take responsibility. 

[Kepler]

Very nice photo.   I like how the lights from the Christmas tree reflect at the bottom of the glen.

 

 

 

Edited November 30, 2022 by Kepler

[Kepler]

I don't deny that as the liquid level goes down in a glass, that air from the larger head space cannot affect the liquid over time.  I'm sure oxidation happens but in whiskey in a well sealed bottle, it's very gradual over a long time.  I've noticed bottles that have been open a long time seemingly 'open up' over time and are consistently more enjoyable to my palate than when the bottle was first opened.  But I also know my palate is much more variable.

 

But my earlier post was meant to specifically reject the 'neck pour' concept... that the very top portion of liquid in a newly opened bottle is somehow substandard.  That's ridiculous.

[0895]

If anyone is worried about it, just invert the bottle and shake it to mix the neck pour back into the rest of the bottle.  

 

I'm a firm believer in open bottles getting better as they get air into them.  Four Roses seems to be one of the best examples of this phenomenon, especially the cask strength stuff.

I've also been known to dump a bottle into a large pitcher and stir some air into the whiskey before decanting back into the original bottle.

[MM818]

For me, I think I’ve conflated revisiting a bottle and the whiskey significantly changing after the bottle opens. I like having a couple pours and then putting the bottle away for a few or several  weeks. I don’t drink whiskey in a vacuum. It’s always compared against the last pour or reaching for a particular profile. I like coming back around on a bottle. I don’t know if it’s my brain, palate, or oxidation but I often have a different interpretation of that bottle. 

[IamMatt]

9 hours ago, 0895 said:

If anyone is worried about it, just invert the bottle and shake it to mix the neck pour back into the rest of the bottle.  

 

[markandrex]

12 hours ago, 0895 said:

If anyone is worried about it, just invert the bottle and shake it to mix the neck pour back into the rest of the bottle.  

 

I'm a firm believer in open bottles getting better as they get air into them.  Four Roses seems to be one of the best examples of this phenomenon, especially the cask strength stuff.

I've also been known to dump a bottle into a large pitcher and stir some air into the whiskey before decanting back into the original bottle.

+1

[smokinjoe]

12 hours ago, 0895 said:

If anyone is worried about it, just invert the bottle and shake it to mix the neck pour back into the rest of the bottle.  

 

I'm a firm believer in open bottles getting better as they get air into them.  Four Roses seems to be one of the best examples of this phenomenon, especially the cask strength stuff.

I've also been known to dump a bottle into a large pitcher and stir some air into the whiskey before decanting back into the original bottle.

Reminds me of a Jim Rutledge story from before he left 4R.  Friend of mine is GM of a very high end steak place in Atlanta.  He had done several 4R private picks for his restaurant, and had invited JR into the restaurant for an event tasting, Q&A, bottle signing, etc.  A guy comes up to the table with a bottle to be signed, and pipes up asking JR about the bottle air time influence.  My friend said JR looked at him like the guy had 7 heads and responded while shaking his head with, “is this something you read on the Internet?”  

[PaulO]

My solution to neck pour is pour it into a glass and wait a little while.  It always tastes great.

[flahute]

9 hours ago, smokinjoe said:

Reminds me of a Jim Rutledge story from before he left 4R.  Friend of mine is GM of a very high end steak place in Atlanta.  He had done several 4R private picks for his restaurant, and had invited JR into the restaurant for an event tasting, Q&A, bottle signing, etc.  A guy comes up to the table with a bottle to be signed, and pipes up asking JR about the bottle air time influence.  My friend said JR looked at him like the guy had 7 heads and responded while shaking his head with, “is this something you read on the Internet?”  

  That SO sounds like Jim.

[Old Hippie]

I am on the Wholesale side of the business. If I plan to be showing a particularly nice whiskey I will pour off a dram the day before I show it. I find that first pour upon opening is always closed in. After a few hours it starts to open and by the next day it is ready to enjoy to its fullest extent. I always drink that "neck" pour and compare it to what I have from that bottle the next day. Pretty amazing the difference. I equate the difference to adding a drop or two of water to a pour after I have already tasted it purely neat. 

[Special Reserve]

It seems to me that wheated bourbons really sweeten after being opened and partially poured over.

 

Some time  ago, I had a store sample of a single barrel Rebel Yell Cast Strength and it was great.  I bought 3 bottles.  A few days later, I opened a bottle and it tasted like burnt olive oil. I sat it aside for a few weeks and resampled it and it was like the sample that I had in the store. That was the most dramatic change I've ever experienced but on the whole, wheated bourbons change after being opened.

 

Infinity bottles? That's for other people, if they want.

[jvd99]

I used to pour out the first 4 oz into 2oz samples. Did this for years. I've got a few hundred samples of long gone bottles. I stopped doing it just because of the hassle and storage issues. They'll come in handy one day I'm sure. I also had an infinity bottle going for years until the novelty wore off. Dont do that anymore either. My bourbon zen does not require such endeavors.

[Obree]

I have one for ryes and one for bourbons. Indeed some pours appear to open up a bit after getting some air, some more than others. And you get an amazingly good pour out of the infinity bottle from time to time. Had some friends over for Christmas dinner yesterday, and shared a few good bourbons as well. I was surprised they unanimously, without knowing, enjoyed the pour from the infinity bottle, that I shared as one of them, most!

[bayouredd]

As PaulO said above, I pour it into a glass and plan to let it sit awhile. The difference is, the plan almost always fails; the beckoning is too strong, sorta like the force. Glug-glug!!! 

[FasterHorses]

Never. Would not consider 

[Bret Bret]

 

My infinity bottle!

Edited January 22, 2023 by Bret Bret
Add gif

[NC2112]

Never heard of this before. I did compare an old, 3/4 empty bottle to Maker's Mark to a brand new one though and personally - I could tell no difference at all. That's just me. If there actually was any difference, it was negligible.