whiskey

i dunno if it's any indication but i wouldn't think twice before dumping some bourbon into a coke but i wouldn't ever put a nice single malt with a mixer (except a dash of water)

maybe it's an indication that i haven't bought any expensive bourbon

Mixing anything with coke - some might say mixing any spirit, period - has its historic roots in making otherwise horrible swill palatable. Though frankly, while I have no problem mixing bourbon, there really aren't that many great bourbon cocktails. And there are even far, far fewer scotch cocktails. I think it has less to do with its quality than it does its taste.

and that's why god gave us rye

I had a couple Wild Turkey + ginger beer drinks last night

I am a horrible savage for mixing

no way! that sounds delicious.

It is my guilty vice, the whiskey + ginger beer combo. Ginger beer is pretty much the most sugary thing ever and so, so gingery

jameson mixes well if you want to go that route. highballs are fun!

a local bar/pizza place has a cocktail that involves jameson, ginger, cherry, and maybe pineapple?

went to one of those free jameson film nights they do around here, the cocktails they gave us were pretty disgusting (but free!! so who cares)

quite like an old fashioned though

(not with jameson, obvs)

I love the hell out of scotch

― mh, Wednesday, March 14, 2012 8:38 AM (1 hour ago) Bookmark

I love anything that tastes super earthy -- coffee, scotch, beets.

In fact, a little of each every day isn't such a terrible idea.

new cocktail?

man you can dump Beam into Coke all night, but there are plenty of bourbons where doing so would be sooooo problematic imo

the bourbons/tennessee whiskeys that are good in coke are really not that awesome on their own, imo

dickel is ok, jack daniels is way too sweet, I just am not that into Beam's low-end offering

when ppl say they find bourbon as a category "too sweet" i really want to know what they've been drinking

i've tried lots of bourbons in the last few years, and there is definitely a range (i guess i like the "dry" end) but there is a base sweetness to all bourbon that doesn't appeal that much to my tastebuds.

American whiskey is now sold in more than 100 countries. The leading markets are the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, Australia, and Japan. Key emerging markets for American whiskey are China, Vietnam, Brazil, Chile, Romania, and Bulgaria

bourbon finally finding a home in the balkans

i would strongly recommend wild turkey 101 for bourbon and coke...marginally more expensive but it has the proof and character to elevate that drink a bit.

wild turkey is a good buy

ok, in anticipation of March 17, any recommendations on "high-end" and/or noteworthy irish whiskies beyond the usual suspects. i see that my local trader joe's recently started selling a house brand single malt irish but i am skeptical

― utopian dipshit (buzza), Wednesday, March 14, 2012 12:54 AM

http://www.passportwineandspirits.com/images/wky7.jpg

trader joes has a single malt scotch too, not sure i'd go there

lol i wonder what the age is on the tj's scotch?

10 years

wow! i thought it might be a mcclelland's-like 3-5 year old.

i think they might have more than one. costco has them too, like re-branded macallan and bowmore

yeah i've heard of the costco ones. wish tj's around here could say liquor because i'd like to try this.

*sell liquor

My understanding is that the TJs liquor (sold only in CA, I believe) is name-brand but labeled for TJs. For example, Trader Joe's vodka is Belevedere, I was told. Dunno who makes their tequila or scotch, but I hear it's not bad. I think they also sell some name brand scotch, too. (Our local TJs sells sake, sherry and vermouth, but mostly sticks that that fortified wine territory).

My favorite scotch cocktail is the Penicillin. Blended scotch, lemon juice, ginger honey syrup, float of something peaty like the Laphroaig 10 on top.

yeah that's a good cocktail

BTW, a TJ's now carries the Bulleit rye as well as the bourbon, at the same price ($20). I have a bottle that I haven't opened yet.

guh

Costco has the bourbon here at that price, but not the rye as of the last time I checked.

I finally decided displaying my collection of empty bulleit bottles on the kitchen shelf was really low class but I haven't had the heart to recycle them yet. Anyone have any ideas about what I could do with about 25 of them?

Use them to make infusions! Vinegar, vodka, oil, whatever!

(wash first though)

ever have interest in making infusions or liqueurs or something? take the labels off and they would be good for storing those.

xp great minds etc etc

mother's day presents?

infusions a good idea!

four thieves vinegar is perfect for spring

also warding off witches/plague

http://nourishedkitchen.com/four-thieves-vinegar-recipe/

<i>Don't know where you all are from, but in general American spirit tastes tend toward the sweet. Hence our national distrust of bitters, which abound in Europe (there's a good chapter on this in Jason Wilson's "Boozehound"). Not that scotch is bitter, but our tastebuds I think gravitate toward the caramel sweetness of bourbon. Also, made in America, USA USA USA!</i>

uhhh i am not familiar with this bitters hate. and i don't like overly sweet bourbons! i just like bourbon better. and rye. rye is my answer to wanting something a bit dryer.

some day i will learn bbcode and not rely on remembering to "convert simple html to bbcode"

scotch tastes kind of 'thin' compared to bourbon, for me at least

nikka from the barrel is sick (as is ardbeg 10)

Yep. My favourite blend and my favourite malt.

tried the nikka yoichi tonight, it was really nice. yamazaki is another great japanese whisky obviously but whatever you do, never drink 10 year old isawa single malt. literally tastes like an old bike shop.

Fighting Cock 1st impressions: this is good, not as complex as I was perhaps hoping for, but not thin like a lot of what i consider 'bland' bourbons. Would buy again, and at $22/liter it's affordable.

also re: bourbon sweetness. i think it is the sweetness in some bourbons that put me more into the rye train tbh--i find things like makers, beam, turkey, even knob creek, can become a bit cloying after a few drinks.

i find knob especially to be pretty sweet

yamazaki is another great japanese whisky obviously

obv