A Bourbon Taster

With lent charging forward like a Kentucky Thoroughbred running over green grass we organized an impromptu Bourbon Taster for Sunday Evening as one of the last events before the bourbon-fast. Chris went south of the border to Washington State on Saturday. The bourbon selection is far better once you enter the USA. In their booze stores they even have an entire section devoted to the genre. In Canada they lump it in with Irish Whiskey, as a bookend to the Scotch and Rye sections, under the no-name rubric of Whiskey. 

In BC at least we can get our hands on the following bourbons as a rule and all others are special order: Wild Turkey (101 and 80 proof), Woodford Reserve, Maker's Mark, Knob Creek, Jim Beam, Bookers, Evan Williams Single Barrel, and on the Tennessee side, Jack Daniels Old Number Seven, Jack Daniels Single Barrel, and Gentleman Jack Rare Tennessee. Not a very extensive selection to say the least, but with some good quality for sure.

Chris picked up a couple of bottles in Washington, Old Forester, from the Brown Foreman Distillery (whence comes the ubiquitous and fair Jack Daniels) and for something completely different, Fighting Cock, from the Heaven Hills Distillery (Sazerac). 

So our lineup went like this: Bookers, Wild Turkey 80 proof, Maker's Mark, Fighting Cock, and Old Forester. Sampling from five bourbons seemed like the right number to choose from. There was enough variety to make compare and contrast meaningful, but not too much so as to overwhelm us. We leaned heavily on Gary and Mardee Haidin Regan's The Book Of Bourbon and Other Fine American Whiskeys in setting the affair up, from the white table cloth as a backdrop to the beautiful red bourbon colors, communal bread to cleanse our palate, and cold water to rinse or dilute as necessary.

We made a conscious decision (not always easy when you have that much bourbon on hand) to have an "open" tasting. We thought we'd keep everything above board and honest, hoping to simply enjoy an evening of sipping whiskey without the pressure of attempting to figure out which bourbon you were drinking.

Lance came over early as he had sick kids at home and couldn't stay long. I didn't get a picture, but he did record a few notes which i can pass on here. He started with the Bookers, the highest proof bourbon on the menu. His notes on that one: "Sweetness/cinammon, honey, minty, tobacco aftertaste." He went on to sample the Old Forester: "subtle nose, peaty, citrus, mild aftertaste." Last came the Fighting Cock. This one didn't particularly endear itself to anyone. Lance said it was like a 30 second quickie and described it with words like "hot, harsh, turpentine".

Rick showed up second, pedalling over on his one-speed he found in a back alley somewhere. Rick didn't take notes, but I remember he thought highly of the Old Forester and the Bookers. He declared bourbon the king of all alcohol, and sat with us in the kitchen while we prepared food for the guests. 

We hummed and hawed about what to serve. We first thought of doing something like pulled pork, but nixed that, as I had to work Sunday and so couldn't be around to help with the smoking. Then we thought about doing something half-assed like buying appetizers of the "frozen" variety. We didn't feel great about that - not our style really. We settled on a good old-fashioned chicken and sausage barbecue, with grilled veggies, and ceasar salad. I don't know if it went or not (i.e. with the theme) but it turned out pretty good in the end.

Rick pedalled off around 5:30, and Dan, Kate, and Don pulled up in a cab at around 6:00. We did the ceremonial staring at the bourbons arrayed on the table, and then got into it. We started with Fighting Cock. Dan, at right was the first victim of my camera, caught here handling his Cock. Our note taking was good only for the first sample, after that we more or less did a conversational compare and contrast, and left it at that. Dan's notes on the Cock: 

Nose: Airplane glue, sweat, caramel/hay.
Palate: woody, hay straw
Finish: dry short and dusty
Overall: Wants to fight; one round KO

Don, shown here sipping an unknown variety of bourbon, said this  of the Cock: Overall, I like it (but it's my first bourbon). 

Our second bourbon was Bookers. My own notes on the subject: 

Nose: Sweet, honey, vanilla
Palate: smooth, strong, sharp, citrus
Finish: smoother than you'd think for such a strong bourbon, sweetish. 

Chris, shown at right and below, took these short notes on the Bookers:

Nose: prickly
Mouth: strong and spicy, earthy
Throat: burn.

Dan took these notes:

Nose: sharp, orange tree bark.
Palate Dark, leather, big, charred.
Finish: Long finish dissolves to needles.
Overall: "Doesn't f*** around - confident." 

It was at this point we took a break for dinner. I was in and out as i was busy working the grill. It was a full contact blood sport out there. I couldn't see anything and i was managing an overfull grill of chicken breasts (bone in), sausages, mixed peppers, and asparagus. It turned out well, although the chicken was left on too long and was a bit dry. The vegetables were terrific and the sausage is always good, smothered in bourbon barbecue sauce of course! (That's me on the left, with my nose in something...). We made a ceasar salad as well. 

The next bourbon we took on was the Makers. I must confess that while the Maker's is generally my favorite bourbon it got lost with these other bourbons. It could be that the Fighting Cock simply ruined me, I don't know. I didn't seem to recover until the Old Forester came out.

The Old Forester seemed to be the undisputed champ of the affair. Comments like "a real gentleman", "well behaved", and "balanced" abounded. I thought it asked little of me and gave back much in return. Dan described it as "a new friend". 

I seem to have misplaced Kate's notes, which is a real shame as i'm quite sure they were worth reading (Kate at right, below). Certainly she was the most organized of us: she kept her glasses in a row and kept something in each of them to refer back to as she went.  The only thing on my paper worth reporting here is my summation of the Fighting Cock: "When you're weaving dangerously in the middle of the room at the end of a long night of hard drinking, you might like to have this baby in your grasp. Otherwise: stay away!"

I think it's safe to say the the Fighting Cock was the least favored bourbon of the night and perhaps the Old Forester the winner. None of us had tried the Old Forester before, and I think that played to its favor.

The affair lasted until midnight, at which time another cab came along and rolled our friends home. Overall rating: a good way to spend a Sunday evening.