Whisky/whiskey…? 
Whiskey for American Bourbon & Rye & also for Irish.
Whisky for blended Scotch & single malts & usually for Japanese too.
I get that…soz, I was being facetious ( a twat!)
I’m hoping for a recommendation to broaden my Bourbon horizons
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Wild Turkey 101, Maker’s Mark, Old Forester, which I haven’t yet tried, but bought a bottle for me Da’ after seeing it frequently recommended. The first two I’ve enjoyed frequently.
Bulleit Bourbon is quite good & a more earthy less tame alternative to Woodford at a similar price point.
Knob Creek is pretty good.
I recently bought a bottle of Jim Beam Single barrel select craft Bourbon, which I enjoy immensely & prefer to Knob Creek. You can usually find it at £35. I got a deal on mine for only £25.
Two of my strong favourites are Wild Turkey Rare Breed Bourbon and Woodford Reserve Small batch Rye. Sub £40 Wild Turkey 101 is pretty banging vfm. Maker’s Mark stave profile No 46 Kentucky Bourbon is also good, but makes a stronger proposition if you can get it for under £35, I wouldn’t pay owt close to full RRP for it.
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Cheers Chris,
Exactly what I was hoping for.
This was what my suggestion was going to be too.
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Makers Mark
Knob Creek
Wild Turkey 101 is ok, I used it for cocktails.
WT 101 makes a cracking base for an Old Fashioned or a Boulevardier.
I would question using it for a whiskey sour or Kentucky Mule when Jim Beam White label does a sterling job for not much coin. For these freshly squeezed or good quality lemon juice makes more of a difference, than going more fancy on the whiskey base. WT 101 generally also gets mostly positive reviews as a straight sipping whisky.
Damning it with faint praise 'cause it isn’t to your taste seems against the broad consensus of opinion, your ok for ‘cocktails’ comment comes across a little snobby/snidey! Perhaps that’s not how you meant it Simon??
I agree.
I am going from memory here but i found it a bit of the burn in drinking it neat, so i used it up for cocktails and never bought another bottle. Personally it didnt do it for me as a sipper.
One to two teaspoons of water with a 50ml measure, would probably loosen/open it for you, it is after all 50.5% ABV. I don’t find it ‘burney’ at all drunk neat. I personally find Knob Creek has more burn/aggression in its taste profile than WT 101. Funny how we can have such different impressions & preferences, yet often share similar tastes too!
Mind you there is simply shedloads of diversity when it comes to decent whisky/ey , certainly enough to keep near everyone happy!!
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That’s one of my benchmark measures for rating a Bourbon, how well it stands up as an “Old Fashioned” base. If it does good for this & sips neat well to my taste I’d rate it as good.
I dont keep a huge stash of Bourbon - from memory atm i think i have Knob and Woodford Reserve.
Compare that to about 20 single malts and growing…and maybe about 80 bottles of gin
I find some overly sweet, the same problem i have with some single malts, and some old tom gins.
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How are you making the old fashioned drinks?
I am currently dropping 3 or 4 slugs of angostura on to brown sugar cube, adding a little water and mixing.
Then chucking in 50ml of whatever and a large ball of ice.
I use this recipe
but with about 2.5ml of syrup - which in reality i make on the go…
Sometimes i get all excited and use orange bitters
Raw cane sugar is one of the key ingredients for me personally. I do actually make my own cocktail syrup which is super easy & will keep for a decent amount of time in the fridge if you add a little vodka prior to bottling it & storing it in t’ fridge.
Around the same amount of cane sugar as the nail end of an average sized thumb or just over a level teaspoon. Crush the raw cane sugar with several dashes (to taste) of bitters in the bottom of your glass with the flat head of a bar spoon. Then mix in your whiskey 'n ice. I stir for around half a minute going in both directions to help the sugar dissolve & not be left with a sticky mess at the bottom of the glass. I always serve with a Maraschino cherry on a cocktail stick for additional swirlage as I’m drinking it too.
Orange bitters in combination with Angosturas bitters works very well I use Regan’s Orange bitters made by Buffalo Trace distillery.
I also generally use a twist of Orange peel as well as a Maraschino cherry to garnish.
I usually use at least a 50ml measure of whiskey.
The teaspoons I actually use for this are smaller than average as they are actually espresso spoons. You’ll quickly be able to eyeball wot is right for your preference.
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absolutely
if you squeeze the twist over the glass, some precious orange oils will be released from the skin, which add to the cocktail. Try making sure you leave no pith on the orange and it can add bitter flavours to the drink.
^^^ yep when i remember to make it or use it… more often than not i forget and just use sugar and water.
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That’s a good tip 're snapping the orange peel, I neglected suggesting that… If I’m having old Fashioned’s of an evening I generally prepare some peel twists beforehand in the afternoon.
You soon get to be a dab hand at getting the peel depth right by feel using a canelle knife, avoiding the need to remove surplus pith. If you prepare them a few hours before hand you get a more satisfying snap & better release of zest spray.
The wife bought me one of these for Christmas.
Tiny little thing, but I think it’s brilliant. You just jab it into the orange, and pull the barb back towards you. You can cut out artful swirls, giraffe shapes or, of course, a big ol’ cock & balls.
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Fancy, I have t’ Alessi crown cap bottle opener which is the best I have ever used! That does sound completely brilliant.
I find you soon become very deft with a canelle knife. My peel twists now always have good form & keep their shape very well. Certainly a far cry from my earliest efforts.
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i mainly use a veg peeler. I do have a canele cutter but i find it cuts too deep, and leaves too much pith on