Every now and then there seems to be a large wave of folks getting into Bourbon (or Rye) for the first time. Lately I’ve been observing one of those waves in various Facebook beer and whiskey groups and have been fielding more questions at bars and restaurants. Since I’ve found myself telling the same few things to multiple people, I figured it may be beneficial to collect a few of those thoughts in one easy-to-find location.

I’ll do my best to keep this quick, but that’s not my strong suit, so buckle up. I’ll also say that I am in no way claiming to be an “expert”, or that my opinions below are the only way to approach getting into whiskey. I’ve been a Bourbon enthusiast for around 5 years now, and these are just things that have helped me along the way, do with them what you will, or ignore them, totally your call.

Alright, so here are a handful of tips and considerations for your whiskey endeavors, enjoy and please feel free to ask questions in the comments or post any other thoughts that you’ve found could help new whiskey fans.

BUT FIRST, A FEW QUICK ONES

• Bourbon is a type of whiskey that is made from a mash of at least 51% corn. Bourbon doesn’t have to be made in Kentucky, but it does have to be made in America. Bourbon must be aged in brand new charred oak barrels (normally white oak).
• When smelling (called nosing) a whiskey, part your lips and breath in through both your nose and mouth at the same time. This will help prevent the whiskey from burning the shit out of your nose and allow you to dial in on specific aromas.
• Too strong? Add a drop of water. We’ll talk more about ice later.
• When doing a flight, always work from lowest proof to highest. This will prevent the alcohol of a stronger whiskey from overshadowing subtlety of a lower proof pour.
• For those of you coming from the beer world, Bourbon is opposite in that craft is NOT the way to go. The big distilleries are the ones with the funding and time to make the really good stuff, craft isn’t there yet.

BROTHER FROM ANOTHER MOTHER

I remember trying to look up the Eagle Rare distillery before my first trip to Bourbon country because it was my favorite bottle at the time and I really wanted to see where it was made. I’ll save you the time, it doesn’t exist. Eagle Rare, like tons of brands you see on the shelf, is made at a large distillery that produces many, many different brands of whiskey. Often the whiskey is the actually the same initially but is aged in different locations for different amounts of time and released as different brands (these are called ‘expressions’). For example, Eagle Rare is made at Buffalo Trace and is the same juice as EH Taylor and Benchmark but is bottled as Eagle Rare when the flavor profile matches that of Eagle Rare due to aging practices.

Helpful link: Bourbonr has done a great job breaking down each distillery’s expressions, you can find a list of those here.

THE MORE YOU KNOW

If you want to nerd out and really learn about what’s in your glass, buy some books. Resources like our blog and others are great for tidbits here and there, but there is no substitute for books written by folks like Chuck Cowdery and Fred Minnick. The first Bourbon book I read was Bourbon, Straight by Cowdery and it honestly changed my life. The history and stories behind Bourbon will forever make you appreciate every pour you have. Cowdery’s blog is also fantastic and is still the first place I search if I’m looking for info on a certain brand.

Fred Minnick is another incredible author and has really helped spread information and put Bourbon on the map. Minnick is a good friend to Barrels and Mash happens to be a fellow Oklahoman (although he went to the wrong school…you know…the one in Stillwater). His book Bourbon: The Rise, Fall, and Rebirth of an American Whiskey provides more historical insight and Bourbon, Curious is another great resource and tasting guide. Additionally, Whiskey Women: The Untold Story of How Women Saved Bourbon, Scotch, and Irish Whiskey is full of many lesser known stories on the true impact that women had, and continue to have, on the industry.

Other than books, podcasts like The Podcask and This is My Bourbon Podcast are great to listen to in the car. Start from the first episodes and follow these fine folks on their Bourbon journeys.

Helpful Links: Chuck Cowdery’s books and blog. Fred Minnick’s books. The Podcask. This is My Bourbon Podcast website. The Podcask’s website.

I TRY ALL THINGS, I ACHIEVE WHAT I CAN

I’ve been seeing a lot of folks starting out by hunting whales. In other words, they only want the hard to find stuff like Buffalo Trace’s Antique Collection, Pappy Van Winkle, or Parker’s Heritage. While this mentality is easy to understand, it’s backwards in my opinion. If you are only in it to find rare bottles, then you don’t like Bourbon, you like showing off to your internet friends.

I get that this can come off as gatekeeping. I’m not saying “you don’t deserve those rare bottles if you are new to whiskey”, because for the most part those rare bottles are freaking delicious and everyone deserves to try them. I’m saying that there are plenty of really good bottles sitting on the shelves and to appreciate Bourbon is to enjoy the variety and the history. While you are working on a bitchin’ angle for your BTAC dick swing pic I’ll be over here sipping a 10 year, 6 month OESV from Four Roses that I bought for $55 at retail.

TASTE THE RAINBOW

Start with a few basic and easy-to-find bottles, learn about the brands, where they come from, who makes them, and see if you enjoy the different profiles they offer. Go get a few bottles and pour a flight. Look up the differences in the mash bills (a Bourbon’s recipe) and see if you can identify those differences in the flavor profile.

Helpful Link: Kate’s post on great introductory Bourbons can be found here

SING SONG PLAY ALONG

I approached Bourbon in a similar way as I did when I was learning guitar. I would pick a song I like, then try to figure out how to play it on my own, listening to it over and over again. If that didn’t work (it rarely did), then I would look up tabs on the internet and use that as a guide.

Like the taste of a certain whiskey? Look up tasting notes online and read along with those as you nose and sip it, seeing if you can pick out any of the same flavors as the review. Not only will this allow you to target your palate a bit, you’ll also find which of the reviewers out there you agree with, and which ones you don’t.

Helfpul links: If you are tired of our site, Breaking Bourbon and Whiskey Wash do a great job with tasting notes

WHERE IS MY SUPER SUIT?

Ok, let’s talk about ice. If you ever hear “don’t ever put ice in your whiskey” or “drink it straight like a man”, tell that person to shut his or her damn mouth. As Fred Noe, Master Distiller of Jim Beam and son of Booker Noe, says drink it “any damn way you want.” You’ve got options here. Drink it straight, add a drop of water, chill it in the fridge or freezer (or with whiskey stones), or add ice. Whatever you like.

If you do decided to use ice, however, that’s where I get picky (no pun intended). Ice should chill your pour and slowly dilute it, keeping your whiskey in balance and not killing the subtle flavors by watering them down too much. To achieve this you simply need one thing: clear ice. Ice gets cloudy because it has impurities and air trapped inside it. This means it’s more likely to crack, producing more surface area, therefore melting faster and over diluting your drink. Plus clear ice just looks incredible and elegant.

A lot of people will feed you a bunch of bullshit on how to make clear ice, but there is only one true answer: directional freezing. Don’t double or triple boil, don’t buy distilled, just use directional freezing and you’ll be all good. I use an Igloo cooler and freeze water for about 24 hours, then take out the block and chop it up. If you don’t want to mess with that just buy an ice cube tray that employs the same science.

Helpful links: A video on block freezing. Ice Cube Trays you can buy (I haven’t tried these so do more research)

ONCE I HAD A LOVE AND IT WAS A GAS

Glassware is another area that is ripe for opinions. Every week or so a new “best whiskey glass” comes out, promising to turn your pour of Jim Beam White into unicorn jizz. I’ve bought a few of these such as the Neat glass and the Norlan glass, and while they are fine, I’ve never, ever, found anything I prefer over a Glencairn. The Glencairn is a classic, and there’s a reason. The weight of it is perfect, the shape is easy to hold, it allows for slightly heating the pour if you want, and the tulip shape both perfectly directs the aroma into your nose holes and provides the perfect stream shape of whiskey onto your tongue.

Now, if you want ice in your whiskey then your primary option is an old fashioned glass, and that’s fine too. In any other circumstance roll with a Glencairn and you won’t be sorry.

Helpful link: You can buy the best of the best Glencairn here

THAT’S ALL FOLKS

If you made it this far, I applaud you. I wrote this all in one sitting and once I started it just kept a comin’. Hope it was helpful, and again please feel free to ask questions, disagree with what I said, or offer more tips for new Bourbon lovers!