Liquor!

[wilheldp_PE]

I thought a thread like this existed, but I can't find it (and search is annoying when you can only do one every 45 seconds).  This is similar to @P-E's Beer Club thread, and to keep mine and @thejulie_PE's conversation about whiskey out of the Job Rants thread.  Just a place to talk about whiskey and other hard liquor.

To kick things off, here is a picture of my Bourbon Wall and Collection.  The wall has barrel heads from 4 different bourbon distilleries (Woodford Reserve, Buffalo Trace, Bartons 1792, and Old Pogue).  The barrel to the bottom right of the wall is the barrel that I got the Bartons head from, and it acts as my dry bar for my bourbon collection.  Also, the outline of Kentucky is made out of bourbon barrel staves.

 

[ptatohed]

I buy the $10 Caliber 1.75 liter bottle of vodka at Walmart, fill my cup with ~20% vodka and ~80% alcohol-taste-disguising juice, drink, repeat 2-3 times.  I get the room spinning for under $1.  

 

[Supe]

Scotch guy here.  Always have at least two (partial) bottles in the house at any given time.  I'll commit murder for 25 year Macallan, but since I'm a poor person, typically settle for nicer 15's or cheaper 18's of various makes.  My current backup bottle is Balvenie Caribbean Cask 14 year since I was trying something different.

 

[Supe]

On the gin side of the house, you should buy Hendrick's and only Hendrick's.  Everything else is moose piss.

 

[Ramnares P.E.]

Yeah my salary isn't nearly enough to pay almost $1500 for a 25-year Macallan...

 

[Supe]

Sadly, that makes two of us.

I have been waiting for some more international flights so I can try out the Johnny Walker Traveler Series, which you can only get in duty free shops.

 

[Ramnares P.E.]

I've tried quite a few of the JWs - black, green, red, and blue.  Not a fan of the green and red.  The black is ok.  Blue is pretty good but the price is not...

 

[Supe]

I keep a bottle of black for guests I don't really like.  Blue Label is the only one I've had so far worth drinking.  

Oban isn't bad for a 14 year.  I bought a bottle for my father, and my sister's asshole friends ended up drinking the entire thing.  I plan on making her pay me back for that.

 

[tj_PE]

I'm not super knowledgeable, and have only in the past couple years started exploring nicer whiskies (is that how you spell the plural version??) 

There's a place at the market called radiator whiskey and I love it there. they have a masterson's rye (that they do something additional to? idk) that makes THE best old fashioned. best. 

I fell in love with a portland distillery that has a great selection of whiskeys for affordable prices (especially since there's not 15 sales taxes on it like every bottle in washington) so I tend to stock up when I happen to be down there. 

I have jim beam for anyone who wants it with coke, tito's vodka for vodka people, and some stupid cinnamon tequila thing that someone left at my place. and bombay for my mom. 

 

[YMZ PE]

cinnamon tequila

Eww!! Why???????

 

[tj_PE]

Loll right? My 21st birthday turned me from a tequila girl to an anythingbut tequila girl. I don't know who would even want to come up with that. Gross.

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk

 

[thekzieg]

We just hopped down to Louisville for the weekend (since we're only a couple hours away while in Bloomington) and did the tour at the Stitzel-Weller Distillery (where they make Bulleit and I.W. Harper, and where they used to make Pappy, Weller, and Old Fitzgerald). I'm not much of a bourbon/whiskey drinker, but some of the stuff they have in KY is damn good. We brought back a couple bottles, including the Bulleit Kentucky-only bourbon. Should keep mr. kzieg stocked for a little while!

 

[wilheldp_PE]

Louisville is starting to get some distilleries, but the really good ones are in Bardstown and near Frankfort.  The best "Bang for your Buck" bourbon trip is to Bardstown.  There are 4 distilleries within 15 minutes of each other (Heaven Hill, Jim Beam, Willet, and Bartons).  There are more distilleries in the Frankfort, Lawrenceburg, Lexington area, but they are all 15+ minutes apart, so you can't hit as many in a day.

 

[Dexman PE PMP]

Distilleries are starting to popup around Colorado too. One my wife and I really liked was Spirit Hound but they lost all of their whiskey during the floods a few years ago and were in the process of aging a new batch. Should be available now. Their gin was very flavorful because they would use local juniper berries and some other spices for a different kick. 

In my home town of Buena Vista, they have recently opened a distillery called Deer Hammer which is also really good. The bartender was a bit of an assholish snob, but after some brief discussions discovered he was from Vail (local home of the uppity douchebags). Their gin was really good though (bottle is still unopened.

Wife tends to like gin. Her current go-to is The Botanist which is hands-down the smoothest gin I've ever had.

Used to have a bottle of Stranahans and a 15yr French Oak Reserve Glenlivet, but they found new homes with the neighbors when we moved to NZ. We weren't sure what the rules were on opened liquor bottles so we didn't chance it. I really liked the Glenlivet. Would keep both at at 40 degrees in the wine fridge, mix in a few drops of ice water, and sip away.

 

[tj_PE]

most of my selection is from Eastside Distilling in portland, but I have a couple from Cadee Distillery on Whidbey Island (north of seattle)

 

[tj_PE]

Also, I should note - the distiller guy at cadee said "oh you're a structural engineer you can afford to buy both of the big bottles"  :tv:

 

[wilheldp_PE]

You have to be careful with new distilleries making brown liquors (i.e., aged liquors).  Bourbon requires a minimum of 3 years of aging to be called bourbon, but most decent ones are aged at least 8.  If you have a new, craft distillery opening up and immediately selling bourbon, they aren't selling what they are making.  Bulleit, Angel's Envy, Jeptha Creed, Town Branch, and I'm sure there are others in Kentucky are all selling re-packaged bourbons from other distilleries.  Sometimes, they have a say in what grain bill and age they are bottling, but it isn't their recipe.  Even some established brands farm out some liquors (such as Sazerac Rye being made by MGP...the distillery has been around since 1850, but they no longer distill their own spirits). In fact, MGP (Midwest Grain Products) is unique in that they are a huge distillery making lots of high quality liquor, but they don't label anything they make as their own.  They are purely a contract distillery.

 

[Dexman PE PMP]

^^^ Yeah, the first time I visited Spirit Hound they were only selling "unaged" whiskey (i.e. moonshine) while they waited the 3-5 years to age.  The new distillery in my hometown was selling aged whiskey from day one, but from what the bartender was telling us, they had been distilling for about 10 years before opening a storefront (I didn't believe him).

 

[P-E]

I've tried quite a few of the JWs - black, green, red, and blue.  Not a fan of the green and red.  The black is ok.  Blue is pretty good but the price is not...

I've tried black. 

 

[Supe]

I've tried black. 

Did you go back?