Boozin’ Blog

With the Democratic National Convention finally winding down in Denver and the Republican National Convention poised to descend on the Twin Cities next week this can only mean one thing.

Drinking games are just around the corner!

Yup, the Presidential debates or oligarchs-slapping-each-other-on-live-TV, as I like to call it, always bring out the best in our livers.

I like keep it simple:
You’ll need your favorite spirits – I’m going with bourbon - and one shot glass for each player. You’ll also need some six-packs of Bud and Goose Island 312 Urban Wheat.

Every time McCain says “My friends” take a shot.
Every time Obama says hope or change take a shot.
Anytime McCain makes a reference to his wife chug a Bud.
Anytime Obama refers to Chicago or his roots chug a Goose Island.

That’s it; but I have no doubt that this will easily do the job.

Disclaimer – We here at the Boozin’ Blog encourage responsible drinking. Don’t be a dumbass.

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Jim Beam Gear at BoozinGear.com

A seventh distiller’s portrait has been added to the Jim Beam label.

Last Wednesday, Fred Noe, the latest of the Beam line to helm the distillery, saw his portrait added alongside those of his predecessors. Fred took over as distiller when long-time master distiller Booker Noe died in 2004.

Fred’s portrait will appear alongside the images of Founder Jacob Beam, David Beam, David M. Beam, Col. James B. Beam, T. Jeremiah Beam, and Booker Noe on Jim Beam, Jim Beam Black, Jim Beam Rye and Jim Beam Choice labels.

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Drinkslover’s comment left on a previous “What’s In a Name” entry led to an email exchange wherein I was told that “Over on this side of the pond, only Scotch is called whisky. US, Canadian and Irish are all strictly referred to as whiskey here, and anyone doing otherwise in a blog or any drinks literature would be shot down.”

Feeling more than a little threatened I thought that I’d better look into this a little closer.

First I took a closer look at the ATF guidelines which I used as my basis for making the distinction for names of US distilled alcohol. The word used there is whisky. In fact it is used 183 times in Part 5 of the Code of Federal Regulations – Labeling and Advertising of Distilled Spirits. But even the author of this riveting document became confused over these two words and used whiskey once.

Complicating the matter, the section of Part 5 that addresses Irish whiskey uses the word whisky. Obviously, the ATF has no respect for the tradition that has long recognized whisky and whiskey as Scottish and Irish respectively thus removing them as a relevant source for this discussion.

But where to turn? The Scottish maintain that the distinction is clear. What they make is whisky. What everyone else makes is whiskey. I suppose the argument eventually goes back to the unanswerable question: Who made it first? Which ever group that was should be able to call the stuff whatever they want.

That’s all interesting but it doesn’t get us any closer to answering the question – what the hell do we call it if it’s brewed in the US?

Even the distillers themselves can’t seem to agree on this although there does seem to be a clear favorite:
Maker’s Mark –> whisky
Knob Creek –> whiskey
Four Roses –> whiskey
Early Times –> whisky
Jack Daniels –> whiskey
Woodford Reserve –> whiskey

My completely unscientific survey finds that the majority of US distillers respect Scotland’s claim to whisky. And I will do so as well.

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In case you haven’t heard, the US Senate has declared September National Bourbon Heritage Month.

“How can I celebrate National Bourbon Heritage Month?” you say. Well, I’m glad you asked. Drink more bourbon would be my first suggestion. And sales figures indicate that many of you anticipated my advice. Bourbon sales are up, especially for the premium super- and ultra-premium labels.

Keep up the good work!

“But isn’t there somewhere that I can gather with other bourbon drinkers to celebrate this auspicious month?” you persist. Frankly, I’m getting a little irritated with your questions.

I was going to say that the 16th annual Kentucky Bourbon Festival will be held in Bardstown, KY September 11-16. There is a huge list of participating bourbons including Jim Beam, Woodford, Wild Turkey, Four Roses, Makers Mark, Bulleit, and many others.

Go. Drink.

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Welcome to part two of this very occasional series, What’s In a Name, wherein we are exploring the precise meanings of the words on our booze labels. Today we’re going to look at American whisky.

The governing body in the US for alcohol and spirits labeling is the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF). You can read for yourself what they have to say about whisky at atf.gov, something I would highly recommend if you’re suffering from insomnia.

Or I’ve distilled the information from their government-speak for you here.

There are five main whiskies identified by the ATF – bourbon, rye, wheat malt, rye malt, and corn. Each whisky must be made from at least 51% of its respective grain (corn in the case of bourbon) and the final product cannot exceed 160° proof. They must be stored in new, charred oak barrels, except for corn whisky which may be stored in used or new un-charred barrels and may not be treated with charred wood. The whiskies should be stored at 125° proof.

That’s pretty much it for whiskies. But there are some other words we need to look at, specifically “straight” and “blended.” For the most part these words mean exactly what they seem to mean. Straight means that the whisky fits the descriptions above with the added distinction that it has spent at least 2 years in those barrels.

It is with the word blended that this all starts to get interesting. The word might seem to imply that some trained whisky taster sat down and carefully blended different batches until she came up with the perfect flavor; and legally it can mean that. But it can also mean so much more. The word blended allows the whisky producers to blend into the whisky what the ATF calls “harmless coloring, flavoring, or blending materials.” These can include oleoresins, commercially prepared infusions, wine, sugar, fruit concentrates, and FD&C Green #3.

So how can you be sure that you’re getting the real thing and not a wine infused oleoresin blend? Stay away from the word blend. Straight, when used alone, means that the whisky is pure but when blend is added, as in “a blend of straight whiskies” those harmless materials are allowed. The only American-made whisky that is excepted from these hair-splitting distinctions is bourbon. If bourbon is on the label you can be sure that no blending has gone on.

I think I’ll have a bourbon … and make it a double.

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The Mojito may be the chic minty cocktail of the moment but at least one day a year it has to step aside for that beautiful southern belle, the Mint Julep. That day, the day of Kentucky Derby, is just around the corner; May 5, to be exact. The pairing of this sporting event and cocktail is perhaps the closest relationship in the wide world of sports and booze. Baseball has beer; cricket has tea (which MUST to be cut with generous amounts of whiskey otherwise how can anyone sit through it?); and curling has, well, I don’t know what though I’m sure it has something. But all of these sports can exist without their particular drink and vice-versa.

The Kentucky Derby and the Mint Julep are a holy pair and cannot exist separately. The idea of a Derby held without copiously amounts of Julep is inconceivable and, honestly, who even thinks about Mint Juleps the other 364 days of the year?

So, if you’re not going to make it to the Derby itself this year, you must at least have a few Juleps. In fact, invite a bunch of friends, don you most outlandish hats, gather around the TV, and pass around a few of these:

Ingredients:

• 4-6 mint leaves
• 2 sugar cubes
• 4 oz bourbon
• mint sprig for garnish

Preparation:
Add the first three ingredients to your cocktail shaker. Crush, or muddle, the mint leaves and sugar against the bottom of the shaker. Do this until the sugar is dissolve and the mint aroma is evident.

Add a few ice cubes to the shaker then shake well. Strain into a julep cup with ice or, if you don’t happen to have one lying around a Collins glass will do.

Garnish with the mint sprig.

That’s it. After you’ve knocked back two or three of these you can probably leave out the mint sprig. But don’t let us hear that you’ve been using anything besides proper bourbon. No Scotch or Irish whiskey will do for this distinctly Southern drink. Here at Boozin’ Gear we prefer Maker’s Mark or Jim Beam but any bourbon will do.

Cheers!

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