An every day favorite: Wild Turkey 101 proof bourbon

Want to make a friend who doesn’t drink bourbon wonder what you’re up to? Walk up to the bar with him and after he places his order, order a Wild Turkey. For good or ill, Wild Turkey has a reputation. A reputation as the drink of choice for those who care more about getting fucked up than for good taste. 

Maybe it harkens back to being the drink of choice for Hunter S. Thompson (kids, ask your parents). Maybe it's the numerous appearances in the hands of tough guys on tv and in the movies going back 40 years or more. Or maybe it’s just that as many other bourbon brands were dropping their proof to 86 or 80, Wild Turkey sat firm at 101. It’s a reputation that those who sell Wild Turkey have been happy to exploit with advertising campaigns such as the infamous “Give ‘em the Bird” campaign from a few years ago.

But all that said, there’s a little secret hiding behind that reputation. And that's that it’s largely undeserved. Wild Turkey might be the softest, most complex bourbon you can find in it’s proof and price range. It’s sweet, spicy and well aged. It’s a damn good bourbon. And as it was one of the first that I purchased as I started my bourbon journey, it’s partially responsible for turning me on to bourbon in the first place.

Wild Turkey 101 proof Bourbon

Purchase Info: $21.99 for a 750mL at Ace Spirits, Hopkins, MN

Details: 50.5% ABV

Nose: Citrus oils, bubble gum, brown sugar, allspice.

Mouth: Velvety mouthfeel. Sweet. Caramel, ginger, citrus and a nice bit of oak.

Finish: Long and warm. Sweet ginger and a lively tingle dance across the tongue after you swallow.

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Thoughts: You’d be hard pressed to find a more complex bourbon for under $25 than the 101 proof version of Wild Turkey. It’s sweet, spicy and full flavored with a nice nose and a lovely finish. It’s proof and price make it versatile enough to hold it’s own in a cocktail or while cooking and tasty enough that you can enjoy it neat as well. This is one of my every day favorites and I try to always have one on the shelf.

Tiffiny: a Jim Beam poodle

My family has a log cabin in the Northwoods of Wisconsin. It was built by my grandfather, his brother and father. It’s not a big place or a fancy place, but it is a comfortable place. And aside from necessary maintenance, it’s the perfect place to unplug and relax. 

You almost have to. Unplug that is. There is electricity, but no phone, no tv, very little cell reception and no running water. This last one is a bit inconvenient and is one of the reasons that I tend to bring my camper to stay in. (The other being the previously mentioned lack of size.) One of the side effects of the lack of running water is that I find an excuse at least once a day to make a trip into the nearest town.

It’s not that hard to find an excuse. I like going into town. It’s a area who’s major industry is tourism. Lots of folks out fishing means that there are also lots of people who don’t like to fish who need something to do. Main Street is usually a busy place. There are shops that sell everything from kitsch to charming, a candy store that makes it’s own chocolate and taffy, a winery and, of course, numerous bars.

The town also has plenty of liquor stores. You could probably find a Fleischmann’s Rye if you wanted. You probably shouldn’t want to though. I’ve visited most of them looking for dusties, but these places tend to discount unsold merchandise to get it out the door. 

That doesn’t mean a dusty hunter there is out of luck though. I’ve had a lot of luck at small town antique stores. And a tourist spot like this has a ton of antique stores. On one trip last summer I found an adorable little poodle decanter, which was unopened and full of 8 year old Jim Beam from the early 70s. Tiffiny, the poodle, was the mascot of the National Association of Jim Beam Bottle & Specialties Clubs. And since Jim Beam made decanters to celebrate almost everything (seriously, I once saw one for a chili cook-off) it’s only natural that they made one for one of the clubs that celebrated that fact.

The upside is yummy old Jim Beam. The downside is that there is a possibility that, in the 40 years it sat in that glazed decanter, the alcohol leached lead out of the glaze and into the liquid*. I’ve read conflicting reports online, but to this point I haven’t had it tested. 

I did take the risk to have a small amount of it tasted. By me.

Bourbon from Jim Beam Tiffiny Poodle Decanter

Purchase Info: Antique store, Hayward, WI

Details: Aged “100 months.” 86 proof.

Nose: Brown Sugar and maple. Cherries. Leather. Dark chocolate. Faint floral notes.

Mouth: Nice and Thick. Leather and chocolate covered cherries. There is a nice tingle on the sides of your tongue. Lots of floral notes and baking spices, plus the classic bourbon notes of caramel and vanilla.

Finish: Nice. A tingle all the way down. Classic bourbon notes of caramel and vanilla. A Hint of baking spices.

Thoughts: (unlike the normal measured thoughts, these are just transcribed from a stream of conscious set of notes I made while tasting it) “Wow! I just want to keep smelling this. The nose is almost alive in it’s complexity. It keeps evolving and changing. The mouth and finish have such a nice tingle. It’s crazy that the proof is so low. It’s relationship to today’s Jim Beam is apparent, but this is so much richer. This is a bourbon you smell for a half hour before tasting it, and then realize 20 minutes later that you’re still smelling way more than tasting. It isn’t that the taste is bad, far from it. It’s that the nose is so pleasurable. I wish I could drink like this more often.”

So yeah, I liked it…but on the whole, I’m not sure I’m willing to sit down and have a glass of this without further testing. Even though it’s really good, I’m not sure that risking my health is worth it.**

*http://www.straightbourbon.com/forums/showthread.php?16193-Leaching-of-Lead-into-Whiskey-from-Ceramic-Decanter-Glazing

**For more information on lead poisoning visit: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002473.htm

Bourbontucky on DirecTV

Do you have DirecTV? Can you get it? Do you have a friend who has it who would be willing to let you camp out on their couch for an hour and a half? You might want to look into it.

DirecTV recently produced a bourbon documentary and is currently showing it on the Audience channel (channel 239). I watched it this past weekend and it is well worth watching. 

The show is roughly divided into three parts.

Part one is all about the bourbon. The history, the distilleries. There are interviews with about every distiller you’d want to hear. It has Jimmy Russell, Fred Noe, Jim Rutledge, Harlen Wheatly, and Chris Morris. They talk to corn farmers, coopers and still makers. You see beautiful video of bourbon in glasses, production floors, aging warehouses, and corn falling through a grate. You learn about the yeast, the fermentation, the stills, bottling and some history. In depth looks at Woodford Reserve, Buffalo Trace, Four Roses and Makers Mark are interspersed with stories from Jimmy Russell, Fred Noe and Jim Rutledge. We learn why Four Roses will not put out a flavored bourbon and how Jimmy Russell used to keep an eye on Fred Noe while on the road. The highlight of this section was footage of the Heaven Hill fire. This is something you hear about every time you go to Kentucky, but which I’ve never seen footage of. Video of rivers of fire running downhill into buildings. Stories of cooperation and genuine love. Horrific and beautiful at the same time.

Part two is about other people in Kentucky who are making money off of bourbon. A Louisville bar owner tells you about Beam decanters. Specifically mentioning one that I happen to have. A chef in Louisville talks about how he collaborated with Jefferson’s to make a bourbon. Bourbon Barrel foods is mentioned. Wes Henderson from Angel’s Envy talks about finishing and blending. DISCUS and Bourbon Women help to transition to part three.

Part three is all about bars and retailers across the country. This is the part you can fast forward through. Every interview was about as follows: "We couldn’t give this stuff away ten years ago, now we charge way too much for you to try it. We like bourbon. Yay bourbon." It comes from retailers in DC, bars in LA and hipsters in Brooklyn. 

Part four is about the consumers…oh wait. Nope. This is the documentary's major failing. While everyone interviewed was a fan of bourbon, none were people who weren’t also advertising their business where they make money off of bourbon. It would have been nice to hear from fans of the product who have nothing invested but love. 

Overall, if you can, I’d recommend pouring a good bourbon and figuring out a way to watch this one. It looks like it is currently showing on DirecTV On-Demand or on Audience (Channel 239) on February 9.

Like the fire of 1,000 suns, it's a very hot Stagg Jr. Mmmmm...tasty, tasty suns.

I walked into the liquor store to get a bottle of wine for the pizza sauce I was making that night. 

“Hi Eric.” I heard from behind the counter. I looked over startled. I didn’t ever talk to anyone here, how did they know my name? 

When I looked over, I noticed that it was the former manager of one of the liquor stores I used to frequent all the time, but that I hadn’t been to since their bourbon selection sort of fell off. 

“Oh, hi!” I barely got out before heading down to the wine section. I knew I needed to get that before I got distracted by bourbon. This guy had a tendency to do that to me.

After getting up to the counter, we made small talk for a bit before he let me know “I have a bottle of Stagg Jr. in the office. It’s not going to hit the shelf, if you’re interested.” 

…blink…

Well, this was unexpected. Did I want it? Good question. I was having some well documented personal difficulties with Sazerac’s labeling. But this wasn’t an offending product. And I’d heard good things.

“How much?” I asked expecting a fairly outrageous price.

“About $48”

“Yes.” I answered, barely letting him finish.

This, kids, is why it pays to build relationships that span the course of several years with your local liquor store. 

And so a trip for a $9 bottle of wine turned into a $63 stop after taxes. Honestly, I don’t even know why my wife lets me go to stores by myself anymore. I do have a history of randomly walking out having spent 700-1000% of what my plan was. In any case, I plan to start frequenting this store a little more.

Stagg Jr.

Purchase info: $47.99 for a 750 mL at Marketplace Liquors, Savage, MN

Details: 64.35% ABV

Nose: Lots of ethanol on this. Floral, red berries, mint, bubblegum, sourdough and a faint odor of old barn.

Mouth: Very hot and sweet. Caramel, mint, leather, tobacco, cayenne pepper. 

Finish: Warm, long and drying. Leather and black pepper. 

Thoughts: This is way too hot for me to enjoy neat. I don’t like my bourbon to cause pain. Let’s add some water to bring this down to about 100° proof.

Nose: Really tames the ethanol. Brown sugar is abundant, caramel and vanilla too. Floral notes are still there along with the bubble gum. There is now a bready note as well.

Mouth: The fire has been muted, though not extinguished. There is a nice tingle now. It’s still sweet with caramel but the lack of fire allows a fruity note to appear. Mint and cayenne are still there. Tobacco and leather have been replaced by a nice oak flavor.

Finish: nice and warm with lingering oak.

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Thoughts: Wow. Now that I can taste something other than fire, I really like this. It’s sweet and fruity but nicely balanced with spice and oak. If you can find it for less than 1.5 times the price of regular Buffalo Trace, pounce on it. It’s worth the slight premium to gain the ability to dilute it to your preferred strength.

A Case for Flavored Whiskey

In the whiskey community, flavored whiskey has a bad reputation. And if you are only looking at it through the lens of a bourbon purist, you may feel it’s deserved. More than once I’ve heard someone say something along the lines of: “there’s a whiskey shortage and they go use some of that precious liquid for [insert name of your most hated brand here, Fireball, PieHole, Jim Beam Maple, etc].” 

I believe this is a misplaced view. In fact, I have a theory that in today’s whiskey environment, the existence of flavored whiskey might even make the bourbon you drink neat taste better. Let me propose a simplistic thought experiment (since admittedly blending is much more complex than this).

To keep it simple, let’s say you fill 100 barrels. Due to the nature of barrels and aging, each of those barrels taste a little different. Some are amazing, a couple are downright funky. Once upon a time you may only have had a couple of brands. You took the barrels that hit a certain flavor profile and blended them to make that brand. The rest might go into a different brand or be sold off to another producer. Today though everyone (both producer and consumer) wants a premium single barrel or small batch bourbon. And while it is possible that about 25-30 years ago everyone got really good at making bourbon at the same time, it’s more likely that they started pulling out the really good barrels that they’d previously been putting into the regular releases.

So back to that thought experiment. You’ve got 100 barrels of fully matured bourbon. You have three products that you put out. You have a single barrel premium expression at a high proof, a “small batch” expression at a lower proof and an entry level expression that’s right at 80 proof to make it as affordable as possible. So let’s look at how you might select barrels for each of these three expressions. 

First the single barrel. This is going to get the tastiest barrels. They have to each be able to stand on their own. So if you have amazing barrels, they should probably go here. And out of 100 barrels you’ll get what? Maybe 10 that are that amazing? (Yes, I pulled that number out of my ass and yes, I think that 10% is extremely generous.) 

Next is your “small batch” expression. You plan to use a smallish number of barrels to create this rather just dumping everything together. So let’s say you are holding back 25 barrels to make this. These are barrels of varying quality. Each adding just what you need to make it taste just right. Some will be light and fruity, some spicy and rich, maybe even a couple that are basically wood extract. Blending is hard. Even in the small scale experiments I do here at home, using only amazing whiskey, some come out damn near undrinkable. So you are going to have to chose just the right ones. 

Finally, the entry level expression. This is whatever is left, right? I really hope not, you took out all the really good ones. Plus, you’re still trying to hit a flavor profile. If you just dumped everything else in there, the funky ones mentioned above are now a higher percentage of what’s left than they were of the original. For simplicity’s sake let’s go with 10% funky barrels to match our 10% honey barrels. 10 funky barrels in the 65 remaining barrels is about 15% funk instead of 10%. 

So if you can’t blend funk away as easily, what can you do? Sell them to another producer, of course. But who’d buy them? What if, maybe, there is an in-house market for that. Maybe you dump a bunch of flavor in there, cover up the funk, call it Cinnamon Whiskey and sell it to frat boys.

And so even though neither you nor I drink it, that’s why I like flavored whiskey. But, you are going to say “that’s just a simplistic thought experiment.” Yep, in real life you also make apple pie, honey, maple and black cherry whiskey too.

UPDATE: I mistakenly forgot to mention that Josh Wright of SipologyBlog was kind enough to read this one over before I published it to make sure I didn't say anything too stupid. Any mistakes are mine. Josh, you have my deepest thanks!

W.L. Weller 12 year old

Looking for a good, easy-to-find bourbon that won’t cost you an arm and a leg? 

Oh, you are? Shit. Well this isn’t it. 

Once upon a time you could get a bottle of W.L. Weller 12 year old bourbon easily and for a decent price. Not in Minnesota, I’ve never seen it here. But in areas where it was distributed, it was just…there. Sitting on the shelf. Historically, running somewhere between $20 and $30. 

Anecdotally it seems this is no longer the case. Weller 12 has fallen victim to the frenzy over it’s higher-priced corporate cousin and is out of stock basically everywhere I look online. Looking on wine-searcher.com (which lists historical price averages going back to 2007), I see they are claiming the current average price to be $59. In fact, five of the seven listings they show are $89 or over.

I have some advice. Don’t pay this much for this bourbon. Settle down, take a breath and realize that while this is decent, it isn’t earth-shatteringly so. If you want a wheated bourbon, get a different Weller, a Larceny or even a Maker’s Mark. If you want a 12 year old bourbon go with Elijah Craig. If you are only looking at this because it is supposed to be like (that other bourbon that will not be named)?

Well, there’s no hope for you. You, I give permission to go pay $90+ because you’re going to do it anyway. Just remember if this is the only reason you want Weller 12, your reasoning is flawed. This is not that. It’s failed at that already. Didn’t make the cut. Tasted different enough to not be chosen.

So now that the rant is over, is the bourbon any good?

W.L. Weller 12 Year Old bourbon

Purchase info: $29.99 for a 750 mL at Dorignac’s Food Center, Metairie, LA

Details: 45% ABV, Aged 12 years

Nose: Cherry preserves, oak, clove, ginger, cotton candy

Mouth: Hot. Bubble gum, clove, black pepper, mint

Finish: Nice and warm with a decent length. Nutty, mint oak, baking spices.

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Thoughts: This is a decent bourbon. I don’t prefer wheated bourbons so I normally choose something else when this is on my shelf. But if you are a fan of wheaters and run across it and the price is somewhere in the ballpark of MSRP, it’s a good one to pick up. I normally do. And provided the price is right I’ll probably continue to do so.

Highwood Ninety 20 Year Old

Due north of Glacier National Park (and basically due south of Calgary) sits High River, Alberta. Wikipedia tells me that it’s a town of about 13,000 people. So roughly six times the size of the town I grew up in. In the whisky world it’s best known for being the home of Highwood Distillers. Who, outside of Canada is best know for losing some of their bottled whisky when the Highwood River (and other area rivers) flooded and the town was evacuated. 

Before tonight I only dimly remembered all of that. What I did remember was that my friend Rick thought enough of this whisky to send it to me as an alternative to the Canadian Club Rye in that massive whisky box he sent me. 

My research tells me this is 100% corn and the bottle tells me that it is aged for 20 years.

Highwood Ninety 20 year old

Purchase Info: Another gift from a friend. (Available at LCBO for $50 Canadian for 750 mL) 

Details: 45% ABV. 20 years old.

Nose: Thick, rich butterscotch. Corn silage, dried orange peal, maple

Mouth: Werther’s Original candy, cloves, orange and a nice peppery tingle.

Finish: Long and warm with lingering sweetness and cloves.

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Thoughts: This is a very sweet whisky. But it has a really nice tingle to go along with it. And it’s a tingle, not a burn. This feels sophisticated. It knows what it is and doesn’t need to punch you in the mouth. It’s just darn good.

Angel's Envy Head-to-Head-to-Head review

I used to have this impression of Angel’s Envy that it was a non-bourbon drinker’s bourbon. I’m not sure where that came from. Maybe it was the exquisitely designed bottle with angel wings on the back and on the bottom of the cork. Maybe it was the angel-winged ladies I saw working in an Angel’s Envy popup bar at BourbonFest. Maybe it was that the first time I had it, it was so light and sweet that it didn’t really taste like bourbon.

Of course, I’d tried it after a full plate of barbecue so…yeah.

In the intervening time since my first taste of the product, I’ve come to respect the company more than my first impressions would have hinted at. The Hendersons are active on forums and blogs and seem like stand-up guys. Never claiming to have made the whiskey just letting you know that they finished it in other barrels and blended it. On top of that I’ve had a few more glasses of the whisky and ended up with a different impression than that first one with the burned out palate.

Now you might ask why I would go back to try again when I was a bit turned off by it to begin with. I’d like to say that it was due to fairness and such. But to be honest, in an indirect way it was that oh-so-pretty bottle that brought it back into my life. My mother-in-law likes to buy me bourbon. But she doesn’t know anything about bourbon so she grabs the prettiest bottle she can find. Twice that has been Angel’s Envy. The first bottle she gave us wasn’t to my tastes. My wife liked it well enough that when I saw that a store just across the Wisconsin border from us had a private selection, I picked it up for her.

I liked that one. A lot. So when mom-in-law got us another bottle this year, I was kind of excited. Then I tasted it…suddenly less excited. I couldn’t understand what was going on. I looked and it turns out to be the exact same batch as the first one she got us. That got me to thinking. I needed to find another batch and see what’s up here. And that brings us to today. 

Angel’s Envy Head-to-Head-to-Head Review

These are listed in the order I was exposed to them.

Batch 7N

Purchase Info: A gift from my mother-in-law.

Details: 43.3% ABV. Batch 7N, bottle 2331. Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Finished in Port Wine Barrels. 

Nose: Banana Bread, oak, caramel, faint nutmeg.

Mouth: Sweet. Oak, mint, cinnamon, green pea pods.

Finish: Gentle. Lingering bitterness, mint and more pea pods.

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Thoughts: Not a ton of flavor, delicate. I’m not a huge fan of this one. The pea pod thing just isn’t for me. If this were my only exposure to the brand my main thought would be vegetal and not good.

Batch C1

Purchase Info: $41.99 for a 750 mL from Chicone’s Liquor Mart, Hudson, WI

Details: 43.3% ABV. Batch C1 (Chicone’s Private Selection). Bottle 86. Blend Percentages 20% A, 50% B, 30% C. Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Finished in Port Wine Barrels. 

Nose: Sweet apple, anise, cinnamon, oak

Mouth: Mint, cinnamon, baked apple, nutmeg.

Finish: Warm. Long. Lingering baking spices and bitterness.

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Thoughts: This is nice. It’s fruity warm and spicy. I’d buy a second bottle if I went back and they still had one.

Batch 8S

Purchase Info: $44.99 for a 750 mL at Viking Liquor Barrel, Prior Lake, MN

Details: 43.3% ABV. Batch 8S, bottle 1071. Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Finished in Port Wine Barrels. 

Nose: Floral, caramel, red berries, clove, spearmint leaves.

Mouth: Nice tingle, peppery. Cloves, cayenne, whole grain bread, mint and a touch of caramel.

Finish: Mint, black pepper, cloves and more floral notes which transition to a lingering bitterness.

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Thoughts: Nice full flavor. Good balance between spice and mint with neither being dominant. Just a hint of sweetness. This is a good batch. I like it.

Comparison Thoughts: The store pick (C1) is my favorite of the bunch with Batch 8S coming in a close second. C1 has a fuller mouth feel and a baking spice focus. 8S continues on the spice train but has a bit more mint. 7N is kind of a train wreck. It tastes vegetal. Not a flavor I care for. 

Batch variation aside, I think I like Angel’s Envy more than other wine-finished whiskies. The port influence is subtler and better integrated into the bourbon than the others I’ve had.