ALL TIE JUICE ON THE GREAT AMERICAN SPIRI1
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orn in the USA. The Turks have raki, the Kazakhs have fermented mare's milk, and America has its own native spirit. Bourbon first appeared in the 1780s in Kentucky, where old boys raised on rye whiskey in Pennsylvania found limestone-filtered water and corn in abundance. Turned out to be just the thing for a country with a sweet tooth. The law: Straight bourbon must be at least 51 percent com, distilled to less than 160 proof and aged in new, charred-oak barrels for at least two years. But most of it's aged for a minimum of four years, and most mash bills (recipes) call for about 70 percent corn, 10 percent malted barley (for the enzymes) and either rye or wheat as "flavor grains." Wheated bourbons are lighter and smoother: Maker's Mark, Did Fitzgerald, Van Winkle. High-rye bourbons are spicy and peppery: Wild Turkey, Old Forester, Old Grand-Dad. There's really nothing to do but try them all.
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Booker's ($50) is the biggest boy in town, just like Jim Beam's grandson Booker Noe, who created it. It comes straight from the carrel, uncut, unfiltered, six to eight years old and at 1 21 to 1 27 proof, depending on the barrel. Booker himself drank it "with as much ice as I can get in the glass."
Basil Hayden's ($37) is the prettiest bourbon around, we think. A light whiskey heavy on the rye, it's flowery, even peachy, with a sort of spearmint tingle. Bottled at eight years and 80 proof, it's an easy sipper. Some folks have called this the perfect breakfast bourbon. We're just saying.
Pappy Van Winkle's Family Reserve ($100) is bottled at 20 years old and 90.4 proof. No, it's not just a cute name but an actual distiller, Pappy, from the actual and revered Van Winkle family. This whiskey is cognac-like, with vanilla, fudge and roasted nut notes. It's a liquid adult Snickers bar.
The basic Evan Williams ($1 3)—five to seven years old, 86 proof, with a middle-ground mash bill (10 to 13 percent rye), a hint of spice, mint notes and a very dry finish —is a bargain made by Parker and Craig Beam for Heaven Hill. Their annual Evan Williams Single Barrel ($29) is an even bigger bargain.
'¦..in- I-'-' .'. ill U. I».' ii I. hi doesn't liavu tu be mudu in Bouibon County, Kentucky. It can be made anywhere in the U.S., but most is from Kentucky. Bourbon County today is home to exactly zero distilleries. (2) Yes, most bourbon is I younger than scotch, but it lives harder.
Due to seasonal temperature spikes and drops in Kentucky, trie whiskey interacts witli Hie wood of tfie barrel faster than it does in Scotland and thus ages more quickly. (3) Jack Daniel's is not bourbon. It's Tennessee whiskey, which means it's pretty much bourbon poured through a
I 'il--l in' i[ >!¦¦ ¦ il .-. lih li makes it even sweeter (4) Americas first cocktail? Very likely the old fashioned. Place one teaspoon of sugar in a tumbler. Saturate it with three dashes of Angostura bitters. Add one teaspoon of water, and muddle. Add several cubes and fill the glass
v. itli I - 'Mil «.im i ye, about two ounces or -MJ Rub llie glass's rim with a lemon twist and drop it in. This is the original. The acceptable update is to add one half slice of orange to the sugar, water and bitters before you muddle, and drop a maraschino cherry in at the end.
