{"id":2808,"date":"2020-08-28T12:00:26","date_gmt":"2020-08-28T16:00:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/?p=2808"},"modified":"2022-02-22T10:15:20","modified_gmt":"2022-02-22T15:15:20","slug":"the-whiskey-ledger-with-bourbon-apprentice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/?p=2808","title":{"rendered":"The Whiskey Ledger with Bourbon Apprentice"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"2808\" class=\"elementor elementor-2808\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-4c65fd0 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"4c65fd0\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-b976cf0\" data-id=\"b976cf0\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-e40e5de elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"e40e5de\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Entry #005 <br>I'm No Expert,but... <\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-8c7b6f2 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"8c7b6f2\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-950b8dc\" data-id=\"950b8dc\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-773c8f0 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"773c8f0\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>\u201cDad, what are you doing?\u00a0 Why do you do that?\u201d\u00a0 This is a pretty regular question from my 11-year-old daughter as I\u2019m nosing my bourbon one nostril at a time.\u00a0 \u201cBecause he\u2019s a ______,\u201d answers my wife before I can respond (you can insert, \u201cnerd,\u201d \u201cidiot,\u201d \u201ctool\u201d or other descriptive noun of your choosing).\u00a0 No matter how much grief I get, there will be no quit in my game.\u00a0 I love sniffing whiskey; I love tasting whiskey.\u00a0 I find it so challenging to pick out different scents, flavors, and feelings within a spirit and the only way to improve performance is with additional reps (responsibly, of course!).\u00a0 It\u2019s like going to the gym or playing a sport \u2013 practice, practice, practice!\u00a0 It may not make you perfect, but you\u2019ll make progress.<\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><p>When I first started drinking bourbon, it was pretty simple\u2026I either liked it or I didn\u2019t.\u00a0 But once I started exercising my palate and trying a bunch of different pours, I realized just how distinct they are from one another.\u00a0 It\u2019s incredible!\u00a0 I\u2019ll also admit that I thought tasting notes were completely absurd at first until I started picking out some of the most bizarre characteristics on my own.\u00a0 Now to be clear, I still think it\u2019s a bit crazy when someone pulls out a note from a whiskey and I\u2019m fairly certain it\u2019s something they\u2019ve never even tasted before, but every palate is different so I guess I\u2019ll just take their word for it.<\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><p>I\u2019ve mentioned <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Bourbon-Curious-Simple-Tasting-Drinker\/dp\/0760347409\"><b><i>Bourbon Curious<\/i><\/b><\/a> by Fred Minnick before and that\u2019s because the book truly influenced the way I taste whiskey.\u00a0 His book contains an exercise that forces you to think of scents and flavors in a way that you associate them with memories from experiences through your life.\u00a0 Now when I taste a whiskey, I can transport myself back to the 80\u2019s when I was at my grandparents\u2019 house eating Brach\u2019s flavored caramels with my Papa.\u00a0 I may not be tasting that exact flavor, but the liquid in the glass is reminding me of that flavor profile and therein lies a great tasting note.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><p>Going back to these memories can make drinking the whiskey so much more of an impactful experience as well.\u00a0 Some of my favorite notes I\u2019ve ever picked out of a glass meant more to me as a memory than it did as an actual tasting sensation.\u00a0 Here are a couple of examples:<\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><ul><li>Basil Hayden\u2019s Dark Rye and Bardstown Bourbon Company\u2019s The Prisoner are both whiskeys that I don\u2019t actually enjoy, but a note that I picked up is one of my fondest life memories.\u00a0 In both of these products, I tasted a raw, doughy fresh pasta noodle flavor that reminded me of my Nana making homemade noodles for her chicken soup.\u00a0 She\u2019d hang all of the noodles draped over her kitchen chairs to dry and I\u2019d probably eat a quarter of them before they ever ended up in the pot.<\/li><li>Woodford Reserve Double Oaked and Old Forester 1910 are pretty similar dessert-y pours and after I get past the sweet chocolate and smoke, I pick up old school candy cigarettes, the chalky and sugary sticks from way back in the day (my kids thought they tasted like bananas, so we called them \u201cbanana candy\u201d when they were small to avoid the whole smoking aspect).\u00a0 Maybe I\u2019m crazy, but they are still one of my favorite candies.<\/li><li>Back to Bardstown, the Discovery Series #1 had a minty wax lips note that will bring you right back to Halloween as a kid.\u00a0\u00a0<\/li><\/ul><p>\u00a0<\/p><p>I\u2019m not an expert and my palate is far from refined, but it sure is fun to put tasting notes on paper and pick apart a whiskey.\u00a0 When I do a review and jot down my thoughts, I almost always use a Glencairn glass.\u00a0 In my opinion, the \u201cglen\u201d concentrates the smell to the top of the glass without overwhelming you with alcohol vapors and it allows for the nose to interact with the palate when you sip.\u00a0 Before I share some of my reviews, here are a few tasting tips to consider that I\u2019ve picked up along the way from books, formal tastings and bottle shares with friends.<\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><ul><li>If I review a whiskey, it\u2019s usually my second pour of the night.\u00a0 I typically stretch out the palate with a lower proof (90\u2019s) product before getting into the targeted item.<\/li><li>If it\u2019s a higher proof whiskey that I\u2019m reviewing, I\u2019ll let it sit in the glen for 5-10 minutes before beginning to let some alcohol burn off.<\/li><li>Allow a bit more air to get into the whiskey by swirling it around in the glen from time to time through the tasting.<\/li><li>I\u2019ve been told that leaving your mouth cracked open when you nose the glass will help your sense of smell from being completely overpowered as the air passes through your olfactory.<\/li><li>I nose the glass from side to side letting each nostril process the smells on its own.\u00a0\u00a0<\/li><li>Allow the whiskey to roll around over your tongue, stick to the sides of your palate and develop of full mouth experience as you sip.<\/li><li>Don\u2019t judge from the first sip, especially if it\u2019s a high proof pour.\u00a0 Get back in there for another to double check.\u00a0\u00a0<\/li><li>Consider tasting your whiskey blind!\u00a0 Have someone else pour you an unknown bourbon so you aren\u2019t influenced by what you think you know about it.<\/li><li>Last tip from my buddy <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/uptown_drams\/\">@Uptown_Drams<\/a> \u2013 Consider printing out a Bourbon Tasting Sheet to help call to mind flavors and other notes as you taste. (Google it and find one you like!)<\/li><\/ul><p>\u00a0<\/p><p>If you follow me on Instagram, you know that I put out a whiskey review each Sunday with the hashtag #SundayFundayReview.\u00a0 I hope you enjoy a few of my favorites and follow along on my page.<\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-376bb90 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"376bb90\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"828\" height=\"825\" src=\"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Peerless.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-2811\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Peerless.jpg 828w, https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Peerless-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Peerless-768x765.jpg 768w, https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Peerless-75x75.jpg 75w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 828px) 100vw, 828px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5ee14ac elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"5ee14ac\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><b>Peerless Single Barrel Bourbon, Durham County Store Pick<\/b><\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><p><b>Nose \u2013 <\/b>Burnt sugars attack your nose with some toffee and apples, then maple creeps in after some air gets in<\/p><p><b>Palate \u2013 <\/b>Starts off like a Skor bar, light milk chocolate with heavy toffee.\u00a0 Vanillas and brown sugar are followed by a caramel covered cherry<\/p><p><b>Finish \u2013 <\/b>You get a nice, long, warm hug and the candy bar flavor lingers<\/p><p><b>Buy, Try or Pass? <\/b>\u2013 Not all single barrels are created equal.\u00a0 For most Peerless picks, I\u2019m buying them.\u00a0 If you liked the sounds of this one, just realize that this is not even close to the best I\u2019ve had.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b453fea elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"b453fea\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"828\" height=\"822\" src=\"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/LB3.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-2812\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/LB3.jpg 828w, https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/LB3-300x298.jpg 300w, https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/LB3-768x762.jpg 768w, https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/LB3-75x75.jpg 75w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 828px) 100vw, 828px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-067735f elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"067735f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><b>Little Book Chapter 3, The Road Home<\/b><\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><p><b>Nose \u2013 <\/b>Little bit of musty wood up front rolls into brown sugar and vanilla.\u00a0 Dark red plum and a purple grape note<\/p><p><b>Palate \u2013 <\/b>Toasted vanilla cream or even a cr\u00e8me brulee topped with cinnamon almond butter.\u00a0 Subtle fruity sweetness but can\u2019t pinpoint what fruit it is.\u00a0 It\u2019s dark.<\/p><p><b>Finish \u2013 <\/b>Oily mouthfell sticks to all sides of your palate and tingles your gums.\u00a0 A warm Kentucky Hug reminds you of the high proof.\u00a0 Like a lot of Beam products, fading vanilla oak leaves you wanting another sip.<\/p><p><b>Buy, Try or Pass?<\/b> \u2013 Little Books are typically going to be in the $110-130 price point and their recipes differ greatly.\u00a0 They\u2019ve all been good, but I\u2019d recommend trying before buying.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8175971 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"8175971\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"828\" height=\"818\" src=\"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/1792.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-2813\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/1792.jpg 828w, https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/1792-300x296.jpg 300w, https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/1792-768x759.jpg 768w, https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/1792-75x75.jpg 75w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 828px) 100vw, 828px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-9d53218 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"9d53218\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><\/p>\n<p><b>1792 Single Barrel<\/b><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><b>Nose \u2013 <\/b>Caramel corn dusted with cinnamon sugar, super buttery bread, artificial banana similar to Runts candy or Laffy Taffy<\/p>\n<p><b>Palate \u2013 <\/b>Like a lot of 1792 products, all types of banana, but much brighter and cleaner than the nose.&nbsp; The first place my head went was to the Fresh Banana Cream Cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory.&nbsp; Take a slice of that and pour boozy caramel all over it, then place it on a piece of still-smoking toasted oak so the flavors permeate through the fluffy cheesecake.<\/p>\n<p><b>Finish \u2013 <\/b>Zero alcohol burn and no hug at all on this one, but sweet and creamy banana oaky goodness lasts for a few minutes demanding you to go back for more.&nbsp; Great pour!<\/p>\n<p><b>Buy, Try or Pass?<\/b> \u2013 BUY!!&nbsp; Whether it\u2019s the standard shelf offering or a store pick, the Single Barrel is my favorite of the 1792 line and I\u2019m buying if I see it!<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u201cDad, what are you doing?  Why do you do that?\u201d  This is a pretty regular question from my 11-year-old daughter as I\u2019m nosing my bourbon one nostril at a time.  \u201cBecause he\u2019s a ______,\u201d answers my wife before I can respond (you can insert, \u201cnerd,\u201d \u201cidiot,\u201d \u201ctool\u201d or other descriptive noun of your choosing).  No matter how much grief I get, there will be no quit in my game.  <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":2813,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,170,35],"tags":[40,91,38],"class_list":["post-2808","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lifestyle","category-spirits","category-the-whiskey-ledger","tag-bourbon","tag-the-whiskey-ledger","tag-whiskey"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/1792.jpg","acf":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2808","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2808"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2808\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3030,"href":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2808\/revisions\/3030"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2813"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2808"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2808"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2808"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}