Moomba's and Whiskey- A few of my favorite things

[sandm]

I'm restrict myself to only Coors light now, everything else gives me a wicked hangover.

no truer words spoken.

[WhiskeyRunner]

KG-

you asked, so I'll take the bait and risk pontificating

I could go on for hours, I have a bit of a passion. But like anything, it's all about preference and taste, there truly is no wrong answer if you like it. My favorite part about Bourbon is the history.... it's as American as apple pie, and has it's origins in the immigrants that came (mostly) from Ireland or Scotland. They had extra corn from the farms and knowledge of distilling, so it wasn't a far stretch to start making 'shine. It's also deeply rooted into our culture (Kentucky roots and appalachian 'shine), our politics (prohibition), and sports (horse racing and NASCAR). I could literally go on for hours, the history is amazing.

There's a slight difference between Whiskey and Bourbon worth mentioning- Whiskey is a general term (applies to Canadian, Irish, Scotch, American, Japanese, etc...) and Bourbon is one type of Whiskey that meets 9 specific "laws". That being said, enjoy what you like, there are no rules... only snobs you can ignore.

Here's what I recommend, get 5-6 types, pour a very small amount into a glass (a sip worth), hold it in your mouth for a few seconds and note what you taste. Go through the 5-6 options, and then back down again (probably totaling a single shot by the time your done). It's important to go back down because you'll notice things totally different as you build a palate. Each Bourbon (or Whiskey) will have unique characteristics and taste different when you have something to compare it to... I did this recently with Woodford and found myself all of a sudden liking it the least, to my surprise. Here's a decent starter kit of easy to get Bourbon's and myriad of flavors at low cost:

Maker's Mark- Wheat based Bourbon (more sweet, less spice)
Four Roses Small Batch- Rye based Bourbon (sweet and spicy)
Templeton Rye- not a bourbon, but a Rye Whiskey with more spice and a great way to identify flavor
Woodford Reserve- Bourbon owned by the Jack Daniels company, standard but more oaky
Buffalo Trace- good standard bourbon

Any of these would be great with an ice cube or two next to your Moomba. OK, that's the end of my soap box. Thanks for asking my opinion . If you want more recommendations or more exotic choices, feel free to PM me, and I'm happy to share more experiences.

[Jason05216]

Templeton Rye had a place set up like a speakeasy at the American Royal BBQ in Kansas City a few weeks ago. It was a really cool setup, food and music. You had to know someone to get in and they had this huge guy at the door mostly turning people away it seemed. Best way to drink it was on the rocks. Man that hit the spot on a cool evening.

[brain_rinse]

Templeton is just a few miles from me so TR is standard issue in the cabinet. And I may or may not have some bootleg, in a bahama mama bottle with the cap duct taped shut.

[bergermaister]

I've acquired a taste for some of the honey whiskey recently. Too sweet by itself but a half and half with Crown seems to work well. Maybe a little too well...

Crown Royal has been the old go to forever, but I'm thinking its time to branch out.

[kaneboats]

Does Fireball count?

[moombadaze]

ive got a bottle of fireball ageing right now, well it will age till next summer then I hope to share with some good friends

[viking]

Fireball was just banned in Europe due to propylene glycol ingredient used in the US Version of the drink. Articles on the issue proposed it as "anti-freeze" used in Fireball.
Standards over there are different than over here from what I read and therefore caused the recall.
It does warm a guy up though

[wolfeman131]

Sounds like a good way to "winterize"

[kaneboats]

LOL. Drink the fireball and then pees in the block.