Favorite Whiskey

chasnojm

Established
You gotta determine how you will drink it. Try over a large ice cube, neat or neat with a splash of water. There's no point forcing yourself to drink something you can't, otherwise you are wasting it. If something is too hot, put it back on the shelf and try something more mild until you can drink that one. Its like cigars, you probably shouldn't jump into a full bodied heavy hitter and be on your ass.
 
Are any of you fine gentlemen able to recommend a decent whiskey for a beginner? I normally don't drink Liquor but I want to get a good bottle for casual sipping without having to experiment and buy full bottles of garbo hahaha
As with most stuff it really helps to have a friend who is already neck deep into this stuff and has a few dozen bottles on hand to sample to find what you enjoy. Another option for sampling is buying those mini 50ml bottles from the liquor store. My local stores have stuff like jameson, buffalo trace, a few different jack daniels, glenlivet, macallan, all for like 5-6 dollars. You may be able to figure out which way your taste buds are steering you for 20-30 bucks.

If you have a whiskey bar local to you then you can sample a lot of stuff from the higher end before you buy, redbreast 12 is very popular option because it doesn't beat you up and is really pretty. But I've also had friends who prefer smoky islay scotch as beginners because it tends to be very interesting and deep and takes your mouth on a journey.
 

Kilo Mike

Newbie
As with most stuff it really helps to have a friend who is already neck deep into this stuff and has a few dozen bottles on hand to sample to find what you enjoy. Another option for sampling is buying those mini 50ml bottles from the liquor store. My local stores have stuff like jameson, buffalo trace, a few different jack daniels, glenlivet, macallan, all for like 5-6 dollars. You may be able to figure out which way your taste buds are steering you for 20-30 bucks.

If you have a whiskey bar local to you then you can sample a lot of stuff from the higher end before you buy, redbreast 12 is very popular option because it doesn't beat you up and is really pretty. But I've also had friends who prefer smoky islay scotch as beginners because it tends to be very interesting and deep and takes your mouth on a journey.
Thanks for the tip man! Ill report back with whatever option I end up with hahaha
 
Are any of you fine gentlemen able to recommend a decent whiskey for a beginner? I normally don't drink Liquor but I want to get a good bottle for casual sipping without having to experiment and buy full bottles of garbo hahaha
What do you typically like to drink? Higher alcohol will take a bit to get used to regardless, but there's a reason the basic bitch brands sell the most. They're typically the most friendly. Having a lower alcohol content (40%), filtering, sweeter flavors, blended barrels, etc. typically make for a more friendly product, but after the taste is acquired people typically gravitate towards something more expensive. Chasing/mixing it with a drink you all ready like is a great start because it will lower the abv even more and help acclimate you to the taste.

A charcoal mellowed {Tenessee} whiskey such as Jack Daniels or Dickel, or better yet a double filtered one such as Gentleman Jack,or a sweet canadian whiskey such as Crown Royal are great ways to start. Irish whisky's such as redbreast 12 or a fine Japanese blend such as Hibiki Harmony are almost universally enjoyed.

Some prefer the profile of whiskeys aged longer in a barrel. Even though you don't like the 6-8 year buffalo trace, you might really love the 8-12 year Eagle Rare of the same mashbill and distillery.

Since taste is subjective; there's really no telling what you might enjoy best. I'd suggest finding the mini 50ml bottles of every genre, or at least the most extreme differences, and honing in on what you enjoy most. You could also try a local bar that offers "flights," a set of mini shots of various whiskeys. Even though most beginners don't enjoy more complex and harsh whiskeys, it would be worth trying some barrel proof/cask strength, smokey Isla, and typically bitter/spicy rye whiskeys.

While not actually whiskeys, you might also want to try flavored liquers with whiskey such as Fireball, and any of the various brands of bourbon cremes, honey/peach/cinnamon/apple/vanilla flavors from Crown Royal, Jack Daniels, Evan Williams, etc.
 
Colder temperatures or watering it down will also help mask some harsher flavors. A splash of water, ice, or putting it in the freezer may be worth a try. I'd also recommend learning to taste the whiskey if it's not too harsh or unenjoyable for you. Take a small sip, perhaps with a bit of water and let it sit in your mouth, especially towards the tip of the tongue, just for a moment to prepare your palate, swallow, then enjoy an unmolested sip.
 

Kilo Mike

Newbie
What do you typically like to drink? Higher alcohol will take a bit to get used to regardless, but there's a reason the basic bitch brands sell the most. They're typically the most friendly. Having a lower alcohol content (40%), filtering, sweeter flavors, blended barrels, etc. typically make for a more friendly product, but after the taste is acquired people typically gravitate towards something more expensive. Chasing/mixing it with a drink you all ready like is a great start because it will lower the abv even more and help acclimate you to the taste.

A charcoal mellowed {Tenessee} whiskey such as Jack Daniels or Dickel, or better yet a double filtered one such as Gentleman Jack,or a sweet canadian whiskey such as Crown Royal are great ways to start. Irish whisky's such as redbreast 12 or a fine Japanese blend such as Hibiki Harmony are almost universally enjoyed.

Some prefer the profile of whiskeys aged longer in a barrel. Even though you don't like the 6-8 year buffalo trace, you might really love the 8-12 year Eagle Rare of the same mashbill and distillery.

Since taste is subjective; there's really no telling what you might enjoy best. I'd suggest finding the mini 50ml bottles of every genre, or at least the most extreme differences, and honing in on what you enjoy most. You could also try a local bar that offers "flights," a set of mini shots of various whiskeys. Even though most beginners don't enjoy more complex and harsh whiskeys, it would be worth trying some barrel proof/cask strength, smokey Isla, and typically bitter/spicy rye whiskeys.

While not actually whiskeys, you might also want to try flavored liquers with whiskey such as Fireball, and any of the various brands of bourbon cremes, honey/peach/cinnamon/apple/vanilla flavors from Crown Royal, Jack Daniels, Evan Williams, etc.
Honestly man I never really drank prior to coming home from our little rotation to kuwait, I almost always reach for beer rather than any sort of liquor, Im going to start trying some mini bottles as I found Fireball is pretty tasty but the others seem to have a very strong hand sanitizer sensation and nothing else hahaha
 
What really got me started was I was at an upscale bar and I had an old fashioned.

Then I had to get home and figure out how to make this beverage myself and the recipe I came up with that I preferred is:

2oz of bourbon, preferably something that holds up to ice really well. The main one I liked was woodford reserve double oaked

3/4 oz of simple syrup 2:1 sugar/water I made on the stovetop

A half dozen dashes of orange bitters

One Maraschino cherry

A glass full of larger ice cubes made with spring water (my idaho tap water is gross)

The old fashioned is a drink that kinda has a “bell curve” as it sits there melting ice and kinda mixing around the flavor and alcohol tend to change. So taking little sips you can wait till it hits just right and tastes like candy and down the hatch it goes.

I started on whiskey neat when I started drinking them down before very much ice melted at all and I haven’t looked back since.


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Hard to pick "a" favorite but these are some of my favorites...

Under $50

Buffalo Trace is a great example of a classic, well balanced bourbon. Wild Turkey 101 is highly underrated and is a very good high rye starter bourbon. High West American Prairie Bourbon is less oak-y than most and is fantastic for the price and availability.

Over $50

Elijah Craig Barrel Proof is very well balanced with a little more oak and the barrel proof provides a little more kick. Wild Turkey Rare Breed is criminally underrated. Blanton's is a favorite for many people but isn't really my thing. Booker's is one of the few Beam products that stands out for me.
 
I haven't found a Horse Soldier Bourbon I don't like yet, although the small batch is probably my favorite of that brand.
Weller Special Reserve is very good, and not hard to find where I'm at for around $30.
Buffalo Trace is very good as well, also at a lower price point.
Bulleit, Basil Hayden, Yellowstone are all good bottles I try and always keep on hand.
Henry McKenna 10 year has been a favorite as of recent.
I really want to try and get ahold of a bottle of Blade and Bow but haven't been able to find one around me just yet.
 

Andrew Gutt

Newbie
Are any of you fine gentlemen able to recommend a decent whiskey for a beginner? I normally don't drink Liquor but I want to get a good bottle for casual sipping without having to experiment and buy full bottles of garbo hahaha
If you don’t drink whiskey a lot you won’t want to sip on it lol. I normally just take shots and my favorite is Buffalo trace, bullet rye, even had the stuff by Conor mc Gregor and it was actually good.

P.s. you guys recommending makers mark, I don’t trust you haha.
 

Seth Thompson

Regular Member
I love Evan Williams! The Single Barrel is very comparable to Michter's American (at least the specific barrels I've had), and the Bottled In Bond are the best value imo.

My favorites are Knob Creek SB 120 store picks, Elijah Craig Barrel Proof, and EWBIB.
Strangely enough, I got started on Evan after reading an article in the back of the Wall Street Journal (I know, don't judge), where a number of bourbons were blind taste-tested by "experts" and "Regular Joes". Evan scored shockingly high for it's price and availability, so I decided to try it out.

I'm kind of partial to their premixed eggnog concoction around Christmastime, too.
 

Sonofstate

Newbie
If you're looking for a beginner whiskey TX is hard to beat and for a scotch go with monkey shoulder. Personally, my go-to sipping whisky is Lagavulin 16, for Sazeracs(my favorite whiskey cocktail) I really like Bulleit Rye. If I'm feeling extra Texan Firestone & Robertson has a recipe for a pecan old fashioned using their TX bourbon and it is excellent.
 

Drewsky

Newbie
Knob Creek Smoked Maple is my go-to. Always have a few bottles as back-up. Recently tried Clyde May's and it was very smooth. I'm not usually a huge fan of Canadian, but Pendleton's is very good, and cheap, as well.
 

MojoNixon

Established
Knob Creek Smoked Maple is my go-to. Always have a few bottles as back-up. Recently tried Clyde May's and it was very smooth. I'm not usually a huge fan of Canadian, but Pendleton's is very good, and cheap, as well.
A bit of a necro, but I just got turned on to Frey Ranch bourbon and Rye. Oldest licensed distiller in Nevada (1854). They are still bottling batch #3. It has replaced Clyde Mays as my go to bourbon. They are local to me and as far as I know it's only available at the ranch. They grow all their corn and grains on the ranch.
 

Jon Meyer

Newbie
I am a rum drinker but I was recently suggested rye whiskey/bourbon. Picked up a bottle of Huber's Starlight Distillery Old Rickhouse Indiana Straight Rye Whiskey. I was pleasantly surprised; it wasn't the normal harsh, tart, and dry taste I usually dislike with whiskeys/bourbons.
 

Stanislao

Regular Member
My current favorites are Writer's Tears Irish Whiskey and Elijah Craig bourbon in general. Currently on my piano I have:
Woodford Reserve Kentucky Straight Wheat, batch 0067 bottle 2700. Smooth and kinda sweet, just enough rye to be somewhat interesting. Makes fantastic Mint Juleps and serves well in those basic 19th century whiskey cocktails. This currently fills the role of wheated bourbon, which it technically isn't, taking over from Maker's Mark. It'll be replaced with Larceny whenever I finish the bottle.

Old Overholt Rye, the newer 86 proof version from Beam. While this has been my go to rye for years, I'll be exploring others when I finish this bottle.

Evan Williams, a basic workhorse bourbon that I use primarily for mixing.

Evan Williams Bottled in Bond, a 100 proof version of EW. Haven't mixed with it yet, since I'm mostly drinking it straight.

Tullamore DEW, an affordable Irish blend. I prefer it to Jameson, though it isn't much different.

Bulleit Bourbon cask strength, batch 5. Pretty much exactly what you would expect from the name. This is the only whiskey that I need to cool before enjoying. Bulleit has been my standard high rye bourbon for a while, when I finish this bottle I'll replace it with Basil Hayden for a change.

Elijah Craig small batch, my go to traditional mash bill bourbon, basically an older version of Evan Williams.

Elijah Craig cask strength, batch A121. The only hard to find bourbon I've bothered to buy, and I'm quite happy with it. Brings out some of the odd little flavors of the Beam/Heaven Hill yeast. Also nice and oaky, as a twelve year bourbon. Proof is a relatively low 123.6, which somewhat controls the tongue and nose numbing effects of alcohol.

Writer's Tears, of all my whiskies this is the bottle emptying fastest. Though technically a blend of Single Pot Still and Single Malt, it has all the flavor and mouthfeel of a Single Pot Still. No sherry finish here, just bourbon barrel aging. There must be a massive portion of unmalted barley in the blend, as the mouthfeel is even more oily than Redbreast. Possibly the best whiskey I've ever had, winning over even people who don't like whiskey.
 
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