Barbecue and Jim Beam Bourbon In Ballard

"The Bourbon King was the first ambassador of reason and human happiness"
-Heinrich Mann

It's a chilly and drizzling kind of day here in the Seattle area.  Don't get me wrong, I haven't a single complaint.  We had a beautiful summer with heatstroke inducing days, the rain held off this long, and I must profess that I am ready to don jeans and sweatshirts for comfortable nights in or out in the warmth of raised whiskey glasses and good fellowship.

My drink preferences ebb and flow with the seasons like the tides.  Cold beer that progresses from light and crisp German witbiers to ever darker porters, stouts, and bold gin in the summer/fall, while winter and spring belong to red wine and fiery whiskey.  Well, whiskey is an all-year-round love affair for me if you can't tell by my previous posts.

Tonight, (K) and I gather with the Seattle Whiskey Collective to celebrate Bourbon Heritage Month with a night of barbecue and whiskey.  Tonight's tasting is hosted by local Ballard barbecue joint, Kickin' Boot Whiskey Kitchen, with special guest Dave Kearns (@realwhiskeydave), whiskey specialist for Beam Suntory.

I would just like to start with a great big thank you to Dave for his time, his knowledge, and most importantly, some of the best Bourbon I have ever tasted.  And let's not forget the Seattle Whiskey Collective for putting this excellent evening together, once again proving that membership in the Seattle Whiskey Collective is a better investment than a gym membership, HA!

So let's jump into this thing!

The mood is set, the Bourbon is poured, the mouth is watering...

The pulled pork sliders were killer.  Ask the server for the mustard based BBQ sauce.  It kicks things up from 6 to midnight.

 

This was my first experience with fried green tomatoes, and I highly recommend them. As some of you may know, tomatoes when green have far less flavor, but are much more firm to the bite.  It had a feel of biting into breaded green apple slices.  These were fantastic!

There was a great deal more food (Ribs, brisket, corn bread, and the best hush puppies I have ever had), but let's cut to the chase and talk Bourbon!

Tonight we were tasting four Bourbons samples.  Some rare, some fairly expensive, and one that has now plans for release, which is a real crying shame.  Never before have I had whiskey samples that not only became more and more mind blowing and excellent as the night went on, but managed to rank 5 STARS in my book!  Sometimes just because a whiskey or wine is older or more expensive does not necessarily mean it is better.  It really is up to the individual and their taste preference.  Some of us like the inexpensive standby, some need more to their whiskey.

Maker's Mark Cask Strength

Overview-This Bourbon is straight from the barrel, uncut, non-chill filtered

Category- Bourbon/American Whiskey

Country- United States

Region- Good Ole' Kentucky

Age- 6+ years
Price- Roughly $50
Proof- 113.2

	Tasting Notes
	-On the nose there was a lot of maraschino cherry, very sweet, burnt sugar -The taste was sweet as well.  Raisin, orange peel, slight roasted sweet corn, wheat in the after taste -A good amount of burn, as was expected from cask strength -Not super heavy on the char and the body was light but still attention grabbing. -Short-to-medium finish/linger (The length of time the flavors hang around) -Some floral notes like fireweed honey
	Conclusion Be still my beating heart!  This was delicious.  I felt like I was being spoiled right off the bat.  I have really grown to enjoy "cask strength" whiskeys.  It's much like starting out drinking coffee heavy in cream and sugar, transition to straight black coffee, then graduate to straight espresso.  Or darkening in preference of beer or red wine.  Anything less than a full bodied Primitivo red just barely holds my attention these days.  This was a fantastic whiskey all the way around.  It had great body and drink ability.  I will definitely be tracking this down when it becomes available.  By the way, this was one of the two most "pseudo-readily available" whiskeys of the night. (A little tough to read the label- Jim Beam Distiller's Masterpiece)   Jim Beam Distiller's Masterpiece Overview-Finished in Pedro Ximénez sherry casks Category- Bourbon/American Whiskey Country- United States Region- Kentucky Age- ? Price- $200 (GASP!.....choke......) Proof- 100   Tasting Notes -Again, maraschino cherry, very sweet, burnt sugar, brisk citrus, wood, vanilla, and grain on the nose -Raisin, citrus peel, sweet corn, marmalade, cinnamon, nutmeg, clove and toffee on the taste -Peanuts, toasted rice, and wheat came through -This bourbon had a heavy mouth feel, definitely from the sherry, but in a very good way.  It was sweet and warming.  Not as heavy a hitter on the burn, but very smooth. Conclusion Oh this stuff was good.  I mean REALLY good.  If I could brush my teeth with it, I would.  Alas, until the demand for my writing rises on a global scale, or I win the lottery (apparently you have to actually buy a ticket first, ha!), this will reside as a beautiful memory.  You never know, maybe this cheeky devil will find himself in a splurging kind of mood one day.  It's happened before!  I read a review where a fella actually mixed this with coke...  Now, it's not in my nature to breed such scorn and distain, but I feel whoever committed such a violation should be publicly ridiculed!  Or at least take the good stuff away from them for crying out loud! If you do find yourself in the unique position of purchasing some of this liquid gold, just know that I make a pretty good friend and would be more than happy to discuss the matter with you over a glass (insert ear to ear grin here). (Dave giving our group the rundown of Jim Beam's future in the hands of Freddy Noe) Booker's Overview- Uncut, unfiltered, straight-from-the-barrel Category- Bourbon/American Whiskey Country- United States Region- Kentucky Age- 6-8 years Price- $60'ish Proof- 125.6   Tasting Notes -Nose: Sweet cherry, spice, big oak, vanilla, very floral, charcoal -Taste: dark fruit, anise, spiced Mexican chocolate, intense, plums raisin, tobacco -The finish was long, clean on the tongue, and very enjoyable.  Very tasty Bourbon Conclusion This was another readily available whiskey.  Its sweet nuances gave a pleasant warmth it made it's way down.  I was getting a bit of holiday spice in it, which makes me thing of biscochitos, the state cookie of New Mexico, made with anise seeds.  I think a tumbler of Booker's would make an excellent companion for those blustery fall and winter nights I see ahead of us here in the Seattle area. Sorry folks, the bottle is forbidden from being viewed.  We saw the distributer's version. Knob Creek 9 (top secret) Overview-This Bourbon is not available, not distributed, cask strength, and the bottle was asked not to be shown Category- Bourbon/American Whiskey Country- United States Region- Kentucky Age- 9 Years Price- Not available Proof- 139   Tasting Notes -Sweet on the nose, maple, raisin, holiday spice, summer flowers blooming, very floral -This is a very sweet bourbon -Peanuts at end, sweet pipe tobacco, roasted sweet corn, gingerbread, and burnt sugar.  English Christmas pudding and a very unique flavor was present that I can't fully put my finger on. -Very smooth. Conclusion I may have wanted to brush my teeth with the Distiller's Masterpiece, but I would bathe in this Bourbon.  This was what I envisioned Bourbon to be when I first began drinking the stuff.  As Dave said it best: "This is a Bourbon I love and could drink every single day for the rest of my life."  That's a pretty bold statement, but who am I to argue.  I loved everything about this whiskey, and it was the perfect way to end the evening.  I can't imagine what the price tag on something so excellent would be, but I hope someday they find it in their hearts to share this with the world.  This was an exciting privilege to drink, and truly is something you need to know about.  Dave asked that the bottle not be displayed for obvious reasons of security. A shout out and another great big thank you to Dave Kearns (@realwhiskeydave) for his time, some magnificent Bourbons care of Jim Beam, and a sweet new flask.  Thanks to Kick'n Boot BBQ for hosting our group with some very good local barbeque.  Also, a big thank you to the Seattle Whiskey Collective for another killer event.  Stay tuned for more exciting spirits, events, grub talk and laughs. Eat Well, Live Well. -Chris