What is Bourbon?
Bourbon is a whiskey made from at least 51% corn. It must be aged in new charred oak barrels and bottled between 40-80% ABV (80-160 proof). The remainder is made from other grains, typically rye, wheat and barley. Most distilleries use a mixture of rye and barely or wheat and barley. A “wheated” bourbon – a bourbon that uses wheat instead of rye - is typically sweeter and softer than a bourbon made with rye. Two well known “wheated” bourbons are Maker’s Mark and Old Fitzgerald. A bourbon using a higher proportion of rye is typically spicier and drier, for example Bulleit or Knob Creek. When making a sweet cocktail, like a Manhattan, which was originally made with Rye whiskey but is now often made with bourbon, a spicier bourbon with a high rye content is often a better choice. Some of our other favorite bourbon cocktails are The Old Fashioned, Mint Tulip and Whiskey Sour. Is it spelt "Whisky or Whiskey"? Generally, it depends where it is from. You will find it called "Whiskey" when it comes from the USA or Ireland and "Whisky" comes from Scotland, Canada or Japan. Since Bourbon is all from the US it is whiskey. What is the difference between bourbon and straight bourbon? Straight bourbon must meet all the requirements of bourbon, with a few extra requirements. A straight bourbon must be aged for at least 2 years. A straight bourbon aged less than 4 years must contain an age statement. As with Scotch whisky, the age statement declares the age of the youngest whiskey used to make the bourbon. Also straight bourbon cannot contain any added coloring or flavorings. A straight bourbon is not a single barrel bourbon, nor is it necessarily a mix of bourbons from the same distillery. A bourbon maker can mix multiple straight bourbons from various distilleries as long as they are from the same state. Is all bourbon from Kentucky? Actually, no. 95% of bourbons on the market are made in Kentucky and all bourbon by US law must be made in the USA, but bourbon is made in Brooklyn, Indiana, Iowa, Massachusetts, New York, Ohio, and Virginia.
Here are a selection of Bourbon based cocktails. Click to see ingredients, instructions and pictures in our "Cockail Corner".
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