6 Guidelines for Drinking Bourbon Accurately

America’s homegrown whiskey has become some of the standard pours around. And with so many bottles flooding the market, the backbar has turned right into a crowded panorama, one that might easily overwhelm the typical drinker.

So we discovered a spirit guide. Beau Williams, the owner of Kansas City’s Julep, lauded for having one of the country’s most excellent bourbon selections, shares his rules for picking, sipping and mixing America’s favorite spirit.

Read the Label

Step one is to learn to decode bourbon labels, says Williams. “Bourbon is a very broad class,” he says. “It’s necessary to know what the wording means.” For example, he always looks for the phrase straight bourbon.

“Straight is what you need to look for at the beginning once you’re searching the shelves,” he says. “It means they’re not adding anything to or adulterating the product, so that you’re getting the real deal.”

He also recommends looking for the age statement on the label, though he’s quick to note that you simply won’t always discover it. And especially if it’s from a newer producer, that usually means that bourbon is on the youthful side. By law, straight bourbon should be aged for a minimum of years.

Seek Out Worth

“If you’re spending more than $forty, you’re probably doing it fallacious,” says Williams. After all, in case you’re a collector looking for further-aged Pappy Van Winkle, count on to pay a premium. However for those just starting out, affordable bourbons abound. Williams recommends Wild Turkey 101 (“wonderful juice at a reasonable value point,”) and bottlings from Four Roses and Heaven Hill (brands from the latter embrace Henry McKenna, Evan Williams and J.T.S. Brown, amongst others).

Skip the Shot Glass

While the flavors of bourbon will be quite totally different from Scotch whisky, Williams recommends sipping a neat pour from a Glencairn glass, a curved vessel typically reserved for scotch. “Aroma is a big part of your bourbon experience,” says Williams. “You want a glass that allows you to seize the aroma—caramel-y, nutty, etc.—to get you excited and cue up the rest of your senses.”

A shot glass won’t improve this experience, he says, but a glass with a broad base and tapered top “to capture aromas and funnel them upwards” will do the trick. In lieu of a Glencairn, he typically uses Old Fashioned or rocks glasses with an identical, slightly tapered shape.

Don’t Be Afraid of Dilution

“Water is your friend, and don’t be afraid of it,” says Williams. “Folks think there’s only one way to drink bourbon, and that’s wrongheaded. Water is just not a dealbreaker whatsoever.” The present development for uncut, unfiltered, barrel-strength whiskeys signifies that most bourbons really benefit from some dilution, he says. “It takes off the heat and spice notes and lets the sweetness shine through.”

Upgrade Your Ice

“Bourbon has big, bold flavors,” says Williams. “A little bit of ice and water won’t kill the thing.” Nevertheless, he’s wary of small, watery pieces of ice that dilute a spirit too quickly. “I prefer to take my time, and I need a similar expertise from once I start to once I finish. Solid ice isn’t a bad idea.” For home use, he recommends silicone molds to freeze sizable chunks that chill effectively but melt slowly.

Attempt an Old Fashioned

“An Old Fashioned can really turn people on to how wonderful a bourbon expertise might be without drinking it on its own. Ice, a little bit of sugar and bitters can assist bridge the flavor profiles, make it more palatable.” The goal, he says, is to intensify the flavors of bourbon somewhat than mask them, and “the classic Old Fashioned does that wonderfully.”

“There’s no mistaken way to consume bourbon,” says Williams. The only mistake is “not enjoying it while you’re doing it.

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