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I've written a bunch of blogs in my "Beer Tasting 2022" project. It's even slipped into 2023. I count 26 beers at this point. ...Or should I say, 26 that I've blogged about. Counting taste tests I never wrote about it's more like 40. But either way, why only taste beers?
The point of that comparison was to check assumptions I'd made over the years about what I like in a beer. I'd revisit old mainstays and try new varieties. I can do that with other booze, too. Several weeks ago I did it with trying a few new gins. Recently I got the idea to do it with bourbon.
My bourbon mainstay for several years has been Woodford Reserve. I remember the first time I tried it... Hawk and I were in San Diego for an evening, we'd scored an amazing upgrade at the Marriott Marquis hotel, and I was looking for something suitably classy at the local liquor store to stock the bar in our room. I picked a bottle of Woodford Reserve as I'd been wanting to try it for some time.
I'd gotten into Scotch Whisky a few years before that and was branching out to explore American Whiskey, i.e., bourbon. I'd tried a few other bourbons before Woodford— the bigger names you'd have heard of if you don't know Woodford— and hated them. I'd read good things about Woodford, though, so I was willing to give it a try before writing off the whole American Whiskey category.
Woodford Reserve was amazing. It had some of the characteristics of Scotch and Irish Whiskey and also an extra dimension of sweetness. (In terms of distillation, the sweetness comes from the corn that is required to be at least 51% of the mash mixture to call it bourbon.) Woodford immediately became my go-to bourbon. It also supplanted some of my whisky drinking habit.
Nine years later Woodford Reserve remains my go-to bourbon drink and still one of my go-to whiskeys of any kind. Oh, I haven't stuck to it blindly. I've tried a few others. Elijah Craig and Bulleit were both okay but unexciting. Rye whiskey, a brother to bourbon with a spicy flavor that comes from the rye grains that make up at least 51% its mixture, was too harsh.
As much as I enjoy Woodford Reserve it's easy not to try anything else. It's that good. But what if I like something else better? That was the whole point of the beer tasting project, which I occasionally refer to as the beer re-tasting project: to ensure I understand what I like and enjoy the best stuff.
Thus I decided it's time again to try alternatives to Woodford Reserve. The one I bought recently is Four Roses. I chose that one based on two recommendations for "What would you suggest a person who likes Woodford Reserve try next to broaden their horizons?"
I tried the two bourbons side by side. I drank them straight and I also made Manhattans with each.
Overall Four Roses is very similar to Woodford Reserve. It's an easy bet that anyone who enjoys one would enjoy the other. Four Roses' flavor profile is a bit heavier on the sweetness, though. I noticed that tasting them straight as well as mixed in Manhattans. Four Roses' sweetness made the Manhattan taste like it was trying to change into an Old Fashioned.
I think Four Roses is an easier entrée into bourbons for a first timer. Its sweetness should appeal more to less experienced drinkers. And its lower alcohol content, 80° vs. 90.4°, gives it a less harsh mouth-feel that's also more novice friendly.
For me, though, I like the lower sweetness and slightly harsher taste of Woodford Reserve. There's still sweetness there; but it's in a delicious balance against the woody, spicy, and harsher flavors. I'll keep drinking Woodford Reserve... and looking to see if anything can beat it.
The point of that comparison was to check assumptions I'd made over the years about what I like in a beer. I'd revisit old mainstays and try new varieties. I can do that with other booze, too. Several weeks ago I did it with trying a few new gins. Recently I got the idea to do it with bourbon.
My bourbon mainstay for several years has been Woodford Reserve. I remember the first time I tried it... Hawk and I were in San Diego for an evening, we'd scored an amazing upgrade at the Marriott Marquis hotel, and I was looking for something suitably classy at the local liquor store to stock the bar in our room. I picked a bottle of Woodford Reserve as I'd been wanting to try it for some time.I'd gotten into Scotch Whisky a few years before that and was branching out to explore American Whiskey, i.e., bourbon. I'd tried a few other bourbons before Woodford— the bigger names you'd have heard of if you don't know Woodford— and hated them. I'd read good things about Woodford, though, so I was willing to give it a try before writing off the whole American Whiskey category.
Woodford Reserve was amazing. It had some of the characteristics of Scotch and Irish Whiskey and also an extra dimension of sweetness. (In terms of distillation, the sweetness comes from the corn that is required to be at least 51% of the mash mixture to call it bourbon.) Woodford immediately became my go-to bourbon. It also supplanted some of my whisky drinking habit.
Nine years later Woodford Reserve remains my go-to bourbon drink and still one of my go-to whiskeys of any kind. Oh, I haven't stuck to it blindly. I've tried a few others. Elijah Craig and Bulleit were both okay but unexciting. Rye whiskey, a brother to bourbon with a spicy flavor that comes from the rye grains that make up at least 51% its mixture, was too harsh.
As much as I enjoy Woodford Reserve it's easy not to try anything else. It's that good. But what if I like something else better? That was the whole point of the beer tasting project, which I occasionally refer to as the beer re-tasting project: to ensure I understand what I like and enjoy the best stuff.
Thus I decided it's time again to try alternatives to Woodford Reserve. The one I bought recently is Four Roses. I chose that one based on two recommendations for "What would you suggest a person who likes Woodford Reserve try next to broaden their horizons?"
I tried the two bourbons side by side. I drank them straight and I also made Manhattans with each.
Overall Four Roses is very similar to Woodford Reserve. It's an easy bet that anyone who enjoys one would enjoy the other. Four Roses' flavor profile is a bit heavier on the sweetness, though. I noticed that tasting them straight as well as mixed in Manhattans. Four Roses' sweetness made the Manhattan taste like it was trying to change into an Old Fashioned.
I think Four Roses is an easier entrée into bourbons for a first timer. Its sweetness should appeal more to less experienced drinkers. And its lower alcohol content, 80° vs. 90.4°, gives it a less harsh mouth-feel that's also more novice friendly.
For me, though, I like the lower sweetness and slightly harsher taste of Woodford Reserve. There's still sweetness there; but it's in a delicious balance against the woody, spicy, and harsher flavors. I'll keep drinking Woodford Reserve... and looking to see if anything can beat it.
It's so grim it even features a skeleton on the bottle. ...A skeleton enjoying a beer, of course! 💀🍺