Spirited Cocktails

A good chef should be discriminating about their ingredients. And they should taste everything.

Last night I got home rather late, and I was running low on the essential cocktail ingredients (simple syrup, lemons and limes, etc.), so I decided to keep things simple and appreciate the fundamentals. I poured myself a bourbon on the rocks. I found I was fortunate to have a variety of bourbons to chose from (Makers Mark, Woodford Reserve, Hudson Baby Bourbon, Bookers, Pappy Van Winkle Family Reserve, and others), but yesterday I decided to open a bottle of Basil Hayden’s, which I had received as a holiday gift from a loving family member.

One of these days I’ll do a full tasting (if you really twist my arm) and provide an ordered list of my favorites… though I wouldn’t even know where to start. In the meantime though, a few quick notes about Basil Hayden’s.

This is one of the “small batch” bourbons produced by Jim Beam. It uses more rye in its mash than many other bourbons might, and while I tend to like more “corn forward” bourbons, I still enjoyed it immensely. And at a very reasonable $35/bottle on average, it’s certainly an affordable way to expand your taste for bourbon.

I know I’ll get some flack for drinking it on the rocks. Many purists prefer their bourbon neat, as the ice will invariably alter the experience. I can’t really disagree with that, and many times when tasting a bourbon for the very first time, I’ll try some neat. But at the end of the day, I like my bourbon cold. Sorry.

So while the majority of our site will be dedicated to the craft of the cocktail, we think it’s very important to develop an appreciation for the key ingredients on their own. Among our favorite of “key ingredients” is bourbon, and we encourage you to give it a try!

Cheers!