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Bourbon vs whiskey5/1/2023 These whiskeys are typically produced using a column still in conjunction with a doubler. Old Forester’s column still / Photo Credit: Old Forester The corn base does provide a grainy sweetness which is amplified by the fact that the mash is fermented and distilled with all the grain solids still in the liquid. Bourbon vs Scotch Whiskyīourbon is characterized as having a so-called “fatter” and sweeter flavor profile, relying on new, heavily charred oak barrels for much of its character. In fact, some Scotch whisky blends arguably have more corn in them than some bourbons do, but that’s another story. But the reasons for these differences go well beyond bourbon’s use of at least 51% corn in the mash. The flavor differences between these two whiskeys are huge. Bourbon and Scotch whisky are figuratively (and literally) oceans apart. Folks are learning everything they can about their favorite barrel-aged, cereal-based tipple-and there are so many types to choose from! There are a lot of differences between the various whiskey types around the world, but most folks tend to pit bourbon vs Scotch whisky when claiming a favorite style.Īn aversion or adoration of peat, a love affair with big charred oak, or a distaste for bourbon’s fattened sweetness are a few of the explanations for one’s particular predilections. ![]() Whiskey is (and has been) the darling of the drinks world for a while now. ![]() That creates a whiskey that has the right color in months rather than years, and it checks all the legal boxes for you to sell it as bourbon or rye whiskey, but it tastes like moonshine infused with oak, not the complex mellow chemistry that years of aging impart to good whiskey.If you’re reading this, there’s likely a chance that you enjoy the occasional whiskey. That’s done by increasing the amount of contact between the spirit and the wood, using smaller barrels (with more surface area to volume), chunks of oak, and even agitation. Or you can try to make your whiskey taste aged in a hurry. Or you can sell your fresh-made whiskey without aging, clear and colorless and perhaps with some backwoodsy “moonshine” branding. ![]() One sneaky but common (and perfectly tasty) approach is to buy already-made whiskey in bulk from a third party and bottle it under your name while you wait a few years for your own distillation to mellow in its barrels. When you start up a new whiskey distillery, you have a built-in problem: You’re making whiskey and you want to sell your product right away, but it has to be aged before it’s any good. The last several years have seen many new distilleries popping up and offering new whiskeys. Those barrels have had much of their initial oaky flavor leached out already, so the second resident of the barrel can comfortably age there for a decade or two without becoming too intensely woody. Scotch, on the other hand, is aged in barrels that have already been used at least once (often bourbon hand-me-downs, in fact). (Prichard’s is also legally defined as a Tennessee whiskey, but, as the sole beneficiary of a particular grandfather clause in Tennessee law, it is not charcoal filtered.) Jack Daniel’s and George Dickel are “Tennessee whiskeys,” which is defined to mean that they are made from at least 51 percent corn, aged in new charred oak containers (so technically they are bourbons, too!), made in Tennessee, and filtered with charcoal before aging. And despite what the gregarious gent next to you at the dive bar may loudly insist, bourbon doesn’t have to come from Kentucky, but “Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey” does. “Straight bourbon whiskey” must be aged for a minimum of two years. That said, if the duration is less than 4 years, the label has to say so. That charred oak gives the previously clear spirit plenty of amber color and oaky, vanilla-y flavor in just a few years.Īlthough bourbon has to be “aged,” the law doesn’t specify any minimum time. ![]() and be aged in never-before-used charred oak containers. In order to earn the name “bourbon” under Federal law, a whiskey needs to meet a few more specifics, particularly that it be made in the U.S. If the predominant grain is wheat, it’s wheat whiskey if corn, it’s bourbon. Setting aside blended whiskey, if a whiskey is made from primarily (more than 50 percent) rye grain, for instance, it is rye whiskey (in the U.S. The type of grain used is essential both to the flavor of the whiskey and to how it’s legally labeled. If a spirit is distilled from grain (and not purified so much that it becomes vodka), then it’s whiskey. Jean asked: “ Is whiskey a type of bourbon? Is Jack Daniel’s a type of bourbon? ”
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