Warm, spicy, sweet, vanilla, wood, black pepper, honey, smoke – I do love a good bourbon.
Recently Cane & Grain held the UK launch for Old Forester Bourbon – the oldest bottled bourbon in the world – and I was luck enough to go along for a sampler.
It turns out, the history of bourbon is just as fascinating as gin.
Very early settlers to the US, particularly those with Irish and Scottish heritage, missed their whisk(e)y. Who can blame them? And, once the trade in rum from the West Indies slowed down, that little old Civil War happened (cutting off British supplies to the USA) and the population learned what grew well where, the growth in home distilled alcohol was almost exponential.
Bourbon, just like gin began as a medicine – it was often prescribed by a doctor, who would recommend anything from a dram a day, to a bath in it. But this wasn’t bourbon as we know it today – this was home made – often from pot stills in people’s back garden sheds and was stored in barrels, with dispensing pharmacies doling out the correct prescriptions into bottles and hip flasks.
And of course, dilute as they saw fit.
It’s safe to say the conditions it was made and indeed supplied in were… less than savoury and that quality was… a little hit and miss. That’s where a young man named George Garvin Brown came in. Working as a pharmaceuticals salesman in the home of bourbon, Kentucky, he recognised the need for both consistency in quality and for a product that met medicinal standards.
Raiding his piggy bank and borrowing funds, ($5,500 in total) he and his half brother started their own company. They solved the quality issue by bottling the whisky and Old Forester Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whisky was born.
As the company grew and changed, they bought their own distillery, and using their history of supplying medicinal bourbon, they are one of the only companies in the world to have sold whisky before, during and after Prohibition.
You’ve got to admit, something that’s been going so long, and still so popular, has to have something going for it, right?
That brings us nicely back to the bourbon bar in Cane & Grain for a little sampling session.
First up, the bourbon itself. The smell is that old familiar scent of spice and vanilla, oak, cinnamon and a whisper of nutmeg. It’s not got the same sweetness that other brands such as Buffalo Trace have and it’s this that hints at the palate.
Spice. Lots of spice and not in an unpleasant way. I like that there’s less sweetness – enough – but not too much, meaning it’s comfortable enough to sip, but leads you to suspect it’ll pack a bigger punch than its competitors in a Manhattan or an Old Fashioned. It also hints at apple and vanilla and those with the cinnamon and spice almost make you think of good old fashioned apple pie, delicious. And the flavour lingers in the mouth too, staying with you a little longer than most I’ve experienced, making it an ideal lazy afternoon sipper.
As we moved onto cocktails, nibbles arrived, ribs coated in a delicious sauce made with the Old Forester, rib tips to dip into another Old Forester fuelled sauce. Spoilt doesn’t even cover it. Cane & Grain are slowly turning me into a rib addict.
Our cocktails were varied, but each one – whether the Manhattan or the smash or even the punch, you could pick out the bourbon in the background. The spice and cinnamon were discernible amongst the citrus and fruit, but didn’t overpower.
All in all, a lovely little bourbon, now available in the UK and slowly edging its way around Manchester.
Next time I fancy an Old Fashioned, I’m giving this a go…
With thanks to Cane & Grain, Old Forester and Mangrove UK for letting me sneak in for a taste. Everything at this product launch event was free of charge, barring some of the drinks.