Bib & Tucker Double Char Bourbon

I’d like to thank Deutsch Family Wine & Spirits and their PR team for providing this review sample with no strings attached.

Poor air quality is becoming a fixture of life this summer, isn’t it? Alexa gave me another air quality alert today. Luckily for me, we have it pretty good compared to the folks just a little to the east and south of us. Being as we are only in the “moderate air quality” range here in the southern Twin Cities Metro, I can actually go outside without breathing becoming hard to do. But according to the maps, many of you will smell smoke when you step outside.

Which sucks. Because though you might want smoke on your food or your whiskey, you probably do not want it in your lungs. So stay safe, folks.

But speaking of smoke and whiskey, let’s take a look at Bib & Tucker Double Char. This Tennessee bourbon was aged for six years in standard 53-gallon charred White Oak barrels before being finished in a second heavily charred barrel for an additional 5-plus months. Now, as this is Tennessee bourbon, it does go through the Lincoln County process of being filtered through sugar maple charcoal prior to aging.

And according to the company:

For Double Char, to pay homage to the Lincoln County process, the second barrel is smoked with sugar maple before being filled with our 6 year aged bourbon. The perfect amount of time in the barrels, the char, and the sugar maple barrel smoking process delivers a bourbon with an inviting savory white smoke flavor not found in any other whiskey on the market.

I tasted this prior to reading the press release, and I personally didn’t detect any smoke, which is a good thing, as I tend to dislike smoky notes in my whiskey. But there was a subtle note that I could be convinced was smoke now that I’ve read it. It’s one of those interesting notes that is subtle enough that it only comes into focus once someone else points it out.

So let’s see how it tastes.

Bib & Tucker Double Char Bourbon

Purchase Info: This was provided free of charge for review purposes. The suggested retail price is $54.99.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $3.66

Details: 6 years old. 44% ABV. Batch 01. Bottle 29090. Distilled in Tennessee.

Nose: Mint, vanilla, cinnamon, fresh lumber, (seasoned) oak, and a touch of cherry.

Mouth: Sweet caramel and vanilla, vibrant cinnamon, and sharp oak.

Finish: Medium in both length and warmth. Notes of cherry, cinnamon, minerals, and vanilla.

Thoughts: I'm a bit shocked at how complex the flavor is, considering it's low proof. I'm a fan. If you like the usual suspects when it comes to supplying sourced bourbon from Tennessee, you'll probably like this too. Has a bit of a Dickel vibe to it.

Now you might ask how it compares to the standard Bib & Tucker 6-year-old. And since they were nice enough to send me a sample of that for comparison’s sake, let’s take a look. The noses are similar, but Double Char is sweeter on the nose. The mouths have similar notes, but Double Char is sweeter and spicier. Standard 6 has a longer finish, but Double Char compensates for that by having more complexity on the finish. Overall, if you like one, you'll probably like the other.

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Ezra Brooks Bourbon Cream, now at 33 proof

I’d like to thank ByrnePR and Lux Row for providing this review sample with no strings attached.

Last Christmas, we took a look at four different bourbon cream liqueurs. Since that time, one of them—Ezra Brooks Bourbon Cream—has been reformulated in order to give it a pretty hefty proof bump from 25° proof to 33° proof. Now, at first, I thought that it was an odd time of year to be releasing a bourbon cream. I usually think of it as a drink to have during the holidays.

But then, I remembered ice cream. Something that I usually do not keep in the house. Mostly because the bourbon is making me fat enough. But, if I was going to give a bottle of bourbon cream a fair shake in the summer, I needed it in a milkshake.

Do you see the sacrifices I make for you?

Anyway, before we talk about how delicious a boozy milkshake made with Ezra Brooks Bourbon Cream is, let’s see what the company has to say about their new release:

Ezra Brooks Bourbon Cream is still made using all-natural cream and Kentucky Straight Bourbon but is now bottled at 33 proof – one of the highest proof levels of any offering in the Bourbon Cream category. Tasting notes include cinnamon, nutmeg and caramel with hints of vanilla and sweet pecan on the nose and buttery caramel, sweet toffee and a smooth, warm finish on the palate. Like its other elevated namesakes, Ezra Brooks Bourbon Cream now is offered in upscale packaging – in this case, with a prominent “33” callout and Lux Row Distillers embossing on the bottle’s shoulder.

Ezra Brooks Bourbon Cream, 33 proof

Purchase Info: This was provided but the producer for review purposes. The suggested retail price is $21.99 for a 750 mL bottle.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $1.47

Details: 16.5% ABV

Nose: Creamy with caramel, vanilla, chocolate, and a "boozy" note beneath it all.

Mouth: Nice thick mouthfeel. Follows the nose with notes of vanilla, caramel, and chocolate.

Finish: Sweet and creamy with notes of vibrant vanilla along with caramel and cinnamon.

Thoughts: This is delicious. It's like dipping a delicious cookie in milk. It is sweet and creamy. And that powerful vanilla note on the finish makes the wholes thing a pleasure to sip.

Ok. So since this bottle arrived, I’ve eaten almost an entire quart of ice cream in milkshake form. This stuff pairs so well with it that you can go as simple as just ice cream and bourbon cream in a blender. Of course a splash of chocolate is also quite delicious. You can even toss in some malt power to make a boozy chocolate malt. Every single milkshake recipe I’ve tried has been amazing. I’m a big fan…might be time for bigger pants.

Did you enjoy this post? If you want to support the work going on here at BourbonGuy.com, please consider a one-time donation at ko-fi.com/bourbonguy or paypal.me/BourbonGuy. Or you could buy some merch (tasting journals, stickers, pins, posters, and more) at BourbonGuyGifts.com.

From the BourbonGuy Archives: WHAT TO TRY WHEN YOU HAVEN'T TRIED MUCH YET.

Never fear, folks. I am on the mend. But as recently as yesterday, I still had some majorly F’d-up taste buds. And so we take another stroll through the last decade of articles and reviews to find something interesting and informative that you might not have read before. If you were around in 2017, rest assured knowing that new content is coming Thursday. Provided that nothing weird happens in the meantime.

It's not unusual for people to send me an email me with questions about how they can get started on their bourbon journey. Often, they've dabbled, but are looking to get more serious. 

With Bourbon, there are a surprisingly significant number of flavor profiles on the shelf. It's weird. Almost all bourbon is made with the same three or four ingredients: corn, barley, and rye or wheat. And yet, the flavors produced range from floral and fruity to spicy and dry with an entire library of flavors in between.

I'd say that the quickest way to find out what you like is to try different things. But don't jump straight to the top shelf and only buy barrel-strength bourbons with age statements in the double digits. Don't get me wrong. These are probably very fine bourbons. But I wouldn't start there. First, they are expensive. And if the goal is to try as many as you can, it is helpful if you don't have to miss a mortgage payment to do so. Secondly, if you were to take a big swig of George T Stagg unknowingly, you are probably going to sputter and choke and possibly decide that bourbon is not for you.

So, what to do? Well since bourbon has so many flavor profiles, I think that the best idea is to run to the store or your local bar and try some of the delicious, yet affordable offerings out there that show off these distinct flavor profiles. And yes, I've compiled you a shopping list.

Maker's Mark

Due to being owned by one of the largest bourbon producers in the country, this red-headed darling is available at almost every liquor store and bar you'll come across. Made with wheat as its flavoring grain, Maker's Mark is a sweet and soft bourbon. It shows caramel, custard, fruit, and baking spice. It's inexpensive, ubiquitous, and very tasty. This is a great bourbon for trying to decide if you like sweeter bourbon flavors.

1792 Small Batch Bourbon

Produced by the Barton 1792 distillery in Bardstown, KY, this bourbon is a great example of a dry bourbon. Dry bourbon is a little different than dry wine, but it follows some of the same ideas. Namely, that sweetness is not the major flavor component. All bourbon is sweet, to an extent, but I find this bourbon brings a lot more peppery heat to the party. It feels like it evaporates in the back of your throat. This is a good one to see if you like drier bourbons and peppery spiciness. 

Buffalo Trace

When speaking of bourbon, spice can mean two different things. It can mean spicy like the heat of a red pepper or it can mean spicy like the ground spices you put in cookies. In the case of Buffalo Trace, we are talking about the latter. Buffalo Trace bourbon leads with cinnamon and nutmeg flavors before adding in maple and custard flavors. Buffalo Trace is the perfect bourbon to see if you like bourbons that feature baking spice as their main flavor component.

Four Roses Small Batch

Most of the time, floral flavors are a by-product of the yeast used for fermentation. Along with carbon dioxide and ethanol, these little guys create flavor compounds that, if treated nicely, survive through distillation and maturation. Four Roses Small Batch Bourbon is a perfect example of a floral bourbon. Floral and fruity notes start at the nose, mix with sweetness and spice in the mouth and hang around into the finish. If you want to know if you like floral and fruity bourbons, try Four Roses Small Batch.

Wild Turkey 101

At six to eight years old, Wild Turkey 101 is a good example of what some extra time spent in the barrel can bring you. It is filled with the flavors of sweet caramel, ginger, and oak. Think you don't like the taste of oak? Remember that 100 percent of the color and more than 50 percent of the flavor of a bourbon come from the oak barrel it is stored in. Wild Turkey is a complex, yet inexpensive bourbon, and it is a good choice to see if you like oakier bourbons. 

So there you have it. Five bourbons to get you on your way. After you identify what you like and what you don't like about each bourbon, then you can start expanding your horizons. And of course, it goes without saying that you should be taking notes along the way. After you've been at it for a while go back and revisit some of the ones you tried early on to see how your palate has changed. I think you'll be surprised to find out that you now like some of the ones you didn't previously or that you don't care for some of those you thought were favorites. 

Did you enjoy this post? If you want to support the work going on here at BourbonGuy.com, please consider a one-time donation at ko-fi.com/bourbonguy or paypal.me/BourbonGuy. Or you could buy some merch (tasting journals, stickers, pins, posters, and more) at BourbonGuyGifts.com.

From the BourbonGuy Archives: Whiskey Party Lights

Yep, you guessed it. I am still under the weather. I’ve been on the couch watching a lot of movies while trying to stop coughing. The cough is bad enough that it feels like my skull is trying to force its way out of my forehead. It’s sucked. But, I’ve had the opportunity to do a lot of thinking. And one of the things I’ve been thinking about is updating the set Whiskey Party Lights that I originally made almost a decade ago.

Since I’ll probably be revisiting that this summer, I thought I’d refresh my memory of how I did it the first time. And heck since I’m too sick to write much anyway, I might as well share it with you folks too. It really is a fun project…though looking back on it, I think I was a little risky with the drill press. Probably best to build a jig for that first so you don’t get your fingers caught in the bit. I’ll share the revamped version in the next couple of months when it is completed. Lots of testing to do first.

IMAGE: Black and white image of lighted mini bottles.

I like camping. If you do it right, it’s a nice way to have a glass of bourbon around a campfire. If you do it wrong, it’s a nice way to have a sore back every morning. I used to prefer camping the wrong way. I slept in tents for years. Then I realized that I could still have the campfire, but sleep in a bed.

I recently bought a camper. Now I camp the right way. All the bourbon, none of the sore back.

When you buy a camper, strange things go though your mind. Things like: “I need all new utensils to eat with. The ones in my house aren’t nearly good enough to take outside.” And: “I think I should buy a truck.” And: “Boy, wouldn’t it be nice to hang lights from an awning.”

I had all of these thoughts at one point or another. Some I acted on, others I didn’t. One I acted on was the awning lights. I looked at a bunch of places to see if there was anything fun to be found. Guess what? There wasn’t. I mean some people like flamingos enough to hang them from an awning. Others like toy cars. But I’m a bit judgemental. And I assume others are too. If I was going to be judged for something, it should at least be something I liked. And so Whiskey Party Lights were born.

Here’s how I did it:

Step One: Gather all the minis you’ve been hoarding. I needed 50. (If you are a collector, turn back now. You might find this disturbing.)

IMAGE: Drilling the holes with a drill press.

Step Two: Drill holes in the caps. I found the easiest way to drill some test holes in some test caps and find the one that fits best. You’ll want the fit to be snug so the bottle doesn’t fall off of your light. For my lights, I needed a 25/64” hole. NOTE: Don’t even try this without a drill press. I do not want to hear reports of someone slipping with a handheld drill and destroying something important—furniture, fingers, etc.

(Editor’s Note from 2023…also build a jig to hold the bottles. I’ve since realized that this is still a little too dangerous.)

IMAGE: Painting the bottles.

Step Three: Spray paint with clear paint. I tried about three different kinds and ended up using Krylon ColorMaster Acrylic Crystal Clear. Not only does it provide water restistance to those with paper labels, but it gives the bottles a frosted finish. This helps to difuse the light a bit and allows the bottles to act more like light bulbs. If you use Maker’s Mark, you may want to tape off the wax if you don’t want it frosted.

IMAGE: Newly painted bottles drying upside down on skewers stuck into the ground.

Step Four: Let dry. The paint I used took about an hour until it was able to be handled.

IMAGE: Fitting the bulb into the bottle cap.

Step Five: Fit the bulbs into the caps. I used bottles with both metal and plastic caps. If I were to do it over, I would choose the plastic. The metal is thin and bends. So if you have a cool old dusty you want to use, you’ll need an alternate method of support. I used craft wire to wrap around the neck and hooked it over the wires. I did find that many bottles with metal caps would accept plastic so that is an alternative as well.

IMAGE: the finished lights hanging from the awning.

Step Six: Hang them up! I bought stainless steel party light hangers from Amazon. They have a clip on one end and a hook on the other. Now you're ready to sit under the glow of 50 LED whiskey lights, drink a bourbon and start on the next set.

Did you enjoy this post? If you want to support the work going on here at BourbonGuy.com, please consider a one-time donation at ko-fi.com/bourbonguy or paypal.me/BourbonGuy. Or you could buy some merch at BourbonGuyGifts.com.

From the BourbonGuy Archives: Bourbon and Beer Chili

So, my wife caught something on the airplane back from her trip last week and was nice enough to share it with the group. As such, I am digging back into the archives and resurfacing an article published way back in 2017. Since she was nice enough to share her cold, I will be nice enough to share her award-winning chili recipe. Enjoy! (Ignore the 2017 weather report, though the description of the cold is still spot on.)

It's a cold, damp, and rainy spring day outside today. The kind of day that I know is necessary for a lush green summer but still not the type of day that is all that fun to live through. Especially when you are sick with a cold. I have the kind of cold that affects the upper respiratory. So, of course, that means no fun tastings either. 

But wait! There is one thing that would be perfect on a day like today, a big bowl of Chili. I talked to my wife about it and she was gracious enough to share her secret and award-winning (office chili cook-off winner is an award, right?) recipe with you fine folks.

Bourbon and Beer Chili

Ingredients

  • 1 bottle of beer – Heavy stouts or hoppy IPAs both work nicely, Stouts make for a sweeter finished product.

  • 4 oz of bourbon – Make it something you like to drink. We use Old Grand-Dad 114 or Wild Turkey 101. The sweeter the bourbon, the sweeter the chili will be.

  • 1 pound of stew meat – we use beef or venison

  • 1 pound of Italian sausage

  • 1 large onion chopped

  • 4 cloves of minced garlic

  • 12-ounce can of tomato paste

  • 2 – 15-ounce cans of tomato sauce

  • 2 cups of beef stock

  • 2 cans of chili beans (We use 1 spicy Bush’s and 1 of the Black chili beans)

  • ½ cup brown sugar

  • 1 tablespoon of Cocoa powder

  • 2 tablespoons Chili powder (or more to taste)

  • 1 tablespoon of Mexican Oregano

  • 1 teaspoon ground Cayenne pepper

  • 2 Dried Chipotle and 1 Dried Serrano Peppers – chopped or otherwise broken up. (We grow our peppers. Then we dry and smoke the jalapenos into chipotles or just dry the serranos.)

Instructions

  • Start boiling the beer and bourbon in an 8-quart stock pot.

  • In a large skillet, brown the meat. It helps to do the Italian sausage first and then the stew meat. Add to the pot.

  • Brown the onions and garlic in the skillet you used for the meat. Add butter or oil if needed. Add to the pot.

  • Add the rest of the ingredients. Feel free to add any other spices you like in Chili.

  • Heat until boiling and then simmer for at least a half hour for the flavors to meld.

  • This is better reheated the next day so prepare it the day before.

Did you enjoy this post? If you want to support the work going on here at BourbonGuy.com, please consider a one-time donation at ko-fi.com/bourbonguy or paypal.me/BourbonGuy. Or you could buy some merch at BourbonGuyGifts.com.