Bourbon
Vanilla, caramel and charred oak: bourbon gets its flavor from two rules that are stricter here than anywhere else. What exactly it is, which types exist, how to drink it and which glass goes with it.
The best-known bourbon brands
Two names found in almost every bar: Kentucky's best-selling bourbon and the Tennessee whiskey that sits just outside the category.
Jim Beam
In the hands of the same family from Clermont, Kentucky, since 1795. White Label is aged for four years and is the bourbon for cola, sours and juleps.
About Jim Beam →Jack Daniel's
From Lynchburg, Tennessee, and formally not a bourbon: the distillate is first passed through sugar maple charcoal. Smoother and sweeter, and the best-known American whiskey in the world.
About Jack Daniel's →Our whisky page compares all styles side by side, from Scotch malt to Japanese blend.
Every bourbon listed by brand
2 brands and 9 flavors, each with its own page covering flavor, cocktails and the right glass.
Corn, a new barrel and no other tricks
Bourbon is American whiskey that must meet a handful of strict rules. The grain mix must contain at least 51% corn; the rest is usually rye, sometimes wheat, plus a portion of malted barley that converts the starch. That corn is also why bourbon tastes sweeter and rounder than a Scotch malt. It must contain at least 40% alcohol and be made in the United States.
The second rule does most of the work: bourbon is aged in new, charred American oak barrels. So each barrel is used for bourbon only once and then passed on to Scottish, Irish or Caribbean distilleries. The charring releases vanilla, caramel and coconut in the wood, and the whiskey draws those flavors back out during a few warm Kentucky summers. No coloring or flavoring may be added: all the color and flavor come from the grain and the barrel.
In brief
Four categories you will find on the shelf
The differences lie in the aging, one extra step from Tennessee and whether anything has been added after barreling.
Straight bourbon
The standard bottle: at least two years in a new charred barrel and with no additions whatsoever. If it is younger than four years, the age must be stated on the label.
Tennessee whiskey
The same rules as bourbon, plus one extra step: the fresh distillate first drips through a thick bed of sugar maple charcoal. This makes it softer and rounder.
Bottled in bond
An old American quality standard: one distillery, one distilling season, at least four years old and exactly 50% in the bottle. Fuller and more powerful than the standard bottle.
Honey, apple and cinnamon
No longer whiskey but liqueur: bourbon blended with honey, apple or cinnamon. Sweet, smooth and lower in alcohol, and therefore not sold as bourbon.
Extra-aged bottles such as Jim Beam Black and Double Oak are aged longer or in two barrels, while small batch means that only a limited number of barrels have been blended.
Vanilla and caramel, with the sweet note of corn
Vanilla & caramel
Sweet vanilla, caramel and toasted oak, often with coconut and a hint of cinnamon. The charred barrel is most pronounced here.
Soft and lightly sweet
Round and full, with caramel, toffee and the sweetness of corn. If there is a lot of rye in the grain bill, it adds a peppery spiciness.
Warm and woody
A warm finish with oak and spices. The higher the percentage and the longer the aging, the longer that warmth lingers.
Flavor profile of a classic straight bourbon at around 40%. A bottled-in-bond or extra-aged bottle scores higher on spice and strength; the honey and apple bottles sit around 5 on sweetness.
Three ways to drink bourbon
Bourbon is made for mixing, but it holds up just as well neat. The difference lies in the glass, the amount of ice and the soft drink you choose.
With cola or ginger ale
50 ml bourbon with 150 ml cola in an ice-filled highball, with a lime wedge. Ginger ale is worth trying: the ginger and vanilla from the barrel enhance each other, while cola mainly adds sweetness.
Glass: highball →On the rocks
5 cl over one large ice cube in a heavy tumbler. One cube melts more slowly than a handful of cubes, so the whiskey gets colder without becoming watery. Let it sit for a minute before taking the first sip.
Glass: tumbler →In a Whiskey Sour
Shake 50 ml bourbon, 25 ml lemon juice, 15 ml sugar syrup and a dash of egg white hard with ice, then strain into a chilled glass. Sweet, sour and topped with foam: the easiest way to get to know bourbon.
Whiskey Sour recipe →The best-known bourbon cocktails
Bourbon accounts for half of the classic American cocktail menu. These are the recipes to start with.
Old Fashioned
Bourbon, sugar, bitters and a large ice cube. Three ingredients that let the barrel speak.
Whiskey Sour
Bourbon, lemon, sugar and egg white, shaken hard. Smooth, refreshing and always a winner.
Mint Julep
Bourbon with mint, sugar and crushed ice. The drink of the Kentucky Derby.
Manhattan
Whiskey, sweet vermouth and bitters. Sweeter and rounder with bourbon than with rye.The right glass for bourbon
A heavy tumbler for on the rocks and the Old Fashioned, a tall glass for bourbon with cola, and a mixing glass for stirring. These are the glasses we recommend ourselves.
Everything you still wanted to know about bourbon
Can't find your question here? View our cocktail recipes or get in touch.
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