Kevin's Watch

Zarathustra wrote:

Ron Burgunihilo wrote:I must reiterate that despite protests to the contrary, there is a proper way of consuming spirits ...

A "proper" way? That implies that any way beside your personal preference is "improper." So anyone who is in the mood for a Manhatten is just wrong? I don't buy that. We're talking about subjective preferences. There isn't a proper or improper preference. There's simply a way you like to drink it, a way which (according to you) makes you feel manly and allows you to judge the preferences others as "improper," a way to look down on other people.

At most, you could say that drinking scotch or bourbon neat is the best way to experience the flavor of the spirits unadulterated, unmodified, and undiluted. Neat is the way to experience it at its most intense level (if that's your thing). But, as you point out, sometimes the experience is enhanced by the addition of a counter-part flavor (in your case, the smoke of a quality cigar). Some people prefer the contrasts and complexities of bringing two different things together to produce something that neither can achieve on their own. [This is why I prefer beer, btw, the contrast between sweet malt and bitter hops--in addition to the infinite variety found in adding fruits, spices, vegatables, etc.].

Personally, I think that smoke dulls the palate ... which may account for why people combine it with a strong drink, to "soften" or "mellow" the effect of putting a harsh solvent into your mouth.

Ron Burgunihilo wrote:In fact when has anything worthwhile been achieved without effort or perseverance? Why must everything be instantly rewarding, instantly pleasant, instantly charming?

As a homebrewer who must wait at least 4 weeks for his beverage to be drinkable--after 10+ hours of work to brew it and bottle it--I'm certainly not advocating a lack of effort or perserverance. The beer I drink ranges up to 13%, which most people find exceptionally strong and undrinkable. They are definitely not meant to be drank fast or one after the other.

I do actually drink bourbon neat every now and then, especially when I'm comparing one to another, in order to taste them in their purest form and get an accurate comparison. I don't particularly enjoy it this way, however, and prefer it with ice. I personally believe that strong spirits are made so strong in order to stand up to mixing them, offering people this choice and variety, and I've heard distillers who had the same opinion. For instance, you could certainly experience the flavor of vanilla in its "purest" and "most intense" form by drinking straight vanilla extract, but it's intended to be mixed sparingly into other ingredients. An argument could be made that spirits have the same function. Tequila seems to be made for margaritas. Rum seems to be made for daiquiris. When you taste these drinks, it's like discovering the spirits' purpose. In this context, "proper" is a matter of opinion.

In the end, every form of alcoholic drink is "mixed," unless you're drinking pure grain. What you like about the taste of scotch is the taste of wood, i.e. the effect that a wooden barrel has on the original liquor, without which it would be nearly unrecognizable and virtually undrinkable. Wood is a nice flavor, I admit, but it's still a way to mix and mellow and flavor the liquor into something drinkable. (Come to think of it, the "wood" flavor that a barrel adds is in many cases a lot like vanilla .... something that children and people with unadventurous palates prefer in their ice cream ). As such, it's only a matter of degree in the difference between neat and mixing a cocktail. Liquor doesn't originally taste like wood. That's something added, intentionally, because most people aren't "man" enough to prefer it in its original form. So you could "man up" and drink it unaged, if you really have something to prove. There are distillers who sell it that way. But then it wouldn't have that sweet, vanilla-y wood taste that is apparently so manly.

aliantha wrote:Becherovka, anyone? It's a liqueur as well, but it ain't for the faint of heart...

Orlion wrote:

aliantha wrote:Becherovka, anyone? It's a liqueur as well, but it ain't for the faint of heart...

I accept your challenge! If my drinking buddy weren't either a big wuss or allergic to cinnamon, we could finish a bottle in one night! Instead, I'll just have to finish about half of it.

Cameraman Jenn wrote:Last time I hit the beach with my friends Niall and Francis and BGB and the dogs, Niall brought some dark cherry infused bourbon and we mixed it with ginger ale and it was off the hook good.

aliantha wrote: Y'all come on over -- I've got a bottle of it in the fridge.