100 proof of change.

Posted October 18th, 2008 by Meg

I have found my palate is evolving in ways that surprise myself. Last night, I purchased my first bottle of whiskey. Knob Creek Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey to be exact. This is a huge change of pace for me because I haven’t bought a bottle of hard liquor for probably a year (I do however have a growing collection of wine). Even more incredible is that I bought whiskey. I don’t know really how to explain it, but the feeling is similar to the craving of a cup of coffee in the morning. I don’t drink much at home so this bottle will probably just be for celebrations or “emergency” situations. However, I’m very pleased to include it into the family that is my cabinet.

Knob Creek is Jim Beam’s small batch, high-end bourbon. 100 proof, aged for 9 years, comes in a chic rectangular bottle with the reassuring black wax-sealed top. Their website has a few interesting facts on Bourbon:

• At least 51% of the grain used in making bourbon must be corn. The rest of the ingredients are commonly wheat, rye, and malted barley.

• Straight bourbon must be aged for a minimum of two years in new white oak barrels that have been charred.

• Nothing can be added at bottling to enhance flavor, add sweetness, or alter the color!

• Up to 3-4% of the bourbon in a barrel evaporates every year because of the againg process, so the longer the product is aged the less there is to sell. If a product is aged 7 to 9 years, the third that has evaporated is called the “angel’s share.”

• Bourbon began to be produced in the U.S. due to British blockades preventing importation of sugar and molasses needed to make rum. Because of the Revolutionary Army required spirit provisions, people began making bourbon (using rye as the predominant ingredient).

• For more than 30 years, 1876-1910, federal taxes on domestically produced distilled spirits (mostly bourbon) accounted for HALF of all U.S. government revenue.

• The federal personal income tax was adopted in part to replace revenue lost when the whiskey tax revenue dried up due to Prohibition.

• Bourbon was one of the first products to be sold using mass marketing techniques that set the foundation for modern advertising.

• America’s first consumer protection legislation, The Pure Food and Drug Act, was largely an effort to protect drinkers from adulterated bourbon.

• During Prohibition, bourbon was only legally available with a doctor’s prescription.

• “Ponying” a barrel is putting a few gallons of water into an empty used barrel and rolling it around for a day or two. The results tend not to be very good!

Viva la whiskey!