The Trailer Trash dinner, Rye whiskey epiphany

Thank you. In days of yore, I drank CC and a friend drank 7 and we would compare notes.

[Jenise]

And what it was always intended to be was a relatively innocuous and smooth blend of whiskys made to be without any bite, something that could easily mix with anything, usually water, soda or lemon-lime for a highball drink. Hence, "7&7" or "7 & ginger".

Gosh, that brings back a memory: maybe a year after the illfated Canadian Club Christmas, on a Friday night I went to the bar of a fairly classy restaurant in Irvine, CA, with an older friend. I wasn't 21 yet but looked 30 when I was with someone else who was 30, as I was that night. I hadn't a clue what to order, except to NOT order a Manhattan, so I ordered a '7&7' because I heard someone else order it. A goody two shoes of the first order, I was very nervous about getting caught and when the bartender made me repeat my order, I nearly fainted. But it turned out he just didn't hear me, and I got my drink. Wasn't impressed, after the complexity of a Manhattan a 7&7 was flat and boring. That was pretty much the end of mixed drinks for me--after that I just ordered wine, even though bar wine was pretty awful in those days.

I love Rittenhouse for cocktails especially, but I do have a special bias towards Templeton (we live a mere 90 miles from Templeton, IA). I was a bit disappointed when they went largely commercial last year, and are now being distilled in Illinois, at the same distillery as Bulleit (who also makes a good rye). Back in the old days , you couldn't get it in Nebraska, and you had to go on a good old fashioned wild goose chase through Iowa to try hunt some down. That was also when they used to hand number and date each bottle. No more of that, but the quality seems to still be there, so I won't stop drinking the most local rye we have here.

Speaking of 100% ryes - try Pendleton 1910 sometime. It is quite well balanced, though a bit pricey. I like it better than the regular Pendleton.

Pretty much agree with Hoke on the rye points.
Ritt 100 is our go-to for stirred cocktails, Overholt for shaken.

Love the Templeton.
(Ri)^1 is definitely good but pricier
Others in that same category are Michters Straight, Willet bonded.
Buffalo Trace's Sazerac 6 is a bit cheaper but still not the value of Ritt or Overholt.

I'm not a huge Russell's 6yr fan. For me, it's a bit on the harsh side.
Bulleit rye? I like the bourbon much more.

Michter's 10 anyone?

Pretty much agree with Hoke on the rye points.
Ritt 100 is our go-to for stirred cocktails, Overholt for shaken.

Love the Templeton.
(Ri)^1 is definitely good but pricier
Others in that same category are Michters Straight, Willet bonded.
Buffalo Trace's Sazerac 6 is a bit cheaper but still not the value of Ritt or Overholt.

I'm not a huge Russell's 6yr fan. For me, it's a bit on the harsh side.
Bulleit rye? I like the bourbon much more.

Michter's 10 anyone?

Bill, I'm with you on the Bulleit Rye. There's a great big hole in the middle of the palate. It's 95% rye, and that may be the problem; if there was just a little malt or corn in there to fill it in it would be much better. The bourbon is made by/at Four Roses, and it's okay. The 10 Year is way better than okay; it's good stuff.

The 10 Year is way better than okay; it's good stuff.

10yr Bulleit? I really like that one.
I got a bottle from Ms. Hollis (autographed and all-artsy custom painted) during AZ cocktail week. Good sippin whiskey!

The 10 Year is way better than okay; it's good stuff.

10yr Bulleit? I really like that one.
I got a bottle from Ms. Hollis (autographed and all-artsy custom painted) during AZ cocktail week. Good sippin whiskey!

Hollis is a hoot, isn't she? One of these days she'll finish a sentence.

[Jenise]

Okay, so last night we went to see a play and chose a new bar in town for a light dinner beforehand. I did two things completely out of character: while Bob ordered wines, I ordered a rye-based Whiskey Sour (never had one before, loved this), and for my second drink, asked the bartender to put together a flight for me of three rye whiskeys. She chose which ones (after turning me down on the Rittenhouse, which they did not have), and made it even more fun by providng some from unsusual sources. Here's what I had, in order of preference:

1776 from Kentucky: palest of the three. Most muted of the noses at first. Smelled and/or tasted raw almond, lemon peel, lavender and cardamom. If I'd had more than a tasting pour, would have probably found another 20 things to mention--very complex and satisfying.

Willett from Indiana: Best nose, very spicy and closer to what I was expecting based on the Ry:1 experience but with a tad more vanilla. However, hottest of the three on the palate, it seared a bit.

Rendezvous from Utah: Sweetest nose, lots of vanilla bean and a bit smoky/woody. If it were a wine I'd call it over-oaked. For those reasons it was Bob's second favorite (he loves vanilla bean) but the one I liked least--closer to Bourbon than rye for me.

Rendezvous from Utah: Sweetest nose, lots of vanilla bean and a bit smoky/woody. If it were a wine I'd call it over-oaked. For those reasons it was Bob's second favorite and the one I liked least--closer to Bourbon than rye for me.

This is from the HIgh West Distillery in Utah---but they don't distill it. They don't have whiskey of their own now, so they go to Kentucky to buy two different rye lots, one young, one old, one about 80% rye, one about 95% rye. So it's a pretty bodacious rye statement. I suspect the oakiness you pick up is from the younger, livelier rye blend, whereas the smoky/woody is probably coming from the older stuff. (Don't let the fact that they don't distill it dissuade you; it's perfectly acceptable practice to buy lots of whiskey---called "found whiskey"---and make your own blends. There's a local distillery here, Bull Run---from the local watershed, not the Civil War battle---that does this bourbon blending with a second label they call Temperance Trader. It's a damned good high-rye blend, very successful here in Portland.)

And it's close to bourbon, because it comes from the heartland of bourbon.

The 1776 is another rye from the giant distillery that also produces the Bulleit Rye and Templeton Rye, LDI. They are a huge distillery that custom batches for lots of people. The 1776 is tasty, and marketed to evoke the famous, legendary James E. Pepper (no relation to the soda Dr. Pepper that I know of) of the bourbon business of yore.

Willet is highly regarded.

[Jenise]

Hoke, thanks for the background on those ryes. Lots of good information there--like the "found whiskey" practice. I'd have never known!

Regarding "found whiskey"...It's similar to (same as?) the practice in Scotland used by houses like Johnny Walker to purchase others base product, blend, maybe do their own barrel program, then bottle, no?

I've really enjoyed some of the product out of High West. The Bourye is pretty indeed. Not a huge fan of their bottled Manhattan but it isn't terrible.

Great idea with the rye flight, Jenise.

Regarding "found whiskey"...It's similar to (same as?) the practice in Scotland used by houses like Johnny Walker to purchase others base product, blend, maybe do their own barrel program, then bottle, no?

I've really enjoyed some of the product out of High West. The Bourye is pretty indeed. Not a huge fan of their bottled Manhattan but it isn't terrible.

Great idea with the rye flight, Jenise.

You are, of course, absolutely right, Bill. I'd even go so far as to say that most of the blended scotches out there are not solely from a single distillery. It's common accepted practice for all the distilleries to purchase from other distilleries so as to ensure the complexities of the blends.

Most people focus on the Single Malts, but they are still a small proportion of what is made and consumed---less than 10%---and most of the distilleries depend on their blends to survive. There are, and always have been, distilleries throughout Scotland and Ireland who have purchased whisky for blending and then stamped their labels on it.

This is not a problem. Or shouldn't be. The only time I have a problem with it is if the brand goes out of its way to lead the consumer to believe it made its own whiskey...or even that it has its own distillery.

That's why I like people like Bull Run Distillery. They market their found whiskey clearly as Kentucky Straight Bourbon and they freely tell their customers what it is. And they market it under the "Temperance Trader" label. Later, when their own distilled whiskey comes to maturation it will be labeled "Bull Run Distillery".

What? No recycled Cool Whip containers as salad bowls? That's one of Jeff Foxworthy's "You may be a redneck..." "...if you have a complete set of matching salad bowls with the words Cool Whip on the side."

Sounds like a great evening full of fun and creativity. I would love to live in your neighborhood Jenise!
I've been missing the boards for awhile, so I'm out of touch...What's the latest with Tammy Faye? Sorry to bring up a sad subject...

[Jenise]

Sounds like a great evening full of fun and creativity. I would love to live in your neighborhood Jenise!
I've been missing the boards for awhile, so I'm out of touch...What's the latest with Tammy Faye? Sorry to bring up a sad subject...

It was great fun indeed. Never thought of Cool Whip, but then I try real hard not to think of things that are cold, white and creamy.

Carrie, my beloved Tammy Faye passed away three weeks ago.

Carrie, my beloved Tammy Faye passed away three weeks ago.

I'm so sorry, Jenise. I know how special the girl was to you and Bob. Major condolences and a big cyber hug.

[Jenise]

Thanks, Carrie. It's tough. She was the second most important person in my life, and she truly was a 'person'. More human and more an equal than any cat I've ever known. It was so unfair to lose her this way. She was supposed to have years. There's a post in Friends and Fun about her last day.

How's your brood? Bella fitting in well?

How's your brood? Bella fitting in well?

You are sweet to ask. She fits in like she's always been here and who knew our crazy girl Princess just needed a playmate more her size. The two of them are inseparable and have wrestling matches akin to the WWF, complete with the fake growling, snarling and pinning each other down. It's a riot to watch.
Here's a photo my friend took last week while she was visiting. Bella's not quite as practiced at being "camera ready" as the other two but we'll work on her before the Christmas photo.

Hi Mommy!.jpg

[Jenise]

How cute--love Bella's white feet! The white star on her chest is something one sees a lot in solid black dogs, but the 'bootie' coloration on her feet is pretty unusual to my eye. ou made me laugh at the idea of 'camera ready'--Princess and Kirby clearly have it mastered but poor Bella--black eyes on a black face probably doom her, unless there's overhead light to create reflection, to having a bit of a 'blank stare'. It's cool that they get along so well. Does Kirbs feel left out?

How cute--love Bella's white feet! The white star on her chest is something one sees a lot in solid black dogs, but the 'bootie' coloration on her feet is pretty unusual to my eye. ou made me laugh at the idea of 'camera ready'--Princess and Kirby clearly have it mastered but poor Bella--black eyes on a black face probably doom her, unless there's overhead light to create reflection, to having a bit of a 'blank stare'. It's cool that they get along so well. Does Kirbs feel left out?

Yes, Bella has the sweetest little beady black eyes. Her sharp features actually make her incredibly cute, as opposed to beautiful (her name is a misnomer!) like I think Princess is. I love that they are all so different and have different personalities. I call Bella the little Meerkat. In the morning, she puts her paws up on the bed first and then up pops her little pointy head to say "Good morning!" It cracks us up.
Kirbs? He likes the company and occasionally runs with the pack if something excites or interests him enough, but he's really more of a mama's boy and sort of hears his own drummer. We don't call him "Putzy" for nothing. He likes to putz around.