There seems to be some expansion of thoughts on the bourbon tab. When this blog was first set up, it was about bourbon, and other random thoughts inspired by bourbon. Lately, several other products have been creeping in, and possibly diluting the bourbon. Since nobody likes watered down bourbon, a reassessment is in order.

The changes have been creeping in since touring a moonshine distillery. So all of the sudden, we are talking a little moonshine too. The next thing was getting some bottled Manhattan for my father-in-law. I thought that a Manhattan was pretty good, so now those thoughts have entered the site as well. Then it became clear that I needed to try some bitters to make the ultimate Manhattan, so the site expanded further.

Now, we finally realize that the deviation is not yet done.

Today marks the first appearance of a rye whiskey on the site. Why rye? Well, the alphageek read many places that rye makes great Manhattans, and that the original Manhattans were made with rye. Yes, bitters is in there too and at some point there will be a special article devoted to just bitters. Yes, there are getting to be a lot of posts waiting to be written up. We will try to pick up the pace a little.

Taking a sip of the Wild Turkey Rye, and I think wow, this stuff burns a little going down. It is not harsh, but not the type of finish a bourbon guy expects either. Since I keep hearing how great these Manhattans can be with rye, I make one up. I first added just the sweet vermouth, and that was good drink. I added a few drops of my favorite bitters. Now, I am starting to get what the big deal is. The vermouth and bitters together clean up the finish of the rye, and make the flavor almost explode while sipping. This is the drink people rave about when they order a Manhattan.

Rye is going into the standard stock. This site will never be the same.