Bowman Center Car Bomb

March 29, 2014 by Alphageek

The alphageek and some other friends finally toured the local bourbon distillery. Yes, there is a bourbon distillery less than 15 miles from alphageek headquarters! To increase the suspense, today's article is not actually about the visit. Instead, here is an alphageek original drink recipe... made with all locally-sourced ingredients.

This drink is based on the Irish Car Bomb, which is some Guinness Stout, Bailey's Irish Cream and Jameson Irish Whiskey. Each ingredient in the original recipe has a substitute that was purchased at the Bowman Center, in Fredericksburg Virginia.

For the Stout, use Chocolate Raspberry Stout from the Blue and Gray Brewery, located in the Bowman Center.

Blue and Gray Brewing Chocolate Raspberry Stout

For the Irish Cream, Mary Hite Bowman Caramel Creme Liqueur is a more than capable stand in. The liqueur is sold at the A. Smith Bowman Distillery.

For the Jameson Irish Whiskey, we used Abraham Bowman Bourbon, which is distilled, aged for 10 years, and bottled right at the Bowman Center.

We mixed up the shots, and even got some decent layering.

Finally, we enjoyed them just like a more traditional Irish Car Bomb. The chocolate and raspberry of the stout combine with the caramel liqueur and bourbon to release the flavors while drink goes down.

There you have it, the Bowman Center Car Bomb!

At some point, there will even be a write up on the visit to the distillery, but if you get a chance, you should go.

Expansion

February 09, 2014 by Alphageek

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.

Wild Turkey Spiced

January 05, 2014 by Alphageek

The Holidays are over, but the bounty known as trips to ABC store are continuing to pay off. This is the primary season for review of lovely gifts from the past month or so. Up today is Wild Turkey Spiced.

This site is dedicated to original content, so we just sip and review. None of this researching what the bourbon is for or anything like that. Google is how you can find other opinions.

Now that we have the picture out of the way, there is really not much to tell. After opening, we took a sip, and did not get much in the way of spice, with one exception. There was a little more vanilla flavor present than usual, for a bourbon. The bourbon was a mild and smooth version of Wild Turkey, that went down well. I would suggest trying this in some sort of mixed drink that would appreciate a little extra kick of spice, such as a bourbon and cola or a Manhattan. We would have tried one of those, but we only purchased a mini bottle, and we probably won't purchase anymore.