Booze of the Week

Knob Creek is a bourbon produced by the Jim Beam distillery in Clermont, Kentucky. It is part of Jim Beam’s line of small-batch bourbons tapping into the high-end liquor market. Its siblings in the line are Booker’s, Baker’s, and Basil Hayden’s.

It is bottled at 100 proof (higher than the standard 80) and aged for nine years. It comes in a rectangular bottle with a corked and wax-sealed top. The bourbon itself has a dark, golden-brown color. The flavor is fairly distinct due to its light sweetness. According to the Small Batch company, this is due to the long aging process, during which it absorbs more sugar than usual. It is aged near the center of the rackhouse due to the warmer temperatures there, which are claimed to produce a higher quality bourbon.

About Last Week’s BotW (Woodford Reserve)

Honestly, for me, there wasn’t much difference between the Woodford Reserve and the Maker’s Mark. Maker’s Mark is slightly cheaper (at my liquor store) so, it remains at the top of my list for bourbon.

My drink:
Manhattan

2 oz. Woodford Reserve
1.5 oz. Sweet Vermouth
Dash Angostura bitters

I made these right in a rocks glass with ice and a gentle stir. Alternatively, mix in a shaker with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Manhattans are supposed to be garnished with a cherry and some people even add a splash of juice from the maraschino cherry jar. Personally, I couldn’t seem to remember to pick up jar of cherries from the grocery store.

What readers had to say about Woodford Reserve

LC Aggie Sith Said:

French Manhattan

2 parts Woodford Reserve
1 part Chambord Liqueur
dash of bitters

Shake with ice and strain in a martini glass. Garnish with a lemon twist or a cherry.

Personally, the lemon twist makes a prettier presentation, but you can play with the cherry (Heh!)…..tasted pretty good, too.

And though I would qualify this as a “frou-frou” libation, it does tend to pack a wallop, since there is nothing but liquor in it. Best drunk while watching Cary Grant