Scotch / Bourbon acquired taste?

Good evening all, I am looking to add a bit of sophistication to my recreational drinking. I am far past the point of drinking to get drunk. I would like to be able to order something other than beer and wine when I am out; I was wondering is there a way to acclimate oneself to liking the taste of fine Whiskys?

My personal preference is bourbon. Scotch is nice, but can get extremely expensive really quickly. If you are not much of a liquor drinker, make sure to have a bit of ice in your drink. Some people are really against putting rocks in a drink, but it will open up the flavors and make it easier to sip. For bourbon, you can get really good bottles for under 50 bucks. For scotch you will want to pay more than 50 to get a good bottle. Try four roses small batch bourbon. It's a favorite of mine.

For an easy sipping bourbon, take a serious look at Woodford Reserve and Buffalo Trace. Both have a lot of warmth but not a lot of fire.

I started with scotch personally. Glenlivet 12 with ice. Moved on to other scotches, then bourbon. Then ditched the ice for a splash of water. Now I drink both neat.

Obviously the key is drinking "good stuff" as opposed to rot gut. I know my first exposure to whiskey was just garbage and so I looked at it as something to choke down when someone else demanded we do a shot of it.

I started with Scotch too. I really hated Bourbon until I discovered Scotch. I think its the heavy oaking inherent in Bourbon since it is required to spend some time in brand new charred oak barrels. I found Highland Park 12yr to be really good. Honestly, acquiring the taste is really just getting yourself a bottle and making your way through it over several weeks. I started with a bit of water, then moved to swishing an ice cube around in it, then finally drinking it neat.

I really prefer Bourbon now, but I tend to drink it with a bit of ice or soda water. For Bourbon, you can get some really decent stuff for great prices. Evan Williams black is my go to "everyday" bourbon.

Irish, specifically Bushmill's Black (aka Black Bush) was the gateway whisky for me. I'd always been a fan of good rums, tequilas, gins, etc. But couldn't get a taste for whisky. An Irish friend of mine sat me down and told me he was gonna teach me about Irish Whisky, and darned if I didn't learn.

Now, several years later -- I like most forms of whisky, but my favorite is a good American Bourbon. Start with something nice and smooth and mid to higher in price. Angels Envy ($45) might be a good one, smooth and a little sweeter than most, so it cuts the burn. Basil Haydens ($35) is often considered a good "beginners" whisky too.
FWIW my favorite is Blantons ($55) -- very, very good, but at about $50, might be more than you want to spend to just try it out.

Stay away from the more inexpensive stuff like Jack Daniels, Evan Williams Black, Wild Turkey 81 or 101 -- they're all fine, but probably not a good entry point. (That said, EW Black is my everyday "swillin" bourbon)

Edit: Oso's post above mentioning ice is on point -- it's a good way to mellow the fire a bit while letting bringing some of the flavors out. I personally always put a rock or two in my whisky because I love tasting the change in flavors as it dilutes.

Irish Whiskey is a really easy way to get into the brown liquors. It's very smooth and sweet.

My Scotch journey started with a bottle Glenfiddich 12 and went smokier from there.

I still haven't really gotten into Bourbon. I plan on picking up a bottle or two this summer to see if I can acquire the taste.

I've always been partial to bourbon, although I did not originally find it easy to drink, so to speak. I did not care for scotch at all when I first had some, but I quite enjoy it now. I totally agree that Irish whiskey is a nice way to get into either, as would be Canadian whiskey.

Rocks will help you get into it, too. Don't be ashamed to add a good bit of water, either. Essentially, you are training your palate, so there is no shame in starting light. I drink all whiskeys neat and with a splash, these days, but it certainly hasn't always been that way.

Good advice already given. This is so much a personal quest that YMMV really applies. More expensive generally yields better quality, but not always. I recommend ralfy.com for exceptional spirit reviews. Admittedly, he is a little quirky, and mostly reviews Scotch Whisky, but his explanations of how to taste and what to look for are very helpful.

Secondly, I think it is important to take budget into consideration. Sure, bottom shelf is bottom shelf, but there is no need to break the bank when you are just trying to break into the brown spirits. Quality bourbon, particularly, is available in the $20-30 range (California prices). Take it slow and learn what you like. Then follow that.

Cheers.

PS Like so many others said, Evan Williams Black is my go to brand, but there are better choices, budget permitting.

It is definitely an acquired taste. Going from beer/wine to spirits requires you to acclimate to the strong alcohol, as that is usually what turns folks off straight spirits. A lower alcohol spirit (avoid anything "cask strength") or a splash of water/some ice can blunt that harsh edge. Take sips, keep the spirit in your mouth and try to taste all the flavors and how they change over a minute or so. Lots of whisky glasses are narrow at the lip to concentrate the flavors on the nose, but a wide lipped tumbler (those big square glasses for example) will let the alcohol vapors dissipate a bit and may make for an easier starting experience as well.

Took me about half a bottle of Speyburn (a relatively cheap, mild speyside scotch) with a glass a night for a week or so to train myself to taste past the alcohol and enjoy the spirit. From there it is a wild rampage to all the different flavors of spirits (except tequila and gin, blah).

For your money, I think a nice Canadian Whiskey is a great place to start. They are blended, so tend to have smoother characteristics than others. They are also less expensive, so you can afford to go mid-range.

Personally, I love the smokey peatiness of scotch. But prob not the easiest place to start.

I'll preface this comment by saying that I know next to nothing about scotch, bourbon, etc...

I am surprised at the suggestions of spending anything over $40 for a place to start. Try the recommended "bargains" and go from there. If you don't like the workhorse examples, what would you find appealing in the good stuff?

Aw heck...this is B&B...just get one of everything.

I started with ice and a little water, moved on to just ice, and now neat or with just a splash of water, depending on the whiskey. One of my standard recommendations for a starter bourbon is Buffalo Trace. It took me a lot longer to get into scotch, but I really enjoy it now.

The humble 'scotch and soda' is a great way to get your feet wet, and has the added benefit of being pretty heavy on the 'old school cool' when you order one at the restaurant lounge.

Same for bourbon and soda. The REAL James Bond drink.

Wish could tell you. I'm actually the opposite of you. I haven't come across a single beer, ale, stout, or anything in between that tastes good. But bourbon and scotch I love to sip on.

Edcculus said:

For Scotch, I’d recommend staying from the Islay malts. They are very smoky/peaty. Not all Scotch distilleries uses peat fires to dry their malted barley. That is what gives that flavor. Some use none at all. So for a beginner, stay away from any single malt Scotch from Islay.

Click to expand...

I disagree. When I first started with Scotch, I bought a bottle of McCallan 12 port barrel aged scotch. I drank 3-4 drama and thought if this is scotch, they can keep it. I then tried Talisker at a friend's house and liked it quite a lot. After that, I tried several scotches at restaurants. I found I like the peaty variety and not the sweet stuff. I still have most of that bottle. I feed it to friends who like it and if someone said they love it, they would go home with it.

Just start sipping! Try to get a different whisky each time out. Get a different bottle each time you finish a bottle. So many different whiskies to sample. I get a second rocks glass with ice to mellow the uncut bourbons or the peaty Islays with a small cube or two. After trying something new I research it a bit. You'll figure out what you like quickly.

I was never a whiskey drinker till a couple years ago when a co-worker of mine gave me a few samples of bourbons he liked...discovered I like some bourbons. I then tried various styles of whiskeys and always preferred bourbon. Its really a trial and error thing with whiskey and takes some time to sort it out...the journey is pretty good though.