The Berkshire Room (Chicago)

March 28, 2018 ~ Bill Thornley ~ 4 Comments

I am in Chicago this week for work and the concierge at the hotel suggested I try the Berkshire Room. So, last night, I grabbed a cab and headed to Ohio Avenue and a bourbon lovers paradise.

The Berkshire Room feels like you are walking into a Speakeasy. It is small, intimate and very well appointed. What makes it even more special is the bartenders know how to create incredible cocktails. On the menu, you can ask for a “Dealers Choice-Cocktail.” It is fun because you pick the glass style, the type of liquor, and your flavor preference – and leave it to the bartender!

I chose a rocks glass and bourbon. They asked what style drink I like and I said I like Old Fashions and he took it from there. What I got was an amazing cocktail made with the following:

2 oz. Ancient Age Bourbon
1/2 oz. Averna
1/2 oz. Walnut Liquor
1/8 oz. House Falernum
Three Dashes of Angostura Bitters
Garnished with an orange peel

I was enjoying the drink so much I decided to order the “Pick Any Tree” Chef’s Rotating Artisan Charcuterie & Cheese Selections with Crostini. It was a generous sized appetizer for two before dinner (I made it dinner). I was enjoying the meat and cheese so much I ordered another “Dealers Choice” to enjoy with it.

I like to sit at the bar, especially when traveling alone. You get a lot of conversation and I tend to learn a lot. Several locals were very knowledgeable about Chicago whiskey bars, bourbon, and the Berkshire Room. I found out it is so popular that two guys got a place very close to the bar so they can have a drink after work on a regular basis.

The Berkshire uses a lot of Buffalo Trace products. They had the full Antique Collection and all years of the Pappy Van Winkle Collection. They had a selection of probably 150 bourbons and ryes behind the bar. They also have a selection of very old bourbons from the 80’s, all the way back to the 40’s.

When in the windy city, stop in The Berkshire Room for a unique whiskey experience. You will be taken back in time. It is a very relaxing experience.

Thanksgiving Cocktails

November 22, 2017 ~ Bill Thornley ~ 1 Comment

While we traditionally serve wine during the Thanksgiving meal (I recommend a nice pinot noir – a light red pairs well with turkey), bourbon cocktails are a great way to start your Thanksgiving gathering. I was asked by my sister-in-law Cheryl to come up with a couple fun cocktails for Thanksgiving Day at their house. Challenge accepted!

I have been pouring over internet sites to find some fun drinks. A common theme among the cocktails I’ve found is What I have found is cranberries, cinnamon, and apple cider. I asked the guys at Hi-Time Wine Cellars what bourbon they would use in a fall cocktail. They suggested Buffalo Trace and Elijah Craig. They said the spice in both bourbons will play well with the Thanksgiving flavors. The Elijah Craig at 94 proof is just a little higher proof than the Buffalo Trace at 90.

Obviously Bourbon Bill is planning on serving bourbon cocktails but there are also plenty of cocktail recipes out there using rum, vodka or another liquor. Your menu should definitely drive the cocktails. As I mentioned above, also think also about what you will serve to drink with the big meal. We usually get some of the newly released Beaujolais Nouveau from France, or a California Pinot Noir to serve with our turkey (usually cook one on the Weber grill and deep fry one).

The three cocktails I recommend are below. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your families!

The first drink I would suggest is a Bourbon Cranberry Cocktail. This drink I found on the Food Network from Nancy Fuller. The recipe makes a lot so you may want to cut it in half unless you have a lot of Bourbon drinkers.

Bourbon Cranberry Cocktail
2 Cups Fresh Cranberries
1 Cup Orange Juice
1/3 Cup Sugar
3 Cinnamon Sticks
1L (about 4 Cups) Bourbon
Orange Peels for Garnish

Combine the cranberries, orange juice, sugar and cinnamon sticks in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring, until the sugar dissolves and cranberries start to pop, about 5 minutes. Let cool completely, then combine with the bourbon in a pitcher. To serve, pour into glasses over ice and garnish with an orange peel.

The next drink is for the going the fall apple route. We went apple picking with the kids in Virginia a little over a week ago. When I saw this drink I thought it was the perfect sophisticated fall bourbon drink. I got this one from the Woodford Reserve website. They have a lot of creative cocktails on there.

Woodford Reserve Apple Cider
4 ounces hot fresh apple cider
2 ounces Woodford Reserve
1 ounces brown sugar syrup (recipe below)

Pour the ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake well until chilled and pour into your favorite stemmed glass.

For the syrup: Combine equal parts water and brown sugar. Bring to a boil until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and let cool.

For my last Holiday cocktail, I would suggest a “Fall Fashion Issue.” It’s an Old Fashioned from Bourbon & Banter. “In autumn, I like to add the seasonal flavor of apples. Cider is delicious, but there’s no place for juice in an old fashioned. No, you have to keep things boozy with applejack. Applejack was first made by William Laird in New Jersey in 1698. George Washington liked it so much he asked Robert Laird for the recipe in 1760. Laird & Company received distillery License No. 1 from the U.S. Department of the Treasury in 1780.” For this old fashioned we split the spirit duties between bourbon and applejack. The bitters will be aromatic, the sugar is honey, and the water is always ice.

Fall Fashion Issue
1 oz bourbon
1 oz applejack
1/4 oz honey syrup
3 dashes aromatic bitters

Stir all ingredients with ice in a double old-fashioned glass. Garnish with a twist of orange peel.

To make honey syrup mix equal parts of honey and hot water.

Bourbon Review: Stagg Jr.

July 26, 2017 ~ Bill Thornley ~ Leave a comment

Stagg 5

Back in February I bought a bottle of Stagg Jr. that Ryan at Hi-Time Wine Cellars had recommended when I was drooling down the aisles. I knew its reputation; I have a bottle of Stagg I have been nursing for a couple of years. But I have never had Stagg Jr. I love anything from Buffalo Trace so the $59.99 price tag seemed very fair. Well, looking on line recently, I should have bought more than 1 bottle because when I run out I will have to pay north of $125 for that same bottle.

Taken straight from the back label of the bottle:

“George T. Stagg was born in Kentucky on December 19^th, 1835. Stagg built the most dominant American distillery on the banks of the Kentucky River, during a time known as the Gilded Age of Bourbon. The Distillery survived floods, fires, droughts, and even Prohibition – when it made whiskey for medicinal purposes. Today, Buffalo Trace Distillery strives to carry on the tradition of its famous forefather. Uncut and unfiltered, this robust bourbon whiskey ages for nearly a decade and boasts the bold character that is reminiscent of the man himself.”

Robust even falls short as a description of this bourbon. As you can see by the color it is a very deep color I would describe as walnut. At a 130 proof it’s not been cut. When you open the bottle you can smell the spice. It’s a distinct nutmeg smell. You also pick up vanilla and cinnamon. This is an 8 to 9-year-old bourbon that has picked up a lot of flavor from the No. 4 char in the Missouri Ozark American white oak barrels where it has lived.

In Fred Minnick’s book Bourbon Curious (which I highly recommend), he devotes an entire chapter to tasting bourbons, breaking it down by grain, or spice prominence. The older bourbons that are uncut have that rich color and stronger flavor profile.

I definitely suggest getting a bottle now. You may still find it in some liquor stores around the country without paying high prices. Hi-Time Wine Cellars with their following sells out of these limited release bourbons very quickly. You can certainly find some in your higher end local restaurants or bars. It is a bourbon I would highly recommend if you can find it.

My next blog will be about another 9-year-old bourbon I picked up yesterday on Ryan’s recommendation. Stay tuned!

Visiting the Bourbon Trail

March 1, 2016March 1, 2016 ~ Bill Thornley ~ 5 Comments

A great adventure for spring is hitting the Kentucky Bourbon Trail. Lynn and I did the Bourbon Trail in the Fall a few years ago. Kentucky is a big state and you can’t cover it all in a day, or even two. Before hitting the road, you definitely want to have a plan of attack to see the distilleries you want to tour.

But first, if you are going to earn the official Bourbon Trail t-shirt or Julep Cup, you need to decide which trail you will follow. “Which trail?” you say. Yes! There are 3 trails: The Bourbon Trail (mostly the big distilleries you’ve heard of), the Craft Bourbon Tour (smaller distilleries) and the Urban Bourbon Trail (Louisville’s distilleries). All 3 are unique and offer different experiences, and can also be mixed and matched together.

Lynn and I drove to Kentucky after visiting our daughter in Richmond, Virginia – so that kind of determined where we began. If flying in, your could start in Lexington and end in Louisville, or vice versa.

We started at “Old Pogue” without reservations. It was during sequestration and while we had planned to drive the Blue Ridge Parkway through Shenandoah National Park, we were shut out, so we went on to Maysville, Kentucky. We showed up at Old Pogue for the first tour of the day. We knocked on the door and when John Pogue opened the door we said we were there for the first tour. John said, “I didn’t know I had a tour this morning,” and we said, “You do now.” It was just the 3 of us. What a great way to start the week.

Old Pogue is a great little Craft Distillery. Founded in 1876, it closed after prohibition and was re-opened by 5th and 6th generation Pogues. They even bought back the old antebellum home of the family which sits next to small distillery.

DSCW0084

We then continued on to Town Branch

And then it was on to the rest of the distilleries on the Bourbon Trail passport. Although they are big they are all different. Lynn had read about the “Corn to Cork” tour at Woodford Reserve. It was a great education and they do very small groups. Its more expensive and you have to book in advance but well worth it. We sampled some bourbon right out of the barrel at Woodford Reserve. Lynn also got to fill a barrel at Jim Beam, and while there also filled her own bottle of Knob Creek. Along the Bourbon Trail, we also visited Wild Turkey, Four Roses, and Evan Williams.

Four Roses

Jim Beam

Filling a barrel Jim Beam

Wild Turkey

Woodford Reserve

The Craft Tour gives you the chance to see things even more up close and have a more intimate experience. We haven’t completed that passport yet, but did a lot of it. I will write about the Old Pogue experience later. It deserves a whole blog.Willett Distillery was another great experience and well worth the stop.Limestone Branch also offered another unique experience.

We also visited many others that technically aren’t part of the branded “Bourbon Trail.” Makers Mark is another incredible experience and tucked into this beautiful valley. Another “must see” is Buffalo Trace – purveyors of Pappy Van Winkle, E.H. Taylor, Blanton’s, Stagg, and a number of other great bourbons.

Bufalo Trace

Blanton’s bottles

Where’s the Pappy?

The Urban Bourbon Trail is a bar hopping experience that allows you to experience all that great bourbon you have been tasting and reading about all week. When you combine that with the food in Louisville it’s an evening you will not forget.

We ended our trip in Louisvile, and stayed the night at the Seelbach Hotel, a great old historic hotel. While we were in Louisville, we stopped by the Brown Hotel for a Hot Brown – a must do in Louisville!

Feel free to leave a comment below if you’re planning your Bourbon Trail visit and are looking for additional suggestions on your trip!

Bar Review: Whiskey Cake Kitchen & Bar (Plano, TX)

January 28, 2016January 28, 2016 ~ Bill Thornley ~ 2 Comments

I have been to Bourbon Mecca in Texas, and it’s not in Dallas. It’s in Plano at Whiskey Cake Kitchen and Bar. I may start a turf war in Texas but IMHO there can’t be a better selection of bourbons in Dallas, maybe all of Texas. I looked and I looked and I looked. But at Whiskey Cake, I didn’t see anything missing. In a new brick building in Plano is a hip bar and restaurant with a southern spirits and food menu big on choices. There are so many choices you will get brain freeze picking from their over 150 offerings of the liquid gold. Whiskey Cake is named after their incredible whiskey cake. “D Magazine” has named it as the best Dallas dessert 3 years running.

Whiskey Cake opened 5 years ago last November. It feels like an old downtown establishment. With a sitting area of sofas and chairs you feel just like you were having a drink at home. It is home to a Bourbon drinker. I started off with a Stagg Jr. from Buffalo Trace based on the suggestion of the bar staff. I had never had this one and I was told it was excellent and easier to find than the normal Stagg. It is a high proof bourbon at 134, with a lot of spice and body. Not to mention great color, very deep, very rich. I followed that with an order of the deviled eggs which were egg-cellent. I know, bad joke, but they are incredible. I then ordered a Sazerac cocktail made with Rittenhouse Rye. Bartender Anthony made it for me and it was everything I expected and more. It was a nice follow-up to the Stagg Jr. and I complemented it with the fried green tomatoes with remoulade & lemon sauce.

Fried green tomatoes and a Sazerac cocktail

I met Chris, the Assistant General Manager. Chris said the incredible selection of bourbons are the passion and vision of Tanner Fleming, the General Manager. Chris suggested I try the 13-year Van Winkle Family Reserve Rye. I had not seen it prior to today. Well, that was incredible. I will not forget it after today. So smooth and so Van Winkle, words just can’t describe it. WOW! This is another great offering from Buffalo Trace you will not find in many bars.

Last sip of 13-year Van Winkle Family Reserve Rye

The next time you are in the DFW area, take the time to drive to Whiskey Cake in Plano. The bar staff is all very friendly, helpful, and knowledgeable. The food was just as good as the strong bourbon selection. I didn’t have the time or capacity to try more of the menu but everyone I spoke with at the bar was enjoying their choices. I was very impressed and very happy as I left. By the way, I have been in the corrugated business for more years than I will mention. How could I not like an establishment that uses recycled corrugated with their name on it for coasters?

I ended the evening sipping the Van winkle and eating their incredible Whiskey Cake. Man that was sinful and so good.

whiskey_cake-7255 — Photo from D Magazine

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this: