Too Hot For Bourbon.

Few things will put me off my bourbon but sustained 90° temperatures is one of them. I look forward to drinking some bourbon perhaps next week.

Canadian Mist Launches Black Diamond.

The front label of new Canadian Mist Black Diamond describes it as "a richer, more robust blended Canadian whisky." That's exactly what it is. I couldn't have said it better myself.

The taste of regular Canadian Mist is so mild as to be almost evanescent. It is easy to imagine they just altered the percentage of flavoring whisky to base whisky in favor of more flavor -- just turned the taste up -- but Master Blender Steve Hughes did more than that to earn his signature on the label. He kicked in more rye whiskey and more sherry too. The result is a richer and more robust blended Canadian whisky, like I said.

Hughes did not, however, give it more wood. Canadian Mist Black Diamond is aged three years, just like the standard expression. Because of its youth, Black Diamond reminds one of some of the young whiskies coming out of American micro-distilleries these days. It also demonstrates why young whiskies tend to show better as blends than as straights.

Although positioned as a 'premium line extension,' Canadian Mist Black Diamond remains solidly in the value segment at a suggested retail of $14.99 for a 750 ml bottle. It is 43% alcohol instead of the usual 40%.

With Noilly Pratt Sweet Vermouth and Fee Brothers Cherry Bitters it makes a richer and more robust manhattan.

See Kentucky.

If you're looking for a good late summer, early fall getaway, may I suggest Kentucky's bourbon country.

If you are a whiskey fan who would love to see where most American whiskey is made, but is married to or otherwise affiliated with one or more individuals who don't share that enthusiasm, this post is for you.

If you have to limit yourself to a couple of distillery tours, Maker's Mark and Woodford Reserve are good choices. Both are attractive facilities in attractive locations, very visitor-friendly, but they also let you see all steps in the process, "from corn to cork."

The Woodford distillery is near Lexington, Kentucky, which is horse country. Many horse farms welcome visitors and there are other horse-related attractions in the area.

Bardstown, Kentucky, is a very quaint town with excellent bed-and-breakfast lodging. The Oscar Getz Museum of Whiskey History is there as well as the Heaven Hill Visitors Center, which is a whiskey museum in its own right. You can forgo the tour at Heaven Hill and just do the Visitors Center, but do participate in the tasting. You can taste at Maker's and Woodford too.

Depending on the season and how outdoorsy you are there are some fine opportunities for hiking in the Bardstown area. One is Bernheim Forest, a gift to the people from a distiller (I. W. Bernheim, who created I. W. Harper Bourbon), that happens to be right across the road from the Jim Beam Distillery.

Also depending on the season, just driving around the countryside can be very enjoyable, especially in the horse country near Woodford. (Be forewarned that the 2010 World Equestrian Games are in Lexington and will monopolize most of the area's tourism infrastructure for the entire month of October.)

If your lodging and dining tastes are more urban, Louisville is a good place to base your visit. You can easily daytrip from there to any of the distilleries or other major attractions and Louisville has its own attractions, from the Louisville Slugger Museum to the Kentucky Kingdom theme park.

The area has many historical attractions related to Abraham Lincoln, who was born there, and to the period of the late-18th, early-19th centuries when Kentucky was part of America's western frontier.

Kentucky has put a lot of emphasis on whiskey tourism lately but if your party is mixed there is plenty for the non-whiskey members to enjoy too.

Advice For The Bourbon Beginner.

Many people who are new to bourbon don't know where to start. Some turn to books, magazines or web sites like StraightBourbon or BourbonEnthusiast for recommendations. But it can be confusing.

I'm on record, in my book and elsewhere, as not thinking very much of rating systems. Their basic flaw is that they give a sheen of objectivity to something inherently subjective.

I had a long conversation about this with Jim Murray once and his conclusion was, "we owe it to people to give them some kind of guidance."

Point taken.

Here, for example, is a pitfall to avoid. Newcomers do themselves no favor by trying to find a consensus 'best' bourbon or other whiskey as if they can learn all they need to know by tasting 'the best.' Unfortunately, products enthusiasts rave about tend to be atypical and hard to appreciate if you are still learning the basics.

My recommendation for a beginner is to work your way through the leading brands from the major producers -- Jim Beam white, Jack Daniel's No. 7, Evan Williams black, Wild Turkey 101.

Compare them to each other, get to know them.

Taste them the right way. Start your journey by developing your tasting technique. I recommend tasting everything both neat and diluted with room temperature water.

Remember that smelling is a crucial part of tasting.

For the next round, pick the two or three of the first group that you liked best and figure out what that producer's step-up is. If you like Wild Turkey 101, you might want to step up to Russell's Reserve, Rare Breed or Kentucky Spirit. Which one? It doesn't really matter, though budget might play a role as Kentucky Spirit costs twice as much as Russell's Reserve.

After that you should be able to fly solo.

Most of all, resist the lure of short cuts. They're a waste of time because they don't work. You don't become a bourbon connoisseur just because you drank a bottle of Pappy 23. That's probably the hardest thing to get across to young people so I'll repeat it, because they love it when you do that. Short cuts don't work.

Okay, vets. What are your tips for beginners?

Heaven Hill To Add Aging Capacity.

How much does a new whiskey warehouse cost? About $2.1 million, according to an announcement today by Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear. He announced that Heaven Hill will build two new warehouses in Nelson County, a $4.2 million capital investment.

Although 'rickhouse' is a more evocative term, most folks call them warehouses. The new ones are a little more modern but are still just a steel shell surrounding racks that hold the 53 gallon oak barrels in which whiskey is aged. Older designs typically hold about 20,000 barrels each. The new ones at Heaven Hill will be a little bigger than that, holding 22,968 barrels each. (The picture above is of a new warehouse at Jim Beam.)

“Kentucky is pleased to be part of the continued growth of one of our signature industries,” said Beshear.

The footprint of the new Heaven Hill warehouses will be 20,000 square feet each. Construction will begin soon and they expect to enter the first barrels by the end of January, 2011.

“The construction of these new warehouses is just another indication of not only the continued growth of our Evan Williams, Elijah Craig and other Bourbon brands but attests to the vitality of the Bourbon category around the world,” said Max Shapira, president of Heaven Hill Distilleries.

Heaven Hill will receive tax incentives up to $88,200 from the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority, through the Kentucky Enterprise Initiative Act.

New Heaven Hill Wheater Has Cognac Vibe.

It is in very well-aged wheated bourbons that you can experience why I believe bourbon whiskey evolved more in imitation of cognac than scotch. Without the sharp, grassy notes of rye the new charred barrel reigns supreme and it is almost possible to forget you are drinking whiskey and not brandy.

You can taste this for yourself if you are lucky enough to snag a bottle of Heaven Hill’s upcoming limited edition, cask strength, non-chilled filtered, 10-year-old wheated bourbon. That is this year’s Parker’s Heritage Collection release, which should start to appear in stores next month. But it won't be there long. There will be fewer than 5,000 bottles available. The suggested retail is $79.99.

Here are my tasting notes for the first of what will be two batches. The first one is 63.9 percent alcohol (127.8° proof).

Undiluted I get red raspberry on the nose and very dark molasses on the palate. Diluted I get caramel and vanilla on both, also old oak on the nose and on the palate very light notes of mint, oregano, and teriyaki sauce.

Especially when diluted it is all wheater, with caramel and vanilla dominating, though at times the caramel slips away and pancake syrup sweetness takes over. Undiluted it is very rich and intense. More licorice comes through, especially on the finish.

That’s what I think. Here is what Parker Beam has to say about his latest creation: “I am genuinely excited to introduce a nicely aged, cask-strength wheated bourbon for this next version of my Parker’s Heritage Collection. At this age and barrel-proof is how a wheated bourbon shows best. It has the caramel and smoke notes that only ten years in the top floors of our rickhouses can produce.”

Parker loves those top floors. That’s why this whiskey bears little resemblance to any other 10+ year old wheater you know. This is also some of the oldest wheated bourbon made at the Bernheim Distillery in Louisville since Heaven Hill took it over in 1999. The second batch, in fact, is not quite old enough and won’t be dumped until next month.

Not that $80 is cheap, but this year is more in line with the first Parker’s Heritage Collection releases in 2007. Prices for 2008 and 2009 were $200 and $150 respectively.

Rep. Quigley Got Campaign Cash From Liquor Wholesalers Three Days Before Co-Sponsoring Their Monopoly Protection Bill.

As Dan Eggen reported in yesterday's Washington Post, Chicago-area representative Mike Quigley took a $2,500 campaign contribution from the National Beer Wholesalers Association (NBWA) three days before his support of their Alcohol Wholesalers Monopoly Protection Act (HR 5034) was announced.

I took Rep. Quigley to task for supporting this ridiculous legislation more than a month ago here. He has not yet replied to my letter.

Quigley isn't alone. The NBWA handed out more than $300,000 in contributions this year and virtually everyone who got some is a co-sponsor of the bill. Michigan Representative John Conyers, who chairs the committee considering HR 5034, got the biggest payday: $45,000. Everyone, of course, says the timing is a coincidence.

Timing isn't even the point. It just makes it easier to put the picture into focus.

I've also posted about this legislation here, here, and here.