Blue Note Toasted Bourbon

Blue Note Toasted Bourbon is a straight-forward bourbon-category whiskey, which means a mash bill led by corn and aged in new charred oak. The "Toasted" in the name points to oak treatment as the defining feature. The label doesn't give an age, proof, mash bill or distillery, so what follows describes what toasted-oak bourbons usually deliver, not measured numbers for this bottle. Toasting, which is a gentler heat than full charring, tends to bring out the wood sugars in oak, so expect a rounder, sweeter profile than a heavily charred bourbon: caramel, vanilla, toasted marshmallow and baking spice (cinnamon, nutmeg) on the nose, with a backbone of sweet corn and a little dry oak on the finish. For sipping, try it neat first in a Glencairn. The tapered bowl concentrates the vanilla and oak aromas, and a small pour lets you judge the sweetness and spice before adding anything. If the alcohol feels sharp, a few drops of room-temperature water will open the aromatics and soften the heat without flattening the flavor. On the rocks is a good choice for a bourbon in this style. One large cube in a rocks glass chills it slowly, tames the sweetness and keeps dilution gradual. Skip crushed ice, which waters it down quickly. In cocktails, the caramel-and-vanilla lean suits an Old Fashioned. Use a sugar cube or a bar spoon of demerara syrup, two dashes of Angostura and an orange peel, and go light on the sweetener, since the bourbon already supplies some. It also works in a Manhattan, where sweet vermouth and bitters give the oak something to push against, and in a Whiskey Sour, where fresh lemon cuts through the sweetness and a little egg white adds texture. For a long drink, a bourbon highball with soda water and a lemon twist, or with ginger beer for a Kentucky mule, keeps the toasted sweetness in front without much effort. At the table, a bourbon like this pairs well with smoked or barbecued meats, aged cheddar, pecan pie and dark chocolate, all of which echo the caramelized, nutty side of toasted oak.