Podcast Show notes Episodes 1-11

Introduction to The Dram State....what the show is about and what will we be discussing

This is the inaugural episode of The Dram State.  I’m your host Jeff Borker and in this episode, I’m going to let you know who I am and what this podcast is going to be about.  Additionally, I’ll give you some insight as to what The Classic Dram is and what we do.  If you are new to whiskey or are thinking about going down the whiskey trail, this is the place for you.  This will be a journey we take together talking about all things whiskey.  Resources can be found at our website, https://theclassicdram.com as well as all of our social media pages under The Classic Dram.

This episode of The Dram State covers the following topics....

 The origins of whiskey....a brief history lesson What is the definition of whiskey?  Why are there two spellings for whiskey...with the "e" and without   The Big 3 Sub-Categories of whiskey.  Bourbon Scotch Irish   What are the keys that make them what they are and what are some of their basic flavor profiles What is proof Intro level whiskeys in each of the categories discussed What is "Malting" and why is it important Basic whiskey production process  Milling Cooking Fermenting Distilling Barreling   Some news headlines What is in my glass this week?  Early Times Bottled-in-Bond 100 proof Bourbon Glenlivet Caribbean Reserve 1824 Scotch

This episode is an introduction to bourbon…our American spirit

We’ll be covering the following topics…

- Bourbon History in the US

- Bourbon Production

- Types of Bourbon

- Tasting Characteristics of Bourbon

o How to Taste

o Nosing for Aroma

o Sipping for Taste

o Common Bourbon Notes on the Nose & Palate

- Introductory Bourbons to Explore

- Whiskey News

- What’s Been in My Glass

o Knob Creek 12 Year

o Old Grand-Dad 114

- Preview of Next Episode – Let’s taste some bourbon

o We will be walking through tasting of the following bourbons

§ Four Roses Yellow Lable

§ Woodford Reserve

§ Old Grand-Dad Bottled-in-Bond

§ Maker’s Mark Standard 90 Proof Wheated Bourbon

o Pick up any of these bottles and taste along with me

This is our first Virtual Pod-Tasting featuring 4 introductory bourbons

As a continuation of episode 3, "It's Bourbon Time" we've selected four bourbons to taste and compare notes on.

1. Four Roses Yellow Label 

2. Woodford Reserve Straight Kentucky Bourbon

3. Old Grand Dad Bottled in Bond

4. Maker's Mark Standard 90 Proof

Follow along with us as we explore these wonderful bourbons perfectly suited for someone just getting into bourbon.

While these are all considered entry level bourbons, they each present a wide representation of the flavors bourbon has to offer.  If you need any refresher on bourbon in general, please go back to Episode 3 for a quick review, then join us back here to explore one or all of these great bourbons.

This episode is an introduction to bourbon cocktails.  We'll discuss the basic bar tools you'll need to get started as well as the ins and outs of three classic bourbon cocktails

- The Manhattan

- The Old Fashioned

- The Whiskey Sour

We will go over the key ingredients as well as how to construct the cocktail.  We will also look at alternative ingredients that will change the flavor profile of the basic cocktail.

Other cocktail components will be covered including bitters, vermouths and sweetening agents

Cocktail Recipes

- Manhattan

2 oz Bourbon

3/4 oz Sweet Vermouth

2 Dashes Angostura Bitters

Put all ingredients into a mixing cup with ice.  Stir until chilled and strain into a glass with no additional ice.  Garnish with Luxardo Cherry

- Old Fashioned

2 oz Bourbon

1/3 oz Simple Syrup of Sugar Cube

2-3 Dashes of Bitters

Add ingredients to a rocks or old fashioned glass with ice and stir until chilled.  If you are using a sugar cube, place it in the glass and muddle it along with the bitters until fine.  Then add your bourbon and stir.  Garnish with a small zest of lemon

- Whiskey Sour

2 oz Bourbon

3/4 oz Fresh Lemon Juice

3/4 oz Simple Syrup

Mix all ingredients in shaker, add ice and shake until chilled.  Then strain into a cocktail glass with fresh ice.

These are the basic recipes.  You can experiment with different bitters and sweetening agents so play around and have fun. 

In this episode we'll talk about observations from some recent bourbon tastings we've conducted.  Two totally different groups with the same exact flights...what were their impressions and results from the event....and the benefits of doing blind tastings.  We'll also discuss some new bottles that have hit our bar and what's been going on with our distillery partner, Buck-U Distillery in Ottawa, KS.  Some topics on upcoming episodes as well as congratulations to our first Dram State Podcast contest winner will also be revealed.  

Wild Turkey's new rye expression has hit the shelves.

Rare Breed Barrel Strength Rye is out at an impressive 112.2 proof

We'll explore our first impressions of this new rye from Wild Turkey and let you know our thoughts and if it's worth the buy.

Stats on Wild Turkey Rare Breed Barrel Strength Rye

- 56.1% Alcohol by Volume / 112.2 Proof

- Complete mashbill unknown but believed to be 51% rye

- Blend of 4, 6 and 8 year old straight rye whiskeys

- Non-Chill Filtered

In this episode we start to discuss scotch whisky

• Scotch Whisky History
• Scotch Production
• Rules, Laws and Parameters Specific to Scotch
• Types of Scotch and Regions of Production

Then we'll discuss some industry news and what has been in our glass this past week.

This is an exploration of the Speyside scotch producing region of Scotland.  We'll explore some of the key characteristics of the region as well as a number of classic distilleries in the area.  Highlights of each distilleries core range will be discussed as well as some history around each location.

This episode takes us on a tour through the Highlands region of Scotland.  We explore each of the sub-regions of the Highlands...

• Northern
• Southern
• Western
• Eastern

We'll discuss characteristics of each region, some of the more well known distilleries in those regions and some representative bottles from each distillery

This is a public service announcement....

Our next episode will be another Virtual Pod Tasting with Scotch.  I wanted to give you the opportunity to pick up one of these bottles if you want to taste along with us.

We'll be sampling the following pours....

1. Aberfeldy 12 Year Old

2. Glenlivet Founders Reserve

3. Macallan 12 Year Old Double Cask

4. Oban Little Bay

In this episode, we'll be doing a virtual tasting from two of the scotch producing regions.....Speyside and The Highlands.  I invite you to taste along with me while I give you my impressions as well as some information on each pour.  We'll be sampling....

• Aberfeldy 12 Year Old Single Malt 
• Glenlivet Founders Reserve
• The Macallan 12 Year Old Double Cask
• Oban Little Bay 

We take a diversion from scotch this episode...really the whole month of September as this is National Bourbon Heritage Month.  Today we'll be discussing....

• What is National Bourbon Heritage Month
• Things you can do to celebrate bourbon during the month
• What new bourbons hit our shelf
• Upcoming distillery visits 
• Preview of upcoming episode topics
• New contest announcement.  Some awesome distillery swag provided by our friends at Pinckney Bend Distillery in New Haven, MO

I had a blast interviewing Allie, The TN Whiskey Chick from Chattanooga, TN.  We talked about all things bourbon, shared a couple of pours and had a great conversation.  Please support Allie on all her social media platforms....

• Facebook; @TnWhiskeyChick
• Instagram; TnWhiskeyChick
• Twitter: @chickwhiskey

This episode gives you books, documentaries and magazines that will expand your bourbon knowledge

Books

• Bourbon; The Rise, Fall and Rebirth of American Whiskey; Fred Minnick
• Bourbon Curious; Fred Minnick
• Bourbon Empire; Reid Mitenbuler
• Bourbon Justice; Brian Haara

Magazines

• Bourbon +; www.bourbonplus.com
• Whiskey Advocate; www.whiskyadvocate.com
• Bourbon Review; www.gobourbon.com

The Spirits Network: www.spiritsnetwork.com   

This episode talks about our recent trip to a number of our favorite Missouri distilleries around the Hermann, MO area.  We covered Pinckney Bend in New Haven and tasted their new Heirloom Collection expression "Bloody Butcher".  We also opened up their latest batch of Sherry Cask Whiskey.  In Hermann, MO we visited The Copper Mule and had a private tasting at Fernweh Distilling Company.  Finally we stopped at Wood Hat Spirits in New Florence and sampled their new Missouri Bourbon, Montgomery County Straight Bourbon.  Links to their websites as follows; 

Pinckney Bend; www.pinckneybend.com

The Copper Mule; www.coppermule.com

Fernweh Distilling Co.; www.fernwehdistilling.com

Wood Hat Spirits; www.woodhat.com

Please support all these wonderful Missouri craft distillers on all their social media platforms.

Here are my affiliate links to the gift items discussed on this episode

Set of 4 Glencarin Glasses

Example Set of 4 Rocks Glasses

Glacio 2in Ice Cube Tray Set

Glacio Ice Ball Molds

Mixology & Craft 11 Piece Cocktail Bar Set

Crystal Mixing Glass

Bourbon The Rise Fall and Rebirth of an American Whiskey by Fred Minnick

Bourbon Curious by Fred Minnick

Bourbon Empire by Reid Mitenbuler

Bourbon Justice by Brian Haara

Whiskey Advocate Magazine Subscription

Bourbon + Magazine Subscription

After a great celebration of National Bourbon Heritage Month, The Dram State heads back over to Scotland to continue the journey through the scotch producing regions.  This episode explores The Lowlands region and looks at their flavors, production and drops in on a couple of their more notable distilleries, Auchentoshan & Glenkinchie. 

This episode looks at the smoky side of single malt scotch...the expressions of the Islay region of Scotland.  We look at the characteristics of scotch produced in the region, and yes we'll talk about the peat.  Our trip will introduce you to three of the more notable distilleries on Islay....Laphroaig, Ardbeg and Lagavulin...what makes them distinct and which bottles are good starting points for you to enter Islay single malts. 

As we approach Halloween, thought it would be fun to pair up our favorite holiday candies with our favorite whiskeys.  We have a bag of random Halloween candy that we drew one at a time from the trick-or-treat sac and tried to pair it up with random whiskeys we chose from the bar.  Some we hit on and some we missed.  Find out what was really good and try them out for yourselves. 

This episode is a virtual pod-tasting and exploration of Lowlands and Islay single malt scotches.

From the Lowlands we sampled two expressions from Auchentoshan, their Triple Wood and their Limited Edition Bartender's Malt.  

We then went on to Islay to discover the smokier side of single malts with the Laphroaig Quarter Cask, and the Ardbeg 10.  

The smoky Islay inspired us to look at an American whiskey that uses smoke in their process....from Waco, Texas, we sampled Balcones Brimstone and compared it to the Islay single malts.

On this episode we take a trip to the tasting bar to see what's new.  We'll cover six whiskeys including a Tennessee Whiskey, a Bourbon, a Rye, a couple of single malts and a real wild card. 

We explore the history around prohibition and National Repeal Day, December 5th.  We also look at several current day whiskeys that are designated as "Prohibition Style, Pre-Prohibition Style or Repeal Batch".  Today's pours include....

• Redemption Prohibition Style Bourbon
• Old Forester 1920 Prohibition Bourbon
• Jim Beam Prohibition Style Rye
• Jim Beam Repeal Batch Bourbon
• Remus Repeal Reserve Series II Bourbon 

As our final episode for 2020 we take a look back and a look forward to 2021.  We've done so much this year and it wouldn't be possible without our audience, so THANK YOU SO MUCH for your support this year and look forward for some exciting stuff in 2021.  Remember..."Come for the Spirits and stay for the Experience!!".  Cheers All and Happy New Year!! 

Happy New Year and welcome to the first episode of 2021.  In this episode we'll be talking about winter cocktails.  Here is what we mixed up in this episode;

Spiked Hot Apple Cider

• 1 Gallon Apple Cider
• 1 1/2 Cups of Favorite Whiskey (Bourbon or Rye)
• 3 Cinnamon Sticks
• 1/2 Cup Caramel Sauce

Mix all ingredients into crock pot and simmer on low for 2 hours.

Serve in glass or mug and garnish with fresh apple slice.  Amp it up by adding some whipped cream and sprinkle some nutmeg over the top.

Winter Old Fashioned

• Put 1/2 Cup of Ice into Mixing Glass and add following...
• 2oz Favorite Whiskey
• 1/2 Cup Apple Cider
• 2 Dashes Angostura Bitters; Can substitute Black Walnut Bitters for deeper nuttier flavor)
•  Mix and strain into Old Fashioned Glass with fresh ice
• Garnish with Cinnamon Stick and Apple Slice

Irish Coffee

• Brew up a cup of your favorite coffee
• Add 2 oz of Irish Whiskey (Any kind will do)
• Add 2 pinches of light brown sugar
• Mix in coffee mug 
• Garnish with whipped cream and chocolate shavings

Irish Mule

• 2oz Irish Whiskey
• 6oz Ginger Beer
• 1oz Lime Juice

Mix together and serve in a copper mule mug, or glass of choice.  Garnish with lime wedge. 

Buck-U Hot Apple Pie

• 1 Bottle of Buck-U Apple Pie Ready to Go Cocktail

Pour bottle into crock pot and heat on low for 2 hours.  Serve in coffee mug.  For additional flavor add fresh cinnamon sticks, nutmeg or ginger.