A Case for Reference Standards and Whisky

What is feckin whiskey doing on the net's leading independent rum website? There's a reason, read on, but it's not my fault! Honest...
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Do you believe that whiskies too have distinct styles?

Yes
4
100%
No
0
No votes
Maybe
0
No votes
"It's all good..." (for monkeys only)
0
No votes
 
Total votes: 4

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Capn Jimbo
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A Case for Reference Standards and Whisky

Post by Capn Jimbo »

Note! Thanks to Bear and his amazing ability to distinguish true honey from bullshit, this post is being redone right now to correct a grievous error I made, as well as couple others I also found in review.

Although the general thrust of the post was fine, these several niggling and bush league errors were so off putting that I simply had to redo the entire post. Funny thing, I actually read the paragraph defining corn whiskey and simply got it backwards. Duh...

My apologies to all... stay tuned, the corrected post will appear after Bear's post, below...
Last edited by Capn Jimbo on Thu Aug 14, 2014 5:44 pm, edited 8 times in total.
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Some corrections

Post by bearmark »

Bourbon must be aged in charred new oak, while corn whiskey (even straight corn whiskey) must be aged in uncharred new oak or used oak. If you took the same Mellow Corn mash and aged it in charred new oak, then it would technically become a bourbon (same 3 components in mash bill as traditional bourbon). If you took a bourbon with 80% corn in the mash bill and aged it in used barrels, then it would be called corn whiskey. The differentiation is mostly in the wood, not the mash bill. Corn whiskey requires 80% corn in order to differentiate it from bourbon, while other grains only require 51%... it's a technicality to distinguish corn whiskey, but in practical terms both are corn whiskeys. That's why, in my humble opinion, it makes a lot of sense to compare corn whiskeys (from a practical perspective) to each other (including bourbon).

While Bourbon is the predominant American whiskey, Tennesseans will be quick to point out that Jack Daniels is the #1 selling American whiskey in the world. While it's a style of bourbon to which the Lincoln County Process is applied (ostensibly, to remove some of the flavor), I thought that it might be worth mentioning. I've found that many people don't realize this.
Mark Hébert
Rum References: Flor de Caña 18 (Demeraran), The Scarlet Ibis (Trinidadian), R.L. Seale 10 (Barbadian), Appleton Extra (Jamaican), Ron Abuelo 12 (Cuban), Barbancourt 5-Star (Agricole)
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Capn Jimbo
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Post by Capn Jimbo »

Note: the following is the corrected OP. Thanks Bear!


Hey Mon! It's no lith...


Except for monkeys the notions of style and reference standards are not new, although they sure were for rums. Our regulars here know the drill, but - briefly - rum too has styles emanating with Dave Broom but formalized here: Bajan, Jamaican, Demeraran, Cane Juice, and Cuban. To earn a "style" a category of a spirit should be such that it can be identified in a blind tasting. Rum is not a monolith.

Reference standards for each were suggested on the basis of general net consensus, but with the idea that the goal is for each of us to ultimately develop our own personalized standards of comparison. But compare we must.


Nor is "whisk(e)y" monolithic

This post was inspired by Mellow Straight Corn Whisky (BIB) and the observation that it was receiving two camps of reviews, depending on the perspective of the commenter. We'll get back to this shortly.

There are surely different categories of whiskies. Let's start with single malts. These have been traditionally spoken of and compared by region, ie Speyside, Highland, Lowland, Islay, et al. Afficianados tend to compare like to like, eg Islay to Islay and so forth. Irish whiskies can be considered a category.

American whisky too is not a monolith. It includes multi-grain Bourbons (minimum 51% corn, new charred oak) corn-based but also with mash bills that include rye, wheat, and/or malted barley.

Malt, Rye and Wheat Whisky must likewise have the named grain as the major component (minimum of 51%) and if aged, use new, uncharred oak. Corn whisky stands alone in that it must be at least 80% corn use uncharred new oak (thanks Bear), or more commonly, used oak. More on this.

It is important to note that these standards of identity fairly define separate and distinct styles. Next up is the classification of "straight" whiskies, which requires at least two years of aging. I would argue that the term "straight" does not establish a style, but that the naming of the grain does. Last are the BIB whiskies which demand a minimum of four years of aging, plus a number of stricter requirements.

A blind test should be able to distinguish rye whisky from a corn whisky, eg a MGP 95% rye from HH's 90% Mellow corn, and so forth. From a tasting and comparison standpoint it would seem natural to compare ryes against ryes, et al, with our own reference standards for each, based on our individual experiences.


Back to Mellow Straight Corn BIB Whiskey


Now we get to the fly in the ointment. BIB whiskies are really rather special versions of the whiskies, and are held to higher standards. First they MUST be aged at least 4 years (good aging). They must be the product of a single distillery in a single season by a single distiller. They must be distilled to no more than 80%, aged at 62.5% and bottled at 50%. All of these performed under government supervision and under lock and key aging.

While BIB does not guarantee quality, it comes pretty close. No distiller is likely to go to the trouble and expense of BIB without intending to create a high quality product. Accordingly BIB is rather rare, and may become rarer. Amazingly, these BIB's are often very affordable.

While all the other whiskies are aged in new charred oak, the BIB corns are generally aged in used oak. This really changes things as the effects of new charred wood cannot be ignored. The charcoal will smooth the whiskey, while the toasted level underneath will add sweetness. New wood will also impart significant spices.

OTOH straigh corn BIB's do not suffer this wood manipulation to nearly the same degree. Speaking of Mellow Corn, Heaven Hill ages this BIB for 4 years in used wood. To what end? Simply, this process will maximize the purity and minimally wooded taste of the grain itself, in this case corn. That Mellow Corn is 90% corn on maximizes the focus.

Flat Ass Bottom Line

American whisky is not a monolith and should not get a pass. Although bourbon is ubiquitous and absolutely dominates sales (with rye whisky a distant second), this should not cause us to compare every other grain whisky to it.

Each grain is truly a style, as your first taste of an MGP 95% rye or HH 90% corn will demonstrate. To be completely fair with these worthy styles, I believe we must do them the courtesy of comparing like to like, and not to personal preference or to the sales leader of whiskies of all styles.

Further affiant sayeth naught...
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LDI mash bills

Post by bearmark »

I just found a list of LDI (now MGP) mash bills and I was intrigued to find these:
  • Bourbon - 99% corn and 1% barley
  • Corn Whiskey - 81% corn, 15% rye and 5% barley
Note that the Bourbon (minimum 51% corn) has a higher corn content than the Corn Whiskey (minimum 80% corn). The difference had to be in the barrels used to age them in, with Bourbon going in charred new oak and the Corn Whiskey going in either uncharred new oak or used barrels.

The point is that the differentiation between Bourbon and Corn Whiskey is primarily in the wood and not in the mash bills (which overlap significantly). Similarly, Tennessee Whiskey is merely filtered (Lincoln County Process) Bourbon produced in Tennessee (if it were produced in Kentucky, then it would be called Bourbon). Practically speaking, these are all styles of corn whiskey… plain and simple. Unfortunately, someone named one of these styles., Corn Whiskey, which is confusing. Consider these styles:
  • Bourbon corn whiskey
  • Tennessee corn whiskey
  • Corn corn whiskey ;-)
Just as it makes sense to compare different styles of rum to each other, it makes sense to compare different styles of corn whiskey, possibly even noting preferences for one style over another. It also makes sense to compare within a style and to identify reference standards within the style. For example, I prefer Bajan rum and my reference for this style is either MGXO or RL Seale.
Mark Hébert
Rum References: Flor de Caña 18 (Demeraran), The Scarlet Ibis (Trinidadian), R.L. Seale 10 (Barbadian), Appleton Extra (Jamaican), Ron Abuelo 12 (Cuban), Barbancourt 5-Star (Agricole)
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Post by Capn Jimbo »

Did you say "corn, corn" whiskey...


...or were you stuttering, stuttering?? The LDI 99% corn "bourbon" whiskey is fascinating, I wonder who buys, brands and sells it, as is. That would be a terrific comparison to HH's Mellow Corn Straight BIB Whiskey which is 90% corn (higher than the minimum 80% for this category).

Your categories sound interesting and have merit, and as funny as the corn-corn category is, in a was it actually works. Good stuff!
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