Ellington

As any whiskey producer will tell you, all bourbon is whiskey but not all whiskey is bourbon. And all sour mash is bourbon whiskey but not all bourbon is sour mash. Connoisseurs will argue over which process is superior and whether single-barrel or smallbatch whiskey is better, but all will agree that bourbon and sour mash whiskeys are fine additions to the distiller’s craft.

Small lot, single-batch bourbons are all the rage lately. You will be hard pressed to step into a bourbon friendly establishment these days and not find dozens of cocktails on their drink menu that incorporate these fine whiskeys. Everyone knows the names of the popular bourbons and sour mash whiskeys in the market… Maker’s Mark, Woodford Reserve, Knob Creek and Jack Daniels to name a few, but, what’s really in a name? One of the biggest misconceptions about bourbon is that in order to be legally called bourbon whiskey it has to be produced in the state of Kentucky.

Bourbon whiskey is made in the United States, nearly all of it in Kentucky and Tennessee and has its beginnings in a Kentucky county named for the bourbons. The name “bourbon” has been legally controlled only since 1964, so makers exist in other counties. However, only bourbon made in Kentucky may use the name of the state on the label. Tennessee whiskey uses the bourbon recipe but the distilled spirits are filtered through maple charcoal, adding a different overtone to the flavors. Producers will specify “sour mash” on the label if that process is used.

Bourbon vs Sour Mash:

Bourbon’s unique character comes from the 51 to 79 percent corn in its recipe. The addition of water to crushed or rolled grain begins the fermentation process, and the fermented mash is distilled to produce a spirit that is no more than 80 percent alcohol by volume. Bourbon may be double-distilled and aged at least two years in charred oak barrels. The result is a mellow, woody blend of flavors that may be bottled straight out of a single barrel or blended from a number of barrels in a small batch. Sour mash whiskey uses the bourbon recipe but starts the mash with leftovers from a previous batch, much like the starter in sourdough bread. The sour mash process gives a sweeter, deeper flavor to the final product.