THE HISTORY OF BOURBON

Bourbon was born in the old Bourbon County, Kentucky (which has 
since been divided into smaller counties), about the time of the 
American Revolution. It is made of at least 51% corn, with other 
grains such as rye and barley, and it is aged in charred barrels 
which are reused. Bourbon whiskey also profits from the hard 
limestone water of Kentucky. Being slightly alkaline, it cuts 
the acid in the whiskey and "allows you to wake up in the 
morning feeling like a gentleman," according to Jim O'Rear. 
Tennessee whiskey is filtered through charcoal made from 
sugar-maple wood.

Sweet mash whiskey is fermented with fresh yeast in one batch, 
whereas sour mash whiskey is fermented with a "starter" yeast 
culture saved from a previous batch, just as in making sourdough 
bread. Sour mash whiskey does not taste sour, but it tastes 
different than sweet mash.

As for "proof", here is the origin of this measure of alcohol 
content, whereby proof equals twice the percentage: The early 
distillers would test the whiskey's strength by mixing equal 
parts of whiskey and gunpowder and setting it alight. If there 
was no flame the whiskey was too weak. If it burned with a 
bright flame the whiskey was too strong. If it burned with a
slow, blue flame it was just right, a little less than 50% 
alcohol, and was said to have been "proved".

And here's the New Orleans angle on bourbon's history: The 
Appalachian pioneers drank their whiskey as quickly as it came 
out of the still until it was discovered that bourbon which was 
sent down the river to be sold in New Orleans profited greatly 
in taste from the long time waiting for high water and then 
from the long, gently rocking boat ride in the warm sun. I highly 
recommend the book A Social History of Bourbon, from which I 
gathered much of this information.

Bourbon is great for sipping, for shots, and for whiskey 
cocktails. It forms the base of the sweet liqueur Southern 
Comfort, which is flavored with peach. (Similarly, Drambuie 
is based on Scotch and flavored with heather honey, and Grand 
Marnier is based on Cognac and flavored with orange.) Bourbon 
is also used in baking, for example, Derby Pie.