Most people have heard of bourbon, and have at least an idea of what it is, but there are a lot of misconceptions out there. Let’s try to clear some of them up.
Bourbon is a type of whiskey. I’ve heard people say “I don’t drink whiskey, I drink bourbon” as if it is a completely separate product. Bourbon is a very specific style of whiskey, with exact requirements, but it is still a whiskey.
In short, bourbon must be:
⦁ Made in the United States
⦁ Aged in new charred oak containers
⦁ Made from at least 51% corn
⦁ Distilled no higher than 160 proof (80% alcohol by volume)
⦁ Placed in aging containers at no higher than 125 proof (62.5% alcohol by volume)
⦁ Bottled at no lower than 80 proof (40% alcohol by volume)
⦁ Contain no added colors or flavors
Perhaps the most common misunderstanding is that bourbon has to come from Kentucky. While Kentucky does produce most (over 95%) of the bourbon made, it can actually come from anywhere in the United States. It cannot, however, be made outside the U.S. – In 1964, Congress recognized bourbon as “a distinctive product of the United States”.
Bourbon must be aged in new, charred oak containers. The container cannot have been previously used for any purpose, not even aging other bourbon. Because the containers cannot be reused for additional bourbon, there is a steady supply of used bourbon barrels. These can been used for aging other products ranging from other whiskies, to beer, maple syrup, and even coffee beans, all of which pick up some of the flavor from the bourbon that has been absorbed into the wood.
Sometimes the word “American” is mistakenly added to the previous requirement, but officially, the oak can come from anywhere. Also note that “barrel” is not specified, although barrels are almost always what is used.
Another frequent mistake is that bourbon must be aged for a minimum amount of time. Most commonly, it is thought that it must be aged at least two years. The fact is that there is no minumum age requirement. If it is aged at least two years, it can be labeled as “straight” bourbon. If it is aged at least 4 years, it does not need to contain an age statement on the label.
Combining the two previous requirements, Jimmy Russell, head distiller at Wild Turkey, famously said that you can take an oak bucket, char the inside, fill it from the still, walk it over to the bottling line, and call it bourbon. It would have to state that it is aged less than a day, but it would be bourbon. And if you wanted to do it again, you would have to get a new bucket.
The “mash” for bourbon must be at least 51% corn, though 65%-75% is most common. The remainder can be any other cereal grain. A portion of malted barley is almost used, as this grain contains the highest amount of the enzyme responsible for converting starches to fermentable sugars.
A “finishing” or “flavoring” grain is usual added. Rye introduces a hint of the spicy flavor notes found in rye whiskey, while wheat produces a more mild flavor. Adding both, along with barley, results in what is often labeled “Four grain bourbon”. Some craft distillers are experimenting with other grains as well. I’ve seen bourbons with oat, millet, sorghum, and even quinoa, and even a “five grain” bourbon, a classic four grain with oat added to the mix.
Bourbon must be distilled to no higher than 160 proof, which is 80% alcohol by volume. This preserves a great deal of the characteristic of the grains that were used to make the mash. Some other whiskies can be distilled as high as 190 proof. Above that, almost all of the grain character is lost, resulting in what is called “neutral grain spirit”.
It must then be placed in the aging containers at no higher than 125 proof. This further helps to preserve the flavor of the grains used, as well as control what flavors are and are not extracted from the wood.
Like most distilled spirits in the U.S., bourbon must be bottled at a minimum of 80 proof, though it can be higher, sometimes as high as “barrel strength”, or “cask strength” meaning that it is placed in the bottles at the same proof that it came out of the barrels. If it is bottled at exactly 100 proof, and meets certain other requirements, it can be labeled as “Bottled in Bond”, but that’s a story for another day.
And lastly, bourbon can not contain any added color or flavor. This seems straight forward, but there is actually a debate going on in the bourbon world right now around this requirement. We’ll talk about that in a future post, I promise.
If you enjoyed this post, and would like to read more (especially about Bottled in Bond, or the current “flavoring” controversy) , you can subscribe over there. OK, this is a long post, so you might have to scroll up a bit, but you get the idea. –>>