There are plenty of snobby “experts” who will wow you with complex descriptions of the bourbon elitists. I’ll cut right to the point. I started drinking bourbon because it seemed to be the fastest way for me to get intoxicated in a social setting or as a way to anesthetize myself after a particularly stressful stretch of work.
In my former profession, alcohol is a professional hazard which is somewhat glorified and condoned. Other drugs are screened for routinely and heavily and can get you fired in a heartbeat. Being a drunk only seems to enhance your resume. And tolerance in the form of rehabilitation is always an option. Sometime after recognizing my ill conceived approach I actually got interested in giving the drink itself the respect it deserves. And I learned that moderation is in fact, a virtue.
Having survived that part of my maturation process, I began to study the spirit. And there is a lot to be learned about flavoring by aging, the different delicious variations on smokiness, fruitiness, sweet and spicy hints, and nutty suggestions that can be found in different makes. There is also a sort of reasonableness that goes into diluting the drink from the maker who realizes that the flavors need not be overridden by the alcohol taste. Most of the flavors are donated by a charred oaken barrel in which the whiskey is stored for five or six years. The barrel gives up the flavors that are stored in its wood grain. This gives bourbon its color. Further flavors can be added with wooden staves for up to nine weeks after the peek storage time is reached.
My wife doesn’t not adore bourbon but she can enjoy it in a fruity concoction of lemonade and cranberry juice mix or as a mint julip. I would say drinking it “neat” or simply on ice is an acquired taste. The point is, sometime along the way....a bourbon drinker appreciates the drink for what it is and where it came from more than where it can transport you. To be honest, everything we desire in life, whatever it may be we covet....is a drug.