Getting my Irish up

St. Patricks is upon us. I'm German and Swedish, but in and around the Chicago area, everybody is Irish on St. Patty's day. I remember hearing that Chicago has the most Irish citizens of any city in the world, except Dublin. It's a big deal around here. Ireland is one of the great Whiskey producing countries in the world. At this particular time, when I venture away from bourbon, it's usually to have some Irish Whiskey. It has a lightness and smoothness that is a nice change of pace from bourbon.
I have a couple of Irish whiskeys in stock right now, Jameson and Tullamore Dew 12. The regular Jameson might be the most accessible whiskey on the market, which would account for the growth in recent years. When I drink bourbon, it's usually neat or with a small chunk of ice. With Jameson, I fill a tumbler with ice and pour a full glass of whiskey. When it gets diluted by the ice, its even lighter and more refreshing, almost like iced tea! It's just light and smooth with a very understated whiskey flavor. The Tullamore Dew 12 year old is more of a classic expression, with more aged taste and pronounced flavor. It's more of a sipping whiskey. Click here for a review of Tullamore Dew.

To get us started, check out this link for nice review of Irish Whiskeys. Also, In case you missed it when it originally broadcasted on St. Patrick’s day last year, the History Channel’s Modern Marvel’s series “Whiskey” show will be rebroadcasted on March 17, 2009 at 10 AM and 4 PM. As mentioned in some earlier posts, this show is an excellent primer for the budding Whiskey enthusiast.

Delilah's in Chicago

Well, ever since I got into Bourbon, I have been trying to find a local place to sample different kinds. Through some research, I found that there are several bars in the city of Chicago that have a large whiskey selection. One in particular, Delilah's, is universally chosen as the best, and actually has a national reputation and one of the great whiskey bars. My brother-in-law recently invited me to spend an evening in the city, followed by Blackhawks hockey game the next day. This was a great opportunity to finally visit Delilah's. The short version of my visit is that tasting several new whiskeys was a lot of fun, but the overall experience was a bit of a disappointment.

Delilah's is small, very dark bar in the Lincoln Park neighborhood of Chicago. The decor is punk rock meets Elvis. There is really nothing special about the place physically, but I didn't care, I was there for the bourbon. And they do have a lot of bourbon. Two things, however, kinda put a damper on the experience. First, the bartender that night was a real drip. I tried to engage him in talk about whiskey and bourbon, but he didn't bite. All he wanted to know is what I was ordering next. He was actually rude to my brother in law. This is a small place, when your bartender is a killjoy, it affects the entire atmosphere. The second thing that tempered my experience is that I was the only whiskey drinker in the bar! My brother-in-law and his buddy are not whiskey drinkers, and neither was anybody else when I was there. I had anticipated that I would be talking bourbon with somebody that night, but it just was not meant to be.

As mention earlier, the tastings of the different whiskeys was very fun. I tried four that night. After about four or five whiskey tastings, you taste buds are about shot. Here's what I tried:

• Old Commonwealth - I tried this on the recommendation of a member of the Straightbourbon.com message board. This was tasty, but a little 'hot' for my liking. It's 100 proof, and I don't mind high proof bourbon, but the alcohol was a little too pronounced. This is a hard to find bourbon though, so I was really happy to try it.
  
• Delilah's House Brand (Wheater) - This is created by the folks who make Pappy Van Winkle bourbon, known for their 'wheat' based mash bill. I have tried the Pappy Van Winkle 15 year and 20 year. This bourbon was about the same, except it is aged 10 years. It was just a little 'thinner' and less complex than the older version. Very nice.
  
• Delilah's House Brand Rye Whiskey - I couldn't get much info on this one, but it was the best whiskey I tasted that night. Nice rye spiciness and excellent balance.
  
• Jameson's 18 year old - Jameson's regular whiskey is usually my first choice when I venture away from bourbon. I really enjoy it. I have been wanting to try the 18 year old, but it's $80 a bottle, so this was the perfect opportunity to try it economically. I was disappointed. It didn't taste that much different from the regular Jameson. It was a little smoother, but for the price, not that much better. I am hoping that since this was my fourth whiskey of the night, that my taste buds were dulled. I will give it another try sometime in the future.
  

In conclusion, I'm glad I went to Delilah's, even though I was a little disappointed with the visit. Next time I'll make sure I go there with some whiskey enthusiasts and hope that I have a different bartender. By the way, the 'Hawks' won 4-2.