One more sip with the bourbon masters
Here’s a piece of my interview with bourbon industry legends Elmer T. Lee, Jimmy Russell and Parker Beam that I didn’t have room for in today’s column:
Considering their combined 150-plus years of experience in bourbon distilling and tasting, I wanted to know how they judged one bourbon to be better than another.
They said individual taste plays a big role, so the question of whether one bourbon is better than another is often subjective. Russell said it’s like how some people prefer Coca-Cola and others like Pepsi. “If they all tasted the same, we’d just need one (distillery),” he said.
Beam said his tastes were shaped by the tastes of his father, who was Heaven Hill’s master distiller before him. “But Elmer and Jimmy are going to have a little different palate than what I’ve got,” he said.
All three agreed that one of the most important characteristics of a fine bourbon is a good “finish.”
“It just kind of lingers on the palate and gets better the longer it lays there,” Beam said. “I like that.”
“What he’s telling you,” Russell said, “is that it’s so good he wants another one.”
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