Bushmills Red Bush & Time & Oak Element

Bushmills Red Bush is a modestly priced minimum three-year aged whiskey.  While very smooth and sweet, overall this whiskey lacks the complexity found in more mature malt whiskeys.  Let’s see if an element can make it even better.

At 12 hours the element adds a nice light oak sweetness.

24 hours in we get more oak, very sweet flavors of maple syrup, and praline pecan while the finish has a lingering subtle sweetness.

Bushmills Red Bush

48 hours it becomes funky, very heavy oak and an odd spiciness.



Well this experiment wasn’t very subtle and sweet! 24 hours with the element, and I was very happy with the results. This modestly priced Irish whiskey became something much more enjoyable.

American Distilling Institute Annual Spirits Conference Preview

The 2017 American distillers Institute annual convention had some excellent seminars as well as some very interesting new products. Equity crowdfunding, choosing the right still for your production and exploring exporting were some of our favorite sessions and computer controlled stills as small as 13 gallons and square barrels were our favorites in the equipment/uber nerd category.

Choosing the right still for your production was a breakout session by John McKee founder of Headframe Spirits, Matt Haney owner of Hillbilly Stills and Ben Lyon cofounder, distiller of Lyon Distilling. This was a discussion of the differences between pot stills, reflux columns and hybrid pots as well as batch versus continuous processing. Not only were the types of distillates discussed but extensive data of quality over efficiency was analyzed. Some of the results were quite surprising.

Genio Stills makes oil and jacketed computer controlled still that are ready to be plugged into an outlet and run. They are crazy looking, black jackets with a transformer attached to the side. Detroit Stillworks can get their stills up to temperature in five minutes as opposed to an hour or more for tradition still. Gatling Stillworks introduced a still that has a boiler attached to it with a steam system that goes inside the still. From their specs you can do an entire still run in two hours.

Explore Exporting was a session by Janet Kenefsky, Deputy Director & International Marketing Director, WUSATA. The WUSATA works with USDA Agricultural Trade Offices and local market representatives, to facilitate introductions to international buyers and coordinates trade events that help expand distribution. They help small business owners get funds from the USDA to export their products.

Sunflower Liqueur Rosolio Recipe

Another recipe from The Bible of Homemade Italian Liqueurs.

Ingredients
1 L of Everclear 190 proof
20 sunflowers
12 saffron threads
4 ½ cups of sugar
1 L of water

This liqueur is beautifully bright yellow, smooth and sweet, full bodied with flavors of sunflower, hay, grapefruit and a dry herbal finish.  As with any floral liqueur your taste buds may find the flavor a little odd at first. The dryness and the finish literally does taste like your drinking sunflowers. I found it exceptionally pleasant and very refreshing and it added a bit of summer sunshine to my cold winter.

Cocktail Suggestions:
Mix two parts sunflower lick your one part of amaretto liqueur a pinch of saffron and pour into a highball glass over ice cubes.

Pour over ice in a big glass two parts sunflower liqueur, one part dry gin, two parts orange juice and stir.

Sunflower Rosolio Liqueur