The Kentucky Derby, bourbon’s high holiday, is this weekend. That means it’s time to dust off the hatboxes, put on your spring finery, and figure out what you’ll be drinking (if you haven’t sorted that out already). If you’re still in need of ideas, don’t fret: we have a few suggestions for the right drinks to accompany The Greatest Two Minutes in Sports.
Old Fizgerald Bottled-In-Bond
Made by Heaven Hill, this wheated bourbon is an old-fashioned old standard. To get you in the mood, I’ll let Hunter S. Thompson describe his landing in Louisville when he covered the derby for Scanlan’s back in 1970:
In the air-conditioned lounge I met a man from Houston who said his name was something or other — “but just call me Jimbo” — and he was here to get it on. “I’m ready for anything, by God! Anything at all. Yeah, what are you drinkin?” I ordered a Margarita with ice, but he wouldn’t hear of it: “Naw, naw … what the hell kind of drink is that for Kentucky Derby time? What’s wrong with you, boy?” He grinned and winked at the bartender. “Goddam, we gotta educate this boy. Get him some good whiskey … ”
I shrugged. “Okay, a double Old Fitz on ice.” Jimbo nodded his approval.
Woodford Reserve
The official whiskey of the Kentucky Derby, Woodford Reserve from Brown Foreman even releases an annual commemorative one-liter bottle. This year’s features artwork from Thomas Allen Pauly, an “award-winning equine artist.”
Booker’s
The mint julep—a hefty pour of bourbon muddled with powdered sugar, draped over crushed ice, and decorated with a sprig of mint—is the classic derby cocktail. Trouble is, all that crushed ice can turn a lesser bourbon into oaky water fast, especially in that southern sunshine. You need something like Booker’s, Jim Beam’s uncut, unfiltered, cask-strength label, to stand up to the dilution.
Blanton’s
Trending Stories
Blanton’s wears its love for the races right on its sleeve…er, neck. Each grenade-shaped bottle of Blanton’s is topped with one of eight different pewter stoppers, each decorated with a horse wearing a lettered blanket in various stages of stride. Collect all eight, and you’ll spell “B-L-A-N-T-O-N-S.” Plus the bourbon’s delicious—a single barrel release from Buffalo Trace with a nice, spicy bite.
Latest News