Whiskey

What is Whiskey?

Whiskey is a distilled spirit made from fermented grain mash, including combinations of wheat, corn, barley, and rye. What defines whiskey is its aging process in wooden containers (usually charred oak barrels) and its minimum alcohol content of 40% ABV, though the specific grains used, distillation methods, and aging requirements vary significantly between different styles like Bourbon, Scotch, Irish, and Rye whiskey. The grain bill, distillation proof, barrel entry proof, and aging time all contribute to whiskey's complex flavor profile, ranging from sweet and vanilla-forward to spicy and smoky.

Featured Whiskey Cocktail Recipes

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A cocktail in a deep red color, dry ice creating smoke and mystery with a black backdrop

Double, Double Toil & Trouble

Ingredients:

1 oz Aberfeldy 12 Single Malt Scotch Whisky
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.5 oz Ardbeg 10 Year Islay Single Malt Scotch
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.5 oz Ancho Reyes Liqueur
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2 oz spiced apple cider
1 oz lemon juice
.5 oz grenadine, we recommend Liber & Co.
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Ginger Beer
Crushed ice

Directions:

Shake the first 6 ingredients with ice in a shaker for 15 seconds or so.
Pour into a tall glass filled with crushed ice.
Pour ginger beer over top. Stir gently.
Garnish with any of a cinammon stick, star anise, orange wheel

An offset cocktail glass filled with a ruby red liquid

The Dark Heart

Ingredients:

.75 oz of bourbon, like Angel’s Envy
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.75 oz of Ramazzotti Amaro
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.75 oz of Amaro Averna
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.75 oz of Campari
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.25 oz of Fernet Branca
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Absinthe, for rinse
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Directions:

Put one large ice cube in a rocks glass and add absinthe.
In a mixing glass add remaining ingredients and stir to chill.
Strain absinthe out of serving glass reserving the ice and fill with the stirred cocktail.

Birdseye view of a richly-colored old-fashioned with fresh figs quarters as garnish.

Fig Old-Fashioned

Ingredients:

2 oz Balcones Texas Pot Still Rye bourbon
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0.25 oz Liber & Co Caramelized Fig Syrup
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2-3 generous dashes Angostura bitters
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Directions:

Add all ingredients to a mixing glass with ice.
Stir for 20 seconds until chilled.
Strain into a rocks glass and garnish with a lemon or orange peel, or with a fresh fig.

A whiskey sour cocktail made with mango. Garnished with an orange peel.

Mango Whiskey Sour

Ingredients:

1 oz Chinola Mango Liqueur
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1.5 oz Whiskey
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0.75 oz Lemon Juice
0.5 oz Simple Syrup
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Directions:

Nothing easier! Shake ingredients with ice.
Strain over fresh ice into rocks glass.
Garnish as you wish. An orange twist and a cherry might be nice!

A pale pink cocktail served on ice, shown against a neutral background

Board Shorts

Ingredients:

2 oz Elijah Craig Small Batch Bourbon
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0.5 oz Almond Orgeat Syrup
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0.25 oz Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur
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1 oz pineapple juice
0.75 oz lemon juice
2 dashes Peychaud’s bitters
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Pineapple fronds, lemond slice, and Luxardo Maraschino cherry for garnish
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Directions:

Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker.
Add ice and shake hard for 10 seconds.
Strain into a chilled rocks glass.
Garnish with pineapple fronds, lemon wedge, and a Luxardo cherry.

Board Shorts

Ingredients:

2 oz Elijah Craig Small Batch Bourbon
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0.5 oz Almond Orgeat Syrup
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0.25 oz Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur
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1 oz pineapple juice
0.75 oz lemon juice
2 dashes Peychaud’s bitters
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Pineapple fronds, lemond slice, and Luxardo Maraschino cherry for garnish
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Directions:

Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker.
Add ice and shake hard for 10 seconds.
Strain into a chilled rocks glass.
Garnish with pineapple fronds, lemon wedge, and a Luxardo cherry.

The Pantomimist

Ingredients:

1 oz Four Roses Bourbon
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1 oz Campari
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0.5 oz Mal Bien Mezcal
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0.5 oz Giffard Crème de Cacao
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Directions:

Stir all ingredients with ice until very cold.
Strain into a cocktail glass.
Garnish with an orange wedge or twist.

A delicious looking red cocktail in a coupe being held high into a blue sky

The Slow Swivel

Ingredients:

1 oz. George Dickel Bottled in Bond
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.5 oz Hayman’s Sloe Gin
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. 5 oz Campari
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.5 oz Chinola
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1.75 oz lemon soda or sparkling lemonade

Directions:

Add a large amount of ice to a large glass
Pour all ingredients over the ice and give it a swirl.
Top off with lemon soda or sparkling lemonade.

A rocks glass with a bright yellow cocktail, served with ice and a lemon wedge

The Right Stuff

Ingredients:

1.5 oz rye whiskey, like High West Double Rye!
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.5 oz St-Germain Elderflower Liqueur
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.5 oz Liber &.Co. Tropical Passionfruit Syrup
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.5 oz freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 dashes orange bitters, like Regans’
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Directions:

Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker with ice.
Shake for 10 seconds.
Strain over ice into a rocks glass.
Garnish with a lemon wheel.

The Gold

Ingredients:

2. 5 oz Monkey Shoulder Scotch
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0.75 oz Giffard Banane du Brésil Liqueur
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0.5 oz Giffard Triple Sec
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0.5 oz chilled water
1 dash Angostura bitters
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Directions:

Stir all ingredients with ice.
Strain into a chilled couple glass.
Garnish with an orange twist.

Want more?

Browse our full collection of Whiskey cocktails.

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Learn More About Whiskey

What are the different types of Whiskey?

Whiskey splits into major categories based on where it's made and what grains go into the mash bill, with each region's laws and traditions creating distinctly different drinking experiences. American whiskeys like bourbon (at least 51% corn) and rye (at least 51% rye) bring sweet vanilla and spicy heat respectively, while Scotch whisky ranges from light and grassy Lowland single malts to smoky, peated Islay expressions that taste like a campfire in a glass. Irish whiskey typically offers smooth, approachable flavors thanks to triple distillation, Canadian whisky tends toward lighter, more mixable profiles, and Japanese whisky borrows Scottish techniques while adding meticulous attention to detail that creates incredibly refined and balanced spirits.

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The U.S. government once sold whiskey as medicine during Prohibition. From 1920 to 1933, you could legally buy whiskey at pharmacies with a doctor's prescription. The government issued special medicinal whiskey licenses to distilleries, and doctors could prescribe a pint every ten days for ailments ranging from depression to indigestion. Walgreens grew from 20 stores to over 500 during Prohibition partly thanks to this loophole.
Jack Daniel's wasn't actually the first registered distillery in America. Despite what the marketing suggests, Jack Daniel's registered as distillery number 16 in Tennessee, not number 1 nationally. The famous "Old No. 7" on their label refers to their tax district number, not their registration order. The real first registered distillery belonged to George Washington at Mount Vernon in 1797.
Japanese whisky masters learned their craft by working in Scotland, then improved it with bamboo charcoal filtering. Masataka Taketsuru studied chemistry and worked at Scottish distilleries in the 1910s before returning to Japan. He brought Scottish techniques but adapted them using local ingredients and adding a final filtration through bamboo charcoal, creating a distinctly smoother profile that's now winning international awards left and right.
The angel's share in hot climates can reach 10% per year, compared to Scotland's 2%. In places like India and Taiwan, whisky evaporates from barrels so quickly that what would age 12 years in Scotland might be completely gone in a decade. That's why tropical whiskies often taste much older than their actual age – they're concentrating faster due to rapid evaporation and intense heat cycling.
There's a whiskey aging in space right now. In 2011, samples of Ardbeg whisky and oak compounds were sent to the International Space Station to study how zero gravity affects the aging process. After returning to Earth in 2014, tasters found the space-aged whisky had dramatically different flavor compounds – more antiseptic notes and less smoky character than its Earth-bound twin.

Higher-proof spirits can be intense. Sip slow, taste thoughtfully, and enjoy responsibly.

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Learn More About Whiskey

What are the different types of Whiskey?

How is Whiskey made?

What does Whiskey taste like? What does Whiskey bring to a cocktail?

How do you drink Whiskey? In what kind of cocktails does Whiskey shine?

What are fun ways to drink Whiskey?

How has Whiskey been depicted in culture?

Nutritional Information

Scrolled this far? Your reward? Whiskey Trivia!