I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not that patient, and kind of cheap. Over the past few months I’ve seen a few different recipes for quick-aged bourbon, but hadn’t tried it yet. It wasn’t until I read Craft Cocktails at Home that I decided to give it a go. Now, you’d never confuse this bourbon with the finest Van Winkle, but it’s a pretty good technique.
You’re adding vanilla, liquid smoke, Sherry and Maraschino liqueur to cheap bourbon to give it many of the flavors that aged bourbon acquire. As always, the final outcome is only as good as your ingredients. I don’t feel that you need to start with a cheap bourbon because there are so many reasonably priced good ones. I’ve looked at a few of the different recipes and have come up with my own ratio.
Do yourself a favor and buy a 100 pack of disposable pipettes on Amazon for $5. It beats trying to wash out your droppers.
Fast Aged Bourbon
6 oz Four Roses Yellow Label Bourbon
9 drops Madagascar Vanilla Extract
2 drops Hickory Smoke Extract (RC Fine Foods)
30 drops Dry Sack Medium Sherry
1 1/2 tsp Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur
