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AMERICAN WHISKEY PT 1

From bar star to jet set brand ambassador: a look inside Tim Etherington-Judge’s latest adventure with BULLEIT™ Bourbon Frontier Whiskey

It’s been almost four years since I chased my own personal dream, swapped cocktail shaker for frequent flyer card and joined Diageo as a brand ambassador working with the Reserve portfolio in India; eventually stepping up to cover the whole of Africa. It’s been an incredible journey so far, taking me to all the permanently inhabited continents on earth (alas I am yet to make it to the Vernadsky Station Lounge in Antarctica), through four World Class Global Finals and 12 and a half times around the world in air miles.

Now I am on a new adventure. An adventure set deep in the heart of Bluegrass Country, Kentucky with Tom Bulleit, a man who risked everything and chased his own dream to recreate his great-great grandfather’s bourbon recipe, and bring back to life a liquid that hadn’t been sipped since the mid-18th century.

As Global Brand Ambassador for BULLEIT™ Bourbon Frontier Whiskey, I am fortunate to be able to increase my knowledge on the incredibly rich category that is American whiskey. Any good bartender should know the basics: minimum grain content in mash bills, minimum aging requirements in new make barrels and maximum distillation proofs, but as a man much wiser than I once told me, the best way to learn about something is to write about it.

So I invite you to join me over six articles where I share with you everything I discover along the way as I walk the path through the small batch, barrel-aged world of American whiskey.

We will realise that the history of whiskey and the United States are intertwined like star-crossed lovers with stories of frontiersmen, presidents, pioneers and adventure in the Wild West.

We will talk Juleps, arguably America’s defining cocktail, and Manhattans, Sazeracs and Sours and discover that American whiskey is once again a pioneer in the global cocktail scene.

Today, American whiskey is one of the most exciting spirit categories in the world. New distilleries are springing up all across the US, bourbon production is increasingly growing outside of its spiritual centre of Kentucky, rye whiskey is one of the hottest products on back bars around the world and BULLEIT Bourbon is leading the charge as people around the world are once again discovering these amazing flavoursome whiskies.

Pour yourself a glass of BULLEIT Bourbon, pull up an easy chair, sit back and let’s discover the world of American whiskey together.

In the coming weeks, keep an eye out for new instalments on:

Tim Etherington-Judge is the BULLEIT Bourbon Global Brand Ambassador, worn out bartender and is cycling 5,000 miles to raise £5,000 for charity this year.

Follow his adventures on Twitter & Instagram @gingerbitters