My First Month As A Drinker

Just about a month ago, at the age of 42, I took my first drink of alcohol. It was a small shot of Maker's Mark Bourbon. And what are my impressions of my first drink? We did a toast and I gulped it down in one shot. I remember it burned just a little bit. The flavor was very woody but pleasant. It is definitely something I wanted to try again.

Next, I bought a four pack of Bourbon Barrel Ale from Lexington Brewing Company. Upon opening that first bottle, the yeasty/alcohol smell of the ale instantly took me back to times in my past when I have smelled it, none of which were pleasant. About the only places I ever smelled alcohol in my life is when I was picking up empty beer cans/bottles in the ditch before mowing, or around people who are drunk. So my prejudice against that smell was already set years ago, but that didn't occur to me at the time. I tried drinking it out of the bottle, but that wasn't working. I poured it in a glass and found myself gulping to get it down. I thought at the time, "this is stupid", so I poured out the last little bit in the glass. It was later that evening that the connection between "that" smell and my previous experiences with "that" smell occurred to me. So, I decided to consciously ignore my prejudice and honestly examine the flavor and smell for what it was. I did this on my second bottle, and actually drank the whole bottle with no problems. In fact, there were several things that I liked about the smell and flavor. I have now drunk a third bottle of this and am starting to like it.

Next, I bought a bottle of Black & Blue from Dogfish Head Brewery. The label intrigued me with its description of this brew: Malt beverage fermented with black raspberry & blueberry puree. The flavor of this one was totally different from the others. It was very fruity and sweet and was an instant like on my list. Dogfish Head is a company I became acquainted with through the television show Brew Masters before ever buying any of their products. But I look forward to trying the wide variety of brews that they produce.

My most recent purchase was of a Trappist ale from Belgium. It is called Westmalle Tripel. The first thing that jumped out at me was the flavor. It tasted like there was unsweetened grapefruit juice in it, although I am sure there isn't. It is like the rumors of the original Dr. Pepper containing prune juice. It didn't, but one could definitely detect a hint of a prune juice flavor in the original Dr. Pepper. Westmalle Tripel is, yet again, totally different from what I have tried up until now, and is an enjoyable drink. I will be buying more of this despite the high price.

I have also purchased a bottle of Maker's Mark 46, and will be using it over the next few months to get used to drinking bourbon. It has a flavor that I like, but it still has quite a kick and the smell reminds me of a type of medicine that you are warned not to take internally. So, I have heard it is an acquired taste, and I wish to acquire a taste for it. Plus it is made less than an hour from here, and I am trying to start out with trying local brews, with the exception of Dogfish Head.

More updates will follow as I try more brews, and if there are any that anyone reading this thinks I should try, let me know.