Willett is far and away one of my favorite Distillers. Given a choice... they are consistently in my top three. A friend who went to KY to buy a barrel (4 Roses) for his restaurant, also came back with a bottle of Rye from Willett that was 1of 9 from a single barrel! This was the purest expression of a Rye I have ever tasted... aged to the extent that 9 750ml bottles were all that remained from this barrel... it was...
Astounding.
I love my 12 yr Old Rip Van Winkle from the Pappy line... the plain white label from Lot B... but even that doesn't hold a candle to what the crew at Willett is capable of.
A note on glassware:
At some point, years ago, I was sold on the idea you needed fine glassware to enjoy fine beverages. I had gone through Culinary Training in a Cordon Blue school with a few wine classes taught by local known-and-respected Somms...
So I bought into the idea fine crystal made everything taste better.
*shakes d@mn head
It's all a lie.
While I don't disagree that a certain shape will help one enjoy the aromas a beverage may offer... or might help preserve the delicate head or flow of bubbles... or...
I'm just gonna go out on a limb here nd point out that Sierra Nevada Pale Ale taste D@MN FINE in a Pint Glass. And Whiskey tastes really F'N GOOD in a Gibraltar.
My $20+ Riedel Crystal Tulip Whiskey Glass always made my whiskey
HOT. After a few turns at a few different good bars drinking pours out of different glasses... of the same whiskey... Istarted to catch on... I didn't need Surface Area, or a Tulip...
Whiskey somehow tasted best out of a simple 4.5oz Gibraltar. Not an 8oz. Not a Double Old Fashioned...
But a simple Gibraltar.
Specifically, this glass here, with the "parabolic" bottom:
And while I do get that some wines need a large globe to open up... or a sparkling wine needs a flute rather than Marie Antoinette's Breast (a fun but false fable)... or a Pilsner a....
You get the point.
I drink my whiskey from the humble Gibraltar... as I do my Espresso... my Manhattans......... and so forth. It is a most durable and familiar vessel. It is pleasing to hold.
It is my friend.
Cheers!
