TAKE ME TO A BAR, and I'll order the most mezcal- or tequila-forward cocktail on the menu. Offer me a drink at your place, and I'll ask for Campari or gin. What I have historically never, ever gone for is brown spirits. Especially bourbon-it always seemed too harsh, too strong, too not for me.
Elizabeth McCall, master distiller at the major bourbon brand Woodford Reserve, says she's heard my story before. "The biggest hurdle for many women has been the stereotype of the typical bourbon drinker: an older man with a drink in a library with a cigar." But she says that's changing. "Women are now driving the bourbon category."
And it's definitely going places. Bourbon production has grown by 360 percent in the last two decades, according to the Kentucky Distillers' Association. Considering its popularity, the tempting bourbon cocktails I've seen on menus, and the fact that it's borderline malpractice for a drinks writer to ignore a whole category of liquor, I decided it was time to, if not love these drinks, at least understand their appeal.
This story is from the October 2023 edition of Real Simple.
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This story is from the October 2023 edition of Real Simple.
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