September is Bourbon Heritage Month.

Each week will feature a different Tasting & Dinner event to pair the finest bourbon with the perfect food. First was Michter’s Bourbon Tasting at Daniel’s Prime 21 Spirits Lounge in Bellevue downtown. At 21 floors up, this private, modernized speakeasy-style bar and lounge has some spectacular views of the city. Once escorted past the heavy glass doors, guests are seated in comfortably luxurious leather chairs, with the bourbons awaiting them. The Michter’s bourbon flight planks happened to come from actual barrels that the bourbons have been aged in, the undersides showcasing the fire-charred white oak characteristics.

Fine Spirits Director for Daniel’s Broiler, Brad Miller, and Brand Ambassador/ Sales Rep, Alan Jones, of American Northwest Distributors, were on hand to guide curious patrons through the tasting flight. We were invited to sip and swirl the pours as each variety was explained to us.

THE LIBATIONS:

• Straight Rye: Light sweet and spice notes on the nose, oak butterscotch flavor
• American Whiskey: Ripe banana nose with buttery vanilla caramel flavor
• Sour Mash: Oaky nose with multi layered flavor of spice and estery
• Bourbon: Smells like a tootsie roll, tastes of the smoke from a grilled cherry
• 10 yr Bourbon: Subtle oak nose with enormous mouth filling flavor

Bourbon Barrel Aged Stout—Wonderfully rich bourbon flavor coming through, over the top of a full, yet nimble stout, chocolate and vanilla finishing notes. Created in collaboration with Woodinville Whiskey Co. & Orlison Brewing Co. for Bourbon Heritage Month, this stout has probably the most bourbon-forward flavor we’ve ever tried. A bourbon-aged stout done right!

BONUS: Apparently, Brad likes to keep a little mystery pour for each tasting event that isn’t revealed until the night of. In this case, it was a special appearance of Michter’s 10-year straight bourbon, which was a surprise even for Alan who mentioned this release has been hard to come by.

    

RSVP via the links below for the rest of the events for Bourbon Heritage Month! Space is limited.

• September 16- Buffalo Trace Bourbon Tasting
• September 23- Jim Beam Bourbon Tasting
• September 30- Heaven Hill Bourbon Dinner with Bernie Lubbers “The Whiskey Professor”

About Brad Miller:

Having been in the restaurant business from high school onward, as well as having been with the Schwartz Brothers Restaurants since 2006, Brad knows maybe a little bit more than a thing or two about the industry. Even before the opening of the Prime 21 Lounge in September 2013, Brad and his team have been working directly with the bourbon distillers in Kentucky to curate the specialty items they bring to the ”bar in a bar”, sampling the offers until they find those with the fitting profile. Originally at 30 selections, they’ve now expanded to over 70 varieties of bourbon at the three Daniel’s Broiler locations. The bitters, syrups, and infusions used in Daniel’s cocktail menus are all Brad’s own creations. Clearly passionate and knowledgeable about bourbon, he’s even represented Daniel’s Broiler in the Manhattan Shake-Off where he “created the Applewood Manhattan made with Woodford Reserve Bourbon, apple cider reduction syrup, Graham’s 10 Tawny port, and [his] housemade bitters”. Read what Brad has to say about himself here.

About Alan Jones:

A Kirkland native, Alan started as a busboy at Daniel’s Broiler Bellevue and worked his way up as he was given more responsibilities. Pretty soon he was being asked to come in on the regular order shipment days of the week to help be a point of contact for their vendor accounts. Five years later, he was primed and hungry for more before he transitioned over to American Northwest Distributors. While Spanish wines are his speciality, Alan will be quick to indulge you with his knowledge on many wine and spirits!

Photo by Daniel’s Broiler.