Mattingly & Moore

Oh M&M, with tagline of "Mild and Mellow" and otherwise nondescript labeling, what a trainwreck you are. Like any of my reviewed whiskeys, M&M had to be experienced straight for the first few occasions. Seemed both Mild and Mellow at first. It doesn't have the burn of fire I'd normally associate with a sub-ten-spot whiskey. It became less kind as time went on.

This 80 proof straight bourbon whiskey lets you know it's whiskey. You do not fight with it; it just fights you. The flavor seemed to get worse as the bottle went on. Not a sipping whiskey unless you're already to the point where climbing the really tall construction crane on Ann Arbor's state doesn't seem like a bad plan. Dr. Burnett will attest to this one needing a mixer. It does seem to make movies that have french overdubs and russian subtitles make more sense but not by a lot. Pants will be optional especially in public.

Produces a standard whiskey hangover. Requires diner coffee and some eggs to fight.

The price tag fell off the bottle but it was under $10 for a fifth, a 2-liter of coke, with tax included. Jim price comparison is whatever I've said for East Lansing before.

I'd buy again to give it another chance. 1876

Joining the Canadian Club.

Professor Wiley has posted about this particular brand of drink before, but I would just like to highlight some other side effects that one may experience while drinking Canadian Club whiskey, or as I like to say 'joining the canadian club'.

It is not an exclusive club. The membership fee is about $12-15. The difficult part is the initiation process.

Unlike other whiskeys, CC seems to cause people to make incredibly bad decisions, forget that there is a difference between right and wrong, and black out. After joining the club, you may hear about your 'initiation' from other people for weeks after. Recollections of these events may begin with the phrase "You're never allowed to be around firearms again!" or "Do you remember going to the hospital?" or "That was my sister!". Something to that effect. You will probably wake up someplace that is not your bed or house.

Aside from that strange side effect, CC is not bad to drink. Tastes alright for the price range, comes in all size bottles, a good standard Canadian whiskey. Besides having to fix your life after drinking, the hangover is typically minimal.

If you are thinking about joining the club, you may want to start with a trial membership before signing up to be a lifetime member. That's my advice.

On a side note, all of us here at whiskeyatnight would be more than happy to write a review for your favorite whiskey! Just send us a few bottles to base our critiques on and we'll get back to you withing a few months.

Here's something ridiculous:

Canadian Club

Mile-high Whiskey Blog #1

Though not a full fifth bottle experience, I thought this might be a fun whiskperience to share.

I flew down to San Jose this past weekend, and along the way my friend Marli and I decided that drinking along the way would be a good idea. It was on this trip that we realized that a double shot of whiskey for five bucks wasn't too shabby.

The Canadian club 10 year reserve treated me quite nicely on the trip. Sweet and delicious, pretty much no sting, plenty of whiskey goodness. Not gonna lie though, I was a little pissed when I realized I could have gotten Wild Turkey.

Old Crow

Work your way up from the bottom shelf at your local liquor store and you will quickly come across a bourbon by the name of "Old Crow". Quite reasonably priced at the cost of around 9 southern michigan dollars. This taste of Kentucky mud water will not disappoint, having well balanced bourbon flavors and a gentle aroma surpassing those of its more expensive counterparts. While consuming a bottle will leave you with a hang-over in the morning it will also leave you with money in your wallet. As far a budget whiskey goes I feel this cannot be beat.

The Gentleman

I figured it was time to contribute. For my debut, i have to begin with a variation on my favorite. The makers of Jack Daniels decided it was time to brake the age old myth that Jack is the drink most strongly correlated to bar stool beatings. Enter, Gentleman Jack. This little baby (a standard 1.0 liter is as small as they come in the area) will set you back a pretty penny,$40.99 at Jims. But before you go burning down your local liquor store for ripping you off (most likely statistics point to these actions as being Jack fueled), take a sip and read the bottle. This beauty is twice mellowed, taking of the strong edge that many Crown Royal drinkers (aka whiney snobs) complain about standard black label Jack. Alone or with its long time companion Coca-Cola, this is a drink for well established whiskey drinker*. The folks in Lynchburg also chose the perfect name to bottle it under, you will feel high class from the moment you buy it until the moment you wake up in the morning and say "holy crap did i drink whiskey last night", because the hangover was almost non-existent.

*An established whiskey drinker refers to one who need more than two hands to count the nights they cant remember due to this fabulous brown liquor.

Rebel Yell

Purchased on a Halloween liquor run, Rebel Yell proved a catalyst for a whiskey-fueled trainwreck. A fifth went for $16 in South Haven, MI. Jim goes for about $18 in comparison.

Rebel Yell is a little rough around the edges. It is an 80 proof Kentucky straight bourbon. Not as smooth as an Old Crow but nowhere near the harsh bite of many of its cheaper cousins. Drunk straight, it provides the standard bourbon flavors and aromas. Slight gasoline burn comes with taking it straight though. When mixed with a good amount of ice, the harshness faded. Mixed very well with some cola.

After putting down a good amount of the bottle between two people, the next day was a decidedly "yep, we drank bourbon last night" kind of mornings. Not nearly a "oh god, oh god, why do we keep buying carstairs" kind of situations.

This may not be my first choice for a rebuy but I wouldn't be oppose to it again. When compared to the Old Crow (which was also an integral part of the night), Rebel Yell came in second. Knock a few bucks off the price and it'll win more points for me.