Free The Drunken Botanist: The Plants that Create the World's Great Drinks by Amy Stewart

recent surge in its popularity has created a booming export market, with distilleries working at full capacity and a tourist-friendly Kentucky Bourbon Trail attracting visitors to the state. The water is still one of the state’s claims to fame, but not all bourbon is made with natural spring water today—larger facilities use filtered river water instead. University of Kentucky hydrogeologist Alan Fryer has analyzed the role of water in bourbon; he believes that there is some scientific basis for claiming that the limestone water is superior, particularly when it comes to inhibiting iron in the water, but much of its value cannot be quantified. “It gets to the idea of terroir,” he said. “Our water is used to grow the corn, it’s used for cooling, it’s used in the mash. How exactly that changes the flavor is almost impossible to quantify—but it is important.” Distillers will always make much of Kentucky’s good water: bourbon industry expert James O’Rear was once quoted as saying that “limestone in bourbon lets you wake up the next morning feeling like a gentleman.”
    OLD-FASHIONED
    1½ ounces bourbon
    1 sugar cube
    2 to 3 dashes Angostura or orange bitters
    Maraschino cherry or orange peel (optional)
    Place the sugar cube in the bottom of an Old-Fashioned glass and give it a few dashes of bitters. Add a splash of water and use a muddler to crush the ingredients together. Swirl the mixture around in the glass, add bourbon and ice, and stir. Although the addition of fruit to this drink is considered a sacrilege in some circles, a true Italian maraschino cherry perfectly complements bourbon’s natural sweetness.
    HAVE A NICE GLASS OF CORN
    Blended whiskey: Although definitions vary around the world, blended whiskies may contain some corn. Suntory’s Hibiki and Royal brands, for instance, include corn and other grains.
    Bourbon: An American-made corn-based whiskey aged in new charred oak barrels. Must contain at least 51 percent corn. Straight bourbon is aged for at least two years, with no added color, flavor, or other spirits. Blended bourbon must contain at least 51 percent straight bourbon, but may also contain added color, flavor, or other spirits.
    Chicha de jora: A South American fermented corn beer. Chicha morada is a nonalcoholic version.
    Corn beer: Some beers contain corn as an adjunct ingredient, making up 10 to 20 percent of the mash. Examples of beers containing corn include China’s Harbin Beer, Mexico’s Corona Extra, and Kentucky Common Beer, a style that includes about 25 percent corn, still made by specialty brewers today.
    Corn vodka: Craft distillers are making excellent corn-based vodkas. Tito’s Handmade Vodka, from Austin, Texas, is a fine example.
    Corn whiskey: Similar to bourbon but must be at least 80 percent corn. Can be unaged or aged in used or uncharred new oak containers.
    Moonshine or white dog: A catchall term for unaged whiskies, which were made of corn historically and often still are.
    Paciki: A Mexican cornstalk beer.
    Quebrantahuesos: The name means “bone breaker.” A Mexican drink of fermented cornstalk juice, toasted corn, and the seeds of the Peruvian pepper tree ( Schinus molle ).
    Tejate: A nonalcoholic brew of corn, cacao, and a few other ingredients, made in and around Oaxaca.
    Tejuino: A fermented (and only very mildly alcoholic) Mexican cold drink made of corn dough, widely sold today.
    Tesgüino: A traditional corn beer from northern Mexico.
    Tiswin: A southwestern pueblo beer made of corn, sometimes combined with cactus fruit, roasted agave juice, or other ingredients.
    Umqombothi: A South African beer made of corn and sorghum.
choosing the perfect corn
    While wines are known primarily by the varieties of grapes used, distilleries have not, until recently, explored unique strains of heritage corn. The grain is still seen as a commodity; whiskey is typically made with No. 1 or 2 Yellow