Whiskey has been in my life for a long time. I started off by drinking the usual suspects. Jack Daniels, Crown Royal, Johnnie Walker, Evan Williams, Seagrams and Jim Beam. I would have one or two at your occasional house party or bar venture. I would usually have a seven & seven or a Jack and Coke. Now it’s nothing but Jameson for me. I mix Jameson and Coke together. That’s the sweet spot for me. As of lately, I’ll drink any kind, any age, any day. Bring them all on and I’ll drink them. My favorite has to be the 18-year-old Jameson. Mostly because I have not bought the expensive bottle of Jameson Gold Reserve. Maybe one day I will. I like all whiskey. Jameson is just my favorite.
Why post about whiskey?
I’ve recently read a story that was written by my good buddy Mendel K. You can find the article over at Mendel.me. He talks about how he started drinking whiskey for the effect it gave you. One day he tried a smooth and flavorful spirit by the name of Johnnie Walker. He had a sip of this amazing tasting whiskey and started drinking whiskey for the taste. Also, for the effect as well. My story is quite similar to his really. Mine does involve travel, though. So maybe I have him beat there.
The Jameson Whiskey Distillery
In the winter of 2013, I took a trip to London & Ireland. I spent 3 days in each country. First off, what a heck of a trip. London is a city that you need to experience for yourself. Just hearing about it does the city no justice. I loved the city. We just got something different out of the experience. After three days in London, we ventured to Ireland. We hopped on an airplane, took an hour flight and landed in Dublin, IE. Dublin is the home of Jameson and Guinness Beer. Ireland is home to several other Irish Whiskey makers. However, there was a huge rivalry between Jameson and Bushmills. Depending on what part of the Ireland that you’re in when you ask for Whiskey, you may be served one whiskey or the other whiskey. You do not call it Irish whiskey. You just ask for whiskey. The bartender will know what you mean. An example of this is when we went to the Kings Head Pub in Galway, IE. I walked in and asked for a shot. I was poured a shot of Jameson. In Cork, IE I walked into another pub. I forget the name, but it smelt awful. I asked for a shot. I was poured a shot of Bushmills. The rivalry is just like Coke and Pepsi. Except our country is not at war over the two beverages.
We spent a full day in Dublin, IE. We took a bus all around the city. We stopped at some really amazing places and met some interesting people. My favorite stop was the Jameson Distillery. We walked in and there were a ton of people. We were going to sign up for the tour, but the wait was just under two hours. We didn’t want to kill most of our day by waiting around. So we walked into the gift shop area and bought a few things including an official Jameson shot glass, pint glass, miniature 12-year-old bottles of Jameson, and Jameson flavored caramels. Honestly, I wanted to buy the whole store. I didn’t since we had to check everything through customs, during our travels.
After the gift shop, we headed over to the bar. You guessed it. The distillery has a bar inside. Guess what they were serving? That’s right. Shots, martini’s, mixed drinks, and anything else that you can mix whiskey with. I ordered a 24-year-old shot and a caramel Manhattan. Once I polished those off, I ordered a Whiskey Sour and an Almond Old Fashioned Sour. Last, but not least, I ordered a Jameson ice tea. All of the drinks were just divine. I left the Jameson Irish Whiskey Distillery with a giant smile on my face.
100% Jameson
Since my trip to the Jameson Distillery, Jameson is the only whiskey that I order on the Vegas Strip. If I’m out at a bar, or just at my parents house for a get-together, Jameson is all that I order. If they do not have Jameson, I’ll order a beer. I do not drink many other spirits or mixed drinks. Whiskey is usually my drink of choice. I used to drink other alcohols. Vodka and I have never agreed on anything. Tequila has banned me from the club. Everclear and I had a run in when I was 21. It got the best of me and I unfriended Everclear on Facebook. It’s really awkward that so many drinks disagree with me. My parents can mix alcohols left and right, and laugh it off. If I even think about switching to another alcohol, after my first drink, I’m dead meat. I wonder why that is. Either way, This has been a story about how whiskey has been a part of my life for a long time. Here are some pictures from my trip to the Jameson Whiskey Distillery in Dublin, IE. Other pictures include bars that I visited. Have fun. Thanks for reading.
