You don’t bring wine to a BBQ. You bring whisky. Something with backbone that’s a little loud, a little sweet, and smoky if you’re feeling brave. Wallflowers need not apply.
Despite what the weather thinks, we are still deep in the heart of summer - and what better way to eat when it’s hot, than by standing by a roaring fire, grilling meat. It starts with a little smoke, the kind that permeates through your clothes and never quite leaves, but it ends with friends, a drink in hand and some stories to tell.
Stauning Dirty Bastard
When I think of the Danish, I think of their clean, functional design. Geometric, progressive, streamlined. I don’t know if they do barbecue, but if they do I imagine it would be very efficient, and very beautiful.
What you get with Stauning Dirty Bastard is quite the juxtaposition to this. I guess what they look for in design, isn’t necessarily what they’re interested in for whisky. This is a rowdy, bold character with big, complex flavours of dark chilli chocolate, cinnamon and tobacco that goes everywhere all at once. It has no pretense about its role to play at this party and that role is to meet barbecued meats head on in a collision of flavour.
FEW Bourbon
Bourbon and barbecue, go hand in hand in flavour - and in culture. It’s an expected guest at any self respecting backyard cookout. FEW Bourbon, can make a spicy addition to the invite list with its high-rye content that brings some cinnamon-y heat to the characteristic rich vanilla, toffee notes you come to expect from bourbon. You don’t have to worry, this bourbon can hold its own when mingling with big flavours - it’ll pack a punch while smiling sweetly.
And don’t be fooled by its sweetness - this is a rebellious spirit born in Evanston, Illinois, a town that stayed dry for over a century. In a place shaped by evangelical temperance, breaking the rules meant making something bold. Even the name, FEW, nods to reformer Frances Elizabeth Willard, a temperance leader whose legacy still lingers in the air.
The Heart Cut No.17 | Lochlea
OK. Yes. Yes, I know. Where is the Islay on this list, I hear you say? Where is the earthy smoke of peat to match with the fire and coals of the grill? Well hold your horses you wee impetuous thing. I’m getting there…
The Lochlea release by The Heart Cut is a knockout BBQ pour - grassy, citrusy, and smoky enough (thanks to a roll around an Islay cask - see? I have you covered!) to bring barbecued pineapple and honeyed citrus into play. If you’ve ever put barbecued meat and fruit salad on the same plate only to find the cocktail from the juices meeting in the middle is unexpectedly delicious… THIS is the whisky to match that.
Follow that up with a chilled Pure Optimism pale ale from Good Chemistry and you've got the ultimate summer boilermaker: bright, bold, and built for fire and flavour.
That just about wraps up our guide to inviting whisky to a BBQ. To be honest, I've never been known to kick a whisky out of my party, so hopefully they're well behaved at yours.
You know the drill by now - if you have any questions for us, you only have to ask. Happy grilling!!
