The Malt House in Madison, WI is a local treasure.  It has been named on the top 100 beer bars list twice in the last five years. A small cozy place that is television free and a great place to share a beer with friends. A beautiful civil war era bar (Madison’s oldest) is like an old friend as it holds up your beverages. Try to visit in the warmer months so you can enjoy the patio!

The staff is friendly and well versed in all things beer and whisky. You can order one of the 12 rotating beer taps or choose from over 150 bottles in a wall cooler. They have over 75 whiskeys to pick from and they will help you build a flight. They host regular tasting sessions with distillers and brewers.  Live music is a regular event at the Malt House.  There are  small snacks available from the bar but if you want a meal, you need to bring it in or have it delivered. The also have food truck from time to time.

The Beers and Beverages

To say they have a excellent beer selection would not do it justice. On our most recent visit we had some Schloss Eggenberg Samichlaus Classic on tap!  To find a beer this rare and special on tap so close to home was awesome. I might have done a little happy dance as I declared my intent to get some. Up to this point, I have only had it in bottles. We followed that up with a Duchesse De Bourgogne. Heaven! The twelve rotating taps cover the globe, from local to rare. The cooler has more than 150 beers, biers and ciders to choose from; small bottles to drink yourself or larger 750ml bottles to share with friends. 

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This cocktail covers a long storied past starting in the 1800s.

I have finally started to develop my own recipe based on the flavors I love.

Old Fashioned Cocktail Mix

Ingredients

3 cups water

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

3 or 4 clementines or other oranges, peeled and chopped

5 or so cherries

1 cinnamon stick broken up into chunks

6 all spice cloves

2 tbls of angostura bitters (to taste)

Instructions

Bring the sugars and the water to a light boil.

Remove from heat.

Add everything but the bitters to the pan, cover and steep for at least one hour.

Strain then add the bitters.

Put into container(s) and store in fridge.

Old Fashioned Recipe

1 part old fashioned mix

2 parts spirit of your choice.

Add soda to taste (Really, what ever you like)

The post Old Fashioned Recipe first appeared on Doug In A Pub.

I then made these three videos of the tasting of the top three.

The winner to be announced soon.

The post Here is the reason for the booze first appeared on Doug In A Pub.

I am not going to pretend to be an expert in flavor profiles and what makes one spirit better than another. It is all so very subjective. Here is what I like about Maker’s: It has a vanilla spice to the aroma that is pretty consistent across all of the Maker’s products. It smells a little sweeter than it tastes. The taste follows the smell pretty closely.  Here are some professional reviews. The Scotch Noob & The Whiskey Reviewer

It has a 45% ABV but is very easy to sip straight or on the rocks. It is also great as a mixer in just about everything I have tried.

The basic recipe is 70% corn, 16% wheat and 14% malted barley. It is made in batches of about 1000 gallons at a time. It is aged for about 6 years, but it only bottled when the tasters think it is ready.

It was first bottled in 1958 in Loretto KY at the former location of Burks’ distillery. It has been made there by the same family ever since.  Maker’s is currently one of the many brands owned by Suntory. The original Burks distillery was believed to have made liquor at this location in 1805.

It may not be the best I have had, but it is consistent and at almost every bar I go to.

Here is a shot I took of it cooking away. Some of the wood in these vats are older then most of us.

They have a great and very informative tour and an amazing store. It is a truly historic location and absolutely beautiful location.

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