Booze School: J is for Juleps

My favorite part of booze school is learning new things. In this instance, the julep was the very first «American» cocktail. Every other drink had some sort of tie to a different place or a land far way.
The julep is a worthy first drink if I do say so myself. (It also helped that we were able to sample a couple as well.)

Whiskey, whiskey, and more whiskey. I enjoyed the incredible selection of three types that we tried. Each was different from the last, like rather Different with a capital D. From easy to sip to almost too spicy to take, it was a great variety. And Beau is very knowledgeable if a bit talkative/​long winded. His passion is clear so it was semi-​easy to stomach, but maybe giving us a few more silent moments to sip, savor, and discuss would have been helpful. After the tastings, the mint juleps came rolling and they were yummy. Again, Beau shined in his geeky love of the drink and the preparation, etc. It was interesting to learn that even the ice matters, and the reason for a huge sprig of mint rather than a crushed couple of leaves. All in all, a good time was had and I came out with lots of knowledge.

My first foray into Booze School. It was fun & quite informative! Beau was so knowledgeable & had such obvious passion for his subject. The tasting flights were all very different, which challenged my (admittedly underdeveloped) ideas about What Bourbon Is Like. And, I now know the secret to a good julep! Hint: Beau had some choice words about people who crush the mint into the glass.
Thank you Beau and Keely! This was a super event.

Yet another boozy booze school! This time centered around a cocktail that I knew nothing about. I thought Juleps were more of a rum drink but after visiting Julep it looks like its a whiskey drink (and I thought I was good at drinking).
We started with 3 whiskeys which Julep did a wonderful job at selecting three that had some contrast to each other. I expected «Oh, whiskey. Oh, whiskey again hu? Hey, this last one also tastes like whiskey.» But that wasn’t the case. The first was Four Roses Yellow, a well balanced whiskey, what I would call a «go to» whiskey, balanced and always a solid choice for any drinking occasion (which is whenever the clock shows a time). The second (Rittenhouse 100) had a strong rye taste to it and the last (George Dickel) was quite different as well. Props to picking 3 whiskeys that can stand out from each other.
Beau is a freak about whiskey and booze. The man knows no limits. Given the room I’m not sure what he would do in the name of whiskey in this place. They already have 3 different types of ice they use. He is a co-​owner with his wife Keely. Just watching these two interact I sense that Beau is the face and personality of Julep and drives the place in a passionate way while Keely is there to hold the foundation down and pull in the reigns a bit when Beau gets crazy ideas.
Beau’s presentation was very informative and he is a great speaker based on his passion and extensive knowledge of booze. I would suggest that he get some sort of visual aid, even if its only a few slides, it always helps to break up the presentation and give someone a little visual to look at instead of the presenter. Although he was very long winded it seamed like he was able to keep the minds of booze students entertained.
The whiskey was served in Spiegelau glasses, which is super awesome if you love glassware.
I had to fall short of 5 stars because they do serve food on the menu but we didn’t get any snacks :/​love me some snacks. Also the room was super dark, as in I basically couldn’t see. Dark to the point I actually asked our CM to turn the lights up before I fall asleep like an old man. I’d really like to see some flashcards or notes about what selection of booze is in front of us at the next booze school. This would have been super at the Agave event.