Buying some cheap whisk(e)y last week for a Tailgater, I picked out one of the favorites of my youth (back when the price of a bottle was a significant factor in choice, and Old Crow was the usual tipple), Evan Williams Green Label, the bottom of the line, a little more than $11 a liter.

Surprised, after using it for a Manhattan on a cool night, then with water the next evening, to find it a Hell of a lot better than expected, and certainly comparable to brands selling for considerably more. As with wine, price may be an indicator, but not always a good judgement factor.

I continue to rank Ancient Age among the brands I'd not knowingly consume. ....And although mixing Bourbon (or Tennessee whisky) with CocaCola is an offense somewhere between outright heresy and mopery in a public conveyance, I recall that even the most flavor conscious of drinkers often couldn't tell the difference between a little less Old Crow and more of a "better brand" when doused with Coke.

I'll admit to avoiding Wild Turkey and Crown Royal like the plague, two brands foisted upon us by Madison Avenue Mad Men using the evidence, Chivas Regal's history from Doyle Dane Bernbach, that clever marketing and packaging can make a silk purse from a sow's ear.