Hat tip to Nurse Jackie, but it's a "Who did it better"? battle of

LIPSTICK VOGUE!

Original Elvis Costello & The Attractions

Hearken way back to the last century. 1990.

Chet and Mark

If you love guitar this is a treasure.

I ain't living like I should. Little rest may do me good

Post game agenda, Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit plus a few glasses of Rye

Palmetto Rose is a master work

Almost time for the Cards Home Opener vs the Buccos

I used to be conflicted about that, but I've lived in St Louis for over 20 years.

Longer than I ever lived anywhere else. Not to mention that I have watched this team contend consistently.

The Cards have made the playoffs 13 of the last 19 seasons and were eliminated before September ONCE.

The Pirates unfortunately have been saddled with criminally incompetent ownership for almost 30 years.

So once again - I wish my childhood team the best when they face off against everybody else (Especially the Cubs) it is once again time to say

LET'S GO CARDINALS

It's been a minute since I posted Josh

This kid is so good

The House Rockers

Work in Progress

Low budget whiskey review, an occasional series. Part 3

Today's pour is Jim Beam Bonded Bourbon.

Jim Beam Distillery gives us the classic White Label Jim Beam Bourbon and the Knob Creek line of whiskeys.

In car maker terms, the Jim Beam White Label is a Chevy Cruise and the Knob Creek Single Barrel Select is a Cadillac Escalade.

The Jim Beam Bonded would be a Buick Sedan nicer, but still a budget-ish choice.

The term "Bonded", or as it is more commonly labeled "Bottled in Bond" has a very precise legal definition and can apply to any American Whiskey, not just Bourbon

Over and above what standards a whiskey must meet to legally be sold as "Whiskey" in America, Bottled in Bond whiskey must be barrel aged no less than 4 years. It has to be distilled in one production season, produced under the direction of a single master distiller, and it must be bottled at exactly 50% ABV (100 proof)

The Bonded liquor laws were one of the very first Consumer Safety laws in the world - Passed soon after the civil war to try to eliminate dangerous sometimes poisonous rotgut being shipped and sold as "WHISKEY" back in the day.

Ok, school is dismissed let's drink liquor now.

I poured an ounce and a half shot into a stemless wine glass to sniff it a bit - It isn't a very complex nose, sweet, some oak and a bright ethanol presence.

I let it sit 5 minutes while I wrote the introduction and smelt of it a second time after that 5-6 minute rest.
The ethanol had faded and there is a faint candied fruit with some brown sugar in the mix that the alcohol vapors hid at first and the wood is still there.

Not gonna lie - It is pleasant - no foul odors or sharp spiky aromas, but it's simple.

The whiskey is middle dark brown, about as brown as apple juice. The legs (the strings that form on the glass as you swirl the whiskey) are long lasting and plentiful - This is a pretty oily liquor

Trying it neat at room temperature gives more of a wood and char flavor than you'd expect, and not nearly the level of brown sugar as I expected from the smell.

The flavor lingers with a long slightly sour finish and the mouthfeel is great. The whiskey coats the inside of you mouth easily.

There is not as much burn as I expected from a 50% alcohol sub $20 fifth of whiskey.

I added an ice cube - I'll taste it cold but with the ice still in the glass, then I'll let the ice melt and taste the resulting watered down whiskey

Cold - OOOOHH Daddy likes. The sourish lingering taste in the finish sweetened up quite a bit - the wood tannins became more present and the fruit sweetness spiked up. This is a sour mash that likes the rocks

Watered and cool - Tastes like the 80 proof Jim Beam White Label with a bit more oak.

Gotta say that on the rocks is the play here - it was delicious cold but rather average watery.

This bottle cost $19.50 at the Class Six - about $4 more than regular Jim Beam and about $2 more than Evan Williams Bottled in Bond.

It is definitely worth the modest up charge over the regular, and it is splitting hairs trying to pick between this bottle and the Evan Williams BIB.

Tell ya what - try them both for less than the cost of a single bottle of a heavy hitter like Old Forester 1920 or about half the price of any decent Scotch

A PDF of the new DOD flag policy finally made it's way into my inbox

Here is the meat of the policy it outlines.

We must always remain focused on what unifies us: our sworn oath to the Constitution
and our shared duty to defend the Nation. I am committed to fielding the most powerful military
force the world has known by strengthening the bonds of our most valuable resource - our
people. That is why we honor the American flag, which is the principal flag we are authorized
and encouraged to display. The flags we fly must accord with the military imperatives of good
order and discipline, treating all our people with dignity and respect, and rejecting divisive
symbols.

Consequently, in addition to the American flag, Service members and civilian employees
are authorized to display or depict representational flags that promote unity and esprit de corps,
including:
• Flags of U.S. States and Territories and the District of Columbia;
• Military Service flags;
• Flag or General Officer flags;
• Presidentially-appointed, Senate-confirmed civilian flags;
• Senior Executive Service (SES) and Military Department-specific SES flags;
• The POW/MIA flag;
• Flags of other countries, for which the United States is an ally or partner, or for official
protocol purposes;
• Flags of organizations in which the United States is a member ( e.g., NATO); and
• Ceremonial, command, unit, or branch flags or guidons.