Jim Beam Bourbon Cocktails - Harvest Cocktail, Jim’s Honey Cooler, Red Stag Summer Peach and also three ideal Fathers' Day Cocktails

Spice up barbecue season with Jim Beam, the world’s number one bourbon - Bringing a flavour of the South to the UK summer

23.5.2013 In Kentucky – home to 90% of the world’s bourbon, including number one Jim Beam – barbecues are a key part of the traditional Southern cuisine. The natural affinity between the smoky flavours of barbecued meat and the smooth, sweet taste of Jim Beam bourbon ensures a match made in epicurean heaven, and a guaranteed ‘wow’ factor for summer revelry with friends.

Across the pond, Brits might be seasoned in the barbecue department, but many are still discovering this smoothest of spirits. As an unpretentious, straight-talking whiskey, with several different flavours, the powers-that-be at Jim Beam would never begin to tell you how you should serve and enjoy your bourbon. Indeed, in the words of seventh generation Beam family distiller, Fred Noe, Jim Beam is best enjoyed “any way you please”. So let us introduce you to the Jim Beam family, and offer inspiration on how to serve your bourbon at your next barbecue bash, so you can discover for yourself the possibilities of matching barbecue and bourbon, ensuring a summer to remember.

Harvest Cocktail Jim Beam White - Harvest Cocktail

If you’re after a traditionally smooth, creamy bourbon, try Jim Beam White. It’s a classic which has never gone out of style, and has been produced essentially the same way by the same family for more than 200 years. Try it neat, on the rocks, served with a simple mixer such as cola or, for something more exotic, try the Harvest Cocktail:

Harvest Cocktail Ingredients

1 1/2 part Jim Beam White
3/4 part DeKuyper Amaretto
1 1/2 part Fresh Pressed Apple Juice
1 part Funkin Pear
1/2 part Egg Whites

Preparation - Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a slice of pear on the rim.

Jim Beam White

A classic recipe which hasn’t changed for 80 years, since the distillery was re-established post-prohibition

Old Fashioned Cocktails - Ingredients

2 parts Jim Beam® Bourbon
2 dashes aromatic bitters
1 cherry stem pulled off
1 half moon orange slice
1 -3 sugar cubes

Preparation - In an old-fashioned glass, place sugar cubes, bitters and fruit then muddle until sugar is dissolved. Fill with cracked ice. Pour in Jim Beam® Bourbon and stir. Optional splash of club soda, lemon lime soda or ginger ale. Garnish with a fresh slice of orange.

Jim Beam White (RRP £17.88) is available in Morrisons, Asda, Waitrose, Sainsbury’s and Tesco

Buy Jim Beam White Label Online

Jim’s Honey Cooler

Jim Beam Honey - Jim’s Honey Cooler For a sweet but refreshing variant, look no further than Jim Beam Honey. Jim Beam’s inspired distillers took the classic Jim Beam White and infused it with real golden honey and liqueur to create a whiskey with complex notes of caramel, oak and vanilla, and a rich finish of sweet honey. This member of the family is delicious chilled, neat or on the rocks, or have a go at mixing up Jim’s Honey Cooler:

Jim’s Honey Cooler Ingredients

25ml Jim Beam Honey
12.5ml Triple Sec
1 wedge Fresh Lemon
Sparkling Lemonade

Preparation - Take a tall glass and fill with ice cubes. Squeeze over fresh lemon wedge. Add Jim Beam Honey, triple sec and top with lemonade. Softly stir for 5 seconds. Garnish with large orange zest.

Kentucky Storm Ingredients

1 Part Jim Beam® Honey Bourbon
3 parts ginger beer
Juice of ½ a lime

Preparation - Build over ice in a highball glass. Garnish with a lime wedge on the rim.

Jim Beam Honey (RRP £19.84) is available in Tesco, Asda, and Sainsbury’s

Red Stag Summer Peach

Red Stag - Red Stag Summer Peach Red Stag by Jim Beam is another delicious flavoured variant of the classic four-year-old Jim Beam White. Through a slow infusion process, Jim Beam’s distillers infuse the bourbon with natural black cherry flavours, resulting in a distinctive smooth and well-rounded liquid like nothing you've experienced before. Red Stag is fantastic served chilled mixed with ginger or cola, or straight up. Or, if you fancy going a step further, try the Red Stag Summer Peach:

Red Stag Summer Peach Cocktail Ingredients

1 1/2 parts Red Stag by Jim Beam
1/2 part DeKuyper Peachtree Schnapps
2 parts Margarita Mix
3 Maraschino Cherries
8 Mint Leaves
1 part Lemon-Lime Soda
Extra Mint & Cherries for Garnish

Preparation - Add 3 de-stemmed cherries, mint leaves and Red Stag into mixing glass. Muddle and add remaining ingredients except soda. Fill with ice and top with soda. Garnish and serve.

Red Stag by Jim Beam

A twist on the classic Manhattan, Red Stag by Jim Beam is another delicious flavoured variant of the classic four-year-old Jim Beam White, slowly infused with natural black cherry flavours

Red Manhattan - Ingredients

3 parts Red Stag by Jim Beam
1/2 part dry vermouth
1/2 part sweet vermouth
2-3 dashes aromatic bitters

Preparation - Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a pre-chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a cherry

Red Stag by Jim Beam (RRP £19.88) is available in Morrisons, Asda, Sainsbury’s and Tesco

Buy Jim Beam Red Stag online

Black Apple

Jim Beam Devil's Cut - Black Apple And, finally, the new kid on the block, and definitely one for bourbon aficionados. It’s an extraordinary new bourbon experience developed according to a proprietary process which extracts the rich whiskey trapped inside the barrel during ageing. This barrel extract is then blended with six year old bourbon to create a distinctly bold bourbon with a rich flavour of intense oak. Experiment with it neat, on the rocks, mixed with cola or as a cocktail to find the right serve for you: