The Absolute Best Bourbon To Pair With Coke

Name a more American cocktail than bourbon and Coke — we'll wait. Both drinks were invented in the United States, and combine to make a simple and sweet boozy cocktail that's a perfect party sipper. While it's hard to pinpoint who exactly invented what some people call the Coca-Cola Highball, one thing that's for certain is it's been around since the early 1900s. We were curious to find out the best type of bourbon to pair with Coke, so we spoke to Anton Kinloch, a bartender and the co-founder of Lone Wolf, a cocktail bar focused on spirit education, as is evidenced by its participation in New York Bartender Week.

According to Kinloch, when it comes to choosing the perfect brand of bourbon to combine with Coke, "Old Grand-Dad 114 proof is a solid choice to be mixed," he explained. "With a different mash bill (63% corn, 27% rye, and 10% barley) and higher ABV, the drink benefits from the extra dilution of soda and ice to be nursed over time." Old Grand-Dad 114 delivers a complex flavor profile featuring layers of spicy nuttiness with a slightly bitter char that perfectly folds into the sweetness of your Coke. A typical bourbon features a rye content that hovers around 15%, but because Old Grand-Dad 114 has a significantly higher rye level, it delivers a more subtle, yet still spicy, sip.

Old Grand-Dad 114 is a barrel-proof bourbon, meaning it's bottled straight from the cask as opposed to being diluted with water first and then bottled. This means your bourbon will pack a boozy punch when enjoyed on its own. For some enthusiasts, drinking a layered, complex, undiluted bourbon is a positive, for others, it's too much. Old Grand-Dad 114 therefore makes for the perfect highball spirit because you maintain those untainted flavors while minimizing the intense burn from the alcohol with a mixer. And the reason cola and bourbon are a match made in cocktail heaven is because of the soda's sugary vanilla and raisin notes.

This sweetness brings out the bourbon's flavors instead of masking them, avoiding this common downside of adding a carbonated mixer to your bourbon. Another delightful characteristic of Coke and bourbon is how incredibly simple the drink is to make. We recommend starting with a 2:3 ratio, 2 parts bourbon and 3 parts cola, and then adjusting the amounts based on your taste preferences. Serve the drink over ice with a wedge of lime and you're good to go. If you love the flavors that Coke and bourbon bring but aren't a big drinker, we recommend using this combo next time you're looking for a meat glaze.