In this video Rock and Marco from mybottleshop.com take a look at Southern Comfort Whisky Liqueur. Then they crack open a bottle of Southern Comfort Black (40%ABV) and give it a taste, a review and a MyBottleShop Mark out of a hundred.
Though it invariably appears on liquor store shelves next to Jim Beam and Jack Daniels, Southern Comfort isn’t actually a whiskey. Invented in 1874 by New Orleans bartender Martin Wilkes Heron, the original spirit blended fruits and spices with low-quality whiskey to add sweetness and smoothness. Today, as a result of these infusions, Southern Comfort is technically classed as a liqueur.
Heron originally named his liqueur Cuffs & Buttons. Depending on which version of history you believe, this was either a reference to the ingredients he used for the infusion — citrus peel (cuffs) and cloves (buttons) — or a nod to another popular liqueur of the time, Hat and Tails.
Janis Joplin was famously a fan of Southern Comfort and regularly appeared on stage with a bottle in hand. To thank her for the free publicity, Southern Comfort bought Joplin a lynx fur coat and matching hat.
