Bourbon Whiskey

American's don't need to be lectured on Bourbon, but still, let's put it in record like all other spirits. A Bourbon in American spirit is a barrel-aged distilled liquor made primarily from corn. The name might have been derived from the French Bourbon dynasty, or from Bourbon County in Kentucky, or Bourbon Street in New Orleans, both named after the French Dynasty.

Technically, most whiskey made in America are legally classified as Bourbon, although Bourbon is in spirit a Southern Whiskey with special connection to Kentucky. Note than although Tennessee Whiskey is classified as Bourbon, Tennessee distilleries do not prefer their whiskey to be unique and referred to as Tennessee Whiskey only.

Distilling came to Kentucky in the late 18rth Century with the Scots, Scot-Irish and other settlers including English, Welsh, German and French, and they brought with them their distilling techniques and ageing processes in charred oak barrels. The charring is what gives the Bourbon the brownish colour and distinctive taste.

To be a legal Bourbon, a whiskey has to meet the following criteria

Produced in the United States and Territories (Puerto Rico) and the District of Columbia
Made from a grain mixture that is at least 51% corn
Aged in new, charred oak containers
Distilled to no more than 160 (U.S.) proof (80% alcohol by volume)
Entered into the container for aging at no more than 125 proof (62.5% alcohol by volume)
Bottled (like other whiskeys) at 80 proof or more (40% alcohol by volume)

Half And Half Cream

Half-And-Half is just half whole milk and half heavy cream. The texture is thicker than milk, but less richer than full cream. It is a perfect middle ground for Coffee and Cocktails.
Half-And-Half can be interchanged with Heavy Whipping Cream. The difference is in the fat content, Half-and-half is 10 to 18 percent fat, and heavy cream falls between 30 and 36 percent. So while replacing one with the other, the consistency and thickness of the cocktail will depend on how much of the heavy cream you use to replace the Half-And-Half.

Tabasco Sauce

Tabasco Sauce is a brand of hot sauce made from the Tabasco chili pepper that grow mostly in the Gulf Coast of Mexico. It is one of the known highly pungent and hot pepper like the Naga Jalokia of India. Tabasco Sauce is made with just three ingredients - peppers, salt and vinegar. The red pepper mash in aged in white oak barrels and the long aging process renders the complex flavour to this hot sauce.
It is an American brand, produced by the Mcilhenny Company of Avery Islands, Southern Louisiana. In drink mixing, Tabasco is popularly known to be an ingredient in the Bloody Mary cocktail and is used in many cocktail classics, the sauce simply enhances the flavour of every drink and adds the extra kick to every sip.