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Pour it on

By Elyssa Pachico
for The Brooklyn Paper
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The Brooklyn Paper / Elyssa Pachico
Matt Greco is the chef and Sean Josephs is the owner of the new Char No. 4, a bourbon-themed eatery on Smith Street.

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Anyone who’s seen “Sideways” knows the basics of wine tasting — swirl glass, stick in nose, inhale — but how do you go about tasting a Jim Beam? Or a Basil Hayden’s, for that matter?

Now there’s only one person to ask: Sean Josephs, owner of the new whisky-centric restaurant/bar Char No. 4 on Smith Street.

“You definitely don’t want to swirl bourbon,” said Josephs (pictured, right, with chef Matt Greco), whose place stocks close to 300 varieties of liquid gold from Appalachia to Asia.

Brooklyn Bridge Realty

“These whiskies can be rather intense, so you don’t want to agitate it in a glass.”

The Carroll Gardens eatery wants to welcome newbies, so before committing to a $100 bourbon, customers can try a one-ounce shot of any whisky — from the kosher Williamsburg #20 to the rare Classic Cask — for just $3.

You don’t need to be a bourbon lover to enjoy the restaurant, whose name comes from the term for the degree of burn on the inside of a bourbon cask. Greco’s comforting menu includes cranberry beans in tomato fennel broth ($6) and a BLT ($10) with house-smoked bacon.

Sounds great with a tumbler of Woodford Reserve, doesn’t it?

Char No. 4 (196 Smith St, between Baltic and Warren streets) is open Mon-Thur, 5-11 pm; Fri-Sat, 5 pm–midnight; and Sun, 5–10 pm; Credit cards: MasterCard, VISA, American Express. Reservations: (718) 643-2106.

©2008 The Brooklyn Paper

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