Expert: Paul Wagner - 12/15/2006

Question
What burbon out there may a good replacement
      close to the same recipe and taste

Answer
Tim:

I think you left something out of your question.  A substitute for what?  Bourbon is American Whiskey, and while there are some slight differences in taste, they will all have similar characteristics.  You can substitute one of them for another--Jim Beam for Jack Daniels.  

But if the question is what you can substitute for Bourbon in a recipe....it depends on why you are making the substitution.  Southern Comfort is a Bourbon based liqueur that would work, but if you are asking for a non-alcoholic substitute for Bourbon, then I would suggest a combination of Vanilla flavoring and maple syrup.  You will have to adjust the amount of sugar in the recipe, because bourbon is not sweet, and Maple syrup is, but the flavor will usually work fairly well.

Paul Wagner