Hypernyms (cordial is a kind of...): alcohol; alcoholic beverage; inebriant; intoxicant (a liquor or brew containing alcohol as the active agent) Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of cordial): absinth; absinthe (strong green liqueur flavored with wormwood and anise) ratafee; ratafia (sweet liqueur made from wine and brandy flavored with plum or peach or apricot kernels and bitter almonds)
Bourbon is mostly made from corn, at least 51% corn. Rye whiskey is mostly or entirely made from Rye. They differ in many other details - for example Bourbon must be aged in new, charred American Oak barrels and made in the US, Scotch must be made in Scotland, but the big differences are the grains used.
On this side of the pond, we have our own local color, too. The difference between Tennessee Whiskey, like Jack Danielâs, for example, and Bourbon is that after the spirit is distilled, Tennessee Whiskey is filtered through sugar-maple charcoal. This filtering, known as the Lincoln County Process, is what distinguishes Tennessee Whiskey from your average Bourbon, like Jim Beam.