Author: BourbonBlog News

Because we celebrate Bourbon every day at BoubonBlog.com, today is known as National Bourbon Day!

Bourbon expert and BourbonBlog’s own Tom Fischer will be on several outlets this week and today. Here is the schedule below…most you can watch from anywhere.  The KTLA Los Angeles, California interview is already online on this link. 

Want to have your own virtual or in-person tasting? Contact us at tasting@bourbonblog.com

Schedule:

7:45 am CST / 8:45 am – 104.1 FM WIKY, Indiana listen live on this link

12:50 pm PST / 3;50 pm ET – KESQ, Palm Springs, CA – watch live on this link

2 pm PST / 5 pm PT – KTLA Los Angeles, watch the video online on this link

4:30 pm – IHeartRadio Ohio: Scott Sands Show, listen live  on this link

more coming!

 

Photo from Fidel’s Bar.

Photography by Connie Kurtew Photography of Tom

The post National Bourbon Day 2021 first appeared on BourbonBlog.

Belfour is adding Small Batch Straight Bourbon Whiskey to its portfolio of whiskey known as The Spirit of Champions.

As the ultra-premium spirits producer led by Hockey Hall of Famer Ed Belfour, Bourbonblog.com, and MenWhoBlog interviewed Ed Belfour and his son Dayn Belfour recently on the live vide linked below. Before this release, the only other Bourbon whiskey in their collection was the Bourbon Whiskey Finished With Texas Pecan Wood.

Belfour Spirits calls this a true Small Batch – made up of a collection of 95 barrels – the Straight Bourbon is a one-time release across its distribution footprint of 12 states and growing. The Belfour’s have other Small Batch releases planned for future years, always giving fans new whiskey to explore.

This Small Batch Straight Bourbon is bottled at 100.5 proof (50.25% ALC/VOL) and has a mash bill of 60% corn, 30% wheat, and 10% malted barley.

Known for their hands-on involvement, Ed and his children – Dayn and Reaghan (pictured below) – distilled the spirit at Southern Distilling in Statesville, N.C, where they aged the bourbon for three years in new American white oak barrels. The Belfour’s believe their preference for Northern oak contributes to the spirit’s unique flavor.

“We enjoy playing with barrel science to allow the wood to work its magic, and that truly shines on this Small Batch Straight Whiskey,” Ed Belfour, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Belfour Spirits tells BourbonBlog.com. “This is a special bourbon to our family, and we are honored to share it with fans. Creamy sweet flavors lead to a finish that is complex and evolving.”

The Small Batch Straight Bourbon is packaged in the Belfour decanter-like bottle and features gold labels with black branding accents. The whiskey was bottled in Harrodsburg, KY.

The Belfour’s Small Batch release is its second major product to rollout since its launch to consumers in October 2019 with three products:

• 92-proof Bourbon Whiskey Finished With Texas Pecan Wood
• 94-proof Rye Whiskey
• 100-proof Limited Edition Straight Rye Whiskey (known for its complex taste and chalice cork plated in sterling silver)

In November 2020, the Belfour’s launched their 106-proof Special Edition Straight Rye Whiskey, a tribute to Fighting Sioux fans, which earned a Double Gold in the 2021 San Francisco World Spirits Competition.

Belfour Spirits is available in

Georgia
Illinois
Louisiana
Michigan
New York
New Jersey
North Dakota
Oklahoma
South Carolina
South Dakota
Texas
Tennessee

and additional markets are coming this year and beyond.

 

 

The post Belfour Small Batch Straight Bourbon Whiskey Released first appeared on BourbonBlog.

The new Copper Tongue 16-year-old Straight Bourbon Whiskey from the Orphan Barrel Whiskey Distilling Co hails from the historic Cascade Hollow Distillery in Tullahoma, Tennessee – where George Dickel is made.

Copper Tongue is s a cask-strength 16-year-old straight bourbon whiskey. The limited release will be out in June for a suggested retail price of $100. bottled at 89.8 proof (44.9%).

As we have continued to follow the story of Diageo’s Orphan Barrel Distilling Co. since we broke the story of the collection in 2013, this is  the second Orphan Barrel release from Cascade Hollow Distilling Co.(following the 2016 release of Orphan Barrel Whoop & Holler 28-Year-Old),

Orphan Barrel says Cascade Hollow Distilling Co., General Manager, and Distiller, Nicole Austin the whiskey on the distillery’s single-story rickhouses. While this is the Orphan Barrel Copper Tongue marks the first from the Cascade Hollow Distilling Co., General Manager, and Distiller, Nicole Austin. Over the years, the team at Cascade Hollow has released a number of award-winning whiskies under Nicole’s leadership.

Orphan Barrel Distilling Co tells BourbonBlog.com 16-year-old Bourbon is approachable and mellow profile balanced by juicy bursts of candied orange and hints of cedar.

The post Orphan Barrel Copper Tongue 16-year-old Straight Bourbon Whiskey first appeared on BourbonBlog.

Angel’s Envy tells BourbonBlog.com they will release Angel’s Envy Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Finished in Madeira Casks in celebration of Father’s Day. The limited-run, 100-proof (50% ABV) whiskey is the third release in Angel’s Envy Cellar Collection, the brand’s special release program that is led by Wes Henderson and his sons and honors the late Lincoln Henderson’s pioneering and innovative spirit. The previous two were a Tawny Port finish in 2020 and a Sherry Finish in 2019.

The suggested retail price for a 75omL bottle is $229.99. For more information,

The Madiera Finish

While some Madeira-finished whiskeys typically spend three to six months in barrels to pick up the fruit notes from the wine, Angel’s Envy says they extended the finishing period on theirs add complexity.

They say the result offers notes of caramelized banana, brown sugar, raisins, almonds, and faint cherry on the nose, as well as notes of oak, grass, smoke, leather, chocolate, and dried cherries on the palate. The finish has notes of almond and hazelnut.

“There’s deep history and craftsmanship involved in the production of Madeira wine, so my sons and I knew we wanted to tap into that to create something special for our Cellar Collection. We took a trip to the island in 2015 and tried more than 30 varieties until we found the perfect casks that would lend both the dryness of a good sherry and the richness of tawny port to our bourbon,” said Wes Henderson, Co-Founder and CIO of Angel’s Envy

How To Buy A Bottle

Between May 21 and May 25, Angel’s Envy 500 Main members can enter a lottery to win the chance to purchase the release ahead of public sale.

A total of 600 bottles will be reserved for the 500 Main lottery; the randomly selected winners will be notified on May 28.

Early purchasers will be able to pick up their bottles beginning on June 3 at Angel’s Envy downtown Louisville distillery. Public sale (limit one per customer) will begin on June 6 at 1PM ET, with approximately 400 bottles available at Angel’s s distillery and limited quantities available at select retailers in KY, NY, CA, FL, TN, IL and TX.

For more updates like this one, subscribe to our newsletter on this link. 

The post Angel’s Envy Bourbon Whiskey finished in Madeira Casks Limited Edition first appeared on BourbonBlog.

WhistlePig Rye Whiskey tells BourbonBlog.com that Spring’s arrival has brought a sense of sweet relief with an extremely limited edition whiskey after the cold, hard Vermont winter.

WhistlePig says their 4th offering in the series is a “Maple Syrup-imbued masterpiece.” During the height of sugaring season, they swished maple syrup in freshly emptied Whistle Pig rye barrels and let them sit for several days at the Shoreham, Vermont craft distillery.

Next, after draining the syrup from those same barrels, they filled them with their 12-Year-Old whiskey and let it soak up the special sauce “maple sauce” for a 2-week barrel finish.

Notes of maple, oak, and caramel flavors are said ot be revealed in the whiskey can be ordered on this link for select states.

The post WhistlePig Rye Whiskey Sasquatch Select Sighting #4: Maple Madness first appeared on BourbonBlog.

Casa Noble Tequila tells BourbonBlog.com they are reintroducing their ultra-premium line of tequila expressions, with refined expressions of the Tequila itself and sleek updates to the signature packaging.

Thus far, we haven’t reviewed and plan on bringing you our review soon.

Casa Noble says that with more than 200 years of tequila-making expertise, the Casa Noble family of Single Estate Organic tequilas was redeveloped to deliver an even more distinguished tasting experience.

“We are delighted to introduce our reimagined line of tequilas,” Casa Noble Founder and Master Distiller, Pepe Hermosillo tells us. “In a world where things move at a hastened pace, we are welcoming consumers to slow down, sit back, and sip along with us as they enjoy life.”

Grown in high-altitude fields on the mountains of western Jalisco, Casa Noble’s journey begins with only the finest ingredients – 100% CCOF Certified Organic blue agave – which are carefully nurtured until they reach full maturity. With sustainability in mind every step of the way, Casa Noble employs practices that reinforce the natural stewardship of the land, including using only natural fertilizers made from composted piñas and agave plant waste, cultivating agave sprouts to ensure quality and continuity, sourcing water from a pure volcanic aquifer, and maintaining a zero-spillage production cycle.

The meticulous production process uses only traditional methods, with the estate-grown agaves cooked in stone ovens, naturally fermented and distilled three times, resulting in a superior tequila that delivers a lush taste and round finish.

Steeped in tradition with an eye towards the future, Casa Noble’s thoughtfully crafted expressions are packaged in newly designed bottles to reflect their modern sensibilities. The sleek, minimalist bottles stand tall, cut to resemble the piña and adorned with a crest of tequila nobilities.

Casa Noble’s Single Estate tequilas are available in the following expressions:

Casa Noble Crystal

Vibrant and unaged, it is the origin for each of Casa Noble’s expressions. It embodies the brand’s commitment to continuous evolution on their way to tequila perfection. Elegance in its purest form, this tequila is exquisitely balanced, offering beautiful fruit and citrus with sweet agave and soft herbal notes.

SRP: $43.99

Casa Noble Reposado

364 days of aging in a precise selection of new oak from some of France’s most renowned cooperages, transforms Blanco into an enchantingly harmonious melding of youth and maturity. It opens with warm vanilla, bright lemongrass, and subtle floral aromas, followed by flavors of sweet, cooked agave and toasty oak.

SRP: $49.99

 Casa Noble Añejo

Blended from up to 14 lots to capture Master Distiller Pepe Hermosillo’s unique vision, extensive aging in new French oak, creates a warm, complex character – the ultimate in sipping pleasure. Dried fruit and spice aromas complement toasted oak, butterscotch, and vanilla. An undertone of sweet cooked agave recalls this tequila’s fresh Blanco roots.

SRP: $54.99

The post Casa Noble Tequila Relaunches with Refined Liquid and New Packaging first appeared on BourbonBlog.

Breaking News: Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit failed a post-race drug test according the Associated Press and a number of media outlets. Bob Baffert denies any wrongdoing and calls a “complete injustice” and “the biggest gut punch in racing for something I didn’t do.” He claims the drug betamethasone was never used on Medina Spirit.

After a surprising twist in 2019 with a disqualification at Kentucky Derby that we covered in this video as it unfolded, today’s news is yet another surprise.

Depending on the result of further testing and investigation, there is a possibility that Medina Spirit could be disqualified as the winner of Kentucky Derby 147.

As BourbonBlog.com covered Kentucky Derby 147 the day of the Derby via coverage both on our website and on YouTube.com/BoubonBlog, we are sharing this developing story below and will continue to stay on top of this.  Video interview and story with Bob Baffert also shared below. Original story and video on this link 

Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert said Sunday that his barn has been told Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit failed a postrace drug test, the latest doping scandal for horse racing, and arguably the sport’s premier trainer.

Flanked by his attorney Craig Robertson in a news conference at Churchill Downs on Sunday, Baffert said Medina Spirit was found to have 21 picograms of the steroid betamethasone, double the legal threshold in Kentucky racing, in a postrace sample.

That is the same drug that was found in the system of Gamine, another Baffert-trained horse who finished third in the Kentucky Oaks last September.

“I got the biggest gut punch in racing, for something I didn’t do,” said Baffert, who vowed to be transparent with racing investigators. Baffert said his camp received the word of the positive test from Kentucky officials Saturday. Baffert said Medina Spirit has not yet been officially disqualified from the Kentucky Derby, though that still could happen after other tests and processes are completed.

“This shouldn’t have happened,” Baffert said. “There’s a problem somewhere. It didn’t come from us. … He ran a gallant race.”

Medina Spirit won the Kentucky Derby on May 1 by a half-length over Mandaloun, giving Baffert his record-setting seventh victory in the race that starts the Triple Crown season. Medina Spirit still is expected to race in the Preakness, the Triple Crown’s second jewel, on Saturday.

Last month, Baffert won an appeals case before the Arkansas Racing Commission, which had suspended him for 15 days for a pair of positive drug tests involving two of his horses that won at Oaklawn Park on May 2, 2020. The horses tested positive for lidocaine, a painkiller, which Baffert said they were exposed to inadvertently.

“There’s problems in racing,” Baffert said. “But it’s not Bob Baffert.”

The New York Times said in November 2020 that Baffert-trained horses have failed at least 29 drug tests in his four-decade career.

“I’m worried about our sport,” Baffert said. “Our sport, we’ve taken a lot of hits as a sport. These are pretty serious accusations here, but we’re going to get to the bottom of it.”

Video interview credit: WHAS, also on the same link.

The post Kentucky Derby Winner Medina Spirit Fails Postrace Drug Test and Baffert Denies Wrongdoing first appeared on BourbonBlog.

Louisville-based whiskey brand continues to bring home top honors for its rye as Buzzard’s Roost Sippin’ Whiskeys. The brand just launched in 2019, and has already racked up three gold medals at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition.

Buzzard’s Roost recently earned top recognition for Buzzard’s Roost Toasted Barrel Rye, which received a Double Gold, and Buzzard’s Roost Barrel Strength Rye, which earned a Gold. This is the second year in a row the brand brought home Gold from the competition, which includes entries from some of the most renowned distillers in the world. In 2020, Buzzard’s received a Gold medal for its Single Barrel Rye, a 105 proof rye whiskey.

Bourbon expert Tom Fischer recently interviewed Jason Brauner, Buzzard’s Roost Master Blender for BourbonBlog Live the video below and also on the podcast on this link

Video Interview with Jason Brauner about Buzzard’s Roost Sippin’ Whiskey

Poddcast Interview with Jason Brauner about Buzzard’s Roost Sippin’ Whiskey

“We are excited to be three-for-three at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition, especially as such a new company,” Jason Brauner, Buzzard’s Roost Master Blender tells BourbonBlog.com.

“We’re not shy about the whiskey we source because we feel our secondary barrels, which we custom design, give us the edge. Our unique maturation process allows us to nail down a taste profile that appeals to both rye lovers and bourbon fans.”

Presented at 105 proof, Toasted Barrel Rye is finished in proprietary barrels that feature custom toast profiles which lends additional vanilla character to the whiskey. Toasted barrels, in general, allow the whiskey to extract more barrel flavor in a shorter amount of time versus a heavy char. \

Barrel Strength Rye is uncut, unfiltered, and comes straight from the barrel between 113-116 proof with notes of baking spices and bright fruit. Both whiskeys use a 95% rye, 5% barley mash bill, are aged at least 36 months, and retail for $79.99.

Buzzard’s Roost works closely with their cooperage and uses proprietary barrels, each charred to a specific specification, to create certain flavor profiles. Once the whiskey is selected, it is re-barreled using the special barrels and aged in Kentucky warehouses. Buzzard’s Roost whiskeys can be found throughout Kentucky and Massachuttes, with plans to distribute in more states soon.

The post Buzzard’s Roost Wins Double Gold at San Francisco World Spirits Competition first appeared on BourbonBlog.

Heaven Hill Distillery launches the Square 6 Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey, the first bottled Bourbon produced at its artisanal distillery located in the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience at 528 W. Main Street in Louisville, Ky.

They tell BourbonBlog.com that Square 6 is a high rye Bourbon whiskey and named after the original plot of land where Evan Williams built Kentucky’s first commercial distillery in 1783, sharing the same block on Louisville’s Whiskey Row where the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience first opened in 2013.

This initial launch from the one barrel per day, hand-crafted, copper pot still facility.

The limited release of Square 6 High Rye Bourbon will be available in small quantities at the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience and available at select Kentucky retailers for $89.99. Square 6 High Rye Bourbon was aged for five years before being bottled at 95 proof.

Heaven Hill says this is the first of many craft products to come from the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience.

As a High Rye Bourbon, the Square 6 mashbill consists of 52 percent corn, 35 percent rye, and 13 percent malted barley, a new Bourbon recipe under the Heaven Hill Distillery portfolio. Artisanal Distiller Jodie Filiatreau distills one barrel of American Whiskey per day at the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience.

Since the building of the craft distillery, Heaven Hill says they have been waiting as the barrels age to maturation. During this aging process, a team of master tasters samples each recipe at various stages until that specific mashbill has been deemed to have achieved a taste profile worthy of bottling. Square 6 High Rye Bourbon is the first result of this process and the first bottling from the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience stills.

“Today marks another milestone in the educational, interactive experiences offered at the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience as we can now experience the aroma and taste of this truly hand-crafted process from the grain to the glass,” Max L. Shapira, Heaven Hill Distillery President. tells BourbonBlog.com

“From the first day Artisanal Distiller, Emeritus Charlie Downs turned on the stills nearly five years ago to Artisanal Distiller Jodie Filiatreau patiently waiting years for this product to come of age in the barrel, today we celebrate Heaven Hill’s commitment to quality and attention to detail.”

To celebrate the occasion, a commemorative barrel was rolled down Louisville’s Main Street by Heaven Hill Distillery President Max Shapira, Artisanal Distiller Jodie Filiatreau, Artisanal Distiller Emeritus Charlie Downs, Louisville Tourism President & CEO Karen Williams, and Louisville Tourism Chief Operating Officer Cleo Battle

The post Square 6 Bourbon Whiskey from Heaven Hill’s Louisville Artisanal Distillery first appeared on BourbonBlog.

As you celebrate Oaks Day in Louisville, join Kentucky Peerless Distilling Co. for an Oaks Day bottle signing event with 5th Generation Carson Taylor and Master Distiller Caleb Kilburn and Fifth Generation Carson Taylor and Master Distiller Caleb Kilburn who will be available to sign bottles from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Friday, April 30.

Celebrate Derby season with a signed Distillery Select Single Barrel. Please note all distillery experiences must be booked in advance via their website on Kentuckypeerless.com

Telling the story of African American Turf History.

Friday, April 30 will be the release of a Single Barrel Selection in partnership with Project to Preserve African-American Turf History.

This bottle will be the first of a series in collaboration with PPAATH, commemorating the stories of African-American jockeys.

PPAATH works to ensure the lifetime achievements of people of color who’ve made significant contributions to history are not forgotten.

For more information on the PPAATH mission, visit their website and watch the video interview below about this special release.

ABOUT THE BOURBON SINGLE BARREL SELECTION

NOSE
Sweet caramel and orange zest make a great first impression. The nose then evolves to showcase leather and sweet grasses.
PALATE
The taste starts with cedar, cinnamon, and a dash of citrus bitters. Sweet smoky oak quickly fills the palate. Another sip adds herbs, tobacco, and dry, weathered leather.
FINISH
The finish features smoked dark chocolate that is brightened with and an orange bitters encore.

The post Oaks Day Bottle Signing at Kentucky Peerless Distilling Co., Louisville first appeared on BourbonBlog.