Bessie Smith had the first hit with “Careless Love” in 1925.The tremendous success of Old Crow, the first modern bourbon, produced several fortunes in the decades before Prohibition. Few profited more than the Berry family. Hiram Berry joined the…
In the new issue of The Bourbon Country Reader, I try to put a positive spin on the ghastly decision by Brown-Forman to discontinue its programs to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) at the company.Brown-Forman owns Jack Daniel’s and …
Clark & Sheffield bourbon, $11.99/750 ml, 45% ABV.The name “Clark & Sheffield” may mean something to you if you are a fan of the Chicago Cubs baseball team. Clark Street borders Wrigley Field to the west and Sheffield Avenue borders it on…
Whiskey maturing in Kentucky.Ever since the “bourbon boom” began, about 20 years ago, people have speculated about a future whiskey glut. Now, we have data.Bernstein is a research firm that helps institutional investors manage their portfolios. R…
Seaview Terrace, also known as the Carey Mansion, in Newport, Rhode Island.If you recognize the mansion pictured above, it probably has nothing to do with Old Crow Bourbon. The house is famous in its own right, as the fifth-largest of Newport’s f…
I. W. Harper Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey, 41% alc/volIn 2015, Diageo relaunched I. W. Harper bourbon, a 19th century brand created by the Bernheim Brothers. The relaunch did not set the world on fire. Some old brands have been suc…
The repeal of Prohibition in 1933 was widely celebrated.National Prohibition in the United States (1920-1933) was always divisive, and many otherwise law-abiding Americans never accepted its legitimacy. Several years in, the “noble experiment” wa…
Fred, Freddie, and Booker Noe, at the Jim Beam Distillery, Bullitt County, Kentucky.What’s in a name? That which we call a roseBy any other name would smell as sweet;So Romeo would, were he not Romeo call’d,Retain that dear perfection which he ow…
Grant Wood “American Gothic” (detail)In 2003, two of my friends were getting married. They’d both been around the block a few times and requested, in lieu of gifts, that we offer them our advice “on conflict resolution and the making of a successf…
An anti-prohibition parade in Newark, New Jersey in 1932.Apologists for the Prohibition disaster dubbed it the “noble experiment.” There was nothing noble about it. A century ago, the American people were sold a bill of goods. They were promised …
