By Richard Thomas Rating: B+ The 13th installment of Old Fitz Bonded is now out, and this time it’s a mature, but relatively young bourbon. The current offering of Heaven Hill’s Old Fitzgerald brand is a bottled in bond version of its wheated bourbon, but always far older than minimum four years required by the …
In a first for the leading Canadian whisky brand, Crown Royal has introduced a single malt whisky. Crown Royal Single Malt Canadian Whisky pays homage to the brand’s Canadian roots by being distilled at its iconic Valleyfield Distillery, the premier French-speaking whisky distillery in North America. Crafted from 100% malted barley grains and distilled in …
Augusta Distillery will officially launch Buckner’s 17, the newest bourbon in its award-winning Buckner’s series, during the distillery’s June 15 event, Buckner’s, BBQ and Bluegrass. Guests will be among the first to purchase bottles of the 17-year-old, unfiltered bourbon (retail price: $399.99) while enjoying home-style barbeque from regional favorite Rescue BBQ and the musical stylings …
By Richard Thomas Raylan Givens, the Federal marshal of Justified, once aptly described bourbon as being like drinking a “warm summer day.” The problem with that, as us Southrons will tell you, is that downing that warm summer day on a warm day leaves you too warm. The coming of warm weather in late springtime …
By Richard Thomas Rating: A- Japan has its own idiosyncratic varietals of oak used by their whisky industry. Mizunara has become familiar with erudite enthusiasts, as the wood’s characteristic sandalwood notes have found a fan following and it sees more use outside of Japan. The odd thing is that even among those of us who …
Laphroaig Càirdeas 2024 Cask Favourites (note the British spelling, as it is a formal part of the title) is out now in Europe and will come to America in late June. This 10-year-old Càirdeas edition was created by Master Blender, Calum Fraser, to pay homage to the first Càirdeas offerings that made Laphroaig what it …
Benromach Distillery in Speyside has launched the latest installment of its Contrasts line: a 10 year old limited edition single malt whisky matured in the finest Virgin American Oak casks. The Contrasts range features whiskies designed as a twist on the delicately smoky profile of brand’s core range, with other releases including Contrasts Triple Distilled …
By Richard Thomas Rating: A- One of the things to come out of the Japanese whisky explosion a decade ago was the introduction of many whisky enthusiasts to Japan’s Mizunara oak. Whiskies finished in this wood have been appearing in a steady trickle ever since, often as limited editions. Mizunara is a scarce wood (the …
Barrel Craft Spirits is now in its eleventh year of producing sourced, skillfully blended, cask strength whiskeys. The have now reached Barrell Bourbon Batch 036, created with a multi-mash bill blend of Indiana (7 1/2, 8 and 10 year), Kentucky, (9 year) and Tennessee (8 and 15 year) bourbon whiskeys. The final blend features a …
By Randall H. Borkus Rating: B+ On my recent visit to Leiper’s Fork Distillery, I had the good fortune to meet Sir Paul Bisset, Director of Tour Guides and Brand Ambassador, and pick up a bottle of their 7-year-old Bottled-in-Bond Rye Whiskey. Paul Bisset was gracious host, as well as an entertaining guy that had us …
