By Richard Thomas Rating: C+ Looking for something novel to ring in St. Patty’s 2023? Beyond my round-up of new Irish Whiskeys, I’m also taking a look at Lost Irish. This is a sourced brand created by Neil Sands and Tim Herlihy. Keen whiskey observers will probably recognize Herlihy’s name, because he was Tullamore DEW’s …
By Kenrick Thurston-Wilcox Rating: B+ Based in Buena Vista, Colorado, Deerhammer Distillery was founded in 2010 by the couple of Lenny and Amy Eckstein. Lenny had been working at Colorado craft whiskey trailblazer Stranhan’s, and decided to try his hand at making his own whiskey. Inspired by the bootstrap ambition of the early Western settlers …
Updated March 12, 2023 By Richard Thomas Average Rating: B+ When Barry Crockett retired as Master Distiller for Irish Distillers in 2013 after 47 years with the company, his principal legacy was preserving the distinctly Irish style of pot still whiskey. Yet it was not until relatively modern times, albeit still under Crockett’s tenure, that …
By Richard Thomas Rating: C+ New for St. Patrick’s Day 2023 is Natterjack Irish Whiskey. This new entry comes from Gortinore Distillers & Co., which is following a path familiar to most American enthusiasts: build a brand based on sourced whiskey while simultaneously building a distillery, starting operations and laying in stock for maturation. Gortinore …
By Richard Thomas Rating: B- Following their branding and custom, California’s Redwood Empire named their blend of whiskeys after a very old, very tall redwood tree. The tallest coastal redwood, Lost Monarch the tree is 157 feet high and found in Jedediah Smith State Park. Lost Monarch the whiskey is a blend of (presumably MGP-sourced) …
By Richard Thomas Rating: C+ The backstory behind Baltimore’s Old Line Spirits is a classic of modern craft whiskey. Founders Arch Watkins and Mark McLaughlin set out in 2015 to make bourbon and rye. In the early stages of that project, they were approached by a small American malt distiller in Washington State, who offered …
By Kenrick Thurston-Wilcox Rating: B Since their founding in 2015, Still Austin has strived to capture what life in Austin, Texas is like with each release of their whiskeys. With their base known as the “Live Music Capital of the World,” Still Austin captured the spirit of their music world in their first release and …
By Richard Thomas Rating: B+ This one is a solid example of why the proliferation of one-off xperiments and single shot limited editions in today’s whiskey trade demand some real skill in naming. “Jack Daniel’s Distillery Series Finished In High Toasted Maple Barrel Rye Whiskey” — what a mouthful! Paring that down by just a …
By Richard Thomas Rating: B When it comes to California’s Redwood Empire, I’m most familiar with their in-house, bonded whiskeys. Before that, however, both I and past contributor Padre John took a crack at their American Whiskey. That expression followed the model of blending stocks of sourced, mature or old whiskey with youthful, in-house make. …
By Richard Thomas Rating: B- Picadilly Distillers traces its roots to a liquor distribution company started in 1953 in pre-Independence Punjab. From there, they expanded into the restaurant and bar trade, and operated what was the only bar in Chandigarh for three and a half decades. In the 1990s, the company acquired a sugar mill …
