By Richard Thomas Rating: B+ When Heaven Hill finally took the 12 year age statement off Elijah Craig Barrel Proof last year, several years after taking the Elijah Craig Small Batch no age statement in 2016, it was an even noteworthy for just how little comment it attracted. Sure, some croaked, but compared to the …
By Richard Thomas Rating: A- Larceny Barrel Proof has been bucking the expectations for what wheated bourbon is supposed to be lately. Through 2023, the expression became quite spice-driven, although how much so varied from batch to batch. Although they still had a softened character, and were certainly not falling into the spicy and dry …
By Richard Thomas Rating: A- A sample of the latest Bernheim Original Barrel Proof, the A224 (meaning first batch of the year, February 2024) arrived at my house in a timely manner, because I was departing for visitation with my son a couple of weeks later. So I tucked it away in my luggage, took …
By Randall H. Borkus Rating: B- The brothers Ben and David Holladay founded the Blue Springs Distillery in 1856a, it was at a limestone well supposedly discovered by Lewis and Clark. The distillery changed hands multiple times; first to George Shawhan, who renamed it the Shawhan Distillery in 1900; again in 1936 to become the …
By Randall H. Borkus Rating: “Novelty” Tamworth Distilling, a craft distillery out of New Hampshire, was founded by Steven Grasse. He is referred to as a Wonka-like character and was described as the “punk rock prince of small-batch spirits” by writer Alex Halberstadt. Among his other credits, Grasse co-created Hendrick’s Gin in 1999 in partnership …
By Richard Thomas Rating: C+ Before there was a Town Branch Distillery or even a sourced brand, there was a Lexington Brewing Company, with the distillery erected on the property of the original brewery. Today’s joint Lexington Brewing & Distilling Company isn’t quite what most people imagine when they think “brewstillery,” because the brewery and …
By Richard Thomas Rating: B When Brown-Forman bought the BenRiach Group, they acquired not just BenRiach, but also Glendronach and Glenglassaugh. The acquisition marked the first foray into Scotch Whisky for a company best known for Jack Daniel’s, and they’ve stuck with the trio of malt distilleries these last seven and a half years. This …
By Randall H. Borkus Rating: B+ Heaven’s Door Calvados Cask Straight Bourbon is the first expression in the Heaven’s Door Exploration Series, a sourced and limited edition expression series showcasing distinct finishing cask stock. This first release in the series is a blend that marries the complexity of a toasted oak barrel and a French …
By Richard Thomas Rating: B+ Glenglassaugh’s location has its interesting features, starting with where it fits into the traditional regions of Scotch whisky. It’s so close to the boundary dividing Speyside from the Highlands that one wonders if the reason the eastern border of Speyside was placed as it is was not to exclude it …
By Douglas Fraser Rating: B+ Old Elk Distillery is based in Fort Collins, Colorado, just sixty miles from Denver. This expression is sourced from MGP’s very high wheat, wheated bourbon whiskey, with a mash bill of 51% corn, 45% wheat and 4% malted barley. As with many brands, sourcing from MGP is a staple of …
