Brent Elliott - BourbonSphere

A Deep Dive Into Scotch Whisky Data

There’s a lot of data behind the whiskies we enjoy, and analyzing that data can give us some insights into the health of the whisky… Read More

There’s a lot of data behind the whiskies we enjoy, and analyzing that data can give us some insights into the health of the whisky industry. Martin Purvis and Duncan McFadzean examine whisky data for their Commercial Spirits Intelligence newsletter, and concluded that last week’s Scotch Whisky export numbers aren’t as bad as they might appear on face value. We’ll talk with Martin Purvis about the analysis on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, we have details on this year’s crop of annual releases from Four Roses, Heaven Hill, and Old Forester, along with the rest of the week’s new releases. We’ll also have our Community segment and explain in Behind the Label why you can’t get a Kentucky Bourbon Trail passport stamped at one of the Commonwealth’s most popular distilleries.

Episode 1019: August 27, 2023

Four Roses Unveils a Bourbon 135 Years in the Making

Four Roses is celebrating its 135th anniversary in 2023, and will release next month its 135th Anniversary Limited Edition Small Batch Bourbon. The annual release… Read More

Four Roses is celebrating its 135th anniversary in 2023, and will release next month its 135th Anniversary Limited Edition Small Batch Bourbon. The annual release of the Limited Edition Small Batch is highly sought after by fans of Four Roses, and this year’s edition is a blend of four different batches ranging from 12 to 25 years old.

For the Four Roses fans:

12-year-old OESV makes up 35% of the blend,
14-year-old OESK 40%,
16-year-old OESV 35%
25-year-old OBSV 5%

The “K” yeast strain is known for producing spicy flavors, while the “V” yeast strain that dominates in this year’s blend generally produces fruity flavors.

“By the time these batches reach these ages, 12, 14, 16 years, the recipes do play a role in what kind of flavors develop, but at this age, a lot of times the barrel itself, the age…that will actually have more influence than the original yeast strain or mashbill,” Four Roses Master Distiller Brent Elliott told whisky writers on a Zoom call Monday. Elliott creates the annual releases with an eye to making each year’s edition different from previous editions.

Approximately 15,060 bottles will be available in the U.S. and the European Union with a recommended retail price of $199.99 at whisky specialist shops. The Four Roses Distillery visitors center in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky will have a limited number of bottles available through an online lottery that runs from August 22 through August 28.

Links: Four Roses

This story was published August 22. Image courtesy Four Roses.

Four Roses Bourbon Celebrates 135 Years

Back in 1888, Paul Jones Jr. started selling Bourbon under the Four Roses brand. 135 years later, the brand is stronger than ever, and to… Read More

Back in 1888, Paul Jones Jr. started selling Bourbon under the Four Roses brand. 135 years later, the brand is stronger than ever, and to mark the anniversary, Four Roses is releasing a first-ever tasting kit with all 10 of the distillery’s unique recipes. We’ll talk with Master Distiller Brent Elliott about the anniversary, and what makes each of those 10 recipes different, on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth.

In the news, new distilleries are opening up in Japan, Wales, and Pennsylvania this week, while Sazerac has won a counterfeiting lawsuit against a company that was selling miniature bottles of its W.L. Weller Bourbon online.

Episode 1012: July 9, 2023

Craigellachie Travel Retail Release Leads the Week’s New Whiskies

Craigellachie is releasing a 37-year-old Bourbon cask finished single malt. The whisky was distilled in 1984, and originally was matured in refill casks before being… Read More

Craigellachie is releasing a 37-year-old Bourbon cask finished single malt. The whisky was distilled in 1984, and originally was matured in refill casks before being transferred to ex-Bourbon barrels.

3,012 bottles will be available first at Gebr. Heinemann airport shops in Frankfurt, Amsterdam and Istanbul, then at retailers in the U-K, Germany, France, Taiwan, and China starting August 1 with a recommended retail price of £3,800.

Arran is releasing a new 25-year-old single malt. It’s the oldest in the Arran range so far, and will become part of the distillery’s core range. Only 3,000 bottles will be available globally, with 240 coming to the U.S. at a price tag of $789.99 a bottle…

Meanwhile, Arran’s sister distillery, Lagg, has released its first whisky. The peated Kilmory is matured in first-fill ex-Bourbon barrels and bottled at 46 percent ABV with no chill filtering. It’s available now through the Arran web site for £49.99 a bottle.

Douglas Laing and Company has released a new edition of its Timorous Beastie Highland blended malt. It’s finished in Port wine casks and kicks off the brand’s Cheese Cellar Collection of whiskies crafted to be paired with cheeses. In particular, this one is said to pair well with a Stilton. It’ll be available globally, and will carry a recommended retail price in the UK of £65 a bottle.

O’Shaughnessy Distilling in Minneapolis has released a cask-strength bottling of its Keepers Heart Irish whiskey and Bourbon blend. The blend brings together Irish Pot Still and grain whiskies from Great Northern Distilling in Ireland with four year old MGP Bourbon. It’s bottled at 58.5% ABV, and will carry a recommended retail price of $49.99 a bottle.

Nevada’s Frey Ranch is releasing what it calls a farm-strength uncut Bourbon using the same mashbill as the distillery’s award-winning Bourbon. It’s five years old and bottled at 62.1% ABV, and will be available at the distillery, online, and at retailers in California and Nevada for $79.99 a bottle.

Finally, it’s not a new whisky release, but Four Roses is marking the distillery’s 135th anniversary with a new tasting pack featuring all ten of the distillery’s recipes. It’s the first time all ten recipes have been available in one package, and comes with a QR code for a tutored online tasting with Master Distiller Brent Elliott. The pack costs $129.99 and will be available starting Friday at the Four Roses gift shops in Lawrenceburg and Cox’s Creek, Kentucky. In July, they’ll go on sale at select retailers in Kentucky, Georgia, Illinois, and California.

Published June 25, 2023

North of Bourbon and Four Roses Dinner & Bourbon Pairing; 2022 LE Four Roses Included

Louisville’s North of Bourbon is on our 2022 Best Bourbon Bars in America List, and for good reason. They’re serious about Bourbon, as if you couldn’t tell from the barrel encased booths?! On October 25th, they’re teaming up with Four Roses for a dinner and Bourbon experience you won’t want to miss. Doors open at […]

The post North of Bourbon and Four Roses Dinner & Bourbon Pairing; 2022 LE Four Roses Included first appeared on The Bourbon Review.

Louisville’s North of Bourbon is on our 2022 Best Bourbon Bars in America List, and for good reason. They’re serious about Bourbon, as if you couldn’t tell from the barrel encased booths?!

On October 25th, they’re teaming up with Four Roses for a dinner and Bourbon experience you won’t want to miss. Doors open at 6:30pm ET.

Dinner Menu

The dinner menu crafted by chef Lawrence Weeks includes:

spinach croquettes with black currant glaze and candied habanero
hot water cornbread samosas with potato, peas and braised lamb
kabocha squash soup with lentils
stewed redfish with tamarind and smoked tomato
vanilla custard with pandan and finger limes

The Bourbon

Four Roses Master Distiller Brent Elliot will be on-hand for the event, with selections for the dinner including the 2022 Limited Edition Small Batch selection, Four Roses Super Premium, a vintage Four Roses bourbon selection and a private single barrel selection. Guests will also learn about the art of bourbon tasting from Teach Bourbon’s Travis Hill.

The dinner is $150 per person, which includes tax and gratuity. For more information or to make a reservation, visit https://www.northofbourbon.com.

The post North of Bourbon and Four Roses Dinner & Bourbon Pairing; 2022 LE Four Roses Included first appeared on The Bourbon Review.

Brother’s Bond: A Bourbon “Bromance”

Actors Paul Wesley and Ian Somerhalder discovered their friendship and a mutual love of Bourbon on the set of “The Vampire Diaries” television series. Once the show ended, they decided to launch their own Bourbon brand, Brother’s Bond, and it’s become one of the fastest-growing new Bourbon brands on the market over the last 18 months. While Wesley’s acting career now has him portraying the iconic character of James T. Kirk on “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds,” Somerhalder is practically a full-time whiskey blender. The Bourbon “brothers” join us on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the Kentucky Bourbon Read More »

Actors Paul Wesley and Ian Somerhalder discovered their friendship and a mutual love of Bourbon on the set of “The Vampire Diaries” television series. Once the show ended, they decided to launch their own Bourbon brand, Brother’s Bond, and it’s become one of the fastest-growing new Bourbon brands on the market over the last 18 months. While Wesley’s acting career now has him portraying the iconic character of James T. Kirk on “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds,” Somerhalder is practically a full-time whiskey blender. The Bourbon “brothers” join us on this week’s WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Fame’s Class of 2022 has been unveiled, while the state’s Bourbon distillers are raising more than a million dollars to help Kentucky flooding victims through a series of auctions and special bottlings. We’ll also explain what “a fifth” means in whiskey terms on Behind the Label, too.

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Truffle Hunting for Whisky History (Episode 965: August 14, 2022)

Andrew Welford is described as a “truffle hunter” for whisky history, but his best find to date didn’t sell for a penny. In fact, he donated an original John Walker & Sons shares ledger from 1944 that he found on eBay to Diageo’s corporate archive in Scotland. We’ll talk with him and Isabel Graham-Youll of Whisky.Auction, who helped bring together the book with its new home. In the news, the Kentucky Bourbon Benefit auction to help the state’s flooding victims is underway with bidding already exceeding $250,000. We’ll have that story and much more, including a Major League Baseball team Read More »

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Happy Hour Live with Brent Elliott, Darryl McNally, and Christopher Coates (Episode 896: September 8, 2021)

Four Roses is releasing its 2021 Limited Edition Small Batch Bourbon this month, and Master Distiller Brent Elliott joined us on the latest #HappyHourLive webcast with the details. We’re also joined by Darryl McNally. who stepped down as Master Distiller at Ireland’s Dublin Liberties Distillery recently to start his own Limavady Irish Whiskey brand and revive his family’s distilling heritage in Northern Ireland’s County Antrim. Whisky Magazine editor Christopher Coates makes his first appearance on our Friday night webcasts, too. Join us each Friday at 5:00pm New York time for our live webcasts on the WhiskyCast YouTube channel, our Facebook Read More »

Four Roses is releasing its 2021 Limited Edition Small Batch Bourbon this month, and Master Distiller Brent Elliott joined us on the latest #HappyHourLive webcast with the details. We’re also joined by Darryl McNally. who stepped down as Master Distiller at Ireland’s Dublin Liberties Distillery recently to start his own Limavady Irish Whiskey brand and revive his family’s distilling heritage in Northern Ireland’s County Antrim. Whisky Magazine editor Christopher Coates makes his first appearance on our Friday night webcasts, too. Join us each Friday at 5:00pm New York time for our live webcasts on the WhiskyCast YouTube channel, our Facebook page, Twitter, and Twitch!

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Links: Four Roses Bourbon | Limavady Irish Whiskey | Whisky Magazine

Sipp’n Corn Tasting Notes: 2021 Four Roses Small Batch Limited Edition.

Four Roses Small Batch Limited Edition is routinely one of the most anticipated limited edition bourbons in the September release season because Four Roses has so much flexibility with its ten recipes and variety of ages, so it’s always unique. This year I tasted…

I asked Brent whether it was intentional to keep the high-rye “B” mash bill so restricted here, to less than 20%. The lower-rye (but still higher rye than almost every other distillery) “E” mash bill historically is used more often for the limited editions. Brent said that he really did not focus on the rye content, and instead is more focused on the yeast. The “K” and “V” yeasts are perennial favorites and used extensively each year. This year, the big news is the use of “Q,” albeit at only 6%. But, as Brent explained, a little bit of Q goes a long way.

2021 Four Roses Small Batch Limited Edition Tasting Notes

Bourbon:        Four Roses Small Batch Limited Edition Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Distillery:       Four Roses, Lawrenceburg, Kentucky
Recipes:
16-year OBSV – 13%
16-year OESV – 58%
14-year OBSQ – 6%
12-year OESK – 23%
ABV:              57.2% (114.4 proof)
Cost:               $150.00

Appearance:
Brown with a reddish glint.

Nose:
Brown sugar, caramel, dark chocolate, candy apple, and leather create mouth-watering aromas.

Taste:
The flavors are incredibly well balanced with plenty of sweetness like butterscotch, more brown sugar, and honey, combined with a firm antique oak backbone, probably from the OESV, and this oak really drives the overall experience. The “youngest” component—the 12-year OESK—brings vibrancy and spice, but not as much of the rich berry flavors that Four Roses knows so well. And even at just 6%, the OBSQ pronounces its inclusion with candied sweetness and baked cinnamon apples, but the age mellowed the Q’s floral notes.

Finish:
The finish is long and layered with complexity. It unfolds with cinnamon and vanilla, and the last few sips—after plenty of chance to open up—shifts more to chocolate and dark cherries.

Bottom Line
Brent and his team have another home run this year with Q continuing to shine, just like it has in the single barrel program, with uniqueness that makes this limited edition stand out from its peers. With only 14,500 bottles they’ll be difficult to find, but this Four Roses Small Batch Limited Edition will also be available at the distillery gift shop through a lottery system open online to the public. Good luck in the lottery!

Disclaimer: The brand managers kindly
sent me a sample for this review,
without any strings attached.
Thank you.

‘NEAT’ to make worldwide premiere on Tuesday

A new bourbon documentary featuring several master distillers, actor Steve Zahn and above all the beauty of Kentucky premieres on Tuesday, Feb. 20, on all digital movie providers (iTunes, Amazon, Google Play, etc.), and after a screening on Sunday, I…..