In Search of Vintage Whiskies
Whisky collector Mark Wade specializes in vintage bottlings, specifically Prohibition-era “medicinal” bottles. Part of his collection went on the auction block this month at Sotheby’s,… Read More
Prohibition
Mary Dowling: The Mother of Bourbon
Mary Dowling was a pioneer among women in distilling. She ran distilleries and cooperages with her husband John before and after his death in 1903,… Read More
In Depth with Michter’s President Joe Magliocco
Joe Magliocco didn’t found Michter’s Whiskey…but he is the modern-day father of the brand. Magliocco uncovered the lapsed trademark for Michter’s nearly 30 years ago… Read More
Volstead Act
When Prohibition was made law in 1919, taking effect in 1920, there needed to be a law passed to enforce the 18th Amendment. The Republican Congressman from Minnesota, Andrew John Volstead, introduced the enforcement law to Congress and it passed… Co…
Liquor Concentration Act Of 1922
When Prohibition went into effect on January 16, 1920, many distilleries had barrels of whiskey stored in their warehouses. Some of this whiskey was being taken out by illegal means and sold on the black market. In 1922, Congress passed… Continue Rea…
The Lever Food And Fuel Control Act
Back in August 1917, the government passed the Lever Food and Fuel Control Act. This measure was passed, in theory, to control food and fuel during the First World War. It passed with the support of prohibitionists. What the act… Continue Reading …
Changing of the Guard at Ireland’s Midleton Distillery
Master Blender Billy Leighton’s recent decision to step aside from day to day work at Irish Distillers gave his longtime apprentice the dream job of… Read More
The Risks of Whisky Investing
Valuations for rare whiskies have started to slow down after being one of the best performing alternative investments over the last ten years. The latest… Read More
Repeal Day Celebrations
Repeal Day has become quite an event since I first started celebrating it in the late 20th century. My first celebration of Repeal Day was with some co-workers from the Filson Historical Society. We went to D’Maries, an early Bourbon… Continue Readin…
Prohibition Speakeasies
There is a romanticized image of Prohibition era speakeasies in the modern world. There are many bars that call themselves “speakeasies” in most every major city in the United States and even overseas, where speakeasies were not found in the… Continu…