By Randall H. Borkus Rating: A Longrow is named after a distillery that was once located next to Springbank Distillery in Campbeltown, Scotland. The original distillery was founded in 1824 by John Ross and closed in 1896. The property was later incorporated into Springbank, and Longrow’s old warehouse now houses Springbank’s bottling hall. In the …
By Randall H. Borkus Rating: A This 2024 release of US*1 Toasted Barrel Finish Bourbon is the latest in ten years of the label. The Toasted Barrel expression is distinguished from the standard US*1 Bourbon by its double new oak treatment: a second maturation round in a toasted barrel, following its initial rest in a …
By Richard Thomas Rating: B- When I sampled Gentleman Jack and took my notes some days ago with an eye on making it my last review work of 2024, I did so expecting to revise and update a review from more than ten years ago. I took it completely for granted that either I or …
By Richard Thomas Rating: B Louisville’s Rabbit Hole Distillery is both one of the newcomers to Bluegrass whiskey and at the same time part of its new class of medium-sized distillers (distinct from both the legacy and new “Kentucky Majors” and the small producers typically associated with craft whiskey). Considering the company went from foundation …
By Richard Thomas Rating: B+ Technically, the second round of 2024’s Old Fitzgerald Bottled in Bond still came out in the autumn: even if bottles didn’t reach shelves (or samples reaching reviewers) until it was officially early winter, the actual announcement was on December 12. For those who are not very aware of the calendar, winter …
By Richard Thomas Rating: B Before tackling this wheated bourbon, a word about Mary Dowling Whiskey Company generally is in order, especially since their internet presence is currently limited to a Facebook page and write-ups like this one. The name Kaveh Zamanian should be a familiar one to Kentucky bourbon industry watchers, as he is …
By Richard Thomas Rating: C+ Whiskey barrel aged wines are now very much a thing, so much like beer, the absence of a whiskey barrel aged wine poses the question of why they have not delved into the practice. You know a thing is a fixture when its not being there is sometimes more interesting, …
By Richard Thomas Rating: B+ This was one of the reviews lost during The Whiskey Reviewer‘s hacking incident in late October/early November 2024. So, this is the second (and hopefully last) time I am writing up the latest release from Angel’s Envy, their Triple Oak bourbon. More than a decade ago, Lincoln Henderson and his …
By Richard Thomas Rating: B+ Jimmy Russell is one of the living legends of not just Kentucky bourbon, but of world whiskey generally. That legend began 70 years ago, when Russell first began working at what was then called Anderson County Distilling, sweeping floors in 1954. During Russell’s time as an employee, the name would …
By Randall H. Borkus Rating: B- The Unicorn’s Tale is the second release in Ardbeg’s Anthology Collection, showcasing the distillery’s creativity. Dr. Bill Lumsden, head whisky creation and distilling at Ardbeg, names each whisky in the collection after a different mythological creature. So this time, it’s a unicorn. Lumsden said, “At Ardbeg we love to …
