January is usually a pretty light month for the new release rumor mill. In both 2010 and 2011 we only had two whiskeys on our list. 2012 looks to break that trend. How about 11 new whiskeys coming our way? Check out our list below and see if something here might help you start off your year right.
Aberlour 12 Year NCF
Timeframe: TBD 2012
ABV: 48%
Price: TBD
Ah, Aberlour my secret little sherry aged dram. Aberlour has been gaining steam lately. They relaunched with new packaging, reintroduced an 18 Year Old, and now they have a new version on their 12 Year Old in the pipeline. This version will be bottled at 48% ABV instead of the current 40% and will be non-chill filtered.
Breakout Premium Rye
Timeframe: Now
ABV: 43%
Price: $35
This is a new 8 Year Old rye coming to market from the Tennessee Distilling Company (ironically from Pewaukee, WI). No word on the sourcing of this new rye but it’s already been seen in California and Michigan.
E.H. Taylor Jr Warehouse C Tornado Surviving Bourbon
Timeframe: Early 2012
ABV: 50%
Price: $70
According to Buffalo Trace (and Glenfiddich) if a storm tears up your warehouse then you need to release a special whiskey to celebrate. I don’t personally think you ever really need a reason so they can use whatever they want. This particular reason is 93 barrels of bourbon that survived the April 2, 2006 tornado strike on Warehouse C built by Colonel Edmund Haynes Taylor, Jr in 1881.
Evan Williams Cinnamon Reserve
Timeframe: February 2012
ABV: 70% ABV
Price: $14.99
So apparently this flavored whiskey thing is taking off. While I’m not a huge fan of the category personally I think it’s good to see more whiskey products on the shelves crowding out all that damn vodka. We recently told you about new Red Stag extensions and now Heaven Hill is adding to their Evan Williams Reserve stable with a cinnamon version. This new release will keep their current Cherry and Honey versions company.
Evan Williams Single Barrel 2002 Vintage
Timeframe: Now
ABV: 43%
Price: $25
The roll out of the annual Evan Williams seems to be getting quieter every year. Heaven Hill didn’t even send out a press release this year. They just quietly started rolling out 2002 vintage to replace the 2001 vintage at the beginning of the year.
Glenfiddich Cask of Dreams
Timeframe: February 2012
ABV: 48.8%
Price: $99
Directly from Glenfiddich:
“Cask of Dreams is the celebrated culmination of Glenfiddich’s 2011 Cask of Dreams campaign, a national tour designed to inspire people nationwide to pursue their pioneering passions and dreams and to help bring them to life. Glenfiddich Ambassadors Heather Greene, Freddy May, and Mitch Bechard traveled the country, rolling casks through the streets and landmarks of major cities and encouraged whisky lovers to write their dreams and aspirations on then. The resulting casks were signed by thousands of Americans before their fond farewell to Dufftown to help create Cask of Dreams.
Cask of Dreams is a special marriage of Glenfiddich whiskies taken from a hand-picked selection of American oak casks holding matured whiskies of a variety of ages, with the youngest at 14 Years Old. This whisky was then decanted into the 11 inscribed casks and left to finish in the virgin American oak to bring an intense and powerful vanilla sweetness.”
Glenmorangie Artein
Timeframe: Early 2012
ABV: 46%
Price: TBD
This new 15 year old offering from Glenmorangie is the latest of Dr. Bill Lumsden’s ‘Private Edition’ offerings of finished boutique drams. This release saw time in Italian “Super Tuscan” red wine casks.
Jailers Tennessee Whiskey
Timeframe: Now
ABV: TBD
Price: $23
This is another one from the Tennessee Distilling Company. I have no additional information at this point.
Monkey Shoulder
Timeframe: TBD 2012
ABV: 40%
Price: $30
Monkey Shoulder isn’t new. It’s been around for quite awhile just not here. It’s a blended malt from William Grant and Sons. It’s a blend of three Speyside single malts. While not named, I’m assuming it’s the three that WG&S owns: Glenfiddich, Balvenie, and Kinivie. I’ve never had the pleasure of trying it but I’ve heard very good things. I’m glad to see it finally coming to the U.S.
SinFire Cinnamon Whisky
Timeframe: February 2012
ABV: 40%
Price: $16.99
Cinnamon is a big hit this month. Hood River Distillers is bringing out a cinnamon flavored Canadian whisky. It’s billed as a “unique, sweet yet sizzling experience.”
Woodford Reserve Double Oaked
Timeframe: March 2012
ABV: 45.2%
Price: $50
This new offering is the first permanent line extension from Woodford in its 15 year history. Double Oaked, as you might imagine, spends time in two separate barrels. The first is the standard new charred oak barrel. The second is a deeply toasted barrel with a light charring. The new version is supposed to have additional soft, sweet oak character. Brown Forman was kind enough to send me a sample. As soon as I finally kick this damn sinus infection it will be the first one I’ll try.
That’s all we heard about this month. If we missed anything please let us know. Oh, if you’re looking for that Redbreast Cask Strength 12 Year Old it should start showing up on retailer shelves any day now. 😉
Drink wisely my friends,
Richard
Looking forward to Monkey Shoulder and, if it can be found, E.H. Taylor Tornado Surviving Bourbon.
Bob, same here. I don’t know why it took William Grant & Sons so long to get Monkey Shoulder across the pond. Good luck with the Taylor hunt. In the Metro area Tower on Piedmont may be your best bet.