Distilled from 100% Michigan rye and pure water from the Great Lakes, Catcher’s Rye is a testament to the grain’s distinctive terroir. Each drop is artfully produced and aged for a minimum of two years in traditional, charred new American oak 53 gallon barrels. With delicious spice notes and a subtle fig finish, Catcher’s Rye proves there is no substitute for time or proportion. This is a labor of love, accept no phonies.
What Gary Says
Nose: Bright, intense rye spice with fresh mint, caraway seeds, blood oranges with a squeeze of lemon, dill, hints of tarragon and thyme with a wisp of smoke. Palate: Rich mouthfeel, orange marmalade on rye toast, cinnamon sprinkles with allspice, hints of ginger, a bit of pepper and faint anise near the end. Finish: Moderately long, drying with citrus spice. Comments: This is a pretty intense rye. My first impression of the nose was that this was a young rye, as I find many young ryes have that intensity and pop on the nose – but when I sipped it; completely exceeded my expectations. I reached out to Two James distillery with some questions, and was delighted when David Landrum -the founder – took the time to provide a detailed response! Here’s a summary of what David shared:
Mashbill: 100% Michigan Rye (specifically a northern variety: Hazlet) ABV at Still: Between 65-70% (note that this is lower than many larger distillers, who are coming off closer to the maximum allowed limit for bourbon at 80%) Barrels: We only use large format (minimum 53 gallon) oak barrels with varying char levels, mostly #3 and #4 Age: We have no age statement on our rye at the moment but everything released is between 4-6 years. Maturation: Barrels are aged in a rickhouse on the farm where we grow the grain, non temperature controlled
Many rye whiskies are what I’d call ‘barely legal ryes’, meaning that their mashbill is 51% rye with a fairly high corn content. Four Roses has a rye bourbon mashbill that has 35% rye, so these are closer to that than to a 100% rye mashbill. Corn brings a lot of sweetness to the party, and David was looking for to “create an assertive whiskey”. I’d say he certainly succeeded.
Frequent readers (all 6 of you) are aware that I’m not a fan of what is often referred to as ‘craft whisk(e)y’, because candidly too many of them cut corners with smaller barrels. I really appreciate Two James not taking this course, and more than that – for producing a delicious rye whisk(e)y. If someone had poured this for me blind and asked what I thought, the word ‘craft’ wouldn’t have entered my thought process. Sure, you’re paying a premium because of the smaller scale, but if I still lived in Michigan where this is easier to find, I’d have no problem keeping a bottle on hand. And if you’re a rye whiskey devotee, I’d strongly encourage you to seek this out!
Master’s Keep Revival is made from a blend of Wild Turkey Kentucky Straight Bourbon aged 12-15 years before finishing in at least 20-year-old Oloroso Sherry casks, hand-selected by Master Distiller Eddie Russell. The result is a one-of-a-kind, 101 proof sipping whiskey with aromas of cherry pie, raisins, citrus, nuts and a touch of oak. It delivers soft and creamy hints of spice and sweet tropical fruits on the palate and a long and lingering finish of dried apricots, honey and subtle spice. An homage to a bourbon pioneered by Jimmy Russell, it’s a must own for the serious whiskey collector.
What Gary Says
Nose: Like stepping into a rickhouse on a warm summer morning; musty oak, vanilla custard with salted caramel, raisins and dark cherries with nutmeg and allspice. Palate: Rich caramel flan topped with raisins that were soaked in vanilla extract, then sharpens to a cinnamon pepper spice. Finish: Long, drying with tannic oak, honey and a nutty spice. Comments: This is delicious, and is fine example of where I think a finish with bourbon really shines – and by that I mean it isn’t dominating. It is adding a little extra to what would be an otherwise lovely bourbon without the finish; not trying to upstage it or ‘improve’ average whiskey. While at 101 proof it doesn’t scream for water, I’d throw a few drops in as it really opens up nicely and rounds out the edges (although us Turkey fans dream of those spicy edges).
40% ABV $25 Website We would like to thank Ro-Bro Marketing & PR for sending us a sample to review.
What the Producer Says
Stolen X. Dangerously Good. We believe that a good drink doesn’t have to be complicated to order or take forever to make.
Stolen X is based on a traditional spirit called Rock and Rye – a designated spirits category.
The history dates back to pre-prohibition days with a combination of new rye whiskey and rock candy. This drink knew how to get the party started.
We’ve since updated this OG classic with simple, premium ingredients: Stolen X is made with American rye whiskey, organic raw honey and orange peel. At 80 proof, Stolen X has a kick, but is smooth going down.
Shoot or sip over ice.
American rye whiskey
Aged over two years in new American oak
Fresh orange peel & organic raw honey
Affordable, all natural, gluten free
Stolen X is currently available at both on-and off-premise establishments in 750ml bottles with a suggested retail price of $24.99. This summer the brand plans to launch a One Liter($29.99) and 100ml cans($2.99)
What Gary Says
Nose: Orange creamsicles, honey, subtle rye spice with mint, evergreen, and a hint of dill under rickhouse oak. Palate: Sweet thick honey and orange with a rye bite of cracked pepper near the end. Finish: Short to moderately long, with honeyed orange and a hint of pepper spice. Comments: ‘Rock & Rye’ isn’t really intended to be nosed like a whiskey; it really is catering to those looking for a pre-made cocktail. It is definitely on the sweet side, and the rye gives it a pop but doesn’t necessarily stand out on its own.
Blood Oath Pact No. 5 Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Finished in Caribbean Rum Casks
49.3% ABV $100 Website We would like to thank Luxco and Common Ground PR for sending us samples to review.
What the Blender Says
A masterful union of three well-bred bourbons. One, a 13-year mahogany bourbon, un‑apologetically peppery with shavings of dark chocolate. Two, an 11-year silky, wheated bourbon rich with vanilla and honey. And three, an 8-year find, finished in Caribbean rum barrels to impart orange, brown sugar and warm island spice. Every sip, an uncharted, sensory adventure.
This year’s release returns to its original fire-branded wooden display box. Like its predecessors, the bottle is topped with a custom, eco-friendly natural cork, sealed and hand-labeled with certificate-style paper stock, including Rempe’s signature, and bottled at 98.6 proof. Pact No. 5 is available globally in 750ml bottles, with a suggested retail price of $99.99. Pact No. 5 is a limited release, with only 15,000 cases (3-packs) created; this bourbon will never be made again. The Blood Oath series launched in 2015 with Pact No. 1, and will highlight a different variant, or Pact, each year. “This series, and the creativity it allows, is something I am passionate about and always looking for new combinations and ideas,” says Rempe.
TASTING NOTES APPEARANCE: Deep dark amber with long legs. AROMA: Sweet, vanilla and brown sugar, hints of dark rum. PALATE: Sweet dark rum notes, vanilla, carmalized sugar, dark fruit. FINISH: A long finish with hints of brown sugar and raisins.
What Gary Says
Nose: Vanilla icing with light caramel drizzled over Jamaican rum cake, hints of molasses and banana. Palate: Creamy mouthfeel, raisin bread w/ dark rum vanilla icing, notes of cinnamon and clove. Finish: Moderate in length, rum raisin ice cream. Comments: The rum cask finish is clear on all fronts, and this is definitely on the sweet side of whiskey – but not excessively so. In fact the palate is quite well balanced. Fans of both whiskey and rum (and of rum cask finishing) aren’t likely to be disappointed.
I’ve toured all of the major distilleries in Kentucky that offer public tours (many of which aren’t right by a major city), so was excited when Brown-Forman opened the Old Forester Distillery in downtown Louisville in June 2018. No, this isn’t where all of the Old Forester on the shelves is being made, but it is much more than a micro-still.
They offer many different tours, although I have to admit I was disappointed when reviewing them on their website. I would have loved to have done their ‘Taste Through History’ tour – except when looking at availability – there were only four days (yes, FOUR) in the remainder of 2019 when it was being offered – and we weren’t going to be in Louisville on those days. (NOTE: a month after our visit, I had the opportunity to attend a ‘Taste Through History‘ event in Atlanta with Master Taster Jackie Zykan – and that was all it was cracked up to be! While she couldn’t facilitate these on a regular basis at the distillery, I hope they consider having alternatives offer this more frequently there!)
They also offered a ‘119 Tour’ . . . or at least talk about it on their website (there are no upcoming dates as of this writing, and were none a month earlier when I was booking my tour). All of that disappointment aside, we made reservations (which they strongly encourage) for the basic ‘Old Forester Distillery Tour’. These tours are offered every 15 minutes during the available hours (last tour begins an hour before they close). The price is $16 per person on Tues-Sat, and $12 per on Sunday and Monday ($4 off for minors, active duty military, and vets; $2 off for seniors).
I booked for a 4:15pm tour on a Friday in late April for my father and I. This was to be our last stop after doing three tours earlier (some actual distillery tours, some ‘experience’ tours; will share details later). We’d been on our feet since 9:30am, aside from some drive time and sitting. All that said, we were excited as we’re both fans of Old Forester’s products. We arrived a bit early, and they were able to squeeze us into the 4pm tour with no trouble, which we appreciated.
You start out with the tour guide providing some history of the building, and of bourbon in America in general (reminding us of the horrors of prohibition, etc) before starting a short but informative video. After this, you’re ushered into the next room where they explain the basics of bourbon (51% corn, new charred oak containers, etc) and tout the limestone filtered water of Kentucky. They explain the grains used (their mashbill is 72% corn, 18% rye, 10% barley) and how the process extracts sugars from the grain to be fermented into alcohol.
Next you walk up to their four fermenters, each with mash at different ages allowing the guests to smell how a 3 day old mash fermenting smells more like a sour dough bread compared to a newly started mash, which is a more sweet cereal aroma. They explain the process, how coils help maintain the temperature to keep the yeast happy, how the activity you see is really the carbon dioxide being produced, and so forth.
Following this you’re taken to a glass elevator and ride up directly behind their 44-foot copper column still as they begin to explain the process of distillation. You exit the elevator and walk around to where if the still was running you’d see the spirit coming off, and where quality control can check the proof (which their target proof for the heart of the run is 140 proof). During our tour the still wasn’t running, but I’ve seen new make before, so this wasn’t a big deal for me. The still has a capacity far beyond what they’re running through it (currently they’re filling up to 14 barrels a day when running). They explain the cuts (heads, tails, etc) and why that’s all necessary, and then turn to the on-site cooperage.
This is where the Old Forester distillery tour is significantly different from the other urban distilleries (and frankly, even most major distilleries). If you tour Heaven Hill, Jim Beam, Buffalo Trace, Wild Turkey, Four Roses, Maker’s Mark, or Barton – you won’t see barrels being produced as they purchase barrels from a cooperage (which if you ever have an opportunity to tour Independent Stave’s Kentucky Cooperage in Lebanon, KY – I’d recommend it!) Note that this is not a critque of those fine distilleries; just a fact. Historically it wasn’t such a great idea to have an industrial process that involves firing wood next to an industrial process producing highly flammable spirits (or aging those same spirits!) But if you’ve never seen how a barrel is made, the Old Forester Distillery Tour gives you that opportunity.
(This is only a portion, not showing barrel assembly or toasting)
Their limited capacity allows them to construct 14 barrels a day, so you won’t see every stage ‘in action’. But they leave a barrel at each stage so you’re not looking at an empty station, and the tour guide can step you through what is being done from assembly, to toasting, to firing, and so forth. Their web-site states that “One member of each tour group will activate the charring process by ‘igniting’ the inside of a new, white oak barrel.”, and I don’t doubt this claim – although it does raise a question as to whether they re-char the same barrel, or are bringing in extra barrels to be charred (as there are more than 14 tours a day). Regardless, it is pretty freaking cool to see, and smell.
After the cooperage portion, you’re escorted through a visualization of how much color the spirit takes on in the wood over time, which is a nice segue as you enter their ‘urban rickhouse’. While you do get some of the aroma, it isn’t the same as walking into a traditional rickhouse. This is climate controlled, and only holds 800-900 barrels. They’re producing more than that on-site, so some of the filled barrels are taken to other rickhouses (or rackhouses if you prefer), while some are kept here. This allows them to experiment with how climate control impacts the same distillate over a period of time, besides providing a nice tour experience. They explain a bit about how factors involved in maturation (higher temps in the higher ricks and such), and step you through the dumping and filtration process.
Next you see the bottling line, which again may or may not be running during your tour but shows that final step in the process before the tasting. The standard tour includes fairly standard pours to taste. Ours included Old Forester 86 proof, Old Forester Statesman, and Old Forester Signature 100 proof (whose label no longer calls out “Signature”, but bygones). I’d had all three before, but the tasting was well organized with all three presented in Glencairn nosing glasses with a glass of water and some pretzels for each taster, along with a small water dropper. Our tour guide (Sarah, who by the way did an excellent job; one of the better distillery tours I’d been on) walked everyone through how to nose whiskey (keeping your mouth slightly opened), and how just 3 drops of water can open up a whiskey.
After the tasting, you’re taken through the gift shop (of course!) although this gives you an up close and personal look at their column still. On a lovely day like we had, the blue sky really makes for a lovely view.
All things considered, I’d highly recommend their tour. There are several tours or ‘experiences’ in Louisville (and I’ll work on providing write-ups on those in the future), but I found this to be the most comprehensive by far. If someone who isn’t a whisk(e)y geek and only wanted to visit ONE of these during a trip to the city, hands down this would be the one I’d go with.
