Other Whisk(e)ys

New U.S. Releases – July ‘11

/ / Bourbon, Other Spirits, Other Whisk(e)ys, Scottish Whisky

It’s been a busy summer. We have a whole mess of new stuff coming in.

Highland Park Earl Haakon
Timeframe: July 2011
ABV: 54.9%
Price: $260
This 18 year old is the third Earl Magnus release. It’s supposed to be a darker take on both the Magnus series and the standard 18 year old. It’s named for Saint Magnus’s “deceitful and murderous” cousin!

HighWest 36th Vote
Timeframe: Now
ABV: 36%
Price: $45
This is High West’s “Barreled Manhattan” celebrating Utah’s vote to repeal Prohibition. It’s 2 parts High West Rye, 1 part sweet vermouth and bitters that was put together and aged for 90 to 120 days in rye whiskey barrels.

Auchentoshan Bordeaux Cask
Timeframe: Summer 2011
ABV: 58%
Price: $75
This limited release is an 11 year old Auchentoshan matured in Bordeaux casks and comes non-chill filtered. You read that right, not finished but fully matured in Bordeaux casks.

Auchentoshan Valinch
Timeframe: TBD
ABV: 57.5%
Price: TBD
This new release is a response from the distillery to long time fans requesting a cask strength, non-chill-filtered version of the Auchentoshan Classic. It gets its name from the pipette used to draw the whisky out of the cask.

Black Bull Special Reserve No. 1
Timeframe: TBD
ABV: 46.6%
Price: $105
This is Duncan Taylor’s newest Black Bull extension. This blend uses a 50% malt to grain ratio like the 12 and 30 year olds. There’s only 978 bottles of this so grab it if you can.

Tomatin Decades
Timeframe: TBD
ABV: 46%
Price: $115
Those familiar with the Parker’s Heritage Golden Anniversary release will be familiar with this idea. To celebrate Master Distiller Douglas Campbell’s 50th year of serve this is mixture of whiskies from all the decades of Mr. Campbell’s career. Only 9,000 bottles worldwide!

Tomatin 30 Year Old
Timeframe: Late 2011
ABV: 46%
Price: $200
This new release is replacing the old 25 Year Old. It will be an ongoing limited release of 2,000 bottles per year.

Kilchoman Spring 2011 Release
Timeframe: Now
ABV: 46%
Price: $65
The latest Kilchoman release is a marriage of three and four year old whiskies aged in first-fill bourbon barrels. The four year old component was finished in oloroso sherry casks.

American Spirit Whiskey
Timeframe: Now
ABV: 40%
Price:
Marketed as an alternative to vodka, this new white dog release comes to us from a Charleston, SC bottler.

Arkansas Young Bourbon Whiskey
Timeframe: Now
ABV: 46%
Price: $24.99/375ml
This one is a new wheated bourbon from Rock Town Distiller in Arkansas.

Laphroaig Cairdeas
Timeframe: Now
ABV: 50.5%
Price: $65
Laphroaig’s latest in this release series is an 8 year old aged exclusively in Maker’s Mark barrels. Apparently, the barrels and warehouse location make this 8 year old worthy of a price tag rivaling the old 15 year old. You’ll have to decide for yourself.

Dalmore Cigar Malt Reserve
Timeframe: August 2011
ABV: 44%
Price: $125
This new limited release from Dalmore isn’t a replacement for the old Cigar Malt. Rather this is a whole new expression the vein of other recent limited releases. This one is specifically formulated for cigar pairing. Some of our good friends were nice enough to send me a review sample so I hope to have that posted this weekend.

As always, if we missed or misstated anything please let us know.

Drink wisely my friends,

Richard

New U.S. Releases – July ‘11 Read More »

New U.S. Releases – June 2011

/ / Bourbon, Other Whisk(e)ys, Scottish Whisky

I thought it might be a good idea to post these new release summaries on the last day of the actual month I’m summarizing instead of the following month. We’ll see if I can stick to that.

With one exception, June seemed to be all about American whiskey. From big producers to craft distillers, we have some interesting stuff that came through in June.

Wild Turkey 81
Release Date: Now
ABV: 40.5%
Price: $20
This one kind of took us by surprise. Usually, we get press releases some months in advance of bottles hitting the shelves. This is especially true of large producers like Wild Turkey. There is not really much to say here that Matt hasn’t already covered. Check out our review for more details.

OYO Whiskey
Release Date: Now
ABV: 46%
Price: $45
This new wheat whiskey comes from Middle West Spirits out of Columbus, Ohio. This is a 100% wheat whiskey aged in beeswax sealed barrels.

Walleye Rye
Release Date: Now
ABV: 45%
Price: $35/375ml
Made by New Holland Brewer, this rye is fermented from a wash of malted rye and 2-row malted barley. Walleye Rye is twice-distilled and matured in small American oak barrels. They release less than 350 375ml bottles per batch.

Whipper Snapper Oregon Spirit Whiskey
Release Date: Now
ABV: TBD
Price: $30
This is an interesting little product from Ransom Spirits. The first part of the whiskey is made from barley that is malted in the Pacific Northwest, and unmalted barley grown in the Willamette valley of Oregon. The second part is made by using a base of Kentucky corn whitedog, re-distilled in an alembic pot still. They age in a combination of barrels, including used French coopered pinot noir barrels, new American coopered whiskey barrels, and used American whiskey barrels. The age is between six months and two years, with an average time of about one year.

John B. Stetson Kentucky Straight Bourbon
Release: TBD for US market
ABV: TBD
Price: TBD
American whiskey (most likely Heaven Hill) purchased and bottle by Germans and sold back to U.S. consumers (among other countries too). If it tastes good I’ll buy, regardless of how convoluted the supply chain is. Plus, it’s got cowboys and horses on the label! You don’t get more manly and American than that.

Great King Street – The Artist’s Blend
Release: September 2011
ABV:43%
Price: $41/500ml, no price yet on 750ml bottles coming to the U.S.
Something new from Compass Box? Hell yeah I’m excited. John Glaser never disappoints. This new range of whiskies named for the Compass Box office address was created to appeal to both the malt whisky enthusiasts and those new to whisky. The first release in the Great King Street range is the Artist’s Blend. I can’t wait until September!

That’s June. Let’s see what treasures July holds!

New U.S. Releases – June 2011 Read More »

New U.S. Releases – May 2011

/ / Bourbon, Other Whisk(e)ys

All the news in May seemed to focus on American whiskey. That’s never a bad thing. We’ve got some interesting news from Buffalo Trace and a bunch of craft distillers and bottlers rounding out the mix.

Kinnickinnic Blended American Whiskey
Timeframe: Summer 2011
ABV: 43%
Price: TBD
This is an interesting offering from The Great Lake Distillery. They are sourcing Kentucky straight bourbon and blending it with stuff they are making in house. Binny’s has it on the way but I don’t have a hard date on availability yet.

Griff’s Cowboy Whiskey
Timeframe: TBD
ABV: TBD
Price: TBD
I have very little information on this one. I know it’s coming out of Iowa and they were pouring it at WhiskyFest Chicago. That’s about it.

Breckenridge Bourbon
Timeframe: Now
ABV: 43%
Price: TBD
This is a sourced bottling around two years old. The Breckenridge Distillery owns the brand. There seems to be a lot of sourced 2 to 3 year old bourbon and rye hitting the market lately. I’m all for independent bottlers but most of what’s coming out is pretty young and rough. Maybe some of these guys should follow the lead set overseas and lay some of these barrels down for a while before bottling them. Just a thought.

Bainbridge Battle Point Organic Wheat Whiskey
Timeframe: Summer 2011
ABV: 43%
Price: $47
Small batch wheat whiskey made by Bainbridge Organic Distillers in Washington State. I’m looking forward to getting my hands on some of this!

Buffalo Trace Single Oak
Timeframe: May 2011
ABV%:
Price: $46.35 for 375ml bottles
This is something really exciting from Buffalo Trace. In their quest to make the perfect bourbon they have launch a massive endeavor to try and isolate what makes the best bourbon. The project goes back more than 10 years and the output is more than 1,396 different bourbon combinations. The first batch came out in May. The whole thing is more than I can put in this post. You really should check it out at http://www.singleoakproject.com.

That’s it for May!

Drink wisely my friends,

Richard

New U.S. Releases – May 2011 Read More »

Early Times

/ / Other Whisk(e)ys, Review /

Early Times Kentucky Whisky
40% ABV
$13 to $15
Available damn near everywhere

What the Distillery Says:
Early Times Kentucky Whisky is distilled, aged a minimum of three years and barreled in used oak barrels at the Early Times Distillery in Shively, Kentucky. We are the only company to own its own cooperage and make its own barrels, which allows us to control how the barrel contributes to the taste characteristics of Early Times. Early Times Kentucky Whisky is known for being a high-quality whisky that delivers a consistently smooth taste and flavor profile while still being offered at a value to our consumers.

Color: Light, bright honey

Nose: A fresh, sharp oak note ripens into a dry clove spice and hay, hints of leather, dill spice and fruit add complexity to a subtle foundation of white chocolate.

Taste: Smooth and creamy malt character with a light oak sweetness and herbal grass notes.

Finish: Mild and clean, and fulfilling with a very pleasant, soft, apple peel character.

What Richard Says:
Nose: Woody, vanilla, peaches, and a light caramel sweetness.
Palate: Very smooth and lightly sweet. It’s almost like it’s not there.
Finish: The finish is a little short and bland. There’s just a bit of oak. Blink and you’ll miss it.
Comments: Brown-Forman sent us a bottle of this with their new 354 Bourbon so that we could compare and contrast. For those that don’t know, the reason why it’s “Kentucky Whisky” and not bourbon is because there’s some aging in used barrels going on. More likely than not, when you order a well drink containing whiskey you’re likely getting Early Times. It’s cheap, plain, and unoffensive. There’s nothing wrong with drinking this straight it just doesn’t bring a lot to the party.
Rating: Probably Pass

We want to thank Brown-Forman for providing us with a bottle for review.

Early Times Read More »

Canadian Club 12 Year

/ / Other Whisk(e)ys, Review /

Classic 12 by Canadian Club Blended Canadian Whisky
40% ABV/80 Proof
$21.99
Website

What the Distillery Says:
Canadian Club Classic 12 is a special blend of 12-year-old whiskies, aged in re-charred oak barrels. It’s an exceptionally smooth, warm and full-bodied whisky with strong overtones of oak and toffee. It is the perfect whisky to enjoy by itself or as part of a classic cocktail.

What Richard Says:
Nose: The nose has a buttery sweetness that reminds me of silver or gold Caribbean rum.
Palate: It starts off mellow and sweet and then slowly heats up to a spicy oak. The rye really shows through. There are also notes of vanilla and more of that rum character from the nose.
Finish: The finish is long and dry with a lot of oak.
Comments: I find this to be a decent dram. It’s probably still best in the cocktail mixer category but like Jack Daniels and the like, I wouldn’t shy from drinking this straight if it was offered to me. A noticeable improvement over the 10 Year Old. Much more robust flavor.
Rating: Average (slightly better than average but I still wouldn’t call it a stand out)

We want to thank Emma with SHIFT Communications for providing us with a bottle for review.

Canadian Club 12 Year Read More »