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Bourbonrs face tough decisions these days. The bottles we want are often impossible to find. Once we find them they’re often too expensive. I keep asking myself “Would I rather pay secondary prices at retail or never see a bottle on the shelf?” Unfortunately, that’s the choice in bourbon today. There seems to be no third option.
Shopping for a Father’s Day gift can be tough. If the father your shopping for is a bourbon drinker, we’ve got you covered. Below are some of my favorite Father’s Day gifts for bourbon drinkers. While these gifts may be great, sitting down and enjoying a glass of bourbon (or, whatever he likes to drink) with your dad may be the best gift you could give him.
Since 2008 Four Roses has released their Single Barrel Limited Edition. That was until last year. Four Roses discontinued the FR SiBLE due to barrel shortages. Well, it’s a new year, and the FR SiBLE is back under a new moniker, “Elliott’s Select.” This year’s release is named after new Master Distiller, Brent Elliott.
Micther’s Barrel Strength Rye was released in 2015 and an instant hit with rye fanatics. If you’re looking for a barrel proof Kentucky rye whiskey, your options are limited. Nothing against MGP,they make some of my favorite ryes. But, it’s nice to have a barrel proof, more traditional rye whiskey available. The bottle in this review is from the 2016 release.
You’re probably thinking “does a winner need crowning?” Bourbon purist wouldn’t dare add anything to their bourbon. Much less cheap sugar water. However, bourbon and cola is a timeless mixed drink. Some prefer coke; others prefer Pepsi. What remains the same is the bourbon. I’ve been testing different recipes of bourbon and colas for a long time. Some could say I may have put in a little too much research in my college years. I decided to set up a blind tasting to find the answer. I know everyone is dying to hear “what makes the best bourbon and cola?”
Jim Beam released two new whiskeys this spring, Booker’s Rye and Knob Creek 2001. The Knob Creek brand started in 1992 as a part of the Beam Small Batch Bourbon Collection (although Chuck Cowdery has a great post about how the brand may go back even further). It’s one of my perennial favorite everyday bourbons so I was pretty excited about this release.
Buffalo Trace just received approval for a new expression in the EH Taylor line. E.H. Taylor Four Grain will be a mix of corn, barley, rye and wheat. This will be the fifth expression in the E.H. Taylor line. To be honest, things are getting a little confusing. I defended Season Wood while others were claiming it watered down the Taylor name and a wheated bourbon didn’t belong in the brand. Now that Buffalo Trace appears to see the EH Taylor(EHT) line as their launch pad for limited releases I find it strange. Isn’t this what Buffalo Trace Experimental Collection (BTEC) is for? Maybe, if a release is exceptionally good it skips BTEC and goes straight to EHT?
Maker’s Mark (MM) is the last major distillery added to the “Bourbonr Mash Bill Break Down” list. Initially, I didn’t plan on creating one for MM. They only have one mash bill and for the first 60(ish) years of the distillery, there was only one product. I’ve been told that Bill Samuels would say “Do you see a Chateau Lafite Reserve? No! That’s why there’s only Maker’s Mark bourbon.” Whether or not the quote is authentic the gameplan is true. Sure, the bottle may have changed, but the bourbon remained unchanged for over half of a century.
This week, me and several other whiskey writers got an opportunity to take part in the first tastings of the new Booker’s Rye. Tasting whiskey at a distillery is always fun, and it was an honor to be a part of it. This one will go down as one of my favorite bourbon/whiskey experiences so far. Here are the details of the release.
Whiskey gets complicated these days. There are so many moving parts it can be tough to figure out who made what. That’s why it’s nice to see something that easily explains the whiskey making process. If you follow Bourbonr you already know I’m a sucker for a quality infographic. With the help of Mark Byrne, the guys over at Owen & Fred put together “WHISKEY: WOOD, WATER, GRAIN” They also made a corresponding video “How Whiskey is Made, in 30 Seconds”.