Every few months Mark Brown, Buffalo Trace Distillery CEO, sends out an update email with different happenings from around the distillery. They usually include things like distillery events, updates on Warehouse X or the continued “bourbon shortage” recap. However, today’s email (you can read the whole thing here) included some intriguing information that I think most Bourbonr’s would be interested in.
If you’re not familiar with Kentucky Owl here is a little bit of the back story.
From Garden & Gun
Dixon Dedman is resurrecting his family’s distillery one easy-sipping bottle of bourbon at a time “My grandfather used to tell us that if he ever won the lottery, he’d do two things,” Dixon Dedman says. “First, he’d buy a limousine. And then he’d start the whiskey business back up.” Dedman’s relatives have been spinning stories about the family distillery since 1916, when state authorities shut the original Kentucky Owl down in a fit of pre-Prohibition puritanism. The fifth-generation innkeeper already had his hands full eight years ago when, at the dawn of the whiskey renaissance, a friend suggested that the time might be right to revive the distillery. But the idea stuck with him, and now the family brand is blazing its way back into liquor stores with a powerful barrel proof bourbon swaddled in velvety layers of fruit and cinnamon.
Two years ago I started this blog as an extension of the Bourbonr site. Originally, the blog was me writing on an iPad with terrible grammar. Two years later it’s still just me however I’ve upgraded to a laptop and the grammar has improved slightly (still working on that one). The first post I wrote on the blog received a whopping 31 visits and I never would’ve imagine, 160+ posts later, it would grow into what it is today.
If you want to get excited about bourbon just watch the trailer below. There have been a few documentaries (and now a TV drama) about bourbon but this one has caught my eye. I got the chance to talk with the executive producer, AJ Hochhalter, and he’s a legit bourbon guy and is ready to tell the story of bourbon. The documentary will cover everything from how it’s made to the current boom of the bourbon industry.
Every fall some of the best best bourbons are released to Bourbonr’s across the country. Problem is there’s never enough to go around. The past few falls have been welcomed with lots of phone calls and long lines at liquor stores but that’s what makes the bourbon hunt more exciting.
More info here
Whether you’re new to bourbon or a veteran of the game you’ve heard the name Stitzel-Weller. In (almost) mythical bourbon discussions the Stitzel-Weller name fly’s free. The same question pops up when discussing older bottles Pappy Van Winkle, Old Fitzgerald, Weller, Rebel Yell, etc. “Is it Stitzel-Weller?”. Stitzel-Weller became famous for their wheated bourbon recipe and produced some legendary bottles. Even even 20+ years after the distillery shut down it’s still some of the most sought after bourbon.
If you’re a bourbon drinker you probably remember Wild Turkey from your days of mixing their 101 bourbon with coke. While they continue to pump out some great/available bourbons (Rare Breed is usually my favorite) Wild Turkey has a long tradition of limited edition bourbons. Wild Turkey Diamond was released in 2014 to mixed reviews and can still be found on a lot of store shelves but I was really excited when I heard they were releasing a 17 year barrel proof bourbon.
If Bourbonr’s built their ideal bourbon at the top of almost every list (myself included) would be high proof. It seems that everyone is in love with barrel proof or high proof bourbons. Just read the comments of a TTB release that is less than 100 proof and you will see plenty of hate for the low proof swill. You may recognize this guy as your fiend that brags to strangers about how much ghost pepper hot sauce he puts on his tacos or how he only drinks IPA’s that are more than 100 IBU’s. Maybe, but that’s for another post. Maybe this new age of “proofheads” are just gluttons for punishment. I only pose the simple question “are we proof obsessed?”
A couple weeks ago, Beam announced the release of a new Booker’s Bourbon Roundtable release. This created some discussion in another forum about which releases were and were not roundtable selections. This was actually a question I’ve had over the years so I reached out to Beam to get an answer. If you’re not familiar with “roundtable” selections, it’s a Booker’s release that was selected by a panel of whiskey writers and the Master Distiller, Fred Noe. Check out Chuck Cowdery’s post about the selection process.
Update: Everything about Bourbonr will remain the exact same. I’ll still be updating the VW and BTAC maps, posting reviews, articles, etc. This is simply the launch of a new site with new features. Don’t worry, nothing about Bourbonr has changed 🙂
I’m excited to announce the new BourbonHunt Pro Membership! BourbonHunt Pro will be a new site in the Bourbonr portfolio. The perks will include: