It has been over a year since I last reported on the Bourbon that Bill Thomas and I had made at Kentucky Artisan Distillers. It has been a year of delays. It is now five years old. We started the process of getting label approvals for our label. Bill is in charge of that aspect. He has been busy with the work done at Jack Rose Dining Saloon and it took him some time to make arrangements for a label design but has now started on that part of the project. He has asked me to pick out the bottle and I have done so.

Bill had asked me to set up an appointment with Mike Niehaus at Saver Glass, here in Louisville to pick a bottle. I made the appointment and Rosemary and I met with Mike Niehaus. I had an idea as to what style of bottle I wanted for this whiskey. I was looking for an old school design with a screw cap. I want a screw cap because I plan to keep the whiskey bottles I get for some time and I want to make sure the whiskey does not get cork taint. Screw caps are also the best seal for whiskey bottles. I have drank many bottles of old whiskey with a screw cap seal and they always had a good fill level.

We went to the office of Saver Glass, located on Main Street in Louisville, very near the Evan Williams Distillery. We met with Mike and had a pleasant conversation about his past work in the distilling industry before he started selling bottles to distilleries. He showed me his book of bottles and we paged through every bottle. There were several that were of interest but I ended up picking their Forty-Six Premium bottle. It is very much an older style of bottle and it can be used with a screw cap closure bottle. It is similar to the bottle that Kentucky Artisan Distillers use for their Whiskey Row Bourbon. I contacted Bill and he said that he would order it the next Monday. He would also order the closures for the bottle.

The next step is the label. Bill has hired a firm to design the label and he told me he would send me the design as soon as he has one. I am still waiting to hear from Bill on the label, but I am hoping I will get a design soon. It is an exciting time for me. This project is coming to a close. I know the Bourbon is going to be a good one. A five year old Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon, made with Hickory Cane white corn, Rye, Distillers Malted Barley and a small percentage of Chocolate Malted Barley. I hope to be drinking some to celebrate my 65th birthday in November.

Photos Courtesy of Rosemary Miller