Eight years ago, the people at Maker’s Mark were concerned about the barrel entry proof of their whiskey from an accounting standpoint. They have always used a 110 barrel entry proof to make their whiskey and never raised that number... Continue Reading →
Heaven Hill has had a Visitor’s Center in Bardstown for over a decade. It has always had an interesting museum, a gift shop and one of the nicest tasting rooms in the industry. The late Harry Shapira was instrumental in... Continue Reading →
Whiskey collectors often judge other collectors by their whiskey collections. They seem to be impressed when you own a bottle of Pappy Van Winkle 23 year old or Old Forester Birthday Bourbon or some other “unicorn” bottle. That does not... Continue Reading →
More artisan distilleries are beginning to experiment with heirloom varieties of corn. Each distiller will say that their choice of heirloom corn adds a unique flavor to their whiskey and that is why they are using that corn in their... Continue Reading →
The other day I was part of a virtual BARDS (Bourbon And Rye Drinkers Society) meeting with David Whitmer, Master Blender from MGP as a guest. One of the subjects we discussed was the warehousing of their whiskey. This set... Continue Reading →
A mash bill is the recipe of the amount of grains used to make a beer for whiskey production. In Scotland it ranges from 100% barley malt for single malt whiskey to corn, wheat and malt for grain whiskey. In... Continue Reading →
A little over six years ago, my friend, Janet Patton, the distilling industry reporter for the Lexington Herald-Leader, called me. She had been contacted by Will Arvin, one of the purchasers of the Old Taylor Distillery in Millville, Ky. and... Continue Reading →
People always ask me why I do my tastings with dried cranberries, pecans and a cigar. I do this because of the ephemeral nature of tasting whiskey. There are a lot of variables that have an effect on the flavor... Continue Reading →
Back in the 1990s, no one thought of Louisville as a Bourbon tourism destination. When the Courier-Journal published an article on the best Bourbon bar in America in the mid-1990s, the bar was Delilah’s in Chicago. Even when Bourbon tourism... Continue Reading →
