By Debbie Shocair Rating: B- Tommy “Red” Bordner began learning his way around the moonshiner’s still when he was just twelve years old, and today he heads up a distillery in Boiling Springs, SC, where he is making a bevy of (legal!) spirits. His output spans a range from flavored moonshines to an agave spirit (not made in Mexico, so ...
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Maker’s 46 Bourbon Review
By Richard Thomas Rating: B+ Few individual expressions have the kind of production story about them that Maker’s 46 has built up. The expression was Maker’s Mark first major brand extension, using a finish based on seared French Oak staves inserted into the middle of the barrel. This was an idea first employed by the independent Scotch blender-bottler Compass Box ...
Read More »Boondocks Cask Strength American Whiskey Review
By Father John Rayls Rating: A- Boondocks Cask Strength 11 Year Old American Whiskey was a surprising item. Created by Royal Wine Corporation, it’s stats make it a light whiskey: 80 to 90% corn, some rye and malted barley in the mashbill; distilled to above 160 proof; and aged in used oak barrels. Light whiskey is rarely seen on store ...
Read More »Old Fitzgerald Rolling Out A Bottled In Bond Bi-Annually
Heaven Hill Distillery announced today the release of a limited edition series of Old Fitzgerald Bottled-in-Bond Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey bottlings, to be released each spring and fall. Bottled in an ornate decanter, the series reflects the traditions of both the Old Fitzgerald lineage and the bottled-in-bond designation. Launching this spring with an 11-year-old bottling, whiskey aficionados and history buffs ...
Read More »Diageo: Scotch Whisky’s Colossus
Corrected February 20, 2018 By Richard Thomas If anyone outside of the booze trade has heard of Diageo, it is probably in regards to some move the drinks mega-corporation made that was so certain to irritate consumers that one wonders how it cleared their PR experts. A case in point is last month’s news that the company was floating ideas ...
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