By Richard Thomas It’s the first week of October, and whisk(e)y fans are fast approaching the middle of the ultra-hot Autumn Release Season. Usually centered on a series of much-anticipated, hard-to-get American annual limited releases, this year Scotland and Japan have some noteworthy whiskies either out now or coming out shortly to liven up the mix. These are the new ...

By Richard Thomas Parker’s Heritage is one of two series of annual limited editions that leave enthusiasts guessing as to what is coming. Four Roses Small Batch Limited Edition is always a bourbon, with the mystery being the very technical, nerdy issue of which of the distillery’s ten recipes will be used and how old said stock will be. Buffalo ...

By Richard Thomas Rating:B+ Product placement of whiskey is nothing new, but it’s still rather novel to concoct a new product for such a purpose. Yet that is what was done not once, but twice for the recently released sequel to the spy parody/bro film Kingsman. In this film, the British spooks cross the Atlantic and meet their American counterparts, ...

By Richard Thomas Not long ago I saw a meme of a hipsterish-looking fellow drinking out of a snifter, and the caption read “I drink Scotch because it makes me look mysterious and unavailable.” Humor aside, Scotch has a rarefied reputation, one that carries even to its cheaper, mass market blends to a limited extent. Because of that, getting into ...

By Richard Thomas Rating: B+ Michter’s Barrel Strength Rye and their Toasted Barrel Finish Bourbon are among the popular favorites of the company. That high octane Rye of theirs has a cadre of ardent fans in the American Whiskey blogosphere in particular, while the Toasted Barrel Bourbon has brought out the best potential of the double new barrel Bourbon concept ...