By Randall H. Borkus Rating: A- This past May 2021, Louisvill- based Michter’s Distillery began shipping the 2021 release of its 10 Year Bourbon.  You might recall back in July 2020 a private barrel selection bottling of Michter’s 10 Year Kentucky Straight Bourbon established the record for a barrel of bourbon purchased at auction when it was sold in London ...

By Richard Thomas Rating: B+ The second run in Balblair’s revamped line of single malt is the 15 year old. The whisky sees a first stage of aging in ex-bourbon barrels, which is then transferred for a finish in first-fill butts of Spanish oak (essentially Sherry casks  that weren’t used to age Sherry). Balblair 15 is bottled at 46% ABV. ...

By Richard Thomas Rating: B Although Bardstown Bourbon Company (BBCo) has grown into one of the ten largest whiskey distillers in America (in terms of production output, and in my estimation) by being the contract distiller for dozens of sourced brands. However, they have also ventured into the creation of their own in-house brands. The Fusion series uses aged sourced ...

By Richard Thomas Rating: A Despite a 15 year track record, Woodford Reserve Master’s Collection stands as arguably the best kept secret among American Whiskey’s regular, limited edition releases. I’m basing that purely on anecdotal evidence, but on that footing there are newer limited edition series from smaller brands that generate more buzz among enthusiasts. The reason cannot be pinned ...

By Richard Thomas Rating: B As a wood geek, I’ve taken great interest in Westland Distillery’s project to age some of their stock in new casks made from garryana oak, referred to them sometimes simple as “garry,” a species native to their Washington state stomping grounds. For five years now, Westland has released a whisky drawing on their garry-aged stock, ...