By Richard Thomas Rating: B- Following their branding and custom, California’s Redwood Empire named their blend of whiskeys after a very old, very tall redwood tree. The tallest coastal redwood, Lost Monarch the tree is 157 feet high and found in Jedediah Smith State Park. Lost Monarch the whiskey is a blend of (presumably MGP-sourced) bourbon and rye. I think ...

By Richard Thomas Rating: C+ The backstory behind Baltimore’s Old Line Spirits is a classic of modern craft whiskey. Founders Arch Watkins and Mark McLaughlin set out in 2015 to make bourbon and rye. In the early stages of that project, they were approached by a small American malt distiller in Washington State, who offered to teach them the ropes ...

By Kenrick Thurston-Wilcox Rating: B Since their founding in 2015, Still Austin has strived to capture what life in Austin, Texas is like with each release of their whiskeys. With their base known as the “Live Music Capital of the World,” Still Austin captured the spirit of their music world in their first release and flagship bourbon, “The Musician.” For ...

By Richard Thomas Rating: B+ This one is a solid example of why the proliferation of one-off xperiments and single shot limited editions in today’s whiskey trade demand some real skill in naming. “Jack Daniel’s Distillery Series Finished In High Toasted Maple Barrel Rye Whiskey” — what a mouthful! Paring that down by just a couple of words would be ...

By Richard Thomas Rating: B When it comes to California’s Redwood Empire, I’m most familiar with their in-house, bonded whiskeys. Before that, however, both I and past contributor Padre John took a crack at their American Whiskey. That expression followed the model of blending stocks of sourced, mature or old whiskey with youthful, in-house make. Some four years later, I’m ...