The Whiskey Reviewer A World of Whiskey, Poured Every Weekday
Corrected September 14, 2022
By Richard Thomas
Booker’s Lumberyard Batch (2022-02)
(Credit: Beam Suntory)
For many enthusiasts, summer is a sleepy time. If a whiskey hobby is being expressed, it is more often in distillery travel and chilly summer cocktails than bottle-hunting. This is because the prime release season on both sides of the Atlantic, encompassing the U.S., Canada, Ireland and Scotland, is around Autumn. Late summer running up to Christmas is when most of the hotly anticipated annual limited edition whiskies come out, and comparatively few come out in summer. Hence, the relaxed vigilance.
Still, sleepy isn’t the same thing as dead. All times of year sees limited editions come out and new whiskeys unveiled. King of Kentucky is a summertime annual series, for example, but it’s also one that any sharp enthusiast is already on the lookout for, to say nothing of collectors; last year’s King of Kentucky is fetching 10 times the sticker price at some retailers.
I prefer to focus on items you may actually be able to score, and at a price that won’t break the bank. With that in mind, listed below are some whiskies that might very well cruise under your radar this summer.
Booker’s Lumberyard Batch (2022-02): Introduced as part of the Jim Beam Small Batch Collection back in the early 1990s, Booker’s is a classic cask strength bourbon. Often described as ranging between 6 to 8 years of age, it has routinely leaned closer to 6 years than 8 in recent years. Thus far, the 2022 releases have broken with that trend, and this summer’s Lumberyard Batch is the oldest to come out in a long time: 7 years, 1 month and 7 days. Take this batch as proof that, for some whiskeys anyway, several months extra time in the barrel can make a real difference. It’s a throwback to Booker’s origins, and well worth acquiring.
Dalmore 14 Year Old: The Dalmore extended their regular line this summer, and the addition is the first Dalmore single malt finished in Pedro Ximenez casks to ever appear in their regular releases. Developed by Master Whisky Maker Gregg Glass, it’s a must-try for fans of either Dalmore or Sherried malts.
The revamped High West Campfire
(Credit: Richard Thomas)
High West Campfire: Utah’s High West was one of the trailblazers for the craft whiskey route of building a brand using sourced whiskey while the in-house distilling capability was under development, and one of their early hits was Campfire. This was an early hybrid, drawing on not just MGP and sources in Kentucky, but also some smoky Scotch whisky as well. In 2021, High West didn’t actually discontinue Campfire, but it did tinker with it in big ways. Distribution was scaled back to just Utah, and some not-smoky versions were tried out.
This summer saw the return of classic Campfire, but with a new formulation: MGP bourbon, MGP rye, their own in-house rye, and imported Scotch whisky. High West has also stated the formulation will change from year to year. So, everything old is new again!
Note: The Whiskey Reviewer will review High West Campfire in October.
Nelson Brothers Bourbons: Another distillery that has migrated from sourced whiskeys to in-house production is Nashville’s Nelson’s Greenbrier, with their wheated Tennessee Whiskey. However, they are still in transition. The company got its start with their sourced Belle Meade brand, and to that they have now added Nelson Brothers Classic and Nelson Brothers Reserve Bourbon. Some of the Belle Meade bourbons became fan favorites, so these two are definitely worth trying in case the boys at Greenbrier have cooked up another hit.
Old Overholt Rye: Our review of Old Overholt is out of date, and in serious need of replacement! First, Jim Beam raised the proof on Old Overholt from 80 to 86. This summer, they followed up on that by putting an age statement on the bottle, formally raising the age from 3 to 4 years. An interesting note is that the only thing now separating the standard Old Overholt from Old Overholt Bonded is the strength and the price; as a bonded whiskey, the latter is 100 proof (and about $7 more expensive).
Royal Brackla 12 Year Old: Royal Brackla recently revamped their regular line of single malt whiskies, and introduced that entire line in the U.S. We cite the 12 Year Old here, because it is the most affordable and the one we’ve already reviewed. However, the 18 and 21 year old are just as worthy of attention, and will be tackled here in due turn.
