Clyde May’s Alabama Whiskey Review
By Richard Thomas
Rating: B-
(Credit: Richard Thomas)
Craft whiskey is full of stories about this how this whiskey is inspired by something from the pre-Prohibition era or how this recipe was used by moonshiners. This quest for historic authenticity is understandable, and backstories of this kind run a Politifact-style range from true to “Pants On Fire.”
Clyde May was a real moonshiner from the post-WW2 years and documentary evidence exists to support many points of his (marketing) legend. Furthermore, his apple-infused style of whiskey has been given the official stamp of approval, recognized under the Act of Alabama 2004-97 as the official state spirit. That is not the same thing as passing a whiskey law, as Tennessee did in 2013, but it still has some force in saying “this here is what Alabama Whiskey is.”
Since the company doesn’t have a distillery yet, all their whiskey is sourced, and it’s not modified bourbon or rye stock. Reports say it’s made in Kentucky from a 55% corn, 30% rye and 15% barley mash bill, so it could be bourbon, were it not aged in used barrels. This makes it like Early Times or a Barrell Whiskey release at it’s base. Add a little apple juice and you’ve got Alabama Whiskey. This core version is about six or seven years old and bottled at 85 proof.
The Whiskey
Rather than amber, the color of this whiskey is more accurately described as red, as in redwood stain red. It’s viscous, forming a thick crown that drops some slow, moderately sized and spaced tears.
The scent is quite fruity, although not apple fruity. I came away with brown sugar and vanilla coupled to lemon zest and cherries. The flavor was cherries, vanilla and cinnamon, transitioning to cinnamon and a bit of oak in the finish.
Clyde May’s Alabama Whiskey, in this entry level, basic version, is a tasty, simple, easy drinking whiskey. It’s fruity sweet, but not quite so much as a flavored whiskey. It still tastes like what an American Whiskey ought to taste like, rather than being a youngish stock smothered in flavoring. Even so, that fruity current will make it very approachable to the non-whiskey drinker, and if it’s simple stuff to the aficionado, it’s pretty nice all the same.
The Price
A full-sized bottle of Clyde May’s will cost you about $38.
Simply “whiskey,” which can then contain any number of colorings or flavorings. No, thank you very much.
Very Very nice whiskey 😁
Clyde Mays is a great American and a good distiller. His whisky is a tasty sipper or makes a top notch Manhattan. Beside all that, any distiller that walks out of his jail cell and gives it to John Mitchell is OK in my book.
Recently had this Clyde Mays Alabama Style Whiskey, and I have to say, “I lahk et!”. It has a great nose and color. I did get the small hit of apple, then cherries and vanilla. It had a persistent long finish as well.
BTW, I like this reviewer and the use of the letter grading system – its much more appropriate then all the “hairsplitting” that goes on with the numeric grading.
Kinda one dimensional -no real ooomph since it’s 86 proof, no finish either. If your looking for real smooth with nothing else you’ll like it.
My 15 year-old Said this stuff is sh*t.. wtf is this ?
One wonders how a 15 year old would know, given that said teenager is clearly a minor.
We discourage that. Because it’s illegal.