By Kurt Maitland Rating: A- William Grant & Sons, also makers of Glenfiddich and Monkey Shoulder, founded The Balvenie distillery in Scotland’s Speyside in 1892.  While The Glenfiddich might move more units for William Grant & Sons, the fact is their crown jewel is The Balvenie. Living legend Master Blender David Stewart continues to hang his hat there. This Balvenie ...

By Debbie Shocair Rating: A- I had never been a fan of white whiskeys, primarily because I hadn’t yet encountered one worth fandom. Leave it to the forces-that-be at Buffalo Trace to make one that is more than worthy. I have long enjoyed most creations from Buffalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort, Kentucky, but, even so, this one was a lovely ...

By Richard Thomas Rating: A- Highland Park’s Valhalla Collection, a line of celebrated-if-pricey single malts celebrating the Viking heritage of the distillery’s Okrney homeplace, proved quite the splash. This year Highland Park is following that success up with a “Fire and Ice” (or Surtur and Ymir, take your pick Thor fans) themed pairing of limited (but large) releases, starting with ICE. ICE ...

By Father John Rayls Rating: A- The Ranger Creek .36 Small Batch (5 gallon barrel) Bourbon had already racked up awards in head to head competition. The newer Single Barrel Bourbon is the exact same grain recipe—70% Texas corn, 16% rye and 14% barley 70% Texas corn, 16% rye and 14% barley—with the only differences being the size of the ...

By Richard Thomas Rating: A This is an odd year for Michter’s 10 Year Old Bourbon, an annual limited release that sits in that odd, happy place for such a thing by actually being within reach for many enthusiasts. As a case in point, the 2015 edition was released four months ago, and is still available with several online retailers ...