By Richard Thomas Rating: B- Koval enjoys a prominent reputation in the craft whiskey scene, and in my opinion this boils down to two things. They were an early entrant for one thing, starting in 2008 as the first post-Prohibition distillery in Chicago. The second thing is what most whiskey geeks notice upon seeing their wares on a store shelf: ...

The popular independent bottler Craft Barrell Spirits, creators of Barrell Bourbon, have released a pair of their most prestigious releases yet as part of a new line, Barrell Craft Spirits. The new expressions include their oldest whiskey to date. Barrell Craft Spirits Bourbon Batch 001 is a 15 year old blend of bourbons sourced from Kentucky, Tennessee and Indiana and ...

By Father John Rayls Rating: B+ William Grant & Sons is renowned for their spirits production, winning “Distiller of the Year” at either the International Wine & Spirits Challenge or the International Spirits Challenge for 11 out of the last 12 years. They are best known for their Scotch Whiskies, a stable that includes Grant’s Blended Whisky and the single ...

Updated December 17, 2018 By Richard Thomas Rating: B Colorado’s Old Elk Distillery is the current project of Greg Metze, formerly of MGP fame. This is a sourced whiskey, something created to start the brand. Old Elk speaks of three partners, so presumably it’s a blend of whiskeys from three separate distilleries. They bottled it at 88 proof. The Bourbon ...

By Richard Thomas Rating: B+ The fourth and final installment in Old Forester’s Whiskey Row series (each tied to a particular moment in time for the venerable Old Forester brand, and named for both it’s former home and recently opened urban distillery on Louisville’s Whiskey Row) *, Old Forester 1910 is a double barreled bourbon. “Double barrel bourbon” refers to ...