Drink the Bottles

We are suckers for age-stated whiskeys so when we received a sample of this Barrell Craft Spirits 12 Year Bourbon French Oak Finish we leapt at the opportunity!  It's no secret that we have been fans of BCS for several years, way back when we dubbed Seagrass Rye in our top 5 favorite rye expressions - ever.  The concensus was that we suspsected this bottle would be nothing short of incredible, and we were not disappointed.  This whiskey was distilled and sourced from Kentucky, Indiana, Tennessee and Wyoming and then finished in French Oak barrels with varying toast levels. Aged copper penny in appearance, this bourbon immediately oozes ageworthy aromas of well-weathered saddle leather, antique butter churn, dried herbs, cinnamon stick and fresh baked bread.   There is so much going on here, and between both of us tasting this bottle, we probably came up with close to twenty separate aromas, but had to settle on the aforementioned as we felt they were most d...

Attention all hazmat enthusiasts - check this out!   This is the brand new release from Barrell Craft Spirits - the Triple Rum Cask Finished Whiskey - and it is an absolute banger!  When we were offered a sample of this new release, we couldn't wait to get our hands (lips?) on this one.  For those who may not be familiar, any spirits with a proof of 140-plus is commonly referrred to lovingly as a "hazmat" bottle.  Some of these can burn your face off, but this one?  Well, this one doesn't drink like a 70%-plus ABV bottle and it is just stunning!  The picture above is for reference only. The 100mL sample bottle is what we tasted this from - neat from a Glencairn, of course.  A little back story on this uniquely-blended whiskey tells us that it was distilled and sourced from Indiana, Tennessee and Canada.  The Canadian blend likely provides the lighter color than what you would see if this was a straight USA sourced product.  Some of the ...

  Limestone Branch Distillery collaborates with Ross & Squibb Distillery on 2025 release of Yellowstone Limited Edition 10th anniversary expression features a blend of three unique mash bills aged 10 years and bottled at 105 proof St. Louis  - To celebrate a decade of excellence across its award-winning annual Limited Edition collection, Limestone Branch Distillery released its 2025 Yellowstone Limited Edition, a unique blend of straight bourbon whiskeys thoughtfully aged 10 years.  The series debuted in 2015 to honor the finest spirits worth of the Yellowstone Bourbon name. In the pioneering spirit of Yellowstone Bourbon, Founder and Master Distiller Stephen Beam and the team at Limestone Branch Distillery collaborated with the blending team at Ross & Squibb Distillery - one of the most historic distilleries in America - to create the 10th anniversary release.  For the first time, the combined team chose barrels from the Indiana and Kentucky distilleries to ...

Penelope Bourbon introduces the 2025 Estate Collection Highly anticipated collection showcases higher age statements, new innovation and increased allocations across each release St. Louis (August 21, 2025) - Award-winning Penelope Bourbon announced its 2025 Estate Collection - a bold array of five distinct expressions with minimum age statements of 10 years - for fans of premium and ultra-premium straight bourbon whiskey.  The expanded collection includes a reimagined Founders Reserve Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey, the introduction of new Omega Straight Bourbon Whiskey finished in Omega French Oak barrels, and the award-winning Single Barrel and Private Selection bourbons.   This release includes: Penelope Founders Reserve 13 Year Kentucky Straight Bourbon - MSRP $199.99 Cask strength 121.4 proof (60.7% ABV) with a mash bill of 78% corn, 10% rye and 12 % malted barley. Penelope Omega 11 Year Straight Bourbon Whiskey - MSRP $129.99 109.8 proof (54.9% ABV) with a mash ...

Bardstown Bourbon Company is known for their unique offerings that set them apart from every other distillery in the United States.  It seems that there isn't anything they won't try and if you're a finished whiskey fan, BBC is definitely in your wheelhouse!  Once in awhile, this innovative and forward-thinking company issues a distillery-only release, which is the case with this Hokkaido Mizunara Oak Barrel Finish blend of whiskeys. Mizunara Oak trees grow twisted in the hardest-to-reach corners of Japan.  The wood is incredibly rare and highly acclaimed for many industries.  This incredibly rare whiskey was comprised of just SIX barrels of Mizunara Oak, aged for 28 months to provide the unique and unforgettable flavors in this 375mL bottle.  The whiskeys that make up this incredible blend carry age statements from nine to fifteen years, each with it's own unique mash bill. Blend               Origin     ...

  One thing you know about us is that we love unique.  And since Jeff has been heavily involved in wine for so many years, this whiskey caught his attention.  To our knowlege, this is the first whiskey aged in the "sur lie" method, or at least the only one currently on the market.  This method of aging wine (and now spirits for this example) was introduced by the French to incorporate more complex flavors and aromas to the product.  Let's take a look at this bottle and see how this process faired for the  Redemption Sur Lee Straight Rye Whiskey . The first thing we noticed is how Redemption knocked it out of the park with the label and packaging.  While some may find the label too busy, we really like how the label explains the entire process from mashing to enjoying a glass of this straight rye whiskey.  Education is a big part of this bottle as it is isolated from everything else on the market.  The 95% rye and 5% mash bill, non-chill filte...

The folks at Redemption Whiskey take their spirits very seriously.  We should emphasize that they are very passionate about what they do and they are obsessed with Rye whiskey in particular.  Their heavy Rye spirits celebrate the history of Rye being distilled as far back as the 1600's.   Many times when you run across someone who considers themselves "a bourbon guy or gal" they might quickly follow up with, "but I'm not big on Rye whiskey".  We get it.  There have been countless horror stories of Rye being too spicy or too hot.  But you'll never find this with Redemption Whiskey! The Redemption Rye  is a serious mash bill of 95% rye and 5% malted barley, resulting in a medium golden whiskey with mouth-watering, bold aromas of spring garden, spices, white pepper, toasted sourdough bread and citrus fruits.  Those aromas carry over to the palate and also carry hints of spring boquet and delicious grilling spices.  While this spirit comes i...

Two cousins who worked over a decade in the music and film industry found that they had discerning palates for whiskey and wanted to fill what they thought was a void in the beverage industry.  The inaugural and flagship blended whiskey from  Lodestar Whiskey  has a cool, laid back California vibe with mellow flavors and appealing owners.  They are relatively new to the space so they aren't distilling their products (who has a cool $25 million to do that?) but they are stepping outside of the box to blend warm and welcoming flavors with a combination of straight high rye bourbon and American single malt whiskey. While blending isn't new and it definitely is  an art form, what Anna and Wendelin are doing is charting their own course and getting people to notice.  We certainly did!  Medium chestnut color with graham cracker crust, orange and lemon peel and chewy caramel candy on the nose.  Those aromas led the tasting notes as well, but we also pick...

Tim Young and former Special Mission Unit Member (MSG RET) Norm Hooten were chatting around a fire, sipping whiskey and dragging on cigars with friends.  That's how all great whiskey brands are started, aren't they?  These two guys wanted to honor military service and provide a quality whiskey to the market that had meaning behind their brand.  Hooten Young was born. This is the first product of Hooten Young we have tasted, and that's a shame since we have seen it locally many times on shelves.  Now that we have tasted this 6 year rye, we will be on the hunt for more of their limited-release whiskey to taste and share.  This is the  Hooten Young Operation Gothic Serpent Rye Whiskey  honoring the 30 year anniversary of Operation Gothic Serpent.  OGS is the real life story that inspired the wildly popular movie Black Hawk Down .   Coming in at 93 proof, this MGP-distilled whiskey has a mash bill of 95% rye and 5% barley.  The color is...

  Nearly six years ago to the day, we wrote an article about the importance and value of bottle labels  in the wine industry.  This, of course, holds true today and encompasses not only the wine but also spirits industry.  We can't think of a brand in the whiskey world who understands this better than the team at Filmland Spirits.  This Los Angeles-based company is comprised of film industry experts and whiskey enthusiasts who want to marry the two industries with enjoyable, eye-catching and palate pleasing brown water.  And that's exactly what we have here for you today. This is the Filmland Spirits Moonlight Mayhem! Small Batch Straight Bourbon Whiskey that gives you a well-rounded package.  You get the ultra cool art deco label on a memorable and incredibly information-packed bottle, a fair price and most of all - a very tasty and fun product!  This is bottled in Kentucky and distilled in Indiana, meaning it is most likely a product of Midwest...