…they completed construction and opened their state-of-the-art Louisville distillery in 2018 and now produce all of their own whiskey. Boxergrail is a Kentucky straight rye whiskey made from a mashbill of 95% rye and 5% malted barley (for enzymes). The mash is aged “over 3 years” in new charred American oak barrels and then bottled at a robust 47.5% ABV.
This is a 12 year-old single-malt whiskey (similar to scotch) but made by malting wheat instead of barley, and aged in oak barrels made from oak trees growing on the slopes of the Caucasian mountains. The whiskey is then finished in Armenian brandy casks. Total age is 12 years in oak. All of this happens at the Eraskh Winery and Distillery in the Ararat Valley of Armenia. The whiskey is…
Redemption is a non-distiller producer (NDP) that repackages MGP whiskey with additional aging and a thin veneer of story. Their new offering, “Sur Lee” rye whiskey, adds mash lees to the barrels during aging and uses French winemaking techniques. But is it worth the $60 price tag?
This bourbon is bottled-in-bond, which means it has the requisite 50% ABV, is a straight bourbon, and was distilled in Leopold Bros.’ pot still during one distilling season. The bottle indicates it is 5 years old. My bottle is from the Fall 2015 season (bottled 2020). The website reveals the mash bill to be 64% Corn, 21% Malted Barley, and 15% Abruzzi Heritage Rye, which is…
Roknar is one of the products of Far North Spirits, a “Field to Glass” distillery in Hallock, Minnesota, near the Canadian border. This is a single-estate rye made from non-GMO “AC Hazlet” rye grown on the family farm, mashed with 10% heirloom corn and 10% malted barley, and hammer-milled, fermented, and double-distilled in small batches on-site. The whiskey is matured in…
So, I thought I was relatively safe to purchase this McKenzie Straight Rye after being impressed by their bottled-in-bond wheated bourbon. It’s a real distillery (not sourced), so you’re not at the whims of the local secondhand market for barrels that could suddenly go downhill, and the price is comparable. Lesson learned: rules of thumb are not infallible. I just…
The distillery uses local New York grains milled using their on-site hammer mill. The mash for the Wheated Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon – 70% local corn, 20% red winter wheat, 10% malted barley – is double-distilled using a Vendome continuous still and copper thumper (basically a secondary spirit still), although the company also has a…
The Texas Pot Still Bourbon uses a unique mash bill of four grains: roasted blue corn, Texas wheat, Texas rye and malted barley. The flavor makes me think they’re using a darker malt on the barley than is standard for most malt whiskies, but I can’t find any verification online.
All Balcones whiskeys are pot distilled in batches and bottled without chill-filtration or added coloring. This particular bottle (which sounds downright placid next to siblings like Blue Corn Whiskey and Brimstone Oak-Smoked Bourbon) is distilled from a mash bill of 100% rye, including Elbon Rye from Northwest Texas and crystal, chocolate and roasted rye malts.
The 2017 “Lot 17” bottling was composed of barrels of St. George single malt aged 6 to 8 years, and matured or finished in an assortment of casks including ex-bourbon casks from the company’s sourced Breaking & Entering bourbon and dessert wine American and French oak casks. The malt is bottled at 43% ABV.