News
Our catch-all News category digests the latest news and current events taking place in the wine, beer, and spirits industry. You’ll find individual news reports as well as our “Drinkhacker Reads” news roundups in this section.
Perennial spirits entrepreneur Raj Bhakta has already cemented himself as one of America’s most ambitious booze salesmen. He founded WhistlePig and helped create an entirely new generation of whiskey drinkers, with a heavy focus on premium rye. His second foray into the premium category took a decidedly upmarket turn with Bhakta, a brand based around…
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2022 is shaping up to be an unusual year for the spirits industry. “Learn to live with the pandemic” has become a frequent, optimistic refrain, but what does it mean for an industry that saw many of its customers completely change their drinking habits over the last two years? Never mind the welcome return to…
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Last week, my old Kentucky home endured one of the worst storms in the commonwealth’s long history. Town after town has been decimated, some destroyed entirely. The road to recovery will be long and difficult. On a more positive note, over the last few days I have witnessed the absolute best from the people who…
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At its core, marketing is a peculiar craft. Every day at Drinkhacker HQ, our inboxes fill with product press releases and exciting announcements about executive promotions at booze companies. While some pitches are straightforward with few antics or gimmicks, others defy description. Then there are the ones that catch our attention and reel us in,…
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The Private Selection program at Maker’s Mark is one of the most unique in the bourbon business, the idea being that customers can take a standard barrel of Maker’s Mark, then put 10 additional staves in the barrel, where they finish the whiskey for 9 extra weeks. Private Selection — no longer called Private Select —…
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Mike Rowe is one of the good ones. His longstanding commitment to the American labor force and its skilled trades has been documented through countless TV shows, testimonials before Congress about the vital importance of competent, skilled labor, and numerous education initiatives via his foundation, mikeroweWORKS. The fine folks at Wolverine boots have partnered with…
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Most major brands have a private barrel program, and increasingly smaller, craft-scale distillers are getting in on the action, too. The Drinkhacker team has reviewed a handful of these selections over the years from the likes of Four Roses, Blanton’s, Maker’s Mark, Weller and others. We’ve even had the opportunity to help personally select several…
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By now you’ve been inundated with emails from every company you do business with and every website you’ve ever visited about coronavirus, aka COVID-19. I don’t know if these messages resonate with you, but I suspect you’re probably getting a little tired of hearing about all the protective measures your bank is taking to keep…
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Sonoma and surrounding counties survived the worst fires in California history in October of 2017. Immediately after, local brewers banded together to raise money for displaced fire victims. It was truly spectacular to see. Fieldwork Brewing, which had fires with a mile of its doors, was the first to hold a fundraiser. People from all…
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It’s no secret that bourbon has been the It Spirit for a good few years now. Perhaps the most remarkable thing about it is how pretty much no one saw it coming. One needs to only look at the vast amount of supply shortages today to see just how unprepared most of the market was.…
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