Bourbon
Bourbon is the unquestioned king of American whiskey, its production dating back to the 1700s. While bourbon is invariably associated with Kentucky, where 95 percent of all bourbon is produced today, in reality it can be produced anywhere in the U.S. (though only Kentucky Bourbon can include the name of the state on the label). By U.S. law, bourbon must be made from a mash of at least 51% corn; be aged in new, charred oak containers; distilled to no more than 160 proof, entered into barrel at no more than 125 proof, and bottled at a minimum of 80 proof. Contrary to popular opinion, there’s no minimum aging requirement for bourbon, although straight bourbon must be aged for at least two years and cannot have added coloring. One of the most popular spirits in today’s drinking world, bourbon prices have been on the rise as stocks have dwindled — although massive investments in the industry promise to ease those supply pressures in coming years.
Top Bourbon Posts:
Tips, Tricks, and Advice on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail
Top 10 Bourbons Under $20
Buffalo Trace’s Single Oak Project
Dixon Dedman is no stranger to the art of blending whiskey. In fact, it’s exactly how he first made his name in the industry as a co-founder of the critically acclaimed Kentucky Owl brand. Having since moved on to his latest venture, 2XO, Dedman is hoping to recreate some of that magic now that he…
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Last year, former Jack Daniel’s master distiller Jeff Arnett became one of the founders of Company Distilling and joined a growing list of “retired” distillery captains who have used their decades of whiskey knowhow to start their own smaller distilleries. Clearly, the man was passionate about his trade. Answering to the C-suite at Brown-Forman and…
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Recently, Sonoma-based Graton Distillery debuted cask strength versions of its forest-inspired core lineup: Lost Monarch, Pipe Dream, and Emerald Giant. For details on each of the trees that inspired those names, you can flip back to our reviews from 2019. Specifics on the whiskeys themselves are covered in our reviews below, but all are presumably…
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Indiana’s Starlight Distillery continues to produce a rainbow of whiskey offerings from double-oaked expressions to special cask finishes and a dizzying number of single barrel picks in between. Availability, other than private selections for clubs and liquor stores, remains a bit of a mystery as their offerings appear hard to find outside of Total Wine…
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New Riff has been on a malt kick of late, beginning with their Maltster Bourbons and Malted Rye in 2021 and followed by a sherry-finished version of the same malted rye in the spring of 2022. The distillery is continuing its exploration of malted grains with two recent limited-edition offerings: Maltster T50 Crystal Malt Bourbon…
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Wyoming Whiskey continues the celebration of Yellowstone National Park’s 150th birthday with its latest, extremely rare offering, 1872. Proceeds will again go to support the nonprofit Yellowstone Forever, but while only $5 of each bottle of National Parks Edition No. 2 is being donated, the entirety of this bourbon’s hefty price tag will be generously…
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Well, it’s that time of year again, where you’re supposed to be making New Year’s resolutions not to drink so much, but along comes Barrell Craft Spirits with its annual New Year release just daring you to forget all about Dry January. (We did.) When it first launched in 2016, this bourbon was something of…
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If I were to ask you for a “bourbon-y bourbon” what exactly might come to mind? If you have a mind at all in line with Pablo Moix then you’ll find your answer with his newest release, Fortuna Bourbon. While it may seem that reviving long-forgotten whiskey brands is en vogue these days, it should…
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It’s round 16 for the Parker’s Heritage Collection, this one an unusual blend of of two different bourbons, one of which has been double barreled. The two bourbons are then blended post aging to produce this once-only limited edition. The details are complicated, so I’ll let Heaven Hill explain it all: This edition consists of…
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Author David Jennings is widely regarded as the most prominent Wild Turkey historian in the whiskey world. After spending years among the ranks of bourbon enthusiasts on Reddit, David’s insight on obscure laser codes and his methodical approach to identifying the characteristics of “Dusty Turkey” was rewarded with recognition in major publications. From there he…
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