July 2019 in Review

Welcome to the July 2019 recap. If you are looking for more ways to interact with us and share your love of bourbon, please tell everyone you know and follow us on Instagram!

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This month I posted 12 unique articles and saw 2550+ views, down a bit from 3324 in June.

Mark at the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia

Heaven Hill Announces 13th Edition of Parker's Heritage

Heaven Hill has announced the 2019 limited edition release of Parker’s Heritage Collection Heavy Char Rye Whiskey that will ship nationally in September.

Beam Suntory Breaks Ground on New Fred B. Noe Craft Distillery

Beam Suntory (home to such brands as Jim Beam, Booker's, Knob Creek, and many others) has broken ground on a new $60 million dollar craft distillery in Clermont, Kentucky. This new distillery 'will be the home of future innovation and provide opportunities for education and hospitality' and is part of Beam Suntory's plan to re-establish the James B. Beam Distilling Co. in Clermont.

Ohio Division of Liquor Control Announces Smooth Ambler Old Scout Barrel Selection - Available August 2

The Ohio Division of Liquor Control has announced the availability of Smooth Ambler Old Scout Single Barrel at select liquor stores (listed at the bottom) beginning at 9am on August 2nd. Each location will receive a minimum of 42 bottles. Additionally, Smooth Ambler Master Blender Andrew Robinson will be on hand at the Chagrin Valley Beverage location for a bottle signing.

Woodford Reserve Announces Woodford Reserve Wheat

Woodford Reserve has announced the introduction of Woodford Reserve Wheat. Woodford Wheat joins their Reserve Bourbon, Double Oaked, Rye, and Malt in their permanent product lineup.

Bourbon & Whiskey Quick Hits - July 22

Welcome to the latest installment of our Friday Quick Hits. This is our roundup of bourbon and whiskey news that are important, but aren't big enough to warrant an article on their own.

• Johnnie Walker introduces Johnnie Walker Blue Label Ghost and Rare Glenury Royal - Johnnie Walker has announced their third in a series of special editions titled Johnnie Walker Blue Label Ghost and Rare Glenury Royal. This new spirit is crafted using irreplaceable “ghost” whiskies and other incredibly rare whiskies from their reserves that are used to create the award-winning Johnnie Walker Blue Label. 

Diagio Breaks Ground on New Kentucky Distillery

Note: This article was updated on 7/19 to reflect that Diagio makes Bulleit, not Jim Beam. We regret the error.

Diagio, owner of such brands as Crown Royal and Bulleit, has broken ground on a new $130 million dollar distillery located in Marion County’s Lebanon, Kentucky that is scheduled to be operational in 2021.

Buffalo Trace Introduces Colonel E.H. Taylor Amaranth Bourbon

Buffalo Trace has announced the release of their newest variant of E.H. Taylor that uses amaranth as the flavoring grain instead of rye (in addition to corn and malted barley). This will be the tenth release in the E. H. Taylor, Jr whiskey collection.

451 Spirits Bone Shaker Whiskey Review

Welcome to the 3rd spirit I'm reviewing that originates from the great state of Ohio. I started with Cleveland Black Reserve Bourbon (57/100) and followed that with Middle West Spirits Straight Rye, which fared slightly better (64/100). Neither of those two are my favorites so I'm hopeful that the bottle of 451 Spirits Bone Shaker Whiskey I received as a gift could finally be the Ohio spirit we need.

Bone Shaker is unique in that 451 Spirits allows the mash to ferment for a week or more. It is then double distilled in a traditional style pot still. From their site:

After distillation the whiskey begins the maturation process, first, in small 23 gallon barrels. After a few months a portion of this whiskey is transferred to larger 53 gallon barrels. The small barrels are then topped off with new make whiskey and the process begins again.

The whiskies are 100% pure pot still which allows for some deeper heavier flavors while sacrificing efficiency and they are kind of a cross between American and Scotch style whiskies.

With that said, let's see if their techniques will make this a bourbon to seek out. As always, I'll get started with the specifications.

Ohio Division of Liquor Control Announces Old Forester Barrel Release - Available July 20

The Ohio Division of Liquor Control has announced the availability of a Barrel Strength edition of Old Forester. This is the first ever Old Forester barrel release for Ohio. The bottles will hit shelves at select liquor stores (listed at the bottom) beginning at 9am on Saturday, July 20th. Each location will receive a minimum of 36 bottles, with some receiving up to 114. The state is also sending 'surprise' cases across Ohio... you'll need to check ohlq.com at 9am on the day of release to find the additional locations.

MGP Announces 14 Year Remus Volstead Reserve

Note: This post was updated 7/13 with the mash bill

Indiana-based MGP has announced a new bottled-in-bond bourbon called Remus Volstead Reserve Straight Bourbon Whiskey releasing in November of 2019. Strangely, this is being marketed as coinciding with the 100th anniversary of the Volstead Act, which enforced the 18th Amendment outlawing the production and distribution of alcoholic spirits.

Jim Beam Warehouse Fire - What You Need to Know

As has been reported from everywhere from CNN to the Weather Channel, a fire at Jim Beam that started on Tuesday, July 2 has impacted two warehouses and destroyed 45,000 barrels of 'relatively young whiskey from the Jim Beam mash bill'. For those unfamiliar, the Jim Beam mash bill is estimated to be 75% corn, 13% rye, and 12% barley and entered at 125 proof into a #4 char barrel. This mash bill is estimated to produce all Jim Beam products (Beam, Devil's Cut, Black, Bonded, etc.) as well as Booker's, Knob Creek, and Old Crow.

8+ hours later, the fire continues to burn at this Jim Beam property in Woodford County. Emergency Management officials tell me they expect it to last for several more hours. @LEX18News pic.twitter.com/RHqJrQ36xd

— Alex Valverde (@AlexValverdeTV) July 3, 2019

Elijah Craig Small Batch Bourbon Review

Welcome to the review of Elijah Craig Small Batch. Like last month with Cooper's Craft, this is my first time trying the Elijah Craig so I'm pretty excited.

For those unfamiliar, Elijah Craig was a baptist preacher who lived from 1738 to 1808 and is sometimes credited as the 'father of bourbon.' This has been widely disputed and debunked. Either way, it's a nice story and he was definitely a real person who distilled whiskey.

With that said, let's get started with the specifications.