Infectious Charm. Devastating Wit. Below Average Looks.
Frederick Booker Noe II, grandson of Jim Beam, started working at his family’s distillery in Clermont, KY in 1951. During this time, Bourbon did not enjoy the rock star status it has today, despite the fact that a family as important as the Beams were quietly distilling and aging their barrels in the hot Kentucky... Continue Reading →
It took me two years to get this damned bottle of whiskey. Quite frankly, I forgot I was even on the waiting list until they called me. I slowly came to accept the reality that Pappy 15 would never reach my lips. Oh, the horror. When you come to realize that a murderous, crazed obsession... Continue Reading →
Folks, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. I can also confidently state that Bourbon is pretty good at present for the most part. However, that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t welcome attempts to make it slightly better on occasion. The problem is that a “new” whiskey is very difficult to simply introduce into the market place.... Continue Reading →
My bottle of Blanton’s Single Barrel sat undisturbed in the cabinet for about 8 months. I daily resisted opening it up and sampling the legendary spirit known throughout the bourbon lover community as a top shelf offering. I was saving it for the club, basically, and I was convinced I had a home run on... Continue Reading →
A few years back, while visiting one of my go to liquor joints, I spotted a curious set of bottles on the top shelf in the bourbon aisle. They all said Pappy van Winkle on the labels, some in bags, with age statements of 10, 12, 15, 20 and 23 years old. Some were in... Continue Reading →
So there I was, at a local liquor store in Spokane, WA. The ever helpful clerk was happily showing me recommendations for a nice bourbon. I found it rather odd that the clerk never pointed me towards a name brand product but only the “Brand X” bottles scattered about the shelf. I’m a whiskey guy and fairly... Continue Reading →
The club occasionally hosts what we like to call “Guest Nights.” These little events are a way to get people who are not members in on the action of what we do. And since we are obviously kind of a big deal, we had quite a few guests at our most recent one in April.... Continue Reading →
Four Roses Distillery has the distinction of distilling ten different recipes it blends together for making its range of bourbons. There are five different strains of yeast applied to two mashbills: 75% corn, 20% rye, 5% malted barley; and 60% corn, 35% rye, 5% malted barley, for a total of 10 different recipes. Their “Single Barrel”... Continue Reading →
Woodford Reserve has long been a well respected Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey. Woodford Reserve triple distills their whiskey in copper pot stills, rather than the more common double distillation used for flavoring reasons (why do you think vodka is distilled 47 times?) They also have their own cooperage to craft their own barrels, charring them to their... Continue Reading →
From Wild Turkey Distillery comes their signature barrel proof offering for the upper shelves of the world. For the hardcore bourbon lovers out there, any distillery worth a hill of beans needs to offer something serious. None of this micro barreled, 2 year old, 80 proof swill poured from a pretty looking bottle. Put your... Continue Reading →
This little Kentucky distillery is a unique one, to put it simply. Their reputation and fairly consistent presence on the store shelf rivals that of the distillery titans that surround them. Take Jim Beam, for example. Beam employs nearly 300 people to operate their massive distillery. Four Roses utilizes about half a dozen. Jim Rutledge,... Continue Reading →
Jimmy Russell, Master Distiller at Wild Turkey Distillery, takes pride in the old ways of doing things. The old ways, according to the man, produced the best kind of flavor. And that flavor always was and always should be BIG, baby. Our bottle today is no exception. Not only does the flavor have to be full bodied,... Continue Reading →
The good folks at Buffalo Trace are known as the “mad scientists” of the distilling world. Apart from their impressive array of brands and unique bottlings, they also have undertaken a massive project experimenting with different grains, mash bills, maturation and even oak barrels cut from either the top or bottom of a given tree,... Continue Reading →
Smack dab in the middle of the last century, bourbon was getting its ass kicked by blended Scotch whisky. Being solidly outsold by the Scot’s drink forced the bourbon makers of the day to re-examine their product carefully. Any struggling business must do this in order to survive: innovate or die. They came to grips... Continue Reading →
We like guys like Jimmy Russell, Master Distiller for Wild Turkey. He’s a man’s man, taking immense pride in tradition and passing it down to new generations. There are many distillers who have gone before him and others working today who do a fine job, but he is one of only three bourbon distillers living... Continue Reading →
Spokane Whiskey Club 