Infectious Charm. Devastating Wit. Below Average Looks.
My whiskey journey is a baffling one. My first legit tasting session was with a miniature of Johnnie Walker Black. I nearly spit it out and gave up on this "whiskey as a hobby" thing almost as soon as it started. It is now a dependable and steady dram as sure as God made green... Continue Reading →
Remember, just because you can blend weird whiskies together, even if you are David Perkins, it certainly doesn't mean you should. Just throwing that out there. Utah based High West Distillery is a mixed bag for me. I seem to like less of their blended expressions of god-like concoctions than others do in our uber... Continue Reading →
I am no high minded bourbon purist. I certainly do not think I am some sort of gatekeeper of the tradition or Keeper of the Bourbon Quaich, judging what one can and can’t do to their bourbon whiskey. I don’t think I need to be, bourbon is well regulated legally already and folks seem to... Continue Reading →
Being by far the biggest advocate for Canadian whisky in the club, I still have my criticisms. That being said, I don’t think I can often blame Canada for these nit picks of mine. One of the said nit picks is primarily a legal one in the famed “9.09%” rule for Canadian whisky sold in... Continue Reading →
The old story is that Prohibition destroyed Rye. It destroyed distilleries, is what it really did, which in turn destroyed brands, only a few of which have survived, or have been revived, to today’s time. And now that I have used 5 commas in a sentence, a feat I am certain has been unattainable until... Continue Reading →
It should go without saying, but inherent to whisky recommendations is the subjection of yourself to someone else’s opinion. Even our best tasters are still dispensing subjective opinions despite their great skill in sensory evaluation. Many of those opinion makers sing songs of high praise for Old Potrero, distilled by the San Francisco based Anchor... Continue Reading →
For today’s review I was preparing to snarkily opine about yet another US company (a Californian winery, in today’s case) sourcing a good whisky from somewhere else, bottling it themselves and slapping some historical figure’s name from the 1800’s on their label and charging a horse’s hind end load for it. It would be a... Continue Reading →
Meanwhile, up in Canada, Diageo’s small, heel nipping startup distillery called Crown Royal released Northern Harvest Rye whisky earlier this year. Should be interesting, as Canadian whisky has been trying to grow from the top down, meaning the premium category has seen quite a few new bottlings in recent years. Crown Royal is doing something... Continue Reading →
A Tennessee whiskey company that buys bulk rye whiskey from Indiana, modifies it somewhere in Plainview, IL and then bottles it in Norwalk, CT is almost a quintessential example of the current state of American whiskey. Maybe a better way is to say that George Dickle Rye is a glimpse behind the curtain of the American whiskey business.... Continue Reading →
If Rittenhouse Rye is for the bourbon lover, Lot 40 for the Canadian purist, and Whistle Pig Boss Hog for the rye sadist, then Russell’s Reserve Rye is rye’s elegance. And now that rye is finally hip again, you bearded and scarved trendsetters now have full rights to pour this celebrated distillate in your Madison... Continue Reading →
Depending on the choice of liquor joint, at least here in Spokane, a curious pass through any given Canadian aisle evokes a gentle weeping at the lack of quality choices. It is not as bleak as it used to be, since maybe five years ago I would say this category was circling the drain into oblivion, but is now attempting a... Continue Reading →
Depending on the temperature of any given whiskey market, popular demand tends to drive new offerings to the shelf, and for rye fans what a grand time it is right now. But during the time frame between the recent rye resurgence and Prohibition, rye was scarce. While most rye brands, very popular before Prohibition, did... Continue Reading →
Whistle Pig Straight Rye Whiskey is quite the curious bottling. Specifically, this curiosity is because of the numerous hats Whistle Pig wears. This Dave Pickerell selected rye comes from Canada and is bottled at an impressive 50% ABV. Our expectations are certainly peaked for a whisky that has been categorized as “voluptuous” and “requiring its own... Continue Reading →
Our decision to showcase Templeton Rye Whiskey for our most recent guest night, I think, was a good one. The other option was to find a heavy rye based bourbon, but since whiskey is booming right now, and rye whiskey is also rising, let’s just go for it and give the newbies a bold rye.... Continue Reading →
Rye is in, in case you don't already know. Some drink absolutely nothing else. Some insist on straight ryes or even gravitate towards bourbons with a large percentage of the flavoring grain being rye. Rye gives a spirit flavors that range from complex spices, sweet and grainy to dusty and dry (even a little fruit).... Continue Reading →
The Woodinville Whiskey Company seems to have made quite a name for themselves. This Washington state distillery jumped onto the craft distilling scene with two solid offerings of a Bourbon and a 100% Rye. While they only distribute in Washington State, they seem quite poised for expanding their brand considerably. Our focus today is on... Continue Reading →
Spokane Whiskey Club 