Whiskey to be Thankful For

In this age of limited releases, retail lotteries, Pappy mania, declining quality and rising prices, it's good to remember that there is still some great, consistent, affordable whiskey out there.  I don't write about these whiskeys as much because, well, it would be boring to write about the same readily available whiskey all the time, but every once in a while, it's good to take some time to be thankful for the stuff that doesn't require hustling your retailer or taking out a second mortgage.

For Thanksgiving, I'm thankful for these great spirits:

• Elijah Craig 12 year old ($30).  When I do novice bourbon tastings, I lead people through four or five bourbons and Elijah Craig 12 is almost always the consensus favorite.  It's rich, complex and delicious. Yes, the price has gone up about $10 in the past few years, but it's still a great deal.
• George Dickel No. 12 ($23).  Oaky, minerally and unique, Dickel is still widely underappreciated, and the 12 is just about perfect.  It's great neat and makes an awesome Manhattan.  I would easily choose it over the more expensive Barrel Select. 
• High West Double Rye ($40).  With shortages of almost everything these days, it amazes me that I can almost always find plenty of High West offerings on the shelf. The original Rendezvous Rye is still my favorite of their current line up, but as far as deals go, you can't do much better than Double Rye.  
• Smooth Ambler. I haven't been a big fan of their standard brands, but the private barrel picks of MGP bourbon from this West Virginia distiller/bottler are excellent, reasonably priced, and pretty easy to find, like the Faultline Bourbon for K&L. 
• Glenfiddich 12 ($27).  I've probably had more of this than any other single whiskey. Glenfiddich 12 continues to save me from plonk at airports, hotel bars, conventions, weddings and other booze deserts. It's always there and always good. 
• Brandy.  I know I've been a broken record about the golden age of brandy we are in, but to my mind, brandy is the best cure for the whiskey doldrums.  

Which whiskeys (or other spirits) are you thankful for?

Bottom Shelf Blends: Seagram's VO & 7 Crown

Today, I go further down the bottom shelf with a comparisons of two Seagram's whiskeys. Seagram's was once a mighty Canadian beverage company with distilleries in Canada and the US, including Four Roses and LDI. It owned numerous brands including Crown Royal and also marketed spirit-friendly soft drinks such as ginger ale and tonic water. In the late 1990s, however, the company was bought out and sold into many pieces. Today Pernod Ricard, Diageo and even the Coca-Cola company own pieces of this once proud company.

The only whiskeys that still include the Seagram's name are two diageo blends: Seagram's VO and Seagram's 7 Crown.


Seagram's VO, 40% abv ($16)

According to David de Kergommeaux at Canadianwhisky.org, Seagram's VO is "produced at Diageo’s distillery in Valleyfield, Quebec, with some spirit components coming from other plants."

The nose is extremely sweet. It smells like artificial maple syrup. It tastes about like that too. It's syrupy sweet with maybe a slight spice in the background giving way to a vaguely vodka-like alcohol quality. The finish has some ginger. This is sort of a caricature of what I think of as bad Canadian Whisky, sweet without much else going on.


Seagram's 7 Crown, 40% abv ($13)

Possibly because of the Canadian heritage of the company, most people seem to think Seagram's 7 is a Candian Whisky, but it's an American blended whiskey. American blended whiskey must contain 20% straight whiskey and the rest can be neutral spirits (i.e. vodka), coloring and flavoring. The distillery isn't disclosed but for years the whiskey was distilled at LDI, the former Seagram's distillery in Indiana.

The nose is very vaguely whiskey smelling. That's about it. The palate is just foul. It's sweet and only tastes very vaguely of whiskey. It's sort of a generic whiskey taste, though it's more spicy than sweet so tasting blind I might have guessed that it was a really bad rye, but it doesn't have any really distinctive qualities. The major flavor is just alcohol. The finish is like the taste in your mouth after a bad hangover. There's just no reason to drink this.


Well, based on these, I would say the once mighty Seagram's name has definitely fallen on hard times.

Back to Basics with Beam

As a high fallutin' whiskey aficionado, I don't spend a lot of time drinking Jim Beam. I prefer me a single barrel, cask strength, limited edition non-filtered, get out your credit card type bourbon. In fact, if I'm drinking Beam, it most likely means I'm in an airport, on an airplane or staring down a six bottle bar at a wedding, convention, bar mitzvah, etc.

But my picky tastes aside, Jim Beam is the world's best selling bourbon (assuming you pretend that Jack Daniel's isn't a bourbon, as everyone seems happy enough to do). And what right do I have to call myself a whiskey blogger if I've never written up the standard Jim Beam line. Not much I tell you. Luckily, a Beam miniature bottle sampler is available for a mere $7.99 which includes Beam white, Beam Black, Beam Rye, and perhaps because misery loves company, Red Stag.


Jim Bean White Label, 40% abv ($15)

This has a light nose with candy, medicinal notes and some rye notes. The palate comes on sweet with some medicinal/rye type notes and ends with a bitterness that carries into the finish. It's not good, but it's certainly not horrible.


Jim Beam Black Label, 8 years old, 43% abv ($20)

The nose on this has some of the same candy notes as the White Label but with a dose of oak that gives it a bit more complexity. The palate is quite acidic without much flavor, then some chocolate malt notes, and then the bitterness kicks in. I actually think I like the White Label better than this. The main flavors in this are acid and bitterness and they don't play well together.


Jim Beam Rye ("Yellow Label"), 40% abv ($20)

The nose has rye but more medicinal than spicy. The palate is sweet with canned fruit and just a touch of spice. The spice is a bit more evident in the finish, but not by much. Tasting blind, I doubt I would have ever guessed this was a rye given out light it is on rye spice. This has been my general experience with Beam ryes, so I did a head to head with some Old Overholt, another Beam rye. The Yellow Label actually has a bit more rye spice than the Overholt, while the Overholt seems to have a bit more oak on it and lacks some of the rough edges that the Yellow Label has.


So there it is, the standard Jim Beam line. If I had to choose between these three Beams, I would definitely choose the rye, which has a bit more character. Honestly, these were not as bad as I expected, though I'll still reserve my Beam consumption to the wedding bar.

Later this week, I descend even further into the bottom shelf!

Old Ezra 101

After my experience with Rebel Yell, I was a bit skeptical about another Luxco product, but I thought I'd give them another chance. Old Ezra 101, 7 year old is part of the Ezra Brooks line. Like Rebel Yell, the Ezra Brooks label has a long history. It was most recently made at the now defunct Medley distillery. Now it's a product of the St. Louis bottler Luxco and most likely composed of Heaven Hill bourbon. Luxco has two Ezra Brooks expressions: a 90 proofer, and this one, Old Ezra 7 year old 101 proof.

Old Ezra 7 year old 101, 50.5% abv ($18)

The nose is light but nice with plenty of oak. The palate is woody and surprisingly drinkable for the abv. It's got lots of wood and then a good kick of briny rye which lasts into the finish. A strong, drinkable bourbon with plenty of wood and rye for under $20...what's not to like?

For the money, this is a great deal, and I liked it even more than Elijah Craig 12. The most difficult thing might be finding it as it seems to hover around the middle of the country without too many trips to the west coast. If you see it, pick one up.

The Last Flight of the Wild Turkey: 101 Rye

This is the second in a series of joint reviews I'm doing with Jason at Sour Mash Manifesto and Tim at Scotch & Ice Cream. Our first review, as you may recall, was of the roundly panned Rebel Yell Bourbon. Today we hope to up the ante with Wild Turkey 101 Rye.

For years, Wild Turkey 101 has been a reliable, workhorse rye: cheap, available, good for cocktails or sipping neat. Recently Campari owned Wild Turkey announced that it would bring out a new 81 proof rye, and that the release of this new rye would result in shortages of 101, which makes sense since they only have so much rye and presumably they are using the same batches for the new 81. Sources seem to differ as to whether 101 will go away entirely or will be back once rye stocks are replenished.

I haven't tried good old Wild Turkey 101 Rye in a while, so consider this a goodbye (for now) tribute.

Wild Turkey 101 Rye, 50.5% abv ($20 if you can find it).

The 101 picks right up with a nice, spicy rye nose. The nose is so full of rye spice that it's much closer to LDI or one of the Canadian straight ryes than your typical 51% Kentucky rye. Think pine, brine and the kitchen spice cabinet (you know, that blend of all the spices in there). The palate doesn't disappoint with its rye strength either. It's less sweet than the versions I recall from years past but full of punch. It starts with a big rye hit with a touch of sweetness, gets a bit soapy mid way through and then trails off into a hot rye finish. Water brings out some bitter notes, so I say leave it out.

There's not much complex about this rye but it's got everything you need for a general rye whiskey, does wonders in cocktails and there are few better deals around. Let's hope it spreads its wings again soon.

Budget Booze: Rebel Yell

For those of you who think I spend too much time on snooty, high end booze and hard to find dusty bottles, this one's for you: Rebel Yell. And I'm doing it in tandem with two of my most excellent whiskey blogging colleagues, Jason Pyle from Sour Mash Manifesto and Tim Read from Scotch & Ice Cream, so check out their blogs. I should note that when we discussed this joint blogging venture, I advocated that we refrain from Billy Idol references as part of our reviews. Tim and Jason, however, clearly being suckers for the obvious punchline, declined, but in this post, at least, you can be assured that you will see no references to Mr. Idol (well maybe a few).

Formerly a Stitzel-Weller brand, Rebel Yell is now bottled by Luxco out of St. Louis using bourbon from an undisclosed distillery. It's a wheated bourbon so that narrows the field down to three distilleries: Buffalo Trace, Heaven Hill and Maker's Mark. Of the three, Heaven Hill is the one most known for selling bulk whiskeys to independent bottlers, so it's a pretty good bet that this is Heaven Hill's wheated bourbon.


Rebel Yell, 40% abv ($10.99)

The nose on this is strong with peanut M&Ms, then lemon. The palate is generically sweet but watery with a bit of the peanut M&M note that was on the nose and a bit of navel orange juice, then it dissipates into a flavorless alcohol, really more like water with something chemical mixed into it. This note goes on to dominate the finish. The palate on this flat and dull with very little substance.

It saddens me that they've turned this Stitzel-Weller brand into a vaguely sweet alcoholic water. Even for the price, there are much better bourbons to be had.

Kiss Me Deadly Rebel Yell, and Luxco, one day we fans of Stitzel-Weller will get our Sweet Revenge. As for me, well, that's the last $11 I'll blow on Rebel Yell.

Whiskey Wednesday: Budget Booze - George Dickel No. 8

A couple of years ago, when I did my Tennessee Smackdown, George Dickel No. 12 came out head and shoulders above his Tennessee cousin, Jack Daniels. At that time, Dickel No. 8 was absent from the shelves as part of a temporary shortage that lasted for a year or two. Now, Dickel 8 has returned to the shelves to stand alongside the slightly more expensive No. 12 and the slightly cheaper Cascade Hollow, so I thought I would check it out.


George Dickel Old No. 8, 40% alcohol ($15-$19)

The nose has a lot in common with the 12; it's dry with rye spice, herbs and even dry white wine notes; very intriguing. The palate starts sweet, but then you pick up some of that rye and herbaceousness, including some pine/fir notes. The rye spice is a bit more prominent here than in the 12, which has more of an aged Bourbon flavor. It doesn't have the complexity of the 12, but it's extremely drinkable.

This is another winner from Dickel which bolsters my opinion that Dickel is one of the most underrated of distilleries and certainly one of the best values in American whiskey. At this price, George's motto might be close to true: There Ain't Nothin' Better.

Whiskey Wednesday: Drink Like Draper

If you're a fan of Mad Men, then you know that the preferred tipple of Don Draper, when he's not out at a bar drinking Old Fashioneds, is Canadian Club. Founded by Hiram Walker, Canadian Club has a long and storied history, but is now owned by an American company, Beam Global. While it might have been a premium sip in the '60s, these days, Canadian Club is a pretty standard Canadian Whisky which retails for around $12.

Is Don onto something? Is this the whisky you want in your office bar? Let's see.

Tasting

Canadian Club, 6 years old, 40% abv.

The nose is light and sweet with honey. This is very sweet stuff even for a Canadian. The flavors are honey and flowers with some hay and grass. There is a bit of metallic bitterness on the finish along with apple juice.

This might have been the stuff in Draper's time, but it's too sweet for me. Luckily for the denizens of this century, we have a lot more whisky to choose from.

Whiskey Wednesday: Budget Booze - Ten High for Ten Bucks

Tom Moore Distillery, previously known as Barton Brands and recently purchased by Buffalo Trace, does great things with cheap booze. Known and loved for Very Old Barton in Kentucky, the distillery's biggest problem is that not much of their whiskey makes it out of Kentucky.

One of the few budget brands from Tom Moore that make it out west is Ten High. A Bourbon, Ten High usually weighs in at $10 or less so it definitely falls into the budget category, but at a mere 40% alcohol, it doesn't have the punch of some of the stronger versions of Very Old Barton.

Tasting

Ten High Bourbon (distilled by Tom Moore distillery), 40% alcohol ($10 or less).

The nose is a bit harsh, but then there is some caramel and even some wood. With the first taste this is unmistakably a Barton Bourbon, sweet but with some real depth and complexity. Beneath the sugar, there's polished wood and spice and savory notes as well.

No one does good, cheap booze like Barton Brands. This sip of Ten High makes me wish we could get the higher proof but still cheap Very Old Barton in these parts. Maybe Buffalo Trace will widen the distribution and bless us with some of it, but until then, you can't do much better than Ten High for less than ten dollars.

Whiskey Wednesday: Budget Booze- Take a Peak at Pikesville Rye

Since writing up some good whiskey buys for under $20 a few months ago, I've been getting lots of inquiries about where to find cheap whiskey, so over the next few weeks, I'll be featuring some budget booze.

The only thing better than a good rye is a good, cheap rye, and Pikesville scores on both counts. A Heaven Hill product, Pikesville is a three year old rye which goes for around $15. Pikesville was originally a much beloved Maryland rye, but the old Maryland distillery is long gone. The label claims it is still distilled from an "old Maryland formula," which is curious since I believe it uses the same mash bill as Heaven Hill's Rittenhouse Rye, which is allegedly an old Pennsylvania style rye. Both, of course, are distilled in Kentucky. Marketing aside though, this is good stuff.


Tasting

Pikesville Supreme Straight Rye Whiskey (Distilled by Heaven Hill), 3 years old, 40% alcohol. ($11-16).

Good rye spice on the nose. This has a very straightforward rye flavor. It has good spice, a bit of caramel sweetness, good body, and the spice carries you all the way to a very nice, spicy finish. All in all, a text book rye whiskey. Great stuff for the price and easily better than some ryes I've had that are much more expensive.

Whiskey Wednesday: Early Times Kentucky Whiskey

We've talked about Bourbon and rye and even American single malts, but Early Times is something different, slightly. A Brown-Forman product, Early Times labels itself as Kentucky Whiskey, but what does that mean and what differentiates it from Bourbon?

You'll find the answer in the small print. On the side of the bottle, there is a notation: "Matured at least thirty-six months in reused cooperage." Bourbon, as you may recall, must be aged in new oak barrels. Because Early Times reuses barrels, it cannot be called Bourbon. Instead, Brown-Forman has chosen to label it Kentucky Whiskey.

While Bourbon must legally be aged in new barrels, there is nothing inherently wrong with reusing barrels. Nearly all single malt Scotch is aged in used barrels, many of them Bourbon barrels, since the single use rule for Bourbon makes Kentucky's distillers a good source of barrels. Indeed, some Scotch distilleries reuse barrels multiple times. It's not necessarily a bad thing to create a corn-based whiskey aged in used barrels; it's just not Bourbon.


Tasting

Early Times Kentucky Whiskey, (Brown-Forman) 3 years old, 40% alcohol ($10)

The nose has some banana, honey and rubbing alcohol (mmm, flavored rubbing alcohol). The initial taste is a bit nicer than that with some corn and fruit, a very light taste; going down it's a bit on the harsh side. The finish is light and quick. A touch of water brings out the wood, but it's a flat wooden taste at the expense of the nicer notes.

I wouldn't say that this an objectionable whiskey, but there's not much too it.

Whiskey Wednesday: Cheap Booze - Great Whiskey Under $20

Do you think you need a huge bank account to afford good whiskey? Sure, if you want some fancy, Distiller's Edition, super-peated, aged in Sauternes casks stuff, it'll cost you, but there are plenty of great and affordable whiskies. To prove the point, I put together a list of ten great whiskies available for less than $20.

All the prices listed are the going rates at Hi-Time Wine; I used Hi-Time because it has a fabulous selection and on-line ordering, and I wanted to list things that were readily available to the California consumer. I also wanted a place with mid-level prices that were fairly representative of general pricing and Hi-Time tends to be right about there; that means that you may be able to find better deals on the bottles listed. My intent isn't to seek out sales and special offers, but rather, to list whiskies that are generally affordable.

The list is in descending order of price and I tried to include a variety of whiskey types.


Bowmore Legend, Single Malt Scotch, $19.99. Yes, there is a peated single malt Scotch for under $20; enjoy the perfumey smoke of Bowmore for less than a Jackson.

Buffalo Trace, Bourbon, $19.99. As good a standard Bourbon as you'll find with a nice rye kick, Buffalo Trace may be the best bargain in whiskey, period.

The Famous Grouse, Blended Scotch Whisky, $19.99. The most popular blend in Scotland is my choice for the best blend in the under $20 category.

George Dickel No. 12, Tennessee Whiskey, $19.99. This is my favorite of the Tennessee whiskies, and one of the most underrated whiskies. Great on its own, but also the perfect whiskey for a Manhattan.

Forty Creek Barrel Select, Canadian Whisky, $18.99. One of the most heralded Canadians, with lots of sweet caramel and fruit.

Kilbeggan, Blended Irish Whiskey, $18.99. A blended Irish from Cooley that has a nice malty flavor.

Michael Collins, Blended Irish Whiskey, $18.99. An independently bottled Cooley blend for those who like it on the lighter side.

Rittenhouse 100, Rye Whiskey, $17.99. Find perfect rye balance in this 100 proof rye rye whiskey.

Wild Turkey 101 Rye, Rye Whiskey, $17.99. One of the most underrated of rye whiskies, WT 101 has a powerful rye spice and serves a good contrast to the more subtle Rittenhouse.

Tullamore Dew, Blended Irish Whiskey, $15.99. For the basic Irish category, I'll take Tullamore over the standard Jameson or Bushmills.


Ten great whiskies under $20. Now go out and stimulate that whiskey economy!