By Randall H. Borkus Rating: A The GlenDronach Distillery was established in 1826, and is one of Scotland’s oldest licensed distilleries. This is slowly and steadily taking a place among the upper tier Sherry cask matured whiskies, using barrels that have previously held Oloroso and Pedro Ximénez sherry. GlenDronach is located near Forgue, by Huntly, …
By Richard Thomas Rating: A- It’s been several years since I was fortunate enough to visit The Glenlivet Distillery, but I remember it well. It was May, but it being Scotland, it had snowed the night before. The great Alan Winchester, who stepped down as Master Distiller at The Glenlivet last year after nearly five …
By Richard Thomas Rating: B+ With it’s sour mash whiskey, Michter’s harks back to its brand roots in southeastern Pennsylvania, and especially so with Shenk’s Homestead. Michter’s Sour Mash disappeared in 1989, one of the late casualties of the 1970s world whiskey bust. “New Michter’s” reintroduced it in 2012, as one of those expressions that …
By Richard Thomas Rating: A- Often forgotten is that autumn ends not at the end of November, but on December 22. So it is that we are nearing the end of autumn proper, and with it the conclusion of the uber-hot season when so many of the most sought after bourbon releases come out. It’s …
By Kenrick Thurston-Wilcox Rating: A- Suntory operates with a philosophy of melding 2 different “art types:” the Art of Nature (the soul and character that resides in all natural things) and the Art of People (artisans that take what is found in nature and elevate it, yet do not add nor take away, elevating the …
By Richard Thomas Rating: A The most interesting twist in the dubious Great Bourbon Shortage storyline is how Jim Beam has consistently defied it these last few years. The first act of defiance was in 2019, when it was announced the the flagship Knob Creek brand would return to its roots as a 9 year …
By Andrew Graham Rating: A- If you don’t know what the Remus Repeal Reserve series is, here’s what’s up: MGP is the giant whiskey factory on the border of Kentucky and Indiana that mostly does contract distilling, selling the juice that other whiskey brands (“non-distilling producers”) put their labels on and market. You’ve heard of …
By Richard Thomas Rating: A My first thought when I read about the Old Fitz Bonded coming out this season looked back on when the series was first launched, and how the croakers derided the series as a rip-off, complaining that one of their old favorites had been replaced by an ordinary bourbon with a …
By Richard Thomas Rating: A- In Royal Brackla’s repackaged regular line-up, the 21 Year Old expression is the crown, but it’s got a bit more sparkle than just a high age statement. Some whiskies are finished in old Sherry casks, but this one draws on three different types of Sherry wood stock: Oloroso, Pedro Ximenez …
By Richard Thomas Rating: A- The latest creation of Rachel Barrie, the Master Blender of the BenRiach Group (also known as the Scotch Whisky arm of Brown-Forman) is also the latest installment in Glendronach’s Grandeur series, a 28 Year Old single malt aged in Pedro Ximénez and Oloroso Sherry casks. Since some readers might wonder …
