"bourbon" news and stories

With temps in the teens, and some unexpected snow on the ground, Knob Creek introduced the world to its first single-barrel reserve bottling right at the source, the Jim Beam distillery in Clermont, Kentucky.

A group gathered around seven-generation master distiller, Fred Noe, in one of the distillery's barrel houses, a plank-and-beam structure notable for its 20,000 casks of quietly aging bourbon, and on this particular morning, a distinct lack of heating or insulation. Noe, who traces his lineage back to Colonel Jim Beam himself (the man wasn't a marketing invention), carefully siphoned liquid out of several individually selected American white-oak casks to illustrate the distinction between Knob Creek and Knob Creek Single Barrel. Whereas the former is a blend and bottled at 100 proof, the latter is bottled directly from a single, "sweet" barrel, after being cut down to 120 proof (cask strength is around 130). The effect is an intriguing inconsistency in style that makes opening a bottle something of a throw at the roulette wheel. Of the four barrels we sampled, each had a distinctive profile that sometimes varied dramatically: Beyond the expected vanilla, wood and sweet notes, one skewed more towards a lighter, floral style while another had an unusually sharp, rye-like bite of spice.

In 1964, Congress confirmed that bourbon whiskey is distinctly American, like Scotch whisky is distinctly from Scotland. Several years later on August 2, 2007, Senator Jim Bunning from Kentucky got the joy of seeing a resolution he sponsored get passed: Bourbon as "America's Native Spirit" and September declared National Bourbon Heritage Month.

Although federal regulations do not require bourbon to be made in Kentucky -- yes, 'tis true that it only has to be made in the United States -- most bourbon whiskey is produced in the Bluegrass State. The city of Bardstown, Kentucky, is hosting the Kentucky Bourbon Festival this week from September 14-19. Since 1991, the festival has been celebrating the history and art of distilling bourbon with barrel-making demonstrations, concerts, distillery tours, and classes on cooking and making cocktails with bourbon. Last year's festival attracted 55,000 people from 43 states and 13 countries.

Each year at the Bourbon Festival, Kentucky bartenders from regional restaurants, bars and distilleries compete for the honor of having their cocktail featured for the next year's festival. The following drink recipe is the winner of the official drink for this year's Kentucky Bourbon Festival.

In days of old, a son learning his father's craft was no major news, just an expected and traditional way to build a career. Now, many companies choose to highlight family teams in their marketing strategies.

Let's start in the heart of American distillation -- Kentucky. The largest distillery there may be owned by giant drinks company Fortune Brands, but the Jim Beam legacy is seven generations deep. The current master distiller is Frederick "Fred" Booker Noe III. He had a hard act to follow with the passing away of his beloved father, Booker Noe, who happened to be the grandson of James. B. Beam. Fred Noe has one son -- Frederick Booker Noe IV -- who, even at his young age, undoubtedly feels a little pressure to follow the family's legacy in the whiskey business.

Jim Beam doesn't hoard all the Beam family teams, however. Heaven Hill Distillery is Kentucky's largest family-owned bourbon producer. After prohibition, the Shapiro family jump-started this distillery with the help of the first cousin of Jim Beam, and ever since then a member of the Beam family has been in charge of distillation. Today Parker Beam and his son Craig make an incredible family team at Heaven Hill.

For years whiskey lovers like me have begged the big bourbon distilleries to bottle their unaged whiskey. Sometimes when taking a tour, the distilleries will allow you to taste the spirit right off the still. This fiery, high-proof liquor destined to be bourbon cannot legally be called bourbon until it hits the new charred oak barrel. Up to that time, you'll hear it called a variety of things: white dog, new make spirit, bourbon distillate. You won't hear the distiller call it moonshine.

The term moonshine supposedly goes back to a time when folks avoiding liquor authorities made their booze by the light of the moon. This illicit spirit has also been called mountain dew (yes, now you understand the soda reference) and white lightning. For some reason, though, the term "moonshine" has a romantic, naughty ring to it that reminds you of two strappin', good lookin' country boys in a souped-up orange car called The General Lee helping out poor ole moonshinin' Uncle Jesse. I guess this sexy outlaw connotation is why so many in the press these days are using the term moonshine incorrectly to refer to legal unaged spirit made by licensed distilleries. Moonshine ain't legal and is often made from granulated sugar and not even grain.

A handful of bourbons -- known as "wheaters" -- are made with corn, barley and wheat instead of the traditional recipe of corn, barley, and rye. These wheated bourbons offer a softer, gentler flavor with a lot more caramel and vanilla than those made with rye. The most well known wheater today is Maker's Mark, with its signature red wax seal.

While many distilleries offer a variety of whiskeys, Maker's Mark has boasted that they make one whiskey only. While the red wax 90 proof version is commonly seen in the U.S., bourbon lovers often scolded them for making other versions only available outside the U.S. Aficionados clamored for the other expressions that had been released for export only, such as the black wax version bottled at 95 proof, and the gold wax bottling labeled as 101 proof.

Now Maker's has released a different version that goes beyond just proof and wax color. Perhaps feeling the heat from various experimental bottlings done by other distilleries, Maker's finally listened to customers pleas for something new.

Master Distiller Kevin Smith worked with Brad Boswell -- president of Independent Stave Company, a fourth generation "wood chef" -- to create the new Maker's 46. The whiskey is based on the same mashbill (that's whiskey talk for recipe). What sets it apart is the influence of French oak that has been seasoned for 18 months in northern France. The regular Maker's Mark spends additional time in contact with this seared French oak to bring out more toasted oak aroma and to give a stronger backbone of flavor. The oakiness of this expression of Maker's Mark may appeal more to Scotch drinkers and spicy rye whiskey lovers. The flavor is full enough to not get lost when poured over ice.

It's bottled at a slightly higher proof (94 instead of the regular red wax 90) for about $10 bucks more.