Castle & Cairn

While Jack Daniel's is a household name with its flagship jousting with with Jim Beam for the top spot in global sales, there are many who have never heard of their other releases. Jack Daniel's Single barrel lineup consists of a Tennessee Whiskey (bourbon) at barrel and 90 proof, a Rye also at Barrel proof, and Heritage and Single Barrel 100 at 50% ABV. Single Barrel Barrel Proof  was the first of the lineup, released in 2015, and aims to deliver a traditional Jack Daniel's flavor profile. While single barrels are often both praised and criticized for their variability, the Jack team seems to be able to keep selected barrels remarkably consistent through methodical tasting-based selection. 🛒 Sourced:  $68.99 - Total Wine, GA 750ml - normally closer to $60, a gift from my Mother-in-Law. Price-wise they sit between Jack Daniel's bonded lineup and their age stated premium series releases. I'm seeing some store picks around $65.  🧪 Proof:  127.7 proof, 63.85% ABV - S...

Produced (at the time of this bottling) by Heaven Hill in Bardstown Kentucky, Ezra Brooks is a brand owned by Lux Row which itself is a property of the Indiana overlords at Midwest Grain Products.  There are 99 proof, 99 proof finished, rye, and seven-year versions of Ezra Brooks floating around. They have a robust private barrel  program and also have put out a number of distiller select barrels to large retailers to get rid of excess inventory. Lux Row now produces the juice in house at their own Bardstown Facility.  🛒 Sourced:  $41.99 - 750ml - World of Beverage Smyrna, GA - Discounted as the last few bottles of a store pick, normally $54. I see distiller's selects of this around the $60 mark, though some ABC state picks are around $35. March 2025 update - seeing distiller picks in the low $50s, they're trying to move these and not having much success.  🧪 Proof:  120 proof, 60% ABV  - This is a great example of how "Cask Strength" is not a regulat...

Prior to the opening of Lux Row 's Kentucky distillery in 2018, Rebel was produced under contract by Heaven Hill. Lux Row is now owned by Midwest Grain Products as of 2021, but this barrel was filled on 3/23/2017, before they began production operations of their own in Bardstown. Rebel Yell (now shortened to "Rebel" after political pressures in 2020) was historically produced by Stitzel-Weller for distribution in the Southern United States and bears a signature wheat mash bill like many of the now scarce Weller products. Like Lux Row's Ezra Brooks brand, Rebel has a burgeoning barrel prick program  which got a lot of attention from stores looking to up their store portfolios during the bourbon boom, and they have also started to put out distiller selections at cask strength as well.  🛒 Sourced:  $41.99 - 750ml - World of Beverage Smyrna, GA - Discounted as the last few bottles of a store pick, normally $55. I see distiller's selects of this around $55. 🧪 Proof: ...

Founded by University of Georgia graduates Jim Chasteen and Charlie Thompson, American Spirit Whiskey Distillery ("ASW") is a craft producer out of Atlanta, GA with the plant registry DSP-GA-20014. As Southern Pot-Still Pioneers, they are one of the few producers to distill in the ancient Scottish Tradition of small, grain-in batches (where grain solids are left in for the remainder of the distillation process) though they also partner with Midwest Grain Products to source distillate for further aging, finishing and blending before bottling as is the case here. This bottle is from the June 2023 batch which is a blend of two principal spirits. ASW's master distiller, Justin Maglitz, is accomplished old-time string music fiddler and he often experiments with various factors between batches. As such, the "Fiddler" brand name fits perfectly. No two batches are truly the same, but all of the ones I've had so far have been to my liking. This bottle shares the same...

The big brother of a 101 proof champion, Wild Turkey Rare Breed can be consistently found on must-try lists and is known for its quality while being readily available. It is crafted in small batches as a unique marriage of Wild Turkey 6, 8, and 12-year-old stocks to hit a specified flavor profile and 116.8 proof point. No water necessary! To create this balanced flavor profile, different ages of whiskey are taken from each level of the rick house: 6 year from the top floors, 8 year from the middle floors, and 12 year from the bottom levels. This is because whiskey at the higher levels sees more temperature change which increases flavor extraction and proof while the lower floors will age more slowly and see a decrease in proof. The extent of various flavoring compounds within the barrels will also change with these differences in temperature, and blending them allows for the curation of a more consistent flavor profile over time.   🛒 Sourced:  $56.99 -World of Beverage ...

  Named after Colonel James E. Pepper (1850-1906), noted horseman and master distiller, this lovely decanter styled bottle hails from a whiskey pedigree older than the American Revolution. Col. Pepper, third in his line to use the family recipe, convinced the state of Kentucky to change its laws to permit distillers to bottle their own whiskey, a right previously allocated to rectifiers (third party blenders/flavor makers) who had a history of adding adulterants or cutting whiskey to make an extra buck. Colonel Pepper began the tradition of affixed a signed seal to the bottle to denote its quality, a provision that became a hallmark of the Bottled-in-Bond Act of 1897 for which he was a chief advocate. The Pepper family continued to operate the historic James E. Pepper Distillery in Lexington as well as the Woodford Reserve Distillery until 1967 when a slow whiskey market forced them to shutter the historic Lexington location and the family brand. In 2008, Amir Peay revived the hi...

  📚 Background: Released in three batches per year, Elijah Craig Barrel Proof Straight Kentucky  Bourbon Whiskey is almost always a hit with aficionados. Barrel proof means that, of course, the whiskey is not cut with water after being dumped from the barrel. The "Private Barrel" moniker further tells you that not the barrel was specially selected and not batched or blended. This can cut both ways as single barrel whiskies sometimes differ significantly from their batched counterparts which have the benefit of distiller curation to even out any off notes. If your local store owner's tastes align with yours, their barrel picks may be better than anything else you can find. On the other hand, a less conscientious selector may pick you a big loser of a barrel. This bottle comes from Costco which means that the private barrel is a "distiller's selection" and not picked by a Costco employee specifically. Typically for these big releases the manufacturer will try...

Benchmark has been bumping around the whiskey world for more than 50 years since its introduction as a luxury bourbon offering by Seagram's in the 1960s, produced at the same Old Prentice Distillery site that would go on to become Four Roses. The namesake was intended to imply that this whiskey was the benchmark against which to measure all others. Sazerac purchased the brand in 1989, attaching the name of the McAfee brothers and making it part of the same family as Buffalo Trace in whose Frankfort, KY distillery it is produced today. The McAfee brothers explored the site of the Buffalo Trace distillery after arriving by canoe, noting the namesake great buffalo crossing and implying that the namesake "Benchmarks"  are the survey markers left by that team of explorers. Benchmark was Sazerac's budget offering and remained an unremarkable 80 proof label for 30 years until the brand was reinvigorated in 2020 with the introduction of "Full Proof", "Single Ba...

Maker's Mark has been a go-to brand of mine since before I knew what bourbon was. The sweet wheated mainstay of that namesake was the first 1.75L bottle of whiskey I ever bought and so it will always hold a special place on my palate. Maker's does a lot of things right, including their Marker's Mark ambassador program which let's brand fans have their name put on a barrel and to get bottles filled specifically from that barrel. Mine will be mature sometime later this year and I'm excited to go visit it. I'd always heard great things about the cask strength as well, so let's get into it... 🛒 Sourced:   $39.99 at Tower Liquors Buckhead - GA 🧪 Proof:  110, 55%  📚 Background :  Ranging from 108 to 114 proof, Maker's Mark Cask Strength is uncut by the addition of water. Most Maker's batches are barreled at 110 proof with higher angel's share batches notching up a wee bit. They do screen filter the bourbon to remove wood pieces and char, but from th...

Credit: heavenhilldistillery.com 📚 Background: Larceny Barrel Proof has been a favorite of many high proof but budget conscious consumers for years. Released three times per year (January Batch A, May Batch B, and September Batch C), this uncut version of larceny's standard wheated goodness has increased in community esteem since its launch in 2020.  🛒 Sourced:  $59.99  Costco, GA 750ml - What a Deal! SRP is $64.99 🧪Proof: 124.2 proof, 62.1% ABV  🍴Prep: Rested in a Glencairn for 10 minutes 👃 Nose: Surprisingly mild for the proof, slightly sweet overall with some nuttiness, pecan, mingled with traditional bourbon oak, bold but not astringent. Second nose you get some of the distinctive Heaven Hill mint.  🥔 Mash Bill:  68% corn, 20% wheat, 12% malted barley.  An Elijah Craig or Larceny barrel hunt will cull out 200 barrels or less to be dumped and mingled. For the barrel proof offerings, these undergo additional high scrutiny by a t...