Castle & Cairn

Distilled by Barton 1792 on behalf of Spirits Direct, Total Wine's private label brand,  Wolcott Rickhouse Reserve is an elevated proof iteration of the standard Wolcott bourbon. Barton does a huge number of other private bottlings while at the same time many of the 1792 branded iterations have become somewhat difficult to find. The most comparable bottles are likely 1792 Full Proof and Kirkland Single Barrel, both quite elusive these days and packing a handful of extra proof points. It is worth noting that the Wolcott brand has changed producers over the years from Buffalo Trace to Barton 1792 in 2022. Both distilleries are owned by Sazerac, so it is unlikely that the mash bill has changed though the equipment itself can impact the flavor and aging conditions in the rickhouse will differ as well. The Barton editions have their lineage marked clearly on the front label if you have any question and this particular richouse reserve iteration was introduced after the distillery switc...

Distilled by Barton 1792 on behalf of Total Wine, Wolcott Bottled-in-Bond is a cousin of Costco's Kirkland Bottled-in-Bond and the bonded version of 1792. Barton does a huge number of other private bottlings while at the same time many of the 1792 branded iterations have become difficult to find. It is worth noting that the Wolcott brand has changed producers over the years. The version that won double gold in the San Francisco World Spirits Competition in 2022 was produced by Buffalo Trace. There are still a few of those floating around, so it's definitely worth checking the label for collectability (thankfully these Barton bottles have it emblazoned in big letters on the front). Both distilleries are owned by Sazerac, so it is unlikely that the mash bill has changed though the equipment itself can impact the flavor. 🛒 Sourced:  $36.99 on sale, normally $39.99 - Total Wine, GA 750ml - Note that this is roughly 2x the price of Kirkland Bottled-in-Bond (1L bottle) and about $1...

Though Bardstown is known for contract distilling , their Origin and Discovery series have both collected quite the metal count at spirits awards shows. Bardstown Origin  Wheated Bottled-in-Bond  formed part of the Origin lineup with high-rye, double barreled-rye, and a 39% high wheated bourbon iterations. The high wheat is the only one of the four not to win gold or double-gold though it very likely will next season, it was just released  for the Holidays in 2024. I'm very fond of the sweetness that comes with wheated bourbons and enjoy the character building that comes with the bonded standard. Seasonal batches for bonded whiskies mean that they can differ somewhat year-to-year without being as variable as single barrels. Speaking of single barrels, at the same time as the Origin series launch in 2023, Bardstown Bourbon Co. also announced a barrel pick program or select on and off-premise retailers. 🛒 Sourced:  $44.99 - 750ml - Tower Package, GA. Typically around ...

Upgraded in both age statement and reasonable proof, Jim Beam Black Label has a new label to match the reinvigorated specs as of 2024. Bourbon stocks have been under pressure for around a decade, but exploding producer capacity has finally caught up just a demand begins to lag. As always, the brutality of supply and demand can have some upsides, and this is bottle is one. Prior to 2015 Black Label actually had an eight year age statement. Perhaps we'll see it again if trends continue. Jim Beam did buy up a few bottles from the late 1980s and tried to replicate that flavor as closely as possible, so the current age and proof are supposedly in that vein.   From a design perspective, this bottle joins Jim Beam Double Oaked, Devil's Cut, Special Releases , and Single Barrel at the premium end of the Jim Beam range, billed as an affordable step up from a litter of flavored versions of the iconic white label.  🛒 Sourced:  $27.99 - Total Wine, GA - 750ml, also com...

Joining a packed lineup of flavored, finished, and extra aged expressions, Jim Beam Single Barrel  packs some extra proof and is had selected by the Beam team from stocks of the namesake spirit. Jim Beam brings its different brands off the still at different proofs, so there is no chance of this being a rejected Knob, Bakers, or Booker's Barrel; it'll be the crème de la crème of Beam itself. This is the most premium Jim Beam offering in the regular lineup and has been in production since 2013. Weak consumer sentiment resulted in them revamping the offering in 2019, upping the proof from 95 to the current 108 and changing the bottle design (cork was switched to twist top for cost reasons, a trade I'm perfectly willing to make).  🛒 Sourced:  $39.99 - Total Wine, GA 750ml - Priced to compete with Evan Williams Single Barrel , though that bottle is at a lower proof. In my experience, not a whole lot of retailers stock this bottle, so your best bet is likely one of the big ch...

Suntory has been on a bit of a roll recently with it's Jim Beam family of products. Black Label got a proof bump and its seven year age statement back while they seem to have enough extra juice lying around to put out this limited edition toasted bourbon as well. Jim Beam winter reserve is a sipping quality concept designed to emphasize lovely toasted oak flavors such as vanilla, cinnamon spice, and cloves. It is not a flavored whiskey! Instead it is double aged in toasted barrels following its initial stint in charred oak.  Toasting involves heating the wood at a lower temperature for a longer period without reaching the char point. This process preserves more of the wood's natural flavor compounds, like vanillin and brings out more nuanced flavors from the wood, including spices, nuts, and maybe even a slight smokiness. This is our first low cost, mass market release from Jim Beam since the Repeal Batch in 2018 which gives us a good indication that Beam stocks must be catchi...

Like Costco's other Scotches, the Kirkland Signature Islay Single Malt is bottled for Alexander Murray and imported by MISA Imports after being distilled and aged in Scotland (TTB.gov plant registry TX-I-1277). The isle of Islay is one of the southern most islands in Scotland and is one of the five whisky regions ensconced in law. There are only nine active distilleries on the island, and the Islay style is typified by strong peat or smoky flavors. As a single malt, we know that the juice in this bottle comes entirely from one of those nine! All of the distilleries are significantly smaller than Glenlivet and many of the mainland producers. Taste testing has people split between Caol Illa, Bruichladdich (Port Charlotte), and Bunnahabhain as being the source. Caol Illa and Laphroig both have done deals for private brand scotch without rights to name the source distillery, but Laphroig does not match the flavor profile for this bottle. Realistically, Caol Illa is the most likely cand...

Created in 1899 by A.J. Cameron, Dewar's White Label is a staple of cocktails the world over. The brand was popularized in the US when Andrew Carnegie sent a small keg of  Dewar's Scotch to the White House for President James Garfield's inauguration, later congratulating President Benjamin Harrison in the same manner. John Dewar & Sons, now owned by Bacardi, is known for their double aging process by which component whiskies are aged, blended, and then returned to oak casks to "marry". White Label is the top-selling Dewar's iteration and joins a lineup of 12, 15,18,19 and super aged releases. There are also finished variations such as the Caribbean Smooth Rum  cask edition, but the main claim to fame is that " it never varies ." Dewar's is such a master of blending, that they are able to reliably create the exact same flavor profile year over year, batch to batch, for more than a century. The younger Dewar's expressions, including White ...

Produced by Suntory's Jim Beam distillery, the Knob Creek brand was created in 1993 by Master Distiller Booker Noe as the organization's first small batch offering (today joined by Booker's, Baker's, and Basil Hayden's). Noe's design was to meet or exceed the quality standards defined by the Bottled-in-Bond act and create a fully flavored, pre-prohibition-style whiskey. The flagship Knob Creek 9 is bottled at 100 proof and barreled a minimum of nine years excepting a brief stint from 2016 to 2020 when Beam had to drop the age statement. The flagship is joined by a series of rye whiskies at various age statements, Single Barrel Select/Reserve, 12 and 18 year bourbon, and a flavored maple whiskey. Our bottle today, Knob Creek Single Barrel Select  is a distiller pick selected for Costco. The Single Barrel series bourbons get a bump up to 120 proof and have extended barrel information mentioned on the bottle. The Knob Creek Single Barrel Program gets wide particip...

  An oddity in Suntory's Knob Creek lineup, Knob Creek Smoked Maple is the brand's only flavored bourbon liqueur. Fred Noe created it to pay homage to his father, the legendary distiller Booker Noe, who loved to smoke meat on the weekends and bottled his own maple syrup from trees on the family farm. It is produced at the same Jim Beam distillery as Booker's, Barker's, and Basil Hayden's. This flavored whiskey stands in contrast to the age stated and higher proof rye and bourbon offerings. Knob Creek recommends drinking it neat or as a cocktail component.  🛒 Sourced:  $39.99 - Local Vine, Smyrna, GA 750ml 🧪 Proof:  90 Proof, 45% Alcohol by Volume 🎨 Color:  R3  - a light syrup color with some copper. Thicker on the glass than I expected. 🥔 Mash Bill:   75% Corn, 13% Rye, 12% Barley - Distilled to 130 Proof and barreled at 125 proof. No Age Statement though we know the whiskey is at least four years old as straight whiskey wi...

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 ...

Produced by Deschutes Brewery  (pronounced "Da-Shootz") for Costco, the 2024 iteration of Kirkland'sVintage Ale is an Imperial Stout that spends nine months resting in used bourbon barrels. Since being founded in 1988 as a Brewpub, Deschutes is a craft brewery located in Bend, Oregon that now distributes in all 50 states and internationally. The brewery gets its name from the Deschutes river and sells more than 225 thousand barrels per year of beer. Deschutes' Black Butte porter, Stoic Quadrupel, Obsidian Stout, and Fresh Squeezed IPA can be found on draft throughout the pacific Northwest. They currently offer eleven other barrel aged beers including 3 imperial stout editions, 3 sours, 3 imperial porters, and 2 sour brown ales. The " Abyss " is their recurring Imperial Stout recipe which checks-din around 11% ABV and 50 IBUs and features Nugget, Cascade & Delta hops though the exact hop mix has fluctuated year-to-year. 💅 Style:  Bourbon Barrel Imperial ...

Known far and wide for their Single Barrels and limited releases, Four Roses is famous for having 10 excellent recipes across two mash bills from which to create reliably exceptional blends. Master Distiller Brent Elliott works with these like an artist with paints to create the 80 proof Four Roses mainstay, 90 proof Small Batch, and 104 Proof Small Batch Select . 📚 Background: Four Roses Small Batch Select has garnered some fantastic rating at spirits shows the world over. While it sometimes get's overshadowed by the warehouse location mania for the slightly cheaper 100 proof single barrel, this bottle is a something of a cult classic for Four Roses aficionados, and good lord does it have plenty of awards! All of these awards - just in 2023! I love the bottle design from the black label to the raised glass four roses logo and carved cork. It feels downright classy. 🛒 Sourced:  $49.99 Costco, GA 750ml  I would note that this is a significant step up from Four Roses Small Bat...

  Michter's is a titan in the whiskey world with unicorn bottles like their 10 YR Bourbon, 10 YR Rye, and Bomberger's releases being almost impossible to find. At the other end of the spectrum, US 1 is their entry level release and relatively easy to find on shelves near me. How does it hold up? 🛒 Sourced:  Gifted - 45.99 at Total Wine 🧪 Proof:  91.4, 45.7% 📚 Background : Blended in batches from no more than 20 barrels, Michter's has produced their own distillate at a  87,000-square-foot distillery in Shively since 2014 and all members of the US 1 family (bourbon, rye, unblended American, and sour mash whiskeys) are produced there. They opened a Fort Nelson facility in 2019 where you can visit and taste in person. No age statement but it is labeled as "Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey" which is regulated to mean at least four year old juice or greater.   🥔 Mash Bill:  Proportions Undisclosed, only "High Quality Corn" cited, I have seen notes ...