Archive for January, 2010
Wathen’s Single Barrel Bourbon, Barrel #818
The story of Wathen’s bourbon is a bit of a puzzle that I put together after scouring far too many websites and whiskey forums. Here’s how it goes:
The Wathen and Medley families are intertwined in the production of Wathen’s Single Barrel, and both have long histories of distilling in Kentucky, generations in fact. They’ve intermarried several times, and thus their distilling histories and paths began to overlap at some point. I’ve even read that a Medley has been a master distiller somewhere in Kentucky from 1812 until 1991, not a bad stretch of time. The Medleys at one point owned three distilleries in Owensboro, and the current Charles Medley Distillery site is one of these.
Charles Medley, the owner and master distiller of Wathen’s Single Barrel, is the former master distiller at the Glenmore, the former distillery located in Owensboro that was closed after its purchase by United Distillers in 1991. After the purchase, United sold the property and brands to Barton Brands (makers of the 1792 Ridgement Reserve bourbon), but neither company wanted the existing stock of aging Glenmore whiskey. So Charles Medley purchased it and transferred the barrels to a warehouse at the old Medley Distillery. He later began bottling this whiskey under the Wathen’s Single Barrel label, hand-signing each bottle.
Today, the whiskey is bottled and distributed by a company in Missouri, but it is distilled in Kentucky. It doesn’t appear that the whiskey being bottled under the brand is still from the old Glenmore stocks, but it’s not clear where it does come from in this case. Speculation has it that the source is the Medley distillery, but I haven’t seen this confirmed anywhere.
So there you have it – a brand of whiskey named Wathen’s Single Barrel, begun by bottling stocks of whiskey distilled at Glenmore Distillery that were purchased and later bottled at the Medley Distillery by the master distiller who oversaw their making. Oh, and named after the Wathens, a historic distilling name in Kentucky, but none of whom are directly involved in the making of this whiskey.
My only wish is that I knew the answer to the following questions:
- Where the whiskey in this bottle was distilled
- What the different proportions of corn, rye, and barley were
- How old this whiskey is
In fact, the last one is my biggest question, how old is this whiskey? Buy a bottle and you’ll be asking the same question. On the one hand, I have this naive assumption that any single-barrel bottling is going to aim at the higher-end of the market, and therefore be a shade older – at least 8 years for instance. But having tried this whiskey, I’m not so sure that’s the case here. I may be wrong, but you come away with an impression of youth after drinking this bourbon.
In any event, this bottle contains whiskey from barrel #818, and was bottled on July 14, 2009. It’s bottled at a respectable 47%.
The appearance is a light amber gold, and lightening considerably at the edges. The nose has notes of lemon curd, citrus rind, oak resin, and a hint of vanilla, with citrus the dominant note. The mouthfeel is very light and spry, lightly textured, without much oiliness, and quite dry. The citrus theme continues, with lemons, limes, and oranges providing a surprising amount citrus acidity. This is underscored by flavors of butterscotch and pecans. The alcohol is pretty hot, giving a sense that this is a young whiskey. The citrus begins to wane a bit on the finish, giving way to vanilla, caramel, and resin.
On the whole, the flavors give the impression that this is a fairly young whiskey. How young I don’t know, but if I had to guess I’d say right around 5-6 years. It doesn’t have much of the body or depth of sweet flavors that other bourbons typically bring to the table. But in place of this is a pretty refreshing bourbon that has lots of citrus underscored by a layer of austere sweetness that helps to round it all out.
Yet, in the end the alcohol is much too hot and rough around the edges, and the citrus element a bit too bracing for my tastes.
I have to admit though, I like the label, with the look of old paper, the simple graphics, and the printed handwriting talking about the whiskey…
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George T. Stagg Bourbon 2009 Edition
George T. Stagg Bourbon is one of those rare spirits that leaves you in a state of awe after you’ve tried it. This is due as much to the staggeringly high percentage (70.7%) as to the incredible quality of the whiskey itself. I still remember the first time I had the chance to try Stagg. It was the 2007 release, and I remember being immediately taken with its deft combination of finesse and power, like a velvet glove cast in iron. It rolled across your palate, teetering on the edge between delivering powerful waves of flavor and obliterating your taste buds completely. Absolutely spellbinding.
The Stagg bottling is part of Buffalo Trace’s annual Antique Collection that also features the Eagle Rare 17-Year, W.L. Weller Cask-Strength, Sazerac 18-Year Rye, and Thomas Handy Sazerac 6-Year Cask-Strength Rye. There’s good reason that these bottles are in high demand upon release, and very hard to find. Each offering in the Collection is a reliably excellent whiskey, and on most occasions outright brilliant. Of them all, the W.L. Weller remains my favorite, but it’s a tough call, as they’re all so good. But among them all, the Stagg really does stand out.
One element that I’ve always found interesting, is how Stagg’s percentage is always so high, 70.7% this year. In past years it has ranged from a low of 65.45% to a high of 72.4%. This is striking to me, considering that a cask-strength scotch typically weighs in somewhere between 55-60%. Why the difference?
When Scotch producers fill barrels with new-make spirit, they typically dilute it 63.5%. This has long been considered the optimal percentage at which to initiate a whisky’s aging process. Over the course of time then, the amount of alcohol in the whisky drops. If we assume that Buffalo Trace fills their casks with 63.5% whiskey too (I haven’t been able to find a source indicating the strength of the whisky when it is put in cask), then we’re witnessing the opposite phenomena here. The amount of alcohol in the whiskey is rising, not dropping. We see the same thing happening with the W.L. Weller and Thomas Handy bottlings as well.
The difference is the result of the different humidity levels in the environment that the whisk(e)y is aging in. The air in a warehouse full of casks in Scotland is more humid than the air in one of the buildings that Buffalo Trace is aging their whiskey in. The more humid the air is, the less water will evaporate from the whisky. Instead, alcohol evaporates from the whisky. Thus, while scotch ages, it loses more alcohol than it does water, in effect lowering the alcohol level of the whisky. In contrast, because the air is drier in a bourbon warehouse, more water evaporates from the whiskey than alcohol, and the exact opposite takes place – the alcohol percentage of the whiskey rises because more water is evaporating than alcohol.
So it basically comes down to humidity levels. More humidity – as in Scotland – results in dropping alcohol levels. Less humidity – as in a warehouse in Kentucky – results in rising alcohol levels. Now, there are sure to be exceptions to this. But from what I have seen thus far, this is a general pattern.
In the end, we have a bottle of George T. Stagg bourbon that weighs in at 70.7%. The first question is: is it drinkable at this percentage? In my experience it is only just drinkable at 70+%. Very, very small sips. But fortunately, it’s great whiskey, and takes well to a bit of water to mellow it out. So make sure you have your dribbler handy when you pour a glass of this elixir.
The whiskey pours the color of mahogany. The nose is very sweet, with rich, warm notes of caramel and vanilla, crushed almonds, and grade B maple syrup. The palate kicks off with caramel and brown sugar, slowly opening up to include walnuts, spicy resin and a shade of wood smoke. The texture is rich and luxurious, with a definite bite to it, even after adding water. The finish concludes with flavors of salted caramel and mesquite honey.
A very big whiskey, that brings loads of flavors to the table. I don’t think it’s overly dynamic, but it makes up for with the sheer power of the flavors that it conveys. You’ll likely need to ease your way through a glass of this, but it will be a very enjoyable journey.
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Hair Of The Dog Brewing Co. Blue Dot Double IPA
Hair Of The Dog, my favorite little brewing company in the brewing nirvana that is Portland, Oregon, is one of the couple of breweries whose beers I always have on my radar. Whether it’s during a trip to New York where you can occasionally find some of their offerings, or a rare trip out west, I always look to come back with a couple of their beers to try, and maybe to hold onto to for a while and see how they develop. This past trip out to Portland I was on the lookout for their Blue Dot IPA, a beer I’d tried on draft during our previous trip.
I still remember the evening that I first tried it during that previous trip. It was also my first visit to the Horse Brass pub. We were with some friends, and after dinner, knowing that we were interested in beer, they took us to the Horse Brass. I still remember being floored by the scope of their draft menu, especially the number of incredible IPAs. Of the beers we tried that evening, the Blue Dot IPA left an indelible impression on me.
Fast forward a year or so, and during our next trip to Portland we stopped at another beer institution, Belmont Station. We only had a brief afternoon in town, and were pretty tired at the mid-point of our trip, and so Belmont Station was the perfect stop. After perusing their selection for a while and selecting a few bottles to take home, we ordered some beers and sat on their patio for about an hour, catching our breath and relaxing in the sun. We picked up the Blue Dot IPA here, along with a bottle of 2008 Alaskan Smoked Porter, and a couple of other things. The hard part was not choosing what to get, but reconciling our selves to the fact that we couldn’t take home everything we wanted to. I suppose you have to leave something for a future visit!
While all of HotD’s beers are pretty hop-forwards, the Blue Dot is their real hop monster. It’s brewed to a strength of 7% (1.074 original gravity), using a combination of barley and rye malts. 80 IBUs are packed in there (I haven’t found any info on which hop varieties they use).
Blue Dot pours crystal clear, with a rich golden color, a fluffy white head, and medium lacing. The nose is a barrage of evergreen, piney hops. In fact, it reminds me of Christmas trees and the pitch left on your hands after you bring one into your house. In much the same way, the hop aroma quickly fills the room I’m drinking this in. The palate is medium textured and slightly velvety at the end. There’s just enough carbonation to liven up the flavors without being overwhelming. Flavors of citrus, resin, and piney hops dominate, supported by caramel, grain, and honey. As the beer warms the layer of caramel and grain thickens, sweetening the beer. In the finish, more hops, medicinal and piney, along with a touch of creme caramel.
This is really a vehicle for hops, plain and simple. As with the other HotD beers that I’ve tried, there is a layer of creamy sweetness supporting all of the flavors. I found it to be a big beer though, so see if you can split a bottle with someone, or find it on draft close to home.
Barrington Coffee Roasting Co. Holiday Reserve Sulawesi Toraja
For the past few months I haven’t drunk much coffee. I haven’t ordered any in a while, in part because we decided to delve into some tea a bit. I know next-to-nothing about tea and so it’s been fun exploring some of the Chinese teas imported by Silk Road Teas. I sometimes think the nuances and delicacy are lost on me, as most often I feel like I have a pretty rudimentary palate. Whether or not this is true, and however much I was enjoying tea, I was pretty darned happy when a friend recently gave me a half-pound of Barrington coffee. It felt like coming home.
In fact, the extent of my excitement at trying this new coffee from Barrington was really an indication to me of how much I had been missing coffee. No offense to the tea enthusiasts out there. I like tea, but at heart I’m really more of a coffee person. It suits my personality more. Drinking coffee is relaxing, but because of the caffeine involved, and the process of making the coffee, it’s a more active kind of relaxation. I’m not very good at really sitting down and relaxing, and so coffee works best for me.
But hey! Not only was I excited to return to coffee and try an offering from Barrington that I hadn’t drunk before, but I was pretty amped to check out their new packaging. I’d heard about the new packaging from a friend of mine who knows the owners of Barrington pretty well, but hadn’t seen an example of it yet. Suffice to say, upon first inspection I think it’s a huge step forward for them.
In the past, I’ve bemoaned how uninformative their packaging was. The new packaging, which applies to their single-origin and limited edition coffees, is a big improvement. Each label includes the name of the coffee, including the estate or cooperative that produced it; the process used to make it (washed, semi-washed, sun dried, etc.); the country that the coffee comes from; and some tasting notes (for this coffee the label reads, “delicate spice…buttery body, toasted nut flavors”). Depending on the coffee in question, the label may also include information about the varietal(s), elevation, and roast.
All in all, I think this is a great change to their packaging, and is an ideal complement to their coffees, which are consistently very interesting and often downright exciting. I especially liked walking into a shop recently that sold a number of their coffees, and really feeling like I could make an educated decision about which to try.
As for this coffee, it was a special edition roast that they put out around the holidays. The coffee is from the Sulawesi region of Indonesia and was produced by the Petani Kopi Organik Toraja Cooperative. The beans were grown at an elevation of 4500-5500 feet in the Sesean Mountains region. The cooperative who grow and process the coffee is made up of 780 small-holders, each of whom farm just 1-1.5 hectares of land. The beans are semi-washed and sun dried.
The nose has notes of freshly baked bread, gingerbread cookies, subtle molasses tones, and sweet, earthy notes. It took a little while for the flavors in the nose to really open up, but once it did they were dense and enticing. The palate is rich with sweet fruits, raspberries, and cranberries. Alongside this are notes of oaky cinnamon and vanilla cake, riding atop a supple texture. The palate has a medium acidity, tempered just enough to highlight the fruit flavors. The finish is dry and almost cinnamony, with lightly acidic fruit melting away.
In their description of this coffee, Barrington states that it “comfortably rests in the realm of a supple armchair.” This is hard to argue with. The flavors are rich and enjoyable, and the coffee has a wonderfully textured body and mouthfeel. A nice coffee for a winter’s day.
New Belgium Brewing Co. La Folie
Belgian lambics have fascinated me ever since I first got interested in beer. It was Belgian Trappist beers that really drew me to beer in the first place, but lambics captured my imagination in a way that no style of beer had until that point. And so when I decided to begin homebrewing, one of the first homebrew books I bought was Jeff Sparrow’s Wild Brews. After reading this through, and trying nearly all of the lambics that I could get my hands on, I found myself reaching further afield for beers in this style. Needless to say, I quickly became interested in beers from breweries such as Russian River and New Belgium.
I’ve written before about Russian River’s “wild” beers, Temptation and Supplication in particular. Early on those were beers that I went out of my way to find. But New Belgium’s La Folie was actually the first American beer in this style that I was fascinated by, curious about, and excited to try. I remember reading about how they produced it using large wooden barrels, and how the concept and recipe were introduced by Peter Bouckaert who had come over to New Belgium from Rodenbach.
Similar to how Flanders style red beers such as Rodenbach are made, La Folie is aged in large wooden barrels for several years before bottling and relies on a range of yeasts beyond the traditional saccharomyces cerevisiae do their part to lend funk and tartness to the beer. Lactabacillus yeasts play a large role here, similar to lambics. The beers typically also end up with a strong wood element from the extended aging in barrels. At bottling time, the older beer that has aged for anywhere up to three years is blended with younger years, often times 2- and 1- year old beers. Again, this is similar to lambics, gueuze in particular which is a blend of 1, 2, and 3 year old lambics.
So La Folie is essentially New Belgium’s effort to put their own spin on, the traditional Flanders red style beer from Belgium. Along with Russian River, they are definitely one of the pioneers of American wild ales, and they continue to be inventive and chart new paths. Their Lips of Faith series includes several beers that use unique yeasts and aging processes.
This 750ml bottle was a gift that I was seriously lucky to receive. And so we sat on it for a little while until the perfect opportunity to drink it arose. La Folie rolls in at a moderate 6%, which is good if it’s just you and someone else sharing the large bottle.
The beer pours brownish red with rich, cranberry highlights. The nose is a veritable fruit symphony with apricots, sour cherries, raspberries all intermingled, underscored by notes of oak. The palate is very, very tart and light-bodied with a soft texture. The combination here makes the tartness stand out all the more. Striking fruit flavors abound – cranberries, cherries, raspberries, hint of apricots again – underscored by a note of tannins and creaminess. A little more sweetness than on the nose. The finish is dominated by sour cherries, lingering on a wave of tartness and underscored by a note of vanilla.
This is right up there with the best American wild ales that I’ve drunk. It’s similar to the Russian River Supplication with its fruit character, but is more sharp and tart, and doesn’t have the wine-overtones that the RRBC beer has that add a layer of richness. Nonetheless, the flavors in La Folie are very good and consistent throughout, not tailing off or getting more sour at the finish. This is a must-try for any fans of “wild” ales – if you’re lucky enough to live somewhere they distribute to!
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