The Stogie Guys

Maker’s Mark stunned many in the bourbon world recently by announcing it was reducing the proof of its bourbon from 90- to 84-proof. The bourbon was staying the same (the same mash bill aged the same number of years), except the ABV was dropping from 45% to 42%.

But when the backlash was more than expected, Maker’s Mark said “never mind” on the reduced proof. While that may have been the right decision, it leaves unresolved the problem that the watering down was meant to address: Demand for Maker’s Mark outpaces the supply of fully aged Maker’s (a problem that will take years to fix.)

So fans of Maker’s Mark may have trouble finding their bourbon. Given Maker’s Mark’s “wheated” recipe, which emphasizes sweetness over spice, here are a few other bourbons to try if you can’t find that iconic red wax bottle, or if you just want to try something new.

Maker’s Mark 46 – Instead of going into to the bottling line, some Maker’s Mark is diverted to a second period of aging with a barrel using seared French oak staves. The result is a more complex, more complete bourbon. It’s $10-15 more per bottle, but well worth it in my opinion.

Old Fitzgerald – Whiskey writer Chuck Cowdery says he’s heard stories that Pappy Van Winkle gave Maker’s Mark creator Bill Samuels Sr. his Old Fitzgerald recipe for what would become Maker’s: “Put it in a fancy bottle and charge an arm and a leg for it.” Today Old Fitzgerald is made at Heaven Hill Distillery. The regular 80-proof gold label is slightly less refined than Maker’s but also half the price ($13).

Larceny – This newcomer, also from Heaven Hill, impressed me when I tried it. Just as sweet as Maker’s but richer in character, it’s more my style. And at $25 a bottle it’s the same price as Maker’s.

Old Weller Antique 107 – Weller is the “wheated” recipe from Buffalo Trace Distillery. At 107-proof, this is a bit hot straight. A splash of water opens it up nicely with banana, vanilla, and caramel notes. Also around $25 a bottle, it’s a great substitute for Maker’s Mark.

Jefferson’s Presidential Select 18 – This special 18-year-old bourbon is a pricy, limited bottling of some of the last remaining bourbon distilled at the Stitzel-Weller distillery, which closed in 1992 (meaning it’s the pretty much the same stuff that goes into the super-elusive Pappy Van Winkle 23). While $80-100 per bottle makes it a big step up in price, if you want to see what extra long aging can do to a “wheated” bourbon, this is the tasty result.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

“Put a chill in your whisky without diluting the dram of your dreams.” That’s the clever tagline for, and the concept behind, Whisky Stones, a product distributed by Teroforma.

Some of us, myself included, prefer our whisky colder than room temperature. Others like to add a splash of water to round the edges and open up the flavors. And still others are looking for both.

For folks in the latter category, ice is the preferred solution. But what if you want to chill your whisky without adding any water? Or what if you want to carefully control how much water gets added? That’s where Whisky Stones come in. They chill liquid without melting or adding flavors. And they definitely spark conversation if you’re entertaining.

Whiskey Stones ($25 for 9 cubes) are made from soapstone in Vermont. “The stones are non-porous and will impart neither flavor nor odor,” reads the package. “More gentle than ice, Whisky Stones can be used to cool down your favorite spirits just enough to take the edge off without ‘closing down’ the flavors.”

Before use, Whisky Stones are supposed to be placed in a freezer for at least four hours. After use, they can be rinsed, dried, and returned to the freezer. The talc-based soapstone is “particularly effective at retaining temperature for extended periods of time.”

Three stones are recommended for each serving of whisky, with the liquid height barely exceeding the height of the stones (as seen in my picture). In my experience, after about five minutes this makes the whisky noticeably colder—but not as cold as a similar volume of ice would have made the drink. If you are impatient and drink the whisky in less than five minutes, you may not experience much change in temperature at all. But if you take your time, and if you’ve ever accidentally killed your drink with excess melted ice, Whisky Stones are worth looking into.

Truthfully, I enjoy having them in the house, and especially like them when I have friends over for a cigar and some whisky or rum. Hopefully the effectiveness of the stones doesn’t wear off over time. I’m not fond of the name, though; I don’t like to be reminded of the existence of kidney stones—especially when I’m relaxing with a drink.

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Coming to a shelf near you is Bulleit 10, an older expression of Bulleit. I’ve always found the original Bulleit to be a tasty, spicy spirit that provides good value, while the company’s rye is one of my favorite presentations of the popular “LDI” 95% rye recipe.

Needless to say, I was pleased to try a pre-release sample offered by Bulleit’s marketing people. Bulleit 10 (featuring a white label) is made at Four Roses Distillery, maker to some of my other go-to bourbons. It sells for $45 per bottle, a significant increase from original (orange label) which can be found for around $25.

While the original doesn’t have a formal age statement except for being “straight Kentucky bourbon” (which denotes an age of at least four years unless otherwise specified), it generally contains bourbon aged between five and eight years. The whiskey in the Bulleit 10 bottle is at least 10 years old and, possibly (or at least theoretically), a bit older.

Light amber in color, it isn’t any darker in color than the younger Bulleit, which is a bit surprising given the extra age. However, on the nose the extra years become apparent with vanilla, oak, dried fruit, and floral notes.

The Bulleit 10 features dry spice, toast, marzipan, and dried fruit flavors. It’s definitely got a bit more complexity than the regular orange label version, but it maintains its spicy core. The finish is long, with still more woody spice and burnt vanilla.

All that wood and spice begs for a similarly bold cigar. Earthy and full-bodied cigars like the La Aroma Mi Amor or Padrón Family Reserve No. 45 Maduro are my recommendations.

This is a very nice bourbon and certainly even better than the already good original Bulleit, although people will have to decide for themselves if it’s really worth paying nearly twice as much. Still, it’s definitely a welcome addition to the ever-increasing number of quality bourbons on the market. It competes well with similarly-priced bourbons and is notable for its complex woodiness and spice.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Bulleit

I enjoyed Hooker’s House Bourbon—bottled by Prohibition Spirits—when I tried it last summer. Enough so that when I saw they were adding a rye, I felt it was well worth a try.

I’ve become skeptical of bourbon (or rye) bottled by companies that don’t distill their own whiskey, many of which just seem to slap their label on spirit they had no role in making. Hooker’s House, on the other hand, doesn’t hide the fact that they didn’t make the whiskey, but they do finish it in wine barrels that create a distinct spirit.

Plus, I have a strong suspicion that I know who makes the rye that Prohibition Spirits finishes in used California Zinfandel barrels. The number of places that make rye is limited, and the places that sell aged stock is even smaller. Between the lack of Kentucky in the marketing material and the extremely high rye content of 95%, it all points to the Indiana-based Lawrenceburg Distillers Indiana (LDI), the former Seagrams distillery that provides 95% rye for Bulleit, George Dickel, Templeton, High West, and others.

Each of those ryes is its own twist on LDI’s recipe (againg, barrels, filtration, etc…) and Hooker’s House is a “Sonoma-style American rye” because it places the rye in used Sonoma Zinfandel barrels. They don’t give a specific age statement for this 94-proof spirit, but the fact that it is described as “straight rye whiskey” means all the rye has at least 4 years of time in new charred oak barrels.

The result is a rye with a deep copper color and a spicy, woody nose with citrus and cassis. The taste has lots of rye spice—wood and pepper—plenty of heat, and hints of cherry, mint, and vanilla. The finish is long and hot, with more oak and mint.

While the Hooker’s House rye is pleasant enough, it has a rough and unbalanced edge, especially compared to their bourbon. It does, however, make a great Manhattan.

Straight up, or in a cocktail, Hooker’s House Rye calls for a full-bodied cigar. Either an earthy Nicaraguan smoke (like the Fausto) or a woody, spicy Dominican (like the Opus X).

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

The Scottish town of Cambeltown once claimed the title “whisky capital of the world,” but today it’s a shell of its former self. Where once there were reportedly 28 active distilleries, now there are just a few, with Springbank the largest remaining operation.

Springbank 10 is the distillery’s most widely available expression. It also makes a wide variety of other bottlings, including a “Wood Expressions” line with various finishes and ages, including the 12 Year Claret Cask. (In case you’re unfamiliar with the term, “claret” is commonly used in Britain as a synonym for red Bordeaux wine.)

Fortunately, Springbank puts all the details of their Single Malt Whisky on the label. This particular bottle (one of a run of 9,360) was distilled in 1997 and finally bottled in 2010 at a strength of 108.8-proof. It spent nine years in refilled bourbon casks, before being transferred to fresh claret barrels.

Springbank uses a unique distillation process where the whisky is distilled two-and-a-half times. As shown in this graphic, there are three distillations in each batch, but a certain percentage skips the second still. Also, Springbank doesn’t chill-filter or add coloring to their whiskies, the latter of which is an unfortunately common occurrence.

The natural color is golden and straw. The nose is a fantastic combination of smoke, butterscotch, orange peel, and honey. The whisky coats the palate with a consistency that is not so much syrupy as oily. There’s lots of smokiness, some brine, but not a lot of peat, and hints of apricot, mint, and vanilla. The finish is long with dried fruit, salt, and wood spice.

While Cambeltown whiskies have not always been my favorite, this one impressed me, even at $90. It’s complex and layered, with just the right combination of fruit, smoke, and spice. A few drops of water open it up nicely, but ice is wholly unnecessary.

Medium bodied cigars suit the Springbank and, depending on your mood, you couldn’t go wrong with any of these: La Riqueza, PG 15th Anniversary, El Centurion, or Partagas Benji Menendez Master Series.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

There have been plenty of exciting new ryes introducdc in recent years. (I’ve written about Bulleit, Knob Creek, Michter’s, and Breuckelen, and I’m not the only one noticing a resurgence of the classic American spirit.) With the introduction of their own new rye, Tennessee whisky maker George Dickel is putting its own spin on this spirit.

George Dickel’s parent company, Diageo, is the same as Bulleit’s, and the similarities between the ryes don’t end there. Both are distilled at Lawrenceburg Distillers Indiana (LDI) using the same rye-heavy recipe (95% rye and 5% malted barley). But of course whisky is far more than just the ingredients that go into it, and the Dickel rye takes its own distinct journey from barrel to bottle.

After five years in new, charred oak barrels (the legally required vessel for aging bourbon and rye whisky) the LDI-made Dickel is sent from Indiana to the bottling facility where it goes through the same charcoal chill-filtering process as Dickel’s original Tennessee whisky (Jack Daniels also uses the “Lincoln County Process“).

The resulting spirit is 90-proof and $25 for a 750 ml. bottle (notably the same price as Bulleit). It is orange-amber in color, with a nose featuring orange peel, oak, ethanol, and spice. The flavor is dominated by the wood (oak and spice) but there’s also a doughy bread flavor and some candied fruit. The finish is very dry and oaky.

I started tasting it straight, but very quickly found that watering down the proof just a bit mellowed the heat and oak, and let some of the complexities come out. Still, it’s not my favorite rye to enjoy straight (I definitely prefer its relative the Bulleit for that) but Dickel makes for an excellent mixing rye, especially in a proper Manhattan (rye, not bourbon, was the original Manhattan ingredient).

Looking for some cigar pairings? The spicy Fuente Opus X is recommended if you’re trying it straight. With a Manhattan, the Ecuadorian Sumatra-wrapped Tatuaje 7th Capa Especial has the balanced sweet and earth notes to complement the best of this new George Dickel Rye.

–Patrick S

photo credit: George Dickel

Larceny is the new bourbon from Heaven Hill Distillery in Bardstown, Kentucky. “Old Fitzgerald” has been (and still is) an old name in bourbon going back to the 1880s. According to the story, John E. Fitzgerald was a bourbon maker who opened up shop in the 1870s. But that turns out to be fiction; the real story is much more interesting.

John E. Fitzgerald was a U.S. treasury agent who developed a taste for bourbon that he satisfied by stealing from the bonded warehouse he was given keys to in order to ensure taxes were properly collected. According to the story, he had a knack for finding the best barrels in the warehouse to thieve from, which eventually become known as “Fitzgerald barrels” (since no one was particularly interested in attempting to report a bonded treasury agent to the authorities).

Owned and made by Julian “Pappy” Van Winkle—a name bourbon fans no doubt recognize—the bourbon was one of the first successful wheated bourbons (using wheat instead of rye as the second grain along with corn). Introduced earlier this year, Larceny follows a similar wheat-heavy recipe and is made at Heaven Hill distillery, which makes some other impressive, if under-rated, bourbons like the Evan Williams Single Barrel, Parker’s Heritage, and Elijah Craig 18 Year.

The new whiskey comes in a distinctive bottle that plays up the story that inspired its name with a see-through keyhole. Made of bourbon between 6 and 12 years old, it’s bottled at a hearty, but not overwhelming, 92-proof and sells in the most reasonable $25-30 range. (Further, to induce people to try the new spirit, the bottles I’ve seen have all had an offer of a $10 rebate, making it a most affordable spirit.)

The nose of the copper-colored bourbon features a sweet nose with lots of butterscotch and toffee, and hints of oak and cherry. The first sip reveals quite a bit of heat but, by the second and third, I’m enjoying a sweet, smooth combination of toffee, melon, dry cinnamon, and apples. The finish has honey and bread, and fades away at a medium speed that prompts you for a quick follow-up.

While rye is known for adding spicy qualities to bourbon, wheat tends to result in a smoother blend, and that’s certainly true of Larceny. But it’s far more interesting and lively than another similarly-priced wheated bourbon, Maker’s Mark, which as I’ve gotten more and more into bourbon I’ve found trades a little too much character for it’s easy-drinking qualities.

As far as cigar pairings go, Larceny is versatile, though I’d stay away from Connecticut wrappers if there is even a hint of bitterness, and also overly spicy or very full-bodied smokes. The Tatuaje Havana line, Illusione Epernay, CAO Concert, and My Father line all seem to fit the bill nicely.

For the money (especially if you have the patience to send in for the rebate) it’s hard to not be impressed with Larceny. It’s perfect for a Maker’s Mark sipper starting to explore all that bourbon offers, but can be enjoyed by the most seasoned enthusiast. It actually is not all that dissimilar, except for price, from the highly sought-after Van Winkle Family Reserve. You might even call it a steal.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys