Old Fitzgerald Bottled In Bond, Fall 2022

I’d like to thank Heaven Hill for providing this review sample with no strings attached.

IMAGE: A sample bottle of Old Fitzgerald Bottled-in-Bond, Fall 2022 edition sitting in the snow.

Man alive! I just spent the last four hours straight building a PowerPoint presentation for a client. My eyes and my brain are absolutely fried tonight. So, because we’ve covered almost all of the previous editions previously, I’m going to let the folks at Heaven Hill talk for themselves tonight.

The Fall 2022 edition of Old Fitzgerald Bottled-in-Bond Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey is the first 19-year-old of the nationally released series and features Bourbon pulled from across three floors of rickhouse F and one floor of rickhouse X at Heaven Hill Distillery's main campus. As a leader of the Bottled-in-Bond category, Heaven Hill is proud to offer a premium product within this special class that showcases the authenticity and quality of the American Whiskey portfolio. Acquired in 1999 by Heaven Hill, the legendary Old Fitzgerald line is well-known for its distilling pedigree and intriguing story behind its namesake, John E. Fitzgerald, whose legacy is also heralded by the Larceny Bourbon brand.

So $240 for a single bottle (of anything) is quite a bit outside my price range, but let’s see how it tastes anyway.

Old Fitzgerald Bottled in Bond, Fall 2022

Purchase Info: This sample was provided by the producer for review purposes. The suggested retail price is $240.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $16.00

Details: Distilled in fall 2003. Bottled in fall 2022. 19 years old. 50 % ABV.

Nose: Chocolate, vanilla, coconut, leather, and oak.

Mouth: Cinnamon, mint, oak, caramel, and leather.

Finish: Medium in length and warmth. Notes of nutmeg, cinnamon, and oak.

Thoughts: We are split in the BourbonGuy household over this one. My wife, who loves old and oaky bourbons, is a big fan. I, who prefers his bourbon not to be so oaky, am not nearly as much of a fan. She gives it a like, whereas I am neutral on it. Fans of oaky bourbon will love this. Those of us who prefer our bourbon not to taste like an old barrel can easily leave this one to those it is aimed at with few regrets.

Did you enjoy this post? If so, maybe you’d like to buy me a cup of coffee in return. Go to ko-fi.com/bourbonguy to support. And thank you, BourbonGuy.com is solely supported via your generosity.

Of course, if you want to support BourbonGuy.com and get a little something back in return, you can always head over to BourbonGuyGifts.com and purchase some merch. I’ve made tasting journals, stickers, pins, and more.

Filmland Spirits presents Moonlight Mayhem Bourbon

I’d like to thank the producer for providing this sample for review purposes with no strings attached.

IMAGE: A bottle of Moonlight Mayhem. The label is in the style of an old B-movie. For this release it a Werewolf movie.

As you might be aware, yesterday was Halloween. Possibly the best holiday of the year. I love Halloween. Before I moved to Minnesota, I lived in a neighborhood with a ton of kids. We had Trick-or-Treaters from 4 pm until almost 10 pm. Non-stop. And we went all out. My wife and I designed and built a graveyard in the front lawn, complete with spooky lights, fog, tombstones, and a mummy lying in state on an altar. We were all in costume all night long. At times I’d hide out in the graveyard, appearing from there to give the kids their candy. It was great.

But then I moved to a neighborhood of mostly retired folks. No kids. I’d get maybe a dozen Tick-or-Treaters total. Last night we had ten kids. So, since we don’t have to buy quantities of candy anymore, we buy quality. Yept, I’m one of the growing number of houses that give out full-sized candy bars. Costco had thirty bars for $18 yesterday. So I jumped on that.

Of course, the best part of Halloween is not the candy or the spooky decorations. It is seeing the kids in their costumes! It’s honestly my favorite part. They are all so adorable. My kid is grown, and I don’t have any grandkids yet, so I live vicariously through the few parents in my neighborhood. Of course, there is always one kid that sees a big, tall, bearded man and gets nervous. Which always makes me sad. I try to get down on their level and let them take the candy. It usually works.

Last night, however, it did not. He was a tiny little guy. Dressed as a dinosaur. I opened the door, and his eyes got as big as saucers. I guess I looked a little too much like the Big Bad Wolf to him. His sister took a candy bar, and I got down and offered him the bowl. He was too busy looking at me with his now giant eyes to notice. It was super cute. Eventually, his big sister took his for him and put it in his bucket. Even as they walked away, he was walking backward, staring. Once I closed the door, I noticed his parents taking a photo of him in our driveway with his candy. I guess I wasn’t too traumatizing.

But as it is the first post after Halloween, I thought that tonight’s bourbon was especially appropriate. It is Moonlight Mayhem by Filmland Sprits. The bourbon itself looks to be MGP’s 21% Rye Bourbon. Distilled in Indiana and bottled in Kentucky, this bourbon has a mash bill of 75% corn, 21% rye, and 4% malted barley. Now, don’t get me wrong, I like me some MGP bourbon, but I didn’t get this bottle for the juice inside. No, I’ve admitted to being a design snob, and sometimes, I just like to reward good artwork. That’s the case here.

Each label from Filmland Spirits is designed as a pulp B-movie poster. And I’m here for it. Here is what the producer has to say about it:

Unlike most whiskey bottles on your back bar, Filmland Spirits is truly unique down to the artwork on the label itself. The labels serve as original movie posters in pulp-style art that align with the expression’s story synopsis on the back of each bottle and carry the B-movie genre throughout the brand’s visual aesthetic. Consumers who yearn to learn more about each expression’s story can head to Filmland's website to read snippets of the script, view storyboards, and even watch an animated trailer!

These folks look like they had a lot of fun putting this out. But, it isn’t worth buying a pretty bottle if what’s inside doesn’t stack up. So let’s see what it tastes like, shall we?

Moonlight Mayhem Bourbon by Filmland Spirits

Purchase Info: This bottle was provided for review purposes. The suggested retail price is $54.99. It is available for purchase in Kentucky, California, and online where allowed.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $3.67

Details: 47% ABV. 75% Corn, 21% Rye, and 4% Malted Barley. Distilled in Indiana. Bottled in Kentucky.

Nose: Caramel, mint, oak, and a touch of hops.

Mouth: Gentle. Notes of cinnamon, mint, almond, and red fruit.

Finish: Medium length and Warmth. Notes of caramel, cinnamon, almond, and much more oak than I'd have expected.

Thoughts: Not bad, not bad at all. If you want a fun bottle, this is one to look at. The bourbon inside is good, but not the star of this production. This is a bottle I will happily finish and then use as a fun decor for my home bar afterward. And if you want to watch the trailer, download the “movie poster,” or read a portion of the script check out their website at FilmlandSpirits.com.

Did you enjoy this post? If so, maybe you’d like to buy me a cup of coffee in return. Go to ko-fi.com/bourbonguy to support. And thank you, BourbonGuy.com is solely supported via your generosity.

Of course, if you want to support BourbonGuy.com and get a little something back in return, you can always head over to BourbonGuyGifts.com and purchase some merch. I’ve made tasting journals, stickers, pins, posters, and more.

Basil Hayden Red Wine Cask Finish

I’d like to thank the folks from Beam Suntory and their PR teams for sharing this sample with no strings attached.

IMAGE: Basil Hayden Red Wine Cask Finish sitting in front of a tree with fall leaves.

A while back, my favorite artist came out with a new album. I stream everything on Spotify these days, but when I want to support an artist, I have no problem buying an album digitally as well. If I need to, I will buy the CD instead. But I realized as I was looking at the order page that I no longer have a device that will play CDs. Not even my vehicle has a CD player. And the last computer with an optical drive died last year. So I decided that I’d buy the album on vinyl. If I wasn’t going to be able to play it anyway, I might as well go with the big art. This way, I could use it as wall art, if nothing else.

But a funny thing happened after I bought that vinyl album. I got to thinking about the nature of the music I listened to as a kid. About albums that were meant to be listened to from start to finish instead of as individual tracks. And I came to the realization that even though I love streaming, there is something to be said about old formats too. Yes, I love just throwing on a playlist and letting it go all day. Basically as background music for my life. But when I was a kid, vinyl was king. Unless you were much more coordinated than I was, you couldn’t just choose the track you wanted to listen to (unless you had a single). And as is turns out, there are some ablums that were better listened to in order with one track flowing into another. Basically a larger work of art that is made up of smaller works of art.

So why didn’t I already have a ton of vinyl? Well, I was alive and aware as CDs hit the stage and became the dominant music format. I remember kids in school teasing me about still playing records when they all had CD players. Kids can be cruel and the those in the tiny town I grew up in were hyper-obsessed with how rich someone was. The more money you had the more popular you were. And I grew up in poverty so I didn’t have a lot of friends back then. The moment I could afford a CD player as a teenager, I got one. If only so that I could tamp down the emotional baggage of being teased as child. I don’t know that I listened to a record by choice after that until well into my second stint at college. By then I was collecting classic rock albums like crazy. But then digital music came around and, once again, I gave up vinyl as a waste of space and sold or gave them away.

Somehow I never seem to learn.

Anyway, long story short, I may have found a new obsession. Since I bought that “piece of art for the wall” I’ve bought five or six more albums, I researched and ordered a turntable. I’ve made a wishlist of other albums I want to buy in this crazy old format. And I plan to visit a few record stores in the area the next time I have a day free. I like the idea of intently listening to music again. Needing to pay attention to when a record ends and needing to get up to flip it over appeals to me right now.

Now, you may ask what any of that has to do with bourbon. And that’s a good question. But I have a good answer too. You can enjoy music a couple of different ways. You can have it on in the background and almost ignore it. It’s just something to keep it from being too quiet. Or you can sit there and intently listen to a piece of someone’s musical art. Follow how one song flows into another and makes a whole greater than its pieces. Same thing with bourbon. You could take a shot and just use it as a means to an end. Or you could do what we do here and intently taste the bourbon. Teasing out the nuances of someone’s liquid art.

Plus in both of them you can easily get obsessed and spend way more than you had intended to if you aren’t careful. Ask me how I know.

Luckily for me, tonight’s whiskey was a review sample that didn’t cost me anything. It is the latest offering from the Basil Hayden folks over at Jim Beam. This one was partially finished in red wine casks. And although I’ve sworn off Basil Hayden numerous times in the past as not being flavorful enough for me, I found the idea of this one intriguing. Here’s what the producer has to say about it:

A blend of the classic Basil Hayden high-rye mash bill and bourbon partially aged in Californian red wine casks, this special release is ripe with cherries & dried fruit, while also delivering characteristic bourbon flavors of vanilla and charred oak. Perfectly balanced, Basil Hayden Red Wine Cask Finish is layered & complex, yet approachable & inviting.

But, how does it taste?

Basil Hayden Red Wine Cask Finish

Purchase Info: The bottle was provided by the producer for review purposes. The suggested retail price is $59.99 for a 750 mL bottle.

Price per Drink (50 ml): $4.00

Details: 40% ABV. Some of the bourbon used in the blend has been finished in California red wine casks.

Nose: Dried cherries, brown sugar, and oak.

Month: Cherry, vanilla, nutmeg, and oak.

Finish: Medium in length and warmth. Notes of cherry and cinnamon linger.

Thoughts: I've been hard on Basil Hayden products in the past, but I think they have a winner with this one. Lots of flavor in the mouth. The wine cask finish brings a lot of cherry to the party. I like this one. And that cherry note has me thinking that with such pronounced cherry, this might work well in a cocktail. And, of course, how could I pass up that opportunity? After giving it a thought, I landed on a sweet riff on a Manhattan. The result is below. I think it turned out pretty ok.

A Thursday Night Cocktail

  • 2oz Basil Hayden Red Wine Cask Finish

  • 1/2oz Pierre Ferrand Dry Curacao

  • 1/2 oz Luxardo Cherry liqueur

  • 2 dashes of Aromatic bitters (I use my own recipe, but Angostura would work too)

  • Orange Peel for Garnish

Directions: Combine all ingredients (except orange peel) into a mixing glass with ice. Stir. Strain into your favorite cocktail glass. Express the orange peel over the drink. Garnish with the orange peel and a couple of cherries.

Did you enjoy this post? If so, maybe you’d like to buy me a cup of coffee in return. Go to ko-fi.com/bourbonguy to support. And thank you, BourbonGuy.com is solely supported via your generosity.

Of course, if you want to support BourbonGuy.com and get a little something back in return, you can always head over to BourbonGuyGifts.com and purchase some merch. I’ve made tasting journals, stickers, pins, posters, and more.

From the BourbonGuy Archives: Handcrafted? Yes.

So, yeah. I’m still sick enough that I don’t have the brain power to write. Nor do I have the taste buds to taste accurately. Which totally sucks. But I’m on the mend so don’t feel too bad for me. Instead of giving you no content, I’ve decided to repost an educational article from way back in 2015. Guessing not many of you were around for this so hopefully it is good info or at least entertaining info.

IMAGE: Tasting glass with cover to prevent evaporation used in Maker's Mark tasting panel circa 2014.

In the last few months there has been a lot of news regarding the lawsuits alleging a misuse of the term handcrafted by members of the bourbon producing community. And on the face of it, it almost sounds legit. The lawyer alleges that something can’t be hand made if it is made in a giant computer controlled factory. If you didn’t know anything about whiskey, that argument might make you believe that the lawyer was onto something. To many people, handcrafted means that there is at least a little skill, a bit of human touch involved in making the product. (To others who are a bit more cynical it is a marketing term that has long since lost all meaning to reasonable folks.) So the lawyer tries to convince people that he knows what he is talking about, because computers.

What this lawyer either doesn’t understand or is betting that a judge doesn’t understand is that there is a very large difference between distillate and whiskey. If Jim Beam, Makers or any other bourbon maker were bottling distillate there might be a case to be argued. Might. 

You see distillate is a product that could conceivably be very tightly controlled by people who know what they are doing and, yes, with computers. But bourbon is a natural product. It goes into a barrel and sits there for a good long time. And the longer it sits, the more influence the barrel has in the finished product. But just as each tree is different, so too is the infusion of each tree. The bourbon. Because at a basic level that’s all bourbon is. An infusion of charred new oak by a grain based alcohol solvent.

And yet, the bourbon from each batch tastes so close to the same that if you didn’t have them side by side you’d never know the difference. Or for most people, even if you did. So how does that happen? Well, bourbon manufacturers have a tasting panel. It could be one person, it could be many. And they do quality control. They make sure each batch tastes like the reference sample that they are aiming for within tolerances. And if they are off, they fix it by adding another whiskey until it is right.

Let’s look at an illustration. For this example we are going to pretend that oak changes a distillate’s color instead of flavor. Mostly because it is easier to visualize color than flavor.*

We’ve got three barrels we are using to make whiskey. One produces a light orange color, one a pink color and one a teal color. If you mix all of these together in equal amounts you will get a brown color. And so you’ve got your first batch of bourbon.

But then you go to make you second batch and you realize that what came out of the second batch of barrels are not the same colors as the first three barrels. So you need to go find barrels that will make this batch of whiskey as close as you can get to the first batch. In this case what you find is that if you mix a different pink, a lime green and a light purple together you will get a brown that is extremely close to the initial batch. So close you couldn’t tell the difference.

One more example, this time we want to make a lot of whiskey. So once again based on our reference sample, we mix and match until we find that if we take 6.5 parts of light orange, 6.5 parts of pink, 6 parts of teal, 4.5 parts of the other pink, 5 parts of lime green and 5.5 parts of light purple we once again end up with almost the exact same brown as our sample.** 

In each of these examples we are trying to match that initial reference sample. And in each case the art, the skill, the human touch comes in while taking the different results you get from many different barrels and mixing them together to get a consistent result that matches the reference. You may argue that distillate can be computer-made in a factory but to me, bourbon qualifies as handcrafted.

The Maker's Mark tasting panel. Shot in September 2014 while on the Beyond the Mark tour.

*They are in mason jars because this idea came from a bourbon 101 presentation I used to do where I would invite volunteers to mix a color based on a reference sample to show this very topic. All of the colored waters were stored in mason jars and that shape just stuck in my mind.

**Don’t believe me? Take the illustrations into photoshop, sample the colors and mix them in the same proportions. It works.

Did you enjoy this post? If so, maybe you’d like to buy me a cup of coffee in return. Go to ko-fi.com/bourbonguy to support. And thank you, BourbonGuy.com is solely supported via your generosity.

Of course, if you want to support BourbonGuy.com and get a little something back in return, you can always head over to BourbonGuyGifts.com and purchase some merch. I’ve made tasting journals, stickers, pins, posters, and more.

Elijah Craig Barrel Proof, C922

I’d like to thank Heaven Hill for providing this review sample with no strings attached.

IMAGE: A bottle of Elijah Craig Barrel Proof (C922) sitting in the morning sun.

Hello from the past! I’m on vacation at the moment. If everything is going well I should currently be enjoying the sights of Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. I love nature, especially when experienced in a National Park that I’ve never before visited. So I’m going to go out on a limb and guess that I am currently having a blast.

But you came here for the bourbon, I get that. So let’s get down to it.

Last year, the September edition of Elijah Craig Barrel Proof (there are three editions per year released in January, May, and September) was only the second bourbon to receive a BourbonGuy.com Bourbon of the Year award since the award was introduced in 2017. There just weren’t that many bourbons that stood head and shoulders above the competition in the intervening years that would warrant the honor. So needless to say, I really enjoyed last year’s September edition.

So let’s see how this year’s September release does.

Elijah Craig Barrel Proof, C922

Purchase Info: This was graciously provided by Heaven Hill for review purposes. The suggested retail price is $69.99.

Price per Drink (50 mL): $4.67

Details: 12-years-old. 62.4% ABV.

Nose: This smells like a cookie. Notes of vanilla, caramel, cinnamon, and oak.

Mouth: Hot, but sweet. Notes of vanilla, caramel, cinnamon and oak. It's exactly like I would have guessed from the nose.

Finish: Warm and long. Notes of cinnamon and oak.

IMAGE: I really like this so it gets a smile.

Thoughts: This is really good, as usual. Rich, thick, and delicious. Water brings out the oak and tames the heat. Not a Bourbon of the Year winner this year, but not because C922 isn’t good. It is very good. It’s just that the other Elijah Craig Barrel Proof releases have been just as good. Let’s look at how C922 compares to May’s B522.

Comparison to B522: The nose on C922 is sweeter. The mouth of B522 shows more baking spice, whereas C922 is much sweeter. If I had to choose, I'd pick C922 personally. It just captures that "stereotypical Bourbon" flavor better. And because I have a sweet tooth. But both are delicious and if you see either on the shelf near the suggested retail price, I’d pick it up. Even if you have one in your closet already. Big, big fan.

Did you enjoy this post? If so, maybe you’d like to buy me a cup of coffee in return. Go to ko-fi.com/bourbonguy to support. And thank you, BourbonGuy.com is solely supported via your generosity.

Of course, if you want to support BourbonGuy.com and get a little something back in return, you can always head over to BourbonGuyGifts.com and purchase some merch. I’ve made tasting journals, stickers, pins, posters, and more.

Little Book Chapter 6, "To the Finish"

I’d like to thank the folks from Beam Suntory and their PR teams for sharing this sample with no strings attached.

IMAGE: Sample bottle of Little Book Chapter 6, To the Finish.

Beam Suntory’s Little Book is the creation of the newly appointed Eighth Generation Jim Beam Master Distiller Freddie Noe. It is a celebration of what “blended whiskey” can be. These aren’t the blended whiskeys of the mid-to-late 20th century. These are delicious, high proof whiskeys that allow for creativity of ingredient. And I have liked every iteration of Little Book so far. So when I was offered a sample for review, I jumped at it.

This “chapter” is a pretty complicated blend. It includes a five-year-old straight bourbon along with four four-year-old straight malt whiskeys that have each been finished in a different type of finshing barrel. Those include barrels with cherrywood staves and maple wood staves along with barrels that have been smoked with applewood smoke and hickory smoke. Here is what the press release has to say:

Little Book Chapter 6: “To The Finish,” is the latest chapter in Eighth Generation Master Distiller, Freddie Noe’s acclaimed Little Book Whiskey series. The name of this year’s chapter is inspired by Freddie’s passion for both whiskey-making and cooking, and more specifically his curiosity for how flavors come together.

The kitchen has always been a place where the Noe family has come together to share traditions from generation to generation. These traditions around family meals, and Freddie’s adventures around the grill, inspired his work in the rackhouse for Chapter 6. Freddie uses the traditional method of smoking hardwoods to create different aromas and flavors in food, and he’s applied that same method to the whiskey-making process, using unique wood staves and barrel techniques for Chapter 6.

So, how does it taste?

Little Book Chapter 6 "To the Finish"

Purchase Info: This sample was sent to me by the producer for review purposes. The Suggested Retail Price is $124.99

Price per Drink (50 mL): $8.33

Details: 58.725% ABV. Blend Components: 4-year-old Straight Malt Whiskey finished with cherrywood staves, 4-year-old Straight Malt Whiskey finished with applewood smoked barrels, 4-year-old Straight Malt Whiskey finished in hickory smoked barrels, 4-year-old Straight Malt Whiskey finished with maple wood staves, and 5-year-old Kentucky Straight Bourbon.

Nose: Cinnamon, wintergreen, malted grain, and hints of cherry.

Mouth: Very hot and dry. Notes follow the nose with cherry, wintergreen, malt, and cinnamon.

Finish: Long and warm with notes of malt, cinnamon, wintergreen, and a touch of barbeque smoke.

IMAGE: I didn't care for this but it isn't bad whiskey so it gets a neutral face.

Thoughts: I'm sad to say that this is the first "Chapter" of Little Book that didn't work for me. But that is entirely on me, not the Whiskey. I'm not a fan of either malt or smoke, and this has notes of both. So that's on me, not Freddie Noe. If you like/don't mind the flavor of malt whiskey, then this is worth a look.

Did you enjoy this post? If so, maybe you’d like to buy me a cup of coffee in return. Go to ko-fi.com/bourbonguy to support. And thank you, BourbonGuy.com is solely supported via your generosity.

Of course, if you want to support BourbonGuy.com and get a little something back in return, you can always head over to BourbonGuyGifts.com and purchase some merch. I’ve made tasting journals, stickers, pins, posters, and more.