Smoke

Whiskey Del Bac Dorado

Whiskey Del Bac began production in 2013 in Tuscon, AZ. Founded by Stephen Paul and his daughter Amanda, the distillery is perhaps best known for their mesquite usage. Asking the very valid question of why barley couldn’t be smoked with the American Southwest’s native mesquite tree much like peat is used in Scotland and Ireland, Whiskey Del Bac has found resounding success since releasing their lineup, both in sales and industry awards. They are also a grain-to-glass distillery, using as many native elements in their production as possible. Named after the local Mission San Xavier del Bac, Del Bac Dorado represents everything we love about American craft whiskey, from the local sourcing to the experimentation to the crafting of a spirit unique to a place and people.

By Adam | October 20, 2019 | Foreign | No Comments |

Mingo Creek Craft Distillers was founded in 2017 by Jim and Ellen Hough. The name of their distillery and their whiskey, Liberty Pole, references the Whiskey Rebellion (1791-1794) that has its roots in Western Pennsylvania, where the Liberty Pole was raised by farmers to proclaim their resistance to the whiskey tax levied against them by a fledgling federal government. The rebellion collapsed after federal militia arrived but memory of it still lives in Washington, PA. The distillery offers six core whiskies, including a bourbon cream, and have recently upgraded their still size to increase production. In 2019, they worked with all the other Pennsylvania distilleries to create a special cask strength rye containing whiskey from each distillery for the Whiskey Rebellion Festival. The Liberty Pole Peated Bourbon is double pot distilled and aged 13-18 months.

By Adam | July 30, 2019 | Foreign | No Comments |

There are many things to do when you’re a distillery coming up on your 200th anniversary, and Lagavulin celebrated the occasion in 2016 by releasing the Lagavulin 8 to mark the bicentenary, along with a 12 year cask strength. In late 2017, Lagavulin made the 8 year part of its core range, reportedly because of the positive response it received throughout 2016. The choice to release the scotch at 8 years was a call back to a visit by famed whisky journalist Alfred Barnard in the late 1880s, specifically mentioning an 8 year Lagavulin as “exceptionally fine” in his book The Whisky Distilleries of the United Kingdom.

By Adam | June 6, 2019 | Islay | No Comments |