15-year-old Single Barrel Sherry Cask

2015 Outstanding Bar Program

Anvil Bar & Refuge, Houston
Arnaud’s French 75 Bar, New Orleans
Bar Agricole, San Francisco
Barmini, Washington, D.C.
Butcher and the Rye, Pittsburgh
Cane & Table, New Orleans
Canon, Seattle
Clyde Common, Portland, OR
The Dead Rabbit, NYC
The Franklin Mortgage & Investment Co., Philadelphia
The Hawthorne, Boston
Kimball House, Decatur, GA
Maison Premiere, Brooklyn, NY
The Other Room, Lincoln, NE
The Patterson House, Nashville
Portland Hunt + Alpine Club, Portland, ME
Tørst, Brooklyn, NY
Trick Dog, San Francisco
The Varnish, Los Angeles
The Violet Hour, Chicago

2015 Outstanding Wine Program

A16, San Francisco
Addison at the Grand Del Mar, San Diego
Annie Gunn’s, Chesterfield, MO
A.O.C., Los Angeles
Bern’s Steak House, Tampa, FL
Casanova, Carmel, CA
Charleston, Baltimore
FIG, Charleston, SC
Hugo’s, Houston
Jory Restaurant at the Allison Inn & Spa, Newberg, OR
McCrady’s, Charleston, SC
Miller Union, Atlanta
Momofuku Ko, NYC
Press, St. Helena, CA
Sepia, Chicago
Spago, Beverly Hills, CA
La Toque, Napa, CA
Troquet, Boston
Wild Ginger, Seattle
Yono’s Restaurant, Albany, NY

2015 Outstanding Wine, Beer, or Spirits Professional

Derek Brown, Mockingbird Hill, Washington, D.C.
Sam Calagione, Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, Milton, DE
Ron Cooper, Del Maguey Single Village Mezcal, Ranchos de Taos, NM
Mike Floyd, Nick Floyd, and Simon Floyd, Three Floyds Brewing, Munster, IN
Diane Flynt, Foggy Ridge Cider, Dugspur, VA
Jon Gasparini and Greg Lindgren, Rye on the Road, San Francisco
Steven Grubbs, Empire State South, Atlanta
Charles Joly, Crafthouse, Chicago
Jim Koch, The Boston Beer Company, Boston
Manfred Krankl, Sine Qua Non, Oak View, CA
Ted Lemon, Littorai Wines, Sebastopol, CA
Steve Matthiasson, Matthiasson Wines, Napa, CA
Rajat Parr, Mina Group, San Francisco
Tom Peters, Monk’s Café, Philadelphia
Eric Seed, Haus Alpenz, Edina, MN
Aldo Sohm, Zalto Glass, NYC
James Tidwell, Four Seasons Resort and Club Dallas at Las Colinas, Irving, TX
Rob Tod, Allagash Brewing Company, Portland, ME
Harlen Wheatley, Buffalo Trace Distillery, Frankfort, KY
Steve Wildy, Vetri Family, Philadelphia

William Grant & Sons is releasing the second offering in The Balvenie’s series of Single Barrel Scotch whiskies, a 15-year-old Single Barrel Sherry Cask. The new Balvenie entry has been matured exclusively in a single European oak Sherry butt for at least 15 years. No more than 650 hand-numbered bottles are drawn from each cask, and each bottle carries the number of the cask in which it was matured. Launching to select U.S. markets this month, Balvenie 15-year-old Single Barrel Sherry Cask is 47.8% abv and retails at $100 a bottle. The newcomer joins 12-year-old Single Barrel First Fill (launched early last year) in the Single Barrel series, which will add its final installment, a 25-year-old Balvenie matured in refill American oak barrels, this fall.

Diageo’s Captain Morgan rum has introduced a new limited edition. Rolling out this month, Captain Morgan 1671 Commemorative Blend Spiced Rum pays tribute to privateer and brand namesake Captain Henry Morgan, who raided and captured Panama City’s Fort San Lorenzo in 1671. The 35%-abv offering features a blend of spices and is finished in Spanish oak. Captain Morgan 1671 Commemorative Blend Spiced Rum will be available nationwide, priced at $19.99 a 750-ml.

Richland, Georgia’s Richland Distilling Co. has formed a new marketing tie-up with Florida-based The Action Group USA (TAG) to introduce its flagship Richland rum ($55) into key southeastern markets. TAG USA will initially expand the rum’s reach into Florida and South Carolina, with additional rollouts in Texas and along the Eastern seaboard to follow. The new states will join existing markets Georgia and Tennessee. Produced using natural, estate-sourced sugar cane syrup, Richland rum is a small-batch spirit aged in virgin American oak barrels. The rum is the sole entry for Richland Distilling, which expects to release around 8,000 cases this year.

Diageo’s newly launched Orphan Barrel Whiskey Distilling Company is releasing a third expression of its craft Bourbon nationwide in limited quantities. The new whiskey, named Rhetoric, will be progressively aged and released over the coming years, with its inaugural 20-year-old Kentucky Straight Bourbon launching in June, and a 21-year-old expression set for release in 2015. The initial 45%-abv offering will be available in limited supply for a suggested retail price of $85 a 750-ml. bottle. Stocks of Rhetoric were found in warehouses at the Stitzel-Weller facility in Louisville, Kentucky and it was bottled at Orphan Barrel’s headquarters in Tullahoma, Tennessee. Rhetoric joins Orphan Barrel’s 20-year-old Barterhouse and 26-year-old Old Blowhard whiskies.

CIL US Wine & Spirits, the U.S. subsidiary of Cognac producer Camus Wine & Spirits, has partnered with Canada’s Domaine Pinnacle for the U.S. release of Ungava Canadian Premium Gin. Launched in 2012, Ungava has grown to reach 60 counties and will be available in Florida, Tennessee and Kentucky in June, with expansion to 18 states anticipated by the end of the year. Ungava is distilled in northern Québec and is made in small batches with six botanicals handpicked by the native Inuit tribe for a yellow coloring, according to the company. Ungava Canadian Premium Gin is 43.1% abv and will retail for about $32.99 a 750-ml. bottle.

Heaven Hill Distilleries is extending Evan Williams Bourbon with the summer release of Evan Williams Kentucky Slush to select test markets. The 12.5%-abv pre-mixed cocktail is made with the brand’s Bourbon along with Lemonade, Orange Juice and Sweet Tea flavors and will retail for about $14.99 a 1.75-liter bottle. Running under the marketing tagline of “For Seriously Refreshing Bourbon … Just Chill,” Kentucky Slush will be available June through August in Colorado, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. Evan Williams Bourbon earned 2013 Impact “Hot Brand” honors with 15% growth to 1.65 million cases for the year.

Devotion Spirits is debuting a new tea flavor for its line of vodkas, Tiki Tea. Billed as gluten-free and sugar-free vodka made 100% from corn, Tiki Tea joins Devotion’s range of flavors that includes Wild Cherry, Coconut, Blood Orange, Black & Blue and the Perfect Cosmo. The new flavor will be launched over Memorial Day weekend in New Jersey, with a phased national rollout throughout this summer and fall. Devotion partnered with Allen Flavors, the maker of Arizona Iced Tea, for flavoring within its vodka range, which retails for $19.99. In January, Devotion Spirits announced nationwide distributions plans and can now be found at retailers such as Publix, Kroger, Albertsons, Whole Foods and Total Wine & More, among others.