Pinhook

Newport, Oregon-based Rogue Ales & Spirits is launching an addition to its line of canned cocktails. Rogue Ginger Lemon Whiskey Mule is the first in the series to use whiskey as its base spirit, joining three vodka-based offerings and a Gin Fizz. It’s at 7.5% abv and contains a blend of Rogue Spirits whiskey aged between 4 and 6 years along with ginger, lemon, simple syrup, and sparkling water. It is available nationwide now, retailing in 4-packs of 12-ounce cans.

Cincoro Tequila, the brand founded by Michael Jordan and other NBA owners, has released a limited number of 1.75-liter bottles of its Añejo Tequila. Each bottle is individually numbered and will be available for purchase on Cincoro’s website. Interested consumers can register now for a chance to buy. The 1.75-liter bottles will be available in Arizona, California, Connecticut, Washington, D.C., Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Nashville, Dallas, and Houston.

Palm Bay International is launching Drumshanbo Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey. Retailing at $65 a 750-ml., the newcomer is triple-distilled from a blend of malted Irish barley, unmalted Irish barley and Irish barra oats. It was aged five years in first use ex-Kentucky Bourbon and ex-Oloroso Sherry casks and was bottled at 43% abv. Rolling out nationwide, it joins Drumshanbo Gunpowder Gin in the Drumshanbo range.

Herradura Tequila, part of the Brown-Forman portfolio, is introducing a new permanent extension to its range. Herradura Legend is an Añejo Tequila matured for 14 months in heavily charred, new American White Oak barrels. Herradura makes its own barrels and deeply grooves them to expose the Tequila to more layers of toasted oak. Legend will initially be available in select markets, including New York, New Jersey, Colorado, Oregon, California, Texas, Florida, Georgia, and North Carolina retailing at $125.

Boston, Massachusetts-based Latitude Beverage has added a new Bourbon to its Wheel Horse Whiskey brand, following the launch of Wheel Horse rye earlier this year. The 50.5% abv whiskey is aged between two and four years from a mash of 70% corn, 21% rye, and 9% malted barley. The whiskey was distilled at the Owensboro Distilling Company in Kentucky and is now available in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, and Tennessee for around $28 a 750-ml.

Bacardi is debuting three new offerings from its Exceptional Cask series of single malt Scotch whiskies: Aberfeldy 18 Years Old ($120, 43% abv), Aberfeldy 20 Years Old ($200, 43% abv), and Craigellachie 24 Years Old ($300, 52.2% abv), all of which are rolling out this month. Each expression in the Exceptional Cask series is hand-selected by malt master Stephanie Macleod.

Sweet Amber Distilling Co. has announced a new cask strength program for the Blackened American whiskey line. The whiskey, called Batch 106, is a blend of Bourbon and rye that’s bottled at 55.35% abv. According to the company, the whiskies in the blend are an average of eight years old. Like the wider Blackened release, Batch 106 is finished by playing music through the spirit, in this case Metallica’s S&M2 collaboration with the San Francisco Symphony. Blackened Batch 106 is available for around $55 in Kroger Supermarkets in Kentucky and in Tampa, Florida at Luekens Wine & Spirits.

Constellation Brands has extended Svedka with a new range of canned Vodka Soda cocktails. The new offerings, made with real fruit juice and natural flavors, are at 8% abv and come in Strawberry Lemonade, Black Cherry Lime, and Mango Pineapple flavors. They’re rolling out now, retailing at $13 a 4-pack of 12-ounce cans, and $3 an individual can.

Beam Suntory has launched Suntory World Whisky Ao, its first global blend of whiskies, to 16 travel retail markets. The 43% abv blend is assembled from Beam Suntory’s Scottish, Canadian, American, and Japanese distillers by fifth generation Suntory chief blender, Shinji Fukuyo. This marks the first international launch for Ao, which was previously released in April 2019 as an exclusive for the Japanese market. Suntory World Whisky Ao retails for around $71 a bottle.

Lucas Bols USA has launched a new, non-alcoholic version of its Damrak gin, called Damrak Virgin 0.0. The spirit alternative is made with citrus peels, lavender, and coriander seeds, among other botanicals, and aims to mimic the flavor of Bols’ alcoholic Damrak gin. It’s now available nationwide in retail channels as well as online via the brand’s website and Amazon.

Frankfort, Kentucky’s Pinhook has announced its 2020 Vertical series whiskies. The new releases are Bourbon War 5 Year, bottled at 52% abv, and Tiz Rye Time 4 Year, bottled at 48.5%. Both whiskies are sourced from MGP. Pinhook will release new editions each year until the Vertical series gets to 12-year-old whiskies. The whiskies retail for $50 and $45, respectively, and are now available in 25 states and through Breeze, the company’s text message-based e-commerce channel that allows fans to text a photo or description of one of Pinhook’s whiskies to a personal shopper who then sources the spirit.

Louisville, Kentucky’s Barrell Craft Spirits has introduced a new addition to its BCS (Barrel Craft Spirits) line, a 15-year-old Bourbon. The whiskey is blended from straight Bourbons distilled in Kentucky, Indiana, and Tennessee, and bottled at 52.45% abv. Barrel’s BCS Bourbon is rolling out now in limited quantities—only 12,000 bottles will be released—and will retail for around $250 in select stores across the company’s 45-market distribution footprint. In addition to this new release, the BCS line also includes another whiskey and a rum.

Compass Box has announced the Peat Monster Arcana, the latest whisky celebrating the company’s 20th anniversary. The 46% abv whisky is made from a base of cask strength Peat Monster that aged for an additional two years before blending with malt whiskies from the Talisker, Miltonduff, and Ardbeg distilleries. The Peat Monster Arcana is rolling out this month in limited quantities across the U.S.; only 3,900 bottles will be available for a suggested price of $95 a 750-ml. This is the third celebratory whisky the company has released for its 20th anniversary, following Hedonism Felicitas and Rogues’ Banquet.

Elenita, a new brand of sparkling mezcal cocktails, is debuting across California. The 5% abv range includes Cucumber Lime Basil and Pineapple Jalapeno offerings and retails at $36 an eight-pack of 12-ounce cans on the company’s website. In addition to online, Elenita is available at select Total Wine and BevMo outlets among other on- and off-premise locations. The brand’s mezcal base is made from 100%-Espadin agave and distilled in Oaxaca.

Brooklyn, New York-based Widow Jane has announced the next batch of Decadence, the company’s maple syrup cask-finished whiskey. The 45.5% abv Bourbon starts as Widow Jane’s standard 10-year-old whiskey before finishing in casks used to age Crown Maple Syrup. This iteration of Decadence is rolling out now in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, South Carolina, and Texas, and will retail for around $80. Each batch of Widow Jane’ Decadence comes in at around 3,300 bottles of whiskey.

Courtesy of Shanken News Daily

Dripping Springs, Texas-based Treaty Oak Distilling is set to launch Day Drinker Bourbon, its latest grain-to-glass Texas whiskey, in September. The 40% abv Bourbon is made from Texas-grown corn and wheat and is aimed at offering consumers a more casual entry into the distillery’s portfolio. The whiskey will be available at Treaty Oak Distilling beginning on September 1 and will enter wider distribution in Texas, Florida, and California beginning September 15.

Diageo has announced the latest limited edition for Blade & Bow, a 22-year-old Bourbon whiskey commemorating the 85th anniversary of Stitzel-Weller Distillery. The 46% abv whiskey will launch on September 1 in 12 states and at the Stitzel-Weller facility and includes a portion of the last whiskies distilled before the original distillery closed in 1992. Blade & Bow 22-Year-Old will be available in limited quantities in California, Texas, Georgia, Colorado, New York, South Carolina, Illinois, Kentucky, Washington, D.C., Tennessee, North Carolina, and Virginia for a suggested price of $450 a 750-ml.

Lawrenceburg, Indiana-based MGP has launched a new single barrel program for Rossville Union Straight Rye Whiskey. MGP worked with its retail and distribution partners to choose individual barrels of rye—distilled from one of its two rye mash bills—to be bottled-in-bond in personalized packaging. Going forward, MGP will offer Rossville Union single barrels once a year. The 50% abv whiskey is rolling out now to select retails across the U.S., with the whiskies retailing at around $50 a 750-ml.

Vamonos Riendo, a new Mezcal brand, has made its U.S. debut. The 42% abv spirit is distilled from a blend of 8-year-old Espadín and 14-year-old Tobalá agaves harvested from high elevations in the Sierra Madre mountains. According to the company, Vamonos Riendo offers a less smoky flavor profile than many other mezcals and delivers citrus and herbal flavors. Vamonos Riendo is imported to the U.S. by Good Spirits Ventures and is now available in Southern California for around $60 a 750-ml. with expansion planned for the near future.

Frankfort, Kentucky-based Pinhook has launched Bohemian Bourbon, the brand’s flagship release for 2020. The 47.5% abv Straight Bourbon whiskey is made from a mash of 75% corn, 15% rye, and 10% malted barley. Bohemian Bourbon’s standard release follows the limited edition High Proof variant; the two offerings are the first Bourbons to come from Castle & Key Distillery since 1972 (when it was known as the Old Taylor Distillery). Pinhook Bohemian Bourbon is now available in 25 states, retailing at around $38 a 750-ml.

Snoop Dogg, Prestige Beverage Group, and Trusted Spirits have teamed up to create Indoggo, a new strawberry-flavored gin. Indoggo will launch in California in September through Gallo Sales Company. Indoggo will retail for around $30 a 750-ml. The 40% abv flavored gin is made with a blend of seven botanicals, including juniper, orange, coriander, cassia, and strawberry, and is certified gluten-free. Indoggo elevates fruit flavors like citrus and strawberry over the juniper that leads in traditional London Dry gins.

Former Bacardi CEO Mike Dolan is launching a new super-premium Tequila label. Mijenta, whose name is derived from the Spanish for “my people,” is made by Maestra Tequilera Ana Maria Romero—a 25-year industry veteran—using fully mature Blue Weber agave grown in red clay soil. Mijenta debuts with a Blanco ($50 a 750-ml.), while a Reposado—aged for six months in oak casks—is scheduled for later this year. Two additional expressions are also planned. Mijenta’s initial target markets include the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and Australia.