GSN Spirited News: December 7th 2021 Edition

House of Hine has announced the U.S. release for its Hine Cigar Reserve XO Cognac. Intended to be paired with a cigar, the expression is a collaboration between House of Hine and Hunters & Frankau, the U.K.’s exclusive distributor of Havana cigars. Cigar Reserve XO is made of a blend of 20 eaux-de-vie produced using Grande Champagne, Petite Champagne, and Fins Bois grapes, the latter of which is used only in this expression within Hine’s portfolio. There are 598 6-bottle cases allocated for the U.S., where it’s now available at select retailers nationwide for $150 a 750-ml.

Brooklyn’s Widow Jane has released the Vaults 2021, the latest in the distillery’s extra-aged series of whiskies. This year’s edition is selected from barrels aged between 15 and 17 years, and bottled at 49.5% abv. The whiskies, selected by Widow Jane president and head distiller Lisa Wicker, are sourced from Tennessee and Indiana. Before its final bottling, the whiskies finished in Adirondack oak casks. Roughly 3,000 bottles will be available, allocated throughout Widow Jane’s distribution footprint, for a suggested price of $225 a 750-ml.

Woodford Reserve is releasing the winter installment of its Master’s Collection series. The latest is Woodford Reserve Five-Malt Stouted Mash, which references the “distiller’s beer” stage of whiskey production and in this case mimics classic beer flavors as well. It was made in Woodford’s triple pot stills and was bottled at 45.2% abv, making it the 17th release in the Master’s Collection. Five-Malt Stouted Mash is available in select U.S. markets for $130 a 750-ml.

Dominican rum brand Kirk and Sweeney is releasing a new spicy variation. It’s called Burning Mast and features liquid finished in red pepper barrels around two weeks. Distilled from blackstrap molasses and aged in a variety of American and French oak barrels, Burning Mast is an 81/19 blend of regular Kirk and Sweeney Reserva rum and the same that aged in the red pepper barrels. It’s available now in select regional markets including Louisiana, Texas, California, Arizona, Georgia, and Maryland for $50 a 750-ml.

Louisville, Kentucky’s Barrell Craft Spirits has launched two new whiskies. First up is BCS Gold Label Bourbon, a blend of Straight Bourbon whiskies sourced from Tennessee, Indiana, and Kentucky, all aged between 16 and 17 years. The release comes in at 56.77% abv and retails for a suggested price of $500 a 750-ml. In addition, the bottler has released New Year Bourbon 2022, a blend of 5-, 6-, 7-, 9-, and 14-year-old Bourbons sourced from Tennessee, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Wyoming, New York, and Texas. The 57.67% abv Bourbon retails for $90 and is now available throughout Barrell’s distribution footprint.

Information courtesy of Shanken News Daily

GSN Spirited News: August 31st 2021 Edition

Islay-based single malt Scotch brand Ardbeg has announced its latest release, Ardbeg Traigh Bhan Batch 3. The 19-year-old whisky is set to hit shelves this September and is part of the distillery’s yearly limited-release of substantially aged whisky. This year’s batch comes in at 46.2% abv and features the signature of Ardbeg’s director of distilling and whisky creation, Dr. Bill Lumsden. Ardbeg Traigh Bhan Batch 3 will retail for around $300 a 750-ml.

Brown-Forman is extending Jack Daniel’s with its first 10-year-old age stated Tennessee whiskey in more than 100 years. Retailing at $70, the 97-proof whiskey will debut in limited quantities across the U.S. next month. Jack Daniel’s master distiller Chris Fletcher sourced the new offering from oak barrels that were relocated throughout the brand’s barrelhouse to extend the aging process over the past 10 years.

Washington-based Woodinville Whiskey, part of the Moët Hennessy portfolio, will unveil a special distillery-only Harvest Release whiskey on September 11, Moscatel Finished Woodinville Straight Bourbon. The new entry was finished in 200-gallon Moscatel De Setúbal barrels, a rare fortified wine produced on the Setúbal Peninsula of Portugal. Bottled at 100 proof, the special edition will retail at $70 a bottle.

An extremely rare set of single cask Japanese whiskies, named the Legend of Asama, have come to market. The whiskies were distilled in 1981 and matured for 20 years at the Karuizawa Distillery before being transferred to Chichibu Distillery. The two Karuizawa 1981 35-Year-Old Single Cask Japanese Single Malt whiskies in the set—from casks 4059 and 6183—were bottled at cask strength in 2017, when the majority of bottles were sold. Only 30 sets, encased in Glencairn Crystal glassware and lunawood casing, are available worldwide through Legend of Asama’s website.

Maison Ferrand’s Plantation Rum has announced the release of the complete Birds of Paradise series of vintage rums. Three of the six rums—Fiji 2005, Jamaica 2003, and Barbados 2011—are currently available, with two more—Peru 2006 and Trinidad 2009—launching in October, and the final release, Australia 2007, coming to market in November. All expressions in the line will retail for a suggested price of $80 a 750-ml. and are or will be available in major markets across the U.S.

Brooklyn, New York’s Widow Jane has added Lucky Thirteen, previously a private-barrel release, to its year-round lineup of whiskies. The 13-year-old Bourbon is bottled at 46.5% abv from barrels chosen by Widow Jane president and head distiller Lisa Wicker. While Lucky Thirteen will be available throughout the year, it will remain a limited offering within the Widow Jane portfolio and will retail for around $100 a 750-ml. bottle.

Lexington, Kentucky-based Town Branch Distillery has unveiled two new limited-edition Bourbons. They include Town Branch True Cask Kentucky Straight Bourbon, a cask strength 54% abv whiskey retailing at $45 a 750-ml., and Town Branch Sherry Cask Finished Kentucky Straight Bourbon, bottled at 48.2% abv and retailing at $70. The new expressions will be available for purchase at the distillery and in select markets nationwide beginning next month.

Lux Row Distillers has announced Blood Oath Trilogy Second Edition, the latest collection from the luxury priced Bourbon label. The new pack contains Blood Oath Pacts 4, 5, and 6—released between 2018 and 2020—with all three Bourbons bottled at 49.3% abv. The trio is packaged in a black display box that shows off each whiskey’s label. In September, Lux Row will release 1,400 3-packs at a suggested price of $799.

Barrell Craft Spirits has released the latest release in the BCS line of limited edition whiskies. This release—adorned with a gray label—is a blend of 15-year-old Bourbon whiskies distilled in Kentucky, Indiana, and Tennessee. The whiskey is bottled at cask strength, 50.2% abv, and is available in select retailers across the U.S. for a suggested price of $250 a 750-ml.

Anheuser-Busch has extended Natural Light into the spirits category with Natural Light Vodka, a new line of lemonade-flavored spirits. The line of 30% abv vodkas is kicking off with three flavors—traditional lemonade, strawberry lemonade, and black cherry lemonade—and is available in both 750- and 50-ml. bottles. 

Information courtesy of Shanken News Daily

GSN Spirited News: October 20th 2020 Edition

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

GSN Spirited News: May 19th 2020 Edition

Brooklyn, New York-based Widow Jane has announced Lucky Thirteen, a new barrel pick program featuring 100 barrels of whiskey. Each barrel is aged for 13 years after distilling from a high-rye mash bill. The whiskies are proofed down to 45.5%-49.5% abv, with master distiller Lisa Wicker choosing the final proof after considering where in the rick house each barrel aged. Barrels will be available across the U.S., with Total Wine, plus other retailers in California, Florida, New York, and other states signing on to purchase barrels. The whiskies will retail at around $90 a bottle.

San Francisco-based Hotaling & Co. has added Convite Mezcal to its portfolio. Hotaling will bring three of Convite’s agave spirits to the U.S.: Mezcal Espadín Esencial ($45/40% abv); Mezcal Espadín-Madrecuishe Blend, a $70 bottling at 42% abv made from Espadín and wild-grown Madrecuishe agaves; and Mezcal Coyote, a $160 bottling made from 12-year-old wild-grown Coyote agave that’s bottled at 46% abv. The spirits are available now in New York, California, Texas, Massachusetts, Illinois, and Georgia.

Martini & Rossi, part of the Bacardi portfolio, has launched two new frozen RTD cocktails, Frosé and Frosecco. The 6.5% abv wine cocktails come in 10-ounce packages and can be consumed right from the pouch or poured into glasses. Both are made from Italian wine with natural fruit flavors added and do not contain artificial sweeteners or high fructose corn syrup. Martini & Rossi Frosé and Frosecco are now available across the U.S. for $4 a pouch.

Seagram’s Gin has debuted its latest flavored expression, Watermelon Twisted. Featuring a base of Seagram’s Extra Dry gin that’s infused with watermelon flavors, Seagram’s Watermelon Twisted gin is now available nationwide, retail priced at $11 a 750-ml. The new extension joins the flagship dry gin as well as Pineapple, Lime, Peach, Grape, Red Berry, Melon, and Apple Twisted gins.

Lucas Bols has relaunched its Bols Liqueurs range with a new formula and packaging. The line, which includes Blue Curaçao, Apricot Brandy, and Peach flavors, among numerous others, is now made with natural botanicals. The Bols Liqueurs bottles have been updated as well: they now feature a new logo, and are more in line with the look of the Bols Genever lineup.

Purcellville, Virginia-based Catoctin Creek Distilling Company will launch #InThisTogether Rye on June 1, with all profits going to charities supporting struggling bars and restaurants. The 40% abv whiskey was blended from spirits left over from the distillery’s barrel select program, from which many restaurant accounts had to abstain after suffering financial hardship due to Covid-19. Catoctin took those previously selected single barrels and blended them into this new “Infinity Barrel” Rye, which retails at $49 a 750-ml. It will be sold at the distillery with curbside pickup and at retailers in Washington D.C., Delaware, and Maryland through distributor Prestige-Ledroit. It’s also available online for direct shipping in Virginia only.

San Francisco-based Hotaling & Co. has added The Arran single malt Scotch whisky to its portfolio. Effective June 1, Hotaling will be the exclusive importer of The Arran’s entire lineup, which includes the Robert Burns Malt; 10-, 18-, and 21-year-old whiskies; and a variety of cask-finished expressions, with retail pricing ranging from $40-$246 a 750-ml.

Sailor Jerry has unveiled a new limited-edition commemorative bottle in partnership with the United Service Organizations (USO). Retailing at $15 a 750-ml., the special edition pays homage to the brand’s namesake, Norman “Sailor Jerry” Collins, who served in the Navy, and will be distributed nationally through the summer season. As part of the launch, Sailor Jerry and Anchor Media are donating $150,000 to the USO, adding to Sailor Jerry’s total contribution of $1 million supporting the USO and other military organizations since 2016.

Courtesy of Shanken News Daily