Old Tennessee Distilling Releases Limited-Edition Tennessee Butcher’s Bourbon

Old Tennessee Distilling Co. has released Sid’s Select, a limited-edition, Premium Tennessee Butcher’s Bourbon as the culmination of a seven-year dream.

In 2013, Sid Blalock and Kent Merritt, founders of Old Tennessee Distilling Co., began working on their dream to produce a high-quality premium Tennessee Bourbon that would be distilled locally utilizing locally sourced raw materials from Sevier County, TN.

Credit: Old Tennessee Distilling

After navigating the roadblocks of being a start-up in the industry, they filled their first barrel in August 2016, launching one of the fundamental truisms of the whiskey industry — waiting.  Sadly, Sid passed away before the bourbon had time to fully mature and mellow enough to release the final product. Determined to bring his vision to fruition, Sid’s wife, Jo, continued working with Kent to turn the seven-year dream into reality. “I believe Sid would be proud of the bourbon that we produced,” said Merritt. “I know I am.”

This first release of Sid’s Select™️ Butcher’s® Bourbon will only be available for purchase on-site at Old Tennessee Distilling in Kodak, Tenn.

Sid’s Select is made from a blend of malted barley, rye, and heirloom corn which is grown and ground locally in East Tennessee. Once the bourbon was determined ready, Old Tennessee Distilling Company hand selected ten white oak barrels and tempered the whiskey with pure English Mountain Spring water to create a 94-proof spirit with a vanilla-honey aroma and flavor notes of herbal sage, vanilla, toasted graham cracker, ginger and hints of cinnamon.  After aging for five years, each bottle was labeled and filled by hand, bringing the seven-year dream to its long-awaited close.

Posted in New Products | Tagged | Comments Off on Old Tennessee Distilling Releases Limited-Edition Tennessee Butcher’s Bourbon

Now, Barrel-Aged Coffees for the Spirits Drinker

The Morning Dram, a new line of barrel-aged coffee brought to you by the owner and operator of The Flatiron Room and Fine & Rare, announces its official launch in time for the holiday season.

There is no alcohol in The Morning Dram, and no flavorings or additives. The only ingredient: coffee beans. The distinctive flavor of each coffee is a result of the beans’ time in the barrel, a process that mirrors the whiskey-making process, where barrels are carefully chosen to provide flavor and finish to the liquid aged within.

“The Morning Dram is truly designed for spirits enthusiasts, those who have a passion for exploring the subtle notes and complex flavors resulting from the mastery of a distiller and the barrels they choose for the aging process,” said Tommy Tardie, founder. “And with The Morning Dram, that experience can be enjoyed anytime of the day. It’s always eight o’clock somewhere.”

Launch products include Bourbon Barrel Aged Coffee, Rye Barrel Aged Coffee, Apera Sherry Barrel Aged Coffee, and House Blend No. 1 along with options such as a subscription box, starter kit, and The Morning Dram merchandise available for purchase exclusively at www.TheMorningDram.com. The Morning Dram is also served at Tardie’s New York landmark establishment Fine & Rare.

For more than a decade Tommy has owned and operated spirits-focused restaurants in New York City with some of the country’s largest selections of whiskey and spirits. The Flatiron Room, which celebrates its tenth anniversary in 2022, was awarded “Best Whisky Bar” in 2021 by Whisky Magazine. Inspired by the commonality between fine spirits and quality coffee, where aficionados enjoy savoring the experience and each note and layer of their drink, Tardie created a coffee with the spirits drinker in mind.

“Good coffee and fine spirits have so much in common, you want to appreciate each sip,” said Tardie. “The Morning Dram offers a balance of complex notes and simple joy, robust flavors of coffee beans cradled in these spirits barrels.”

Named after the term for a small pour of alcohol, usually referring to whiskey, The Morning Dram utilizes high-quality beans aged in barrels from top distilleries. Rather than setting a standard time to age each coffee, Tommy uses his senses to determine the appropriate time to remove the beans to achieve a rich, smooth finish. This can vary for each batch, since all barrels are different, and achieves distinct tasting notes for each coffee blend.

Posted in New Products | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Now, Barrel-Aged Coffees for the Spirits Drinker

High West Releases High Country Single Malt Nationwide

High West High Country Single Malt is the first in the line of High Country bottlings to be finished in part in Oloroso sherry barrels, with no peated malt in the blend.

With a new label depicting the stunning landscape of the American West, this limited release will begin rolling out nationwide beginning December 3rd.

Posted in New Products | Tagged | Comments Off on High West Releases High Country Single Malt Nationwide

What We’re Reading —

A New Era for American Sparkling Wine

As emerging and legacy domestic sparkling wine producers alike invest in quality and ageability, the U.S. market is ready to embrace a wider array of home-grown bubbly. (SevenFifty Daily)

Posted in What We're Reading | Comments Off on What We’re Reading —

Naked Wines’ Mentorship Program Seeks to Advance Latino Winemakers

Naked Wines is partnering with independent Mexican-American winemaker Macario Montoya to will launch a new mentorship program focused on advancing the careers of Latino winemakers, with Macario serving as a lead advisor.

Although “Latinos make up a bulk of the wine industry yet are so underrepresented as winemakers,” Montoya says. He’s ready to change the face of wine by changing the narrative.  Montoya’s exclusive brand, Sin Fronteras, highlights traditional Californian and Spanish varieties; Macario’s wines have been a mainstay of the crowdfunded wine company since 2013.

Fundraising for this new initiative starts on GivingTuesday. Consumers can support this initiative by:

  • Purchasing any wine from Naked Wines on 11/30
    Naked will donate $10 for all purchases made on GivingTuesday, sitewide, or
  • Purchasing a 6-pack of Macario Montoya’s Sin Fronteras Malbec
    Naked will donate 100% of profits from sales of this 6-pack

 

 

Posted in Corporate Social Responsibility | Tagged , | Comments Off on Naked Wines’ Mentorship Program Seeks to Advance Latino Winemakers

With a New Strain Surging, Dr. Fauci Tells CBS What He Would Do Differently

The news about a new strain of Covid was enough to spook the stock market, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average suffering its largest one-day decline this year on Friday.  The concerns hit energy, travel and hospitality stocks especially hard, and for good reason:  If political leaders react as they have in the past. travels will be restricted, meaning less gasoline, diesel and aviation gas will be purchased; on-premise establishments will be shut down or told to slash the number of people they serve and there will be fewer passengers on airlines and trains.

So we watched with interest an extremely good interview with Dr. Anthony Fauci, President Biden’s chief medical advisor and the head of the National Institute of Allergy & Infectious Diseases.  He acknowledged he and other public health experts blew it early on in the pandemic.  They thought it was another influenza-like virus, and so they were telling people to follow the normal prevent-the-flu precautions they normally recommend.

But the Covid virus is something entirely different:  40% of those who have Covid display no symptoms but are major carriers and sources for spreading the disease.  With the flu and other similar diseases this is not the case, he said.  If you’re sick, you and everyone else knows it.

That means, he acknowledged, that what was needed then is needed now:  Massive testing, with contact tracing for all positive cases.  Unfortunately, that wasn’t done then, and isn’t being done now.  We will never control the spread of the disease if we cannot identify and isolate those who are positive

 

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on With a New Strain Surging, Dr. Fauci Tells CBS What He Would Do Differently