Tuesday Tasting: Larceny Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Tuesday Tasting is a regular feature of Lyke2Drink that explores some of the best beers, wines and spirits on the market. This week we sample a wheated Bourbon that is part of the Old Fitzgerald franchise.

Larceny Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey is a 92 proof that pays homage to a U.S. Treasury agent who had the taste for the good stuff. An early bit of lore said that John E. Fitzgerald had founded a distillery in Frankfort , Kentucky. shortly after the Civil War. But in her 1999 book "But Always Fine Bourbon -- Pappy Van Winkle and the Story of Old Fitzgerald," Sally Van Winkle Campbell revealed John E. Campbell was not a distiller at all. He was actually a U.S. Treasury agent who had keys to distillery warehouses. He would pilfer whiskey from the best barrels and those soon became known as "the Fitzgerald barrels" around the distillery. Heaven Hill Distilleries released the whiskey to mark "a taste made famous by an infamous act."

Larceny has a tarnished copper color and a mellow nose. It is made from barrels that have aged between 6 and 12 years. The wheat is clear in this one, giving soft edges to the Bourbon. There is a good amount of hearty grain that has bits of oak, that lead nicely to a long finish.

Tuesday Tasting: Parker's Heritage Collection Master Distiller's Blend of Mashbills

Tuesday Tasting is a regular feature of Lyke2Drink that explores some of the best beers, wines and spirits on the market. This week we sample the 2012 release of a great Bourbon series.

Heaven Hill Distilleries has sent me a sample of the annual release of Parker's Heritage Collection of American Whiskey Series and this one has the makings of an instant classic. The collection pays tribute to Parker Beam, a sixth generation master distiller. The Parker's Heritage Collection Master Distiller's Blend of Mashbills features 11 year old rye-based Bourbons the distillery uses for brands like Elijah Craig and Evan Williams, mixed with Old Fitzgerald wheated mashbill whiskey. The release will be from three different dumps, each with slightly different barrel proofs. The bottle I sampled was from the first batch and has a proof of 131.6.

Parker's Heritage Collection Master Distiller's Blend of Mashbills is the sixth in the annual series. It has a warm wood color and a friendly caramelized nose. Even uncut, this barrel strength whiskey is smooth. A small splash of water allows the Bourbon to open. The rye is clear and rich, but it is softened around the edges by the wheat. Nice levels of baking spice and a finish that has plenty of nut and sweet praline character.

The 750 milliliter bottle has a suggest price of $80. About 7,500 will be distributed.

Tuesday Tasting: Woodford Reserve Double Oaked

Tuesday Tasting is a regular feature of Lyke2Drink that explores some of the best beers, wines and spirits on the market. This week we sample a new whiskey from Brown-Forman.

The Labrot & Graham Distillery was brought back from the dead in 1996 thanks to the renewed interest in quality Bourbon. Located in Woodford County, about an hour outside of Louisville, in the midst of major thoroughbred horse farms the site was first used for a distillery in 1812 by Elijah Pepper. The facility changed hands several times before it became the Labrot & Graham Distillery. Brown-Forman acquired that company and in 1973, during a long slide in Bourbon sales, the company ended up abandoning the distillery. Twenty years later Brown-Forman was looking for a location to house a new premium spirits brand and the company re-acquired the property.


Under the leadership of Master Distiller Chris Morris the distillery has established the Woodford Reserve label as one of the leading premium American whiskey brands. The Bourbon has a grain bill of 72 percent corn, 18 percent rye and 10 percent barley.


The Woodford label has been used for some special releases and now Woodford Reserve Double Oak is the first permanent line extension. The whiskey uses barrels from the Brown-Forman Cooperage, maturing first in new, charred oak barrels, then moved to a second barrel which has been toasted for more than twice as long as the first barrel.

Woodford Reserve Double Oaked is a deep amber color and has a honey-sweet and wood aroma with a hint of caramel. This whiskey has a long flavor profile. Classic vanilla and dark fruit notes dominate the taste, with bits of nut and spice notes. The finish is bright with a hint of pear skins.

Tuesday Tasting: Red State & Blue State Straight Bourbon Whiskeys

Tuesday Tasting is a regular feature of Lyke2Drink that explores some of the best beers, wines and spirits on the market. This week we sample Heaven Hill Distilleries new Red State and Blue State Bourbons.

Heaven Hill Distilleries have decided to insert themselves in a fun way in the run up to the 2012 election season with the release of Red State and Blue State Straight Bourbon Whiskeys. These 80 proof Bourbons are designed to give drinkers a chance to show party affiliation. The electronic maps on television news coverage of presidential elections have forever associated "red" with states backing Republican candidates and "blue" with states won by Democrat candidates.

As part of the release of the whiskeys, Heaven Hill will launch a Facebook promotion where "likes" between Jan. 3 and Nov. 6, 2012 of either Red or Blue will result in a donation to the USO and its programs offering support to members of the U.S. military.

Blue State Bourbon opens with a caramel nose. The whiskey has a new penny color. The flavor starts with a sweet note, but the rich barrel finish takes over. There is a toffee and bit of spice in the finish.

Red State Bourbon has a slightly sweet nose with more wood showing through. The whiskey is also a bright copper color. The flavor on this one starts off mellow and there is plenty of oak.

Both of these Bourbons are solid, basic drinks. They won't knock your socks off, but at around $15 a bottle they are decent values and good conversation starters.

Tuesday Tasting: Evan Williams Single Barrel Vintage 2002

Tuesday Tasting is a regular feature of Lyke2Drink that explores some of the best beers, wines and spirits on the market. This week we sample Evan Williams Single Barrel Vintage 2002.

Vintage and special release Bourbons are some of my favorite spirits. Distillers bring out the best and rarest from their rickhouses. The results are often spectacular and seldom fail to deliver something memorable.

Evan Williams Single Barrel Vintage 2002 is a rich amber copper color. There is an inviting maple note to the aroma. The flavor has more of the maple at the outset, but evolves with a nutty character and some nice raw oak edges. The finish has bits of spice.

This is the 17th vintage in the Evan Williams Single Barrel Bourbon series. Bottled at 86.6 proof cut from the 129.8 barrel strength, the whiskey is smooth and inviting. Priced at $25.99, the is a great bargain. The release is expected to hit the market at the end of January 2012.

The bottle sent to me as a sample was from barrel number one, put in the barrel on June 7, 2002. It was bottled on November 1, 2011.

Tuesday Tasting: Parker’s Heritage Collection 10-year-old Bourbon Finished in Cognac Casks

Tuesday Tasting is a regular feature of Lyke2Drink that explores some of the best beers, wines and spirits on the market. This week we sample the latest special release from Heaven Hill.

Parker's Heritage Collection has been around for five years now. It is always something interesting and worth looking for if you have even the slightest interest in Bourbon.

The fifth edition of Parker’s Heritage Collection, a limited annual series of aged American Whiskeys that pays tribute to sixth generation Master Distiller Parker Beam, is the first “wood-finished” Bourbon produced by Heaven Hill. The Bourbon is a collaboration between Parker Beam, the grand-nephew of Jim Beam who has practiced his craft at Heaven Hill for more than 50 years; and Alain Royer, sixth generation Cognac master blender and founder of A. de Fussigny Cognac. Royer is now working for the Cointreau family within the Renaud Cointreau group.

The 2011 Parker’s Heritage Collection whiskey is a 10-Year-Old Bourbon that had aged in high storage on the sixth floor of Heaven Hill's Rickhouse “V” in Bardstown.  In February 2010, 15 French Limousin Oak barrels that each held 350 liters (92.5 gallons) of 3-year-old Grande Champagne Cognac from the Frapin cellars were emptied, the barrels were then wrapped to keep them wet and leakproof, and three days later they were shipped to Kentucky.  When they arrived the oversized casks were filled with the aged Bourbon and transferred to the sixth floor of Rickhouse JJ, where they rested for six months to extract the delicate floral notes that permeated the Cognac barrels. On August 22, when Royer and Beam deemed them ready, these large Cognac barrels were dumped by hand, yielding 6,000 750 milliliter bottles of whiskey.

Parker’s Heritage Collection 10-year-old Bourbon Finished in Cognac Casks is bottled at 100 proof and is not chill-filtered prior to bottling. It pours a polished mahogany color with a slight hit of vanilla in the nose. The flavor is smooth and long with a peppery flourish at the finish. Serve this one neat to get the most of the barrel finishing. A perfect sipper for a fall evening or a special tailgating treat.

This whiskey retails for $80.

Day 350 Drink: Evan Williams Single Barrel 2001 Vintage

Heaven Hill Distilleries has been making whiskey in Bardstown, Kentucky, since 1934. They recently filled their 6 millionth barrel of whiskey on the 75th anniversary of the day that they filled their first barrel.

One of my favorite Bourbons from Heaven Hill is the Evan Williams Single Barrel Vintage Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey, which they have released for 16 straight years. Heaven Hill Master Distiller Parker Beam and his son, Craig, select whiskey for the vintage from among Heaven Hill’s 900,000 barrels of aging Bourbon. At around $26 a bottle, it is one of the best values you will encounter in a Bourbon.

Evan Williams Single Barrel 2001 Vintage is an 86.6 proof Bourbon that is a tarnished copper color with a rich vanilla nose. The flavor is round and inviting. It's not as sweet as the nose suggests, with plenty of wood, some spice that dances across the palate, toffee and a long finish.

Day 324 Drink: Angel's Envy Kentucky Straight Bourbon

Angel's Envy Bourbon is the work of Lincoln Henderson, a well respected master distiller, and his son Wes. They have formed a new distillery, the Louisville Distilling Co. Henderson spent several decades at Brown-Forman, helping to launch the Woodford Reserve label.

Angel's Envy Kentucky Straight Bourbon 10/10 Expression is a 86.6 proof whiskey, which blends 40 percent Port-barrel finished spirit. Angel's Share has a sweet nose with hints of toffee. The whiskey has a bright amber golden color. The flavor has quite a bit of depth. There is a lively fruity base that brings the drink forward. The wood is clearly present in Angel's Envy and the Port finishing adds an appealing note.

Day 256 Drink: Rowan's Creek Bourbon

Rowan's Creek Bourbon is a 100.1 proof whiskey produced by Kentucky Bourbon Distillers. The brand takes its name from the creek that runs through the distillery property, which is named for John Rowan, a judge and politician in the Bardstown area in the 1700s.

Rowan's Creek Bourbon is a bright amber color and has a slightly spicy aroma. The initial flavor is full of wood, but as the whiskey opens you get nice citrus and pear flavors. There is just a hint of toffee in the finish.

Day 255 Drink: Old Forester 2010 Birthday Bourbon

Brown-Forman created Old Forester Birthday Bourbon eight years ago to mark the birthday of George Garvin Brown, the founder of the Louisville-based distiller and the Old Forester brand.

Unlike the standard Old Forester, which is made from Bourbon distilled during several different years, Birthday Bourbon is vintage-dated and selected by by Master Distiller Chris Morris from one specific day's production. The 2010 edition of Birthday Bourbon is bottled at 95 proof and was created from a 72-barrel batch that was put into barrels on October 24, 1997.

Old Forester 2010 Birthday Bourbon is a light amber gold color and has a pronounced sweet caramel and vanilla nose. The whiskey delivers a nice wood and almond character up front. Nice spice notes emerge and the Bourbon finishes with a pleasant maple note.

Day 253 Drink: Noah's Mill Bourbon

Kentucky Bourbon Distillers in Bardstown is in the process of renovating the former Willet Distilling Co., which had been out of use since the 1980s. The company has a number of labels and will be interesting to watch in the coming years.

Noah's Mill Bourbon is a small batch Bourbon bottled at 114.3 proof. There is plenty wood in the flavor of this whiskey, which was said to be a 15 year old. Very nice vanilla in mid-palate, hints of hazelnut and a sweet praline finish.

Day 252 Drink: Woodford Reserve Master's Collection Tasting

Today is one of those days when 30 years of beverage writing for magazines and keeping a regular blog about beer, wine and spirits pays off. I joined a group of drinks journalists for a 13 hour tour of the Brown-Forman Cooperage in Louisville and the Woodford Reserve Distillery.

It was a long day, but a good day. The event was well organized by Svend Jansen of Brown-Forman, packed with plenty of information and interesting events. Woodford Reserve Master Distiller Chris Morris gave an extensive tour of both facilities and overview of the Bourbon making process. Woodford's chef in residence Ouita Michel walked us through a food and whiskey pairing and Brown-Forman's Chief Entertaining Officer Tim Laird presented a mixology session.

The Woodford Reserve site was first used for a distillery in 1812 by Elijah Pepper. The facility changed hands several times before it became the Labrot & Graham Distillery. Brown-Forman acquired that company and in 1973, during a long slide in Bourbon sales, the company ended up abandoning the distillery. It was not until the 1990s, when Bourbon sales had rebounded and Brown-Forman was looking for a location to house a new premium spirits brand, that the property was re-acquired. The first Bourbon started flowing at the site in 1996. On an annual basis more than 100,000 tourists visit the Woodford County location, which is about an hour outside of Louisville in the midst of major thoroughbred horse farms.

A highlight of the day was a tasting that Morris conducted of the Woodford Reserve Master's Collection, including the new Maple Wood Finish that will not be released publicly until Nov. 1. Brown-Forman decided to expand the Woodford Reserve brand franchise back in 2005 with the release of Four Grain. Since then, the distillery has released Sonoma-Cutrer Finish in 2007, Sweet Mash in 2008 and Seasoned Oak in 2009. The session was a rare opportunity to taste these five whiskeys alongside Woodford Reserve.

Woodford Reserve: This is the base whiskey for four out of the five members of the Master’s Collection and lightest in color. The whiskey has some toffee and fruit aromas. The flavor displays apple, spice from the rye and hints of caramel in the finish.

Woodford Reserve Master’s Collection Four Grain: Morris came up with the idea for this whiskey after going through a defunct distillery and finding a 1903 recipe card. In addition to corn, rye and barley malt, wheat is added to the mash bill. The flavor of this whiskey is a bit grainy and nutty. It has a nice vanilla note in the finish.

Woodford Reserve Master’s Collection Sonoma-Cutrer Finish: The distillery aged this whiskey in 66 former chardonnay barrels that had been seasoned with five vintages in California. The nose is mellowed on this one. The flavor starts off slightly sweet, but the oak comes forward in the middle and it finishes very full and round.

Woodford Reserve Master’s Collection Sweet Mash: Morris did not add the 6 percent sour mash that is used in making Woodford Reserve at the start of the Bourbon. He said the yeast struggled a bit in the making of this whiskey and they lost a couple of fermentors as a result. There are dark chocolate notes in the base flavor of this whiskey. Hints of berries and some pepper emerge, before the drink finishes dry.

Woodford Reserve Master’s Collection Seasoned Oak: Working with the Brown-Forman Cooperage, a supply of 5 year old seasoned oak was found in sufficient quantity to build 70 barrels. This is the darkest of the Master’s Collection. There is a nice hit of molasses in the nose of the Bourbon. The flavor is big, but pretty smooth with notes of cinnamon and the oak showing through.

Woodford Reserve Master’s Collection Maple Wood Finish: The distillery tested several potential native woods before having the cooperage build the sugar maple barrels that were used to finish this whiskey. The liquid spent between three and 12 months in the maple casks. The whiskey is slightly more amber in color than the other members of the line and has a fruit note in the aroma. You will not get any type of maple syrup experience from this whiskey, instead you will find the maple wood has pulled out some of the acidity, making this a smooth drink with some floral notes and a hint of caramel in the finish.

Morris said the distillery has new members of the Master’s Collection in the pipeline through 2018. For next year, Woodford Reserve will release a rye whiskey as part of the series.

Day 251 Drink: Wathen's Kentucky Bourbon

I am in Louisville on a press junket and went with a couple of fellow beverage writers to Proof on Main to check out the Bourbon selection and view some of the amazing art collected by the owners of the attached hotel.

One of the Bourbons I had not tried that came highly recommended was Wathen's, made by the Charles Medley Distillery in Owensboro, Kentucky. The distillery traces its roots back eight generations.

Wathen's Kentucky Bourbon is a 94 proof single barrel bourbon that has a lovely bright color. There is plenty of oak in the nose and the initial sip is very nutty. As the Bourbon opens, hints of fruit emerge. Introducing a couple of cubes of ice changes the drink almost immediately. The nose gives off a pleasant vanilla aroma and the flavor becomes much fuller and rich. The oak is still very present and there is a hint of orange peel and dark skin fruits.

Day 237 Drink: Jefferson Reserve Bourbon

McLain & Kyne is focused on making small batch Bourbons, selecting 200-300 barrels from rackhouses, then mixing 8-12 barrels of various ages to make Bourbons to fit a specific flavor profile.

Jefferson's Reserve is a rich amber color with a sweet nose releasing vanilla and fruit elements. The flavor is firm with roasted grains, toffee and plenty of wood. Overall the Bourbon has a long finish with hints of spice and smoke.

Saratoga Beer Bourbon Scotch Invitational Brings Pints for Prostates to Spa City on Aug. 20

Saratoga Springs, N.Y. – Pints for Prostates, a campaign that reaches men through the universal language of beer with a critical health message, is one of the charities benefiting from the inaugural Saratoga Beer Bourbon Scotch Invitational taking place in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., from Aug. 20-21.

The event features the chance to sample a wide range of great culinary delights, including beers and whiskeys from around the world along with foods from a number of Saratoga Springs restaurants. It is being held at the Saratoga City Center and Saratoga Hilton. Pints for Prostates is the featured charity during the Friday of the event with sessions from 12:30-4:30 p.m. and 6:30-10:30 p.m.

There will be two sessions each day, affording people the opportunity to choose a time that is most convenient for them. The day session runs from 12:30-4:30 p.m., while the evening session runs from 6:30-10:30 p.m. VIP Pass holders will receive an additional 45 minutes at each session. Educational seminars will take place throughout each session.

Tickets for the Saratoga Beer Bourbon Scotch Invitational start at $65 and are available at www.saratogainvitational.com or by visiting www.pintsforprostates.org. The event is being sponsored by Alta Log Homes and Fauci & Kupferman Law.

A partial list of the beers that will be poured at the event are Innis & Gunn, Brooklyn, Ommegang, Arcadia, Fire Island, Spaten, Guinness, Smithwick’s, Harp, Geary’s, Keegan, Cooperstown, St. Peter’s, Butternuts, Sierra Nevada and Cave Mountain. Whiskeys will include Bulleit, Tuthilltown, Woodford Reserve,Whistlepig, Maker’s Mark, Knob Creek, Buffalo Trace, Mitcher’s, Berkshire Mountain, The Glenlivet, Laphroaig, Jefferson, Johnnie Walker, Chivas Regal, Glenmorangie and more. Other selected spirits, such as Gosling’s Rum and Pristine Vodka, will also be available.

During the event a silent auction will take place at the Saratoga Hilton High Rocks Room. All bids for items on Friday will benefit Pints for Prostates.

Pints for Prostates is a grassroots effort founded in 2008 by a prostate cancer survivor that reaches men through the universal language of beer with an important health message. According to the National Cancer Institute, approximately 218,000 new prostate cancer cases will be diagnosed in the U.S. this year, which is 25,000 more than the number of expected new cases of breast cancer. Sadly, more than 32,000 American men will die from the disease this year.

“Pints for Prostates is excited to bring our campaign to Saratoga Springs,” said Rick Lyke, a 49-year-old former resident of Clifton Park, N.Y., who had successful prostate cancer surgery in April 2008. “Every week 4,000 men in the U.S. hear the words ‘you have prostate cancer.’ The key for these guys is detecting the disease in its early stages when treatment is nearly 100 percent successful. Pints for Prostates mission is to encourage guys to get an annual physical and have a PSA blood test.”

Lyke lived in Saratoga County from 1996 to 2005 and was the senior partner in charge of the Eric Mower and Associates office in Albany. He was a member of the Boards of Directors of the United Way of Northeastern New York, Twin Rivers Council of the Boy Scouts of America and Albany Ad Club. His wife, Sandra, served on the Board of Directors of CAPTAIN Youth and Family Services

The Saratoga Beer Bourbon Scotch Invitational will feature great Music and Food. Live Music will be produced by The Woodstock Blues Festival Road Show and feature World Class Entertainment by Ernie Williams, Murali Coryell, Scott Holt, Eddie Turner, Gil Parris and George Kilby Jr., and more. Food will be served by The Olde Bryan Inn, Beverly’s, Spring Street Deli, D'Andrea's Rory Pizza, The Factory Eatery, The Parting Glass, Saratoga Hilton and Le Canard Enchaine. A Pig roast & Chicken barbecue, Shrimp & Clams by Mick’s Chix’s, Maine Black Bear Seafood will also be part of the festivities. A special cigar area will be available Outdoors. The event is being held during the height of the Saratoga thoroughbred racing season.

“The Saratoga Beer Bourbon Scotch Invitational is something entirely new and different providing attendees with an opportunity to learn about and experience various foods and spirits in a comfortable upscale setting. Draft Magazine, Beer Connoisseur Magazine, Bar Business Magazine, as well as area Chefs will be on hand to assist in educating consumers on the various food pairing options with beer and spirits available. This Event will become a new highlight of the social and entertainment scene in the city,” said Franky Mann, founder of the event. “We are showcasing great beverages, food and entertainment, giving people another reason to enjoy Saratoga Springs during August while helping to support some great charities.”

More information about the event is available at www.saratogainvitational.com.


About Pints for Prostates
Pints for Prostates, a campaign that uses the universal language of beer to encourage men to take charge of their health, was founded by prostate cancer survivor Rick Lyke in 2008. The grassroots effort raises awareness among men of the importance of regular health screenings and PSA testing by making appearances at beer festivals, social networking and pro bono advertising. More information is available at www.pintsforprostates.org. Pints for Prostates also has a presence on Facebook and Twitter (@pints4prostates).
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Day 212 Drink: Parker's Heritage Wheated Bourbon

Heaven Hill Distilleries is a family owned operation that was founded in 1934 in Bardstown, the center of Kentucky whiskey country.

Heaven Hill Distilleries is releasing the fourth edition of its Parker's Heritage Collection. This one is a cask-strength 10-year-old wheated Bourbon. I was lucky enough to get a tasting sample from the first barrel dump. The whiskey was made at Heaven Hill's Bernheim Distillery, which it acquired in 1999 and began producing a wheated line of Old Fitzgerald. Only about 4,800 bottles will be released of this whiskey, which aged since 2000 on the fourth, sixth and seventh floors of Rackhouse A at Heaven Hill. At $80 it is a bargain addition to the Heritage series.

Parker's Heritage Wheated Bourbon is a rich tarnished copper color. The whiskey has a wonderful caramel and vanilla nose. This non-chill filtered Bourbon has layers of flavor. For 127.8 proof it is remarkably smooth. A nice combination of vanilla, roasted nuts and wood in this one.

Day 142 Drink: Maker's 46 Bourbon

Maker's Mark Distillery is tucked away in the Kentucky countryside near Loretto, about 60 miles south of Louisville. On Friday I was lucky enough to spend a few hours with Bill Samuels Jr., tour the distillery and taste the soon to be released Maker's 46 Bourbon.

Samuels is a pretty interesting character. While Maker's Mark is part of Fortune Brands, he clearly runs the distillery as the family business. He almost did not go into making Bourbon. Armed with a law degree from Vanderbilt, he had already accepted a corporate job and needed to be convinced by a friend to go back and put a year in at Maker's Mark. His father, Bill Sr., purchased the distillery in 1953 for $35,000 and his mother, Marge, had designed the iconic bottle using paper mache and used her calligraphy skills to create the Maker's Mark label. The first bottling of Maker's Mark took place in May 1958.

According to Samuels, his father set out to create a mash bill to "make a Bourbon for people who didn't like Bourbon."

"Traditional Bourbon finishes on your tongue back of the center and along the sides. He wanted Maker's Mark to finish on the tip of your tongue," Samuels says. "You couldn't do it with rye as the flavor, corn had to be the flavor brand. He also tried a number of different wheats to get it right."

Maker's Mark started to build a following, but as Samuels puts it "back in the 60s no one cared about Bourbon." The distillery was producing about 45,000 cases a year and then the Wall Street Journal did a front page story about the company in August 1980. That changed everything.

"Maker's Mark was Dad's hobby," Samuels said. "It was a hobby until people decided it wasn't a hobby." These days, fans flock to visit the historic distillery and sign up for the Maker's Mark Ambassador program to get their name on a barrel.

Samuels says these fans love Maker's Mark, but always ask when the distillery is going to expand its range like other distillers. Over the years the company has tried a few specialty products -- and it does sell a pre-mixed Maker's Mark Mint Julep product for Kentucky Derby fans -- but the original Maker's Mark has pretty much stood alone.

Samuels recounts going to master distiller Kevin Smith with a story about having dream that he had seen his tombstone and under his name it said "He didn't f@%# it up."

"So I asked Kevin, 'Do you think we could create a product so I could have a better epitaph?'" Samuels says. Working together and keeping the idea away from the sales and marketing staff, the pair went to work on what Samuels calls "the first new product from the distillery in 52 years."

Maker's 46 Bourbon gets its name from the unique process that went into creating the finished product. Smith and Samuels worked with "wood chef" Brad Boswell, who experimented with different levels of toast on French white oak staves. Ten of the staves are inserted into barrels with mature Maker's Mark Bourbon and put back into the lower floors of one of the company's rack houses for two to three months. During testing, the barrel Samuels and Smith agreed was the best had satves from Boswell's 46th "recipe." Samuels says they were looking to add wood flavor and spice, without more tannins.

Victoria MacRae-Samuels, director of operations, took me and Noah Rothbaum from Liquor.com on a behind the scenes tour of the distillery. The facility runs full out seven days a week and is a hands on operation. MacRae-Samuels also gave us a comparative tasting of Maker's Mark and Maker's 46.

Maker's 46 Bourbon is a bright amber color with a warm wood and slightly praline-like nose. The 94 proof spirit displays considerably more wood character than traditional Maker's Mark. Small bits of spice come forward in the finish. You can certainly detect the base Maker's Mark character and that should appeal to core fans. But, this drink leans more in the direction of what most people associate with Bourbon's standard flavor profile, so it should draw new fans to the distillery. They new brand will be released in July.

Day 121 Drink: Baker's Kentucky Straight Bourbon

With the 136th Kentucky Derby taking place today, Bourbon is the logical Drink of the Day. Named after Baker Beam, grand nephew of the legendary Jim Beam, Baker's Bourbon is 7-year-old 107-proof whiskey. Baker's Bourbon utilizes a special strain of jug yeast that has been in the family for over 60 years.

Baker's Bourbon is a rich sweet caramel nose with a solid hint of maple sugar. Classic amber Boubon color. Flavor is full and aggressive with plenty of sweet whiskey notes and a healthy oak note.

Day 75 Drink: Thanksgiving Dinner

OK, it's a long way to November, but this cocktail is worth getting in a turkey mood early.

Thanksgiving Dinner is two parts Travis Hasse's Original Apple Pie Liqueur, two parts cranberry juice and one part Wild Turkey Bourbon. The aroma will remind you of holiday kitchen and the flavor has the right sweet and spicy notes to pull off the theme. The distiller suggests doing this as a shot.

Tuesday Tasting: Three Whiskeys Worth Sipping

Tuesday Tasting is a regular feature of Lyke2Drink that explores some of the best beers, wines and spirits on the market. This week we sample some great whiskeys that are perfect for holiday giving.

No matter what your spirit preference is, the holidays are an exciting time. Special gift packs, rare bottlings and vintage offerings abound. This is especially true for fans of Scotch and Bourbon. The Lyke2Drink offices have had some very nice samples arrive in recent weeks. These are bottles that you might want for yourself, but they make truly exceptional gifts for friends and business associates.

Lagavulin 1993 Distillers Edition: I've long been a fan of this Islay distillery. The smoky peat found in the "standard" Lagavulin 16 year old is just as intense in this 86 proof special bottling. This Scotch is double-matured in Pedro Ximenez Sherry wood casks, which gives the single malt a touch of fruitiness to go along with the sea spray and vanilla notes. This one has a very long finish. It retails for $110 a bottle.

Evan Williams Single Barrel 2000 Vintage Bourbon: This whiskey is a vanilla bomb. At 86.6 proof this one has been aging in Bardstown since March 2000. A very smooth, almost creamy Bourbon with honey, a touch of caramel and vanilla from the nose to finish. Balanced with just the right amount of spice. At under $30 a bottle this is a great whiksey value from Heaven Hill Distilleries.

Old Forester Birthday Bourbon Vintage 2009: This Bourbon was distilled in 1997 and has a corresponding 97 proof. Nutty, spicy and sweet. There is a European truffle quality that comes through with dark chocolate, cherry and a hint of citrus, then a woody finish. A great $40 gift.