Review: Kentucky Peerless Small Batch Straight Bourbon

Sample bottle provided by Kentucky Peerless Distilling Co.

AT A GLANCE

• Owned, Distilled and Bottled by: Kentucky Peerless Distilling Co. Louisville, KY

• Mash Bill: Aproximatly 65-81% Corn, 10-20% Rye, 9-15% Malted Barley

• Still Type: Column Still with pot doubler

• Age: NAS (minimum 4 years old)

• Spirit Type:

• Strength: 53.55% ABV (Barrel Proof)

• Price: $79

Sometime in the early 1880s Kentucky Peerless Distilling Company was born out of the old Worsham Distilling Company in Henderson, KY. From 1889 to 1920 Peerless was overseen by Henry Kraver a pharmacist turned distiller. Fast Forward to 2014, Kraver's great-grandson Corky Taylor and his son, Carson Taylor revived the Peerless name, built a new distillery in Louisville, and reclaimed Peerless' old plant number DSP-KY-50. The distillery has six larger fermenters and a 26 foot (8m) column still that produces their new make. Peerless used two bourbon mash bills and a rye whiskey mash for all of their whiskeys. They each start off as a sweet mash (no backset added) which they say allows them to distill their whiskeys to a lower proof. The spirit then aged exclusivly in full size 53 gallon charred new oak barrels for a minimum of four years before being bottling at cask strength. Part of the Peerless promise is that their whiskeys are never chill-filtered and they never add water.

TASTING NOTES

Nose: The nose is an intense and inviting mixture of warm oak, baking spices, apple sauce.

Palate: At over 107 proof the whiskey is hot which is not too surprising. After the heat subsides, there are big flavors of cinnamon, clove, apple sauce, oak, and just a touch of vanilla sweetness.

Finish: On the finsh the oak flavor is stronger followed by notes of dry tobacco, vanilla and apple juice.

Conclusion: Peerless true to form is a big whiskey with lots of flavor. The bourbon has a nice apple fruit flavor and is neithertoo sweet or over oaked. If you enjoy powerful whiskeys, be sure to look for this. Or if you like the idea of an apple and oak forward bourbon without the heat, add a bit of water to your glass and you will have more to enjoy.

Most Underrated Wheated Bourbon

Bottle purchased at retail by EZdrinking.

AT A GLANCE

• Spirit: Florida Straight Bourbon Whiskey

• Owned, Distilled and Bottled by: St. Augustine Distillery, St. Augustine, FL

• Spirit Type: Bourbon

• Mash Bill: 60% Florida Corn, 22% Malted Barley, 18% Florida Wheat

• Still Type: Pot Still

• Aged: Aged 3 Years

• Strength: 44% ABV

• Price: $50

This summer I got to visit St. Augustine Distillery, right before they were name the 2024 Distillery of the Year by the American Distilling Institute. Philip McDaniel and Mike Diaz opened the distillery in 2014 and released Florida’s first bourbon in 2016. McDaniel and Diaz solicited the help of Master Distiller Dave Pickerell who helped them develop their wheated mash bill using local grains and a maturation plan for how to age their bourbon in the hot and humid Florida climate.

Over the last eight years, the age statement on their bourbon has only crept up from two to three years. And while many whiskey fans have been conditioned to only think older is better, St. Augustine’s Florida Straight Bourbon is a good example of how hotter climates can, in the right hands, produce a more mature tasting whiskey in less time. With over 175,000 annual visitors, I believe the results speak for themselves. Their Florida Straight Bourbon is perfectly crafted for their unique location and they are making what I believe to be the most underrated wheated bourbon in the country.

Tasting Notes

Nose: The bourbon opens with an inviting aroma of vanilla caramel and a touch of green apple. Underneath that are warm smells of baked bread and toasted wood with just a hint of sweet cherries and cloves.

Palate: At first sip the whiskey has a slight bight of cinnamon that then softens on the tongue. There is a pronounced grain and oak character followed by notes tobacco, vanilla, and a hint of candied orange peel.

Finish: The finish has a light sweetness with lingering notes of oak, tobacco and leather.

Conclusion: Yes St. Augustine's Florida Straight Bourbon is a touch young but the whiskey is a testament to the skill and ingenuity of the team to craft a very good wheated bourbon in their hot and humid environment. For those who like their bourbons a little lighter and with less oak, this is a good fit. I have enjoyed drinking this neat, on the rocks, with water and in an Old Fashioned. I have also observed that having a pour half way through the bottle is a more enjoyable experience than when you first crack it open, which tells me that a little aeration won’t hurt. If you are a fan of Maker's Mark and have been looking for something new to scratch that wheated bourbon itch, I cannot recommend this more. I am also confident that as they are able to gradually push the age of their whiskey some of the young grain quality will fall away and you will see that St. Augustine's is making one of the most underrated wheated bourbons outside of Kentucky.

The Best Rye Whiskey of 2024

Bottle purchased at retail by EZdrinking.

AT A GLANCE

• Name: Small Batch Straight Rye Whiskey

• Owned by: Illva Saronno, Lombardy, Italy

• Distilled and Bottled by: Sagamore Spirit

• Spirit Type: Rye Whiskey

• Mash Bills: High Rye: 95% Rye, 5% Malted Barly; Low Rye: 52% Rye, 43% Corn, 5% Malted Barley

• Still Type: Column Still with Two Copper Doublers

• Age: NAS (4-6 years)

• Strength: 46.5%

• Price: $39

Kevin Plank, CEO of Uder Armour founded Sagamore Spirits in 2013 but construction of their Baltimore distillery did not begin until 2015. As the build out progressed Sagamore began sorcing aged rye from MGP (now Ross & Squibb Distillery) in Lawrenceburge, IN and had them contract distill new make for them. Sagamore's 22,000 square food ditillery opened in April 2017 and they got straight to work distilling two rye mashbills on their 24 inch column still from Vendome. On the label and in some of their marketing you might notice they claim their whiskey is triple distilled which is unusual outside of Irish whiskey. Looking into it I discovered that their column still is connected to two doublers (esentially pot stills) so the spirit gets distilled once in the column, and two more times in the doublers. While this would probably not count as triple distilled in Ireland, it is effective at making a good base spirit.

Sagamore is one of a number of distilleries looking to revieve the old style of Maryland Rye Whiskey that was popular from about 1850 to 1950 and completly dissapeard in the 1980s. In general, Maryland rye was know for being sweeter than ryes coming out of Pennsylvania and so Sagamore took two rye whiskey mash bills from MGP (one high and one low rye contnet) and blended them together to land around where a historic Maryland rye might have been. If you are interested to learn more about Maryland rye you find a whole chapter about it in my book The Atlas of Bourbon & American Whiskey.

Sagamore began selling their sourced whiskey in May 2016, and in 2021 they released their first bottles of 100% Maryland distilled and aged rye as a Bottled in Bond. Then in May 2024 Sagamore released the first bottles of their Small Batch (Maryland) Stright Rye Whiskey which completed their transition from fully sourced whiskey, to a blend of sourced and in-house whiskey and now all their own aged whiskey. This is a historic milestone because while there are several Maryland distillers making good rye, Sagamore is the only one currently with a national reach that reintroduce Maryland rye to the broader public.

TASTING NOTES

Nose: On the nose there are notes of molasses followed by lighter notes of vanilla, honey, warm rye bread, carraway, and oak. As the it opens light notes of dill and wintergreen rise up.

Palate: On the palate there is a nice light sweetness or caramel and vanilla that slips across the tongue light and warm. The whiskey has light peach character followed by flavors of oak and a light grassy note but without any bitterness or astringency.

Finish: The finish is long and savory with notes of oak, dill and candied orange peal with a light sweetness.

Conclusion: Sagamore Straight Rye is an excellent whiskey, a strong addition to the story of Maryland rye and the best new rye whiskey I’ve had in 2024. If you are curious to taste Maryland rye this is an excelent place to begin. This whiskey is very veritile and can easily be enjoyed neat, on the rocks, with water or in your favorite cocktail. If you are a fan of rye this definitly one you should look for and enjoy.

The Best Alternative to Buffalo Trace Bourbon

Bottle purchased at retail by EZdrinking.

AT A GLANCE

• Spirit: Benchmark Bonded Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

• Owned by: Sazerac Company

• Distilled and Bottled by: Buffalo Trace Distillery, Frankfort, KY

• Spirit Type: Bourbon

• Mash Bill: Buffalo Trace Mashbill #1 (10% or less Rye)

• Still Type: Column Still

• Aged: NAS (minimum 4 years)

• Strength: 50% ABV

• Price: $20

If you cannot find Buffalo Trace Bourbon in your area, it sells out as soon as it hits liquor store shelves, or you are tired of paying over $30 for this once entry level bourbon, Benchmark Bonded Bourbon is the best alternative out in the market.

Ten years ago, Buffalo Trace Bourbon was easy to find and usually under $20 a bottle. At that time it came in second in a blind tasting I organized for so friends of mine. But, as the craze for Pappy and other older whiskeys from Buffalo Trace Distillery grew, it became harder to find a bottle and more expensive when you did. So, if you are a fan Buffalo Trace but cannot get your hands on it, you need to look for Benchmark Bonded.

Today, Benchmark is named after the survey markers placed by the McAfee brothers who were some of the earliest colonial settlers in Kentucky. When they reached the region north of where Frankfort would be founded, they discovered large numbers of elk, deer and buffalos. The area became known as buffalo trace, a migration route used by the buffalo as they moved through Kentucky. The brand was originally distilled in Louisville, and created by Seagram's in the 1960 as a premium bourbon sold in decanters. The association with the McAfee brothers was added sometime after 1989, when Seagram's sold the brand to Sazerac Company. For many years Benchmark held on as a value brand, sold primarily as McAfee's Benchmark Old No. 8. But in 2019, Sazerac decided to expand the Benchmark line to include five new expressions: the Small Batch (45% ABV), Top Floor (43% ABV), Single Barrel (47.5% ABV), Bonded (50% ABV), and Full Proof (62.5% ABV). I suspect that this expansion was a way for Sazerac to maintain the quality and particular barrel selection process they had for Buffalo Trance while also increasing the supply of a more affordable version of their bourbon.

TASTING NOTEs

Nose: On the nose there are light notes of oak, cream corn, and a hint of vanilla.

Palate: On the palate the bourbon begins sweet with notes of vanilla and then transitions to a more complex flavor of sweetened ice tea and peaches.

Finish: On the finish the whiskey is relatively long with flavors of ripe plum, canned peaches (without the syrup) vanilla and oak.

Conclusion: Benchmark Bonded is a solid bourbon that is great as an everyday whiskey for when you want something enjoyable while your attention is focused doing something else like cooking or spending time with friends or family. It is not the most complex whiskey but at 4 years old and 100 proof this a perfect budget pour for drinking neat, on the rocks, with water, with mixers, or as a cocktail. As Buffalo Trace has crept up in price and gotten more difficult to find on a regular basis, Benchmark Bonded is the best alternative you can find.

Review: New Riff Kentucky Straight Bourbon Bottled in Bond

Sample bottle provided by New Riff Distilling

AT A GLANCE

• Owned, Distilled and Bottled by: New Riff Distilling

• Spirit Type: Bourbon

• Mash Bill: non-GMO- 65% Corn,30% Rye, 5% Malted Barley

• Still Type: Column Still

• Aged: 4 years in 53-gallon toasted and charred new oak barrels

• Strength: 50% ABV

• Price: $42

Ken Lewis, a Kentucky liquor retailer founded New Riff Distilling in 2014, to create a new expression of sour mashed, bottled in bond Kentucky straight bourbon and rye with out chill filtration. Because New Riff is family run it allows them the flexibility to place the pursuit of excellent whiskey over pure commercial success.

Their bourbon is distilled from a high-rye bourbon mash, which is aged for a minimum of four years and bottled in bond.

TASTING NOTES

Nose: The whiskey has as nice aroma of oak, vanilla, cinnamon, followed by light fruit notes like pomegranate and sweet cherries.

Palate: On the palate the whiskey is light on the tongue and has a wonderful flavor of caramel, red apple, oak and a touch of spice both from the rye and from the barrel.

Finish: On the finish there is a slight bitterness from the oak tannins, that fades into a soft and sweet sensation of baking spice and vanilla.

Conclusion: New Riff is an excellent whiskey with a classic bourbon profile that is sure to make any fan of the spirit happy to add it to their liquor cabinet. If you do not mind a little heat, drink neat, otherwise it will work well on the rocks or in a number of cocktails such as an old fashioned or manhattan.