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The American Mixologist Online® Newsletter
Vol. 15, No. 16 All Rights Reserved
Management
America has a long and distinguished history
distilling spirits. Even George Washington was an accomplished distiller
who made rye whiskey at his Mount Vernon estate. Distillation was
an art bought to this young nation by our forefathers from countries
such as Ireland, Scotland, France, Russia and England. It soon became
a part of the very fabric of our society.
America during the 18th and 19th centuries possessed all of the
natural resources necessary to distill high quality spirits, namely
clean, fresh water, an abundance of grain—barley, corn, wheat
and rye—and stands of white oak for use in barrel aging whiskey.
Many mills during that time had still houses in the back, which
afforded farmers the opportunity to distill surplus, highly perishable
stocks of grain into whiskey, a commodity that was easily transported
and in constant demand.
The Repeal of Prohibition in 1933 brought forth a new era of distilling
spirits in America, one that continues today. There are distillers
around the country producing spirits recognized internationally
as the finest of their type. Companies such as Maker’s Mark,
Jim Beam, Heaven Hill and Jack Daniel’s naturally spring to
mind.
But there exists a realm of award winning, world-class spirits distilled
in America that remains largely outside of the mainstream. We’ve
done our homework and have uncovered the twelve best American spirits
you likely haven’t heard of. These artisan products are absolutely
guaranteed to knock the socks off any enthusiast or connoisseur.
Guaranteed.
Buffalo Trace Bourbon
Introduced in late 1999, Buffalo Trace is a magnificent bourbon
crafted at the Buffalo Trace Distillery, formerly known as Ancient
Age, in Franklin County Kentucky. This award-winning distillery
was recently named to the National Historic Register, something
that should be considered for its namesake bourbon.
Buffalo Trace possesses every quality and characteristic a great
bourbon should. The Kentucky straight bourbon made from Kentucky
and Indiana corn, selected rye and malted barley. The grains are
milled, mashed with Kentucky limestone water and double distilled.
This 90-proof gem has an enticing bouquet and a huge, mouth-filling
palate loaded with tantalizing flavors. Packaged in an attention-grabbing
bottle and label, Buffalo Trace Bourbon is a bona fide value.
Cascade Mountain Gin
Jim Bendis is an artist with a copper alembic still. He founded
Bendistillery in Bend, Oregon, and since has earned him an international
reputation for producing Olympic grade spirits, one of which is
the enticing Cascade Mountain Gin. Bendis uses a proprietary mix
of locally grown juniper berries and indigenous botanicals to flavor
this superb, micro-distilled gem.
Bottled at 95-proof, Cascade Mountain Gin has a lightweight body
and a delicate, fruit-laced bouquet. The gin is loaded with crisp
herbal and juniper flavors and finishes surgically clean.
Bendis also makes Crater Lake Vodka, a hand-made, small batch spirit
distilled from local grain and the spring water of the Cascades.
The vodka is aged in oak barrels, then filtered 10 times through
lava and charcoal, one gallon at a time. The result is sensational.
Conch Republic Rum
The Conch Republic is how the locals refer to the Florida Keys.
In 1982, the Old Florida Rum Company released a line of outstanding
rums celebrating the popular tourist destination. The company is
the oldest distillery in Florida and the last remaining rum distillery
in the continental United States.
There are several versions of Conch Republic Rum. Islamorada Light
Rum and Matecumbe Dark Rum are blends of light-bodied, continuous
distilled rums produced at the Old Florida Distillery and by Cruzan
in the Virgin Islands. All of the rums used in the blend are aged
between 2-3 years in charred oak barrels.
The crown jewel of the group is Conch Republic Durdy White Rum,
a blend of 100% Florida rums aged four to eight years in charred,
American oak bourbon barrels. Durdy White is bottled directly from
the cask without charcoal filtration. This Conch Republic rum has
spirit and backbone with flavors that sizzle on the palate. It’s
bold, full of character and a treat to drink.
Distillers' Masterpiece
Bourbon
Bourbon aficionados, you’re going to want to sit down for this
one. Jim Beam’s legendary master distiller, Booker Noe, has
created an all-American whiskey so luxurious that it rightly should
be auctioned at the Sotheby’s. Distillers’ Masterpiece
is small batch Booker Noe Bourbon aged an amazing 20 years and finished
in Geyser Peak port casks. Appropriately named, Distillers’
Masterpiece carries a price tag of $300.
Every aspect of this vivacious bourbon has been softened and enhanced
by the port. The overall effect falls somewhere between sheer elegance
and savory indulgence. You may not have any friends special enough
to share this whiskey with.
This limited release by Jim Beam follows last year’s debut
of an 18-year-old Distillers’ Masterpiece, a magnificent whiskey
finished in de Fussigny Cognac casks. It, too, was unforgettable.
Domaine Charbay Vodkas
Domaine Charbay is a small, family-owned distillery on the top of
Spring Mountain in Napa Valley, California. There Miles Karakasevic
and his family produce a number of top-notch microdistilled spirits,
including Domaine Charbay Fruit-Flavored Vodkas. These are not your
typical flavored-vodkas. Karakasevic buys fresh fruit and runs them
through a shredder, then steeps the mash in high proof, pure grain
alcohol for 4-5 months. The results are incomparable.
Domaine Charbay Vodkas come in four fabulous flavors: Blood Orange,
Key Lime, Meyer Lemon and Ruby Red Grapefruit. These vodkas are
vivacious and brimming with fresh flavor. They are naturally colored
and sweetened with subtle undertones of bitterness from the zest
and pith.
Evan Williams Single Barrel
Vintage Bourbon
There are several intriguing things about this exceptional whiskey.
First, the bourbon is drawn from a single cask, and when it’s
gone, that’s it. The whiskey in next cask may be really close
in all respects, but it won’t be an exact match. Second, the
whiskey is a vintage-dated product, a slice of life that cannot
be duplicated. It offers a precise snapshot of the conditions and
circumstances surrounding everything that went into its making.
Finally, the bottle carries the Evan Williams name, and to bourbon
drinkers, that’s meaningful.
The current vintage was distilled and barreled in the autumn of
1994. After resting for nine years in charred white oak, the whiskey
is drawn from the barrel, diluted to 86.6 proof and bottled unblended.
The bourbon is an extravaganza for the senses. It’s dark, bold
and loaded with zesty, bakery fresh flavors. Evan Williams Single
Barrel Vintage is a vibrant, remarkable bourbon, a must-have for
any top-shelf.
Germain-Robin Anno Domini
2001 Brandy
Founded in 1982 by Hubert Germain-Robin and Ansley Cole, the distillery
has single handedly shifted the center of the brandy universe from
Cognac, France to Mendocino County. If there are any doubters, let
them come to Ukiah, California, and sample the brandies crafted
by Germain-Robin.
The founders have always maintained that distilling exclusively
Californian grape varietals would yield the finest brandies. So
they pay unheard of amounts to obtain premium grapes, such as pinot
noir, Colombard and merlot. Germain-Robin brandies are distilled
in small batches in a 19th century, copper alembic still from France.
The brandies are then aged in Limousin barrels.
While each of Germain-Robin’s handmade brandies hover in the
upper reaches of excellence, our favorite is Anno Domini 2001, an
exquisite brandy distilled principally from pinot noir. It is a
sultry spirit with delicate fruit in the bouquet and palate. The
finish is an unsurpassed pleasure.
Laird's 12-Year Old Apple
Brandy
As the country’s oldest distiller and holder of federal liquor
license #1, Laird & Company is an American institution. The
distillery’s crowning achievement is Laird’s 12-Year-Old
Rare Apple Brandy, a sumptuous brandy handcrafted from a blend of
five varieties of American apples and aged American white oak barrels
for a minimum of 12 years.
Laird’s 12-year-old Rare Apple Brandy is a feast for the senses.
It compares favorably with the finest Calvados from Normandy costing
2-3 times as much. It has an alluring, expansive bouquet laced with
the aromas of fresh fruit. The palate is dominated by the luscious
flavors of ripe apples and vanilla, which slowly taper off into
a lingering finish. One sip and you’ll know why this classic
American brandy is garnering rave reviews here and abroad.
Napasaki
NapaSaki is an American made, super-premium saké that will
likely change how many view this traditionally Japanese beverage
and its creative possibilities.
It is a handcrafted Junmai-Ginjo type of saké, meaning that
it is an entirely natural product, containing only polished rice,
water, yeast and koji, an enzyme that converts the rice’s starches
into glucose. The ultra-premium Akitakomachi rice used to make NapaSaki
is grown organically and polished to 58% of the original kernel
size. While a costly and laborious process, it yields the finest,
lightest and most aromatic saké.
The all-important koji is traditionally cultivated and the mother
yeast strain used to precipitate fermentation is a closely guarded
secret. NapaSaki is filtered 8 times, pasteurized twice and aged
for 6 months.
NapaSaki is a luscious and captivating saké, one that will
tempt aficionados and newcomers alike. It is crystal clear with
a soft, delicate body. The bouquet is subtle, yet clean and fresh.
The palate is as refreshing as white wine on a hot day.
Teton Glacier Potato Vodka
Located in Rigby, Idaho, amidst of the unspoiled beauty of the Grand
Tetons, is the small Silver Creek Distillery. Their claim to fame
is a superlative spirit named Teton Glacier Potato Vodka.
What makes it so special? It is triple-distilled from select Idaho
potatoes instead of cereal grain, which allows it to be distilled
at a higher proof than other spirits. The resulting distillate is
diluted to proof using pure, deep Rocky Mountain water. Finally,
Teton Glacier Vodka is filtered using both charcoal and garnet crystal
screens, producing a spirit essentially pure, free of congeners,
trace elements, and impurities.
Teton Glacier Vodka is clean, crisp and smooth, completely free
of harshness, or bite. Go ahead and mix the other vodkas at your
bar, but save this spirit for your clientele who prefer their vodka
served straight-up. They’ll appreciate the difference.
Tito's Handmade Vodka
If any product best exemplifies American ingenuity it is Tito’s
Handmade Vodka. It is the brainchild of Tito Beveridge, founder
of Austin’s Mockingbird Distillery, the first and only legal
distillery in Texas.
Bucking the odds and investing every dollar he had saved or could
borrow, Beveridge set out in 1997 to micro-distill the finest vodka
possible, an ambition he has clearly realized. A former geophysicist,
Beveridge uses high-grade corn, a four-column distillation process,
and then redistills the vodka twice more in a traditional pot still.
To assure the highest degree of quality, the spirit is carefully
filtered through a multiple-step process to eliminate any residual
impurities.
By all accepted standards, Tito’s Handmade Vodka is world-class.
It is a luxuriously smooth vodka with a light, clean bouquet, a
marvelously crisp flavor and an impressively long finish. Tito’s
Handmade Vodka can go head-to-head with any of the world’s
best and not break a sweat.
Vya Preferred California
Sweet Vermouth
The difference between a great vermouth and one that’s merely
adequate is enormous. Winemaker Andrew Quady of Madera, California,
looked to produce a pair of premium vermouths in a style more in
keeping with today’s tastes. In 1998, after several years of
development, Quady introduced Vya Preferred California Sweet Vermouth.
The vermouth is made from a blend of varietal wines that are infused
with herbs, spices, flowers, and citrus. Its beautiful tawny hue
is enhanced with the addition of port. It has a lush, medium-weight
body and a tantalizing semi-sweet bouquet. The palate is an incomparable
array of spicy and tangy citrus flavors. It is fortified to 16%
abv.
Vya Preferred California Extra Dry Vermouth is crisp, light and
equally sensational. It is made from a blend of white wines that
are infused with highly aromatic herbs, flowers and plants, and
fortified to 18% abv. The vermouth has a complex floral and fruity
bouquet and a dry, mouth-filling palate laced with spice and citrus.
Armed with Vya Preferred California Vermouths, your martinis and
Manhattans will become the tingling combination of wine and spirit
they were originally intended to be.
The Original Guide to American Cocktails and Drinks - 5th Edition
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