Random Stuff: Mini Reviews, News, and More!

November 24, 2020 Eric Burke

IMAGE: A Glass of bourbon sitting on a smoky table. The words “Random Stuff” are over the background.

Remember how I was working my way through a batch of tasting notes that I created before I was sick? Well I’ve run out and am only now beginning to trust to ol’ taster. So I thought I might do something different tonight and share some of the interesting things that have recently come across my desk.

IMAGE: The cover of The Rebirth of Bourbon: Building a Tourism Economy in Small-Town USA

The Rebirth of Bourbon: Building a Tourism Economy in Small-town, USA (Economics of Vice)

Details: Available from Amazon for $32.99 (as of this writing). 174 pages. Authors: Steve Coomes, Kim Huston, Michael Mangeot.

Thoughts: Back in October, Bardstown held a virtual edition of the Kentucky Bourbon Festival. In the media kit that I was sent was a book partially written by the host of the virtual festival, Steve Coomes that just so happened to be about Bardstown and their bourbon tourism plans. It seemed like the book for me. I love Bardstown, I love bourbon and bourbon tourism, I even like the occasional book about economics.

Unfortunately, I just couldn’t get into the book. It’s filled with great information. It’s well written. But I struggled to get through it. It’s possible that even the short page count of 174 pages was a little too much for a book about a very small town’s business plan.

That said, I’d probably still recommend this to people who, like me, love visiting Bardstown and go back year after year. Even if only so you know which changes to prepare for and which to hope for.

IMAGE: Wilderness Trail Distillery owner Shane Baker holding the Esprit de Corps award.

Wilderness Trail Owner Honored

Last week I got a press release from Wilderness Trail Distillery letting me know that Owner, Shane Baker was one of two people honored with the new “Esprit de Corps” award from the Kentucky Distillers Association. Quoting from the Press Release:

The Board’s Resolution saluted Baker “for his technical education, assistance and collaborative efforts in the production and distribution of hand sanitizer in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, and for his overall support, assistance and guidance to other members of the KDA throughout his tenure with the organization.

“Mr. Baker’s outstanding service and devotion to his community and to the cause helped our beloved Commonwealth contain the early spread of the virus and protected hundreds of doctors, first responders and emergency personnel through the donation of sanitizer and the assistance to KDA members in its manufacture and coordination of resources,” the Resolution stated.

With the poop-show that 2020 has been, it’s nice to remember that there are also some bright spots out there.

Four Roses to Expand Visitor Center

It seems that expanding the distillery was not the only expansions plans that Four Roses had. Last week the news was released of a planned expansion of the Visitor Center. They’ll be using the same architectural firm that helped with the distillery expansion and the original building of the distillery campus in order to maintain the historic look of the campus. Quoting the press release:

The visitor center project is expected to be completed by the end of 2021 and will include:

New state-of-the-art bar featuring cocktails and tastings of Four Roses’ current Bourbon portfolio and exclusive product tastings;
Four new seated tasting rooms offering a space for enhanced educational experiences;
Updated retail gift shop with Four Roses’ Bourbon products and other branded merchandise for sale;
Outdoor patio space where visitors can enjoy the beautiful distillery grounds.

The visitor center will also offer interactive, educational experiences dedicated to the rich 132-year history of the Four Roses brand, including an interactive display showcasing archived Four Roses bottlings, vintage advertisements and other memorabilia.

I’ll leave you with a drawing I did during some Autumn downtime. It’s based on a photo that was taken of my wife and Wild Turkey Master Distiller Jimmy Russell at one of the first Kentucky Bourbon Festivals that we attended. The photo didn’t turn out due to a really bad phone camera, but it made for a nice reference for drawing. Jimmy Russell is one of the nicest and most interesting men I’ve talked to at a bourbon distillery. I hope that I still love what I do enough to show up for work when I am his age.

IMAGE: Line drawing of Wild Turkey Master Distiller, Jimmy Russell

Did you enjoy this post? If so, maybe you’d like to buy me a cup of coffee in return. Go to ko-fi.com/bourbonguy to support. And thank you, BourbonGuy.com is solely supported via your generosity.

Of course, if you want to support BourbonGuy.com and get a little something back in return, you can always head over to BourbonGuyGifts.com and purchase some merch. I’ve made tasting journals, stickers, pins, and more.

American Spirit: Wild Turkey Bourbon from Ripy to Russell by David Jennings

August 18, 2020 Eric Burke

How excited I was for this book to come out? Well let’s just say that I backed it on Kickstarter at a level that got me an electronic copy and then when it was available for pre-order, I bought a paper copy.

I’ve been a fan of David Jennings work over at RareBird101.com for a few years now. Ever since I saw a tweet that mentioned his work. That tells you about how long I’ve been a fan since I’ve been effectively off of Twitter since 2017, maintaining a presence in order to promote new posts.

So who is David Jennings? I think I can sum it up in four words: Wild Turkey Super Fan. And a knowledgable one at that. This man’s work is all Wild Turkey and I love that about it. I’m a Wild Turkey fanboy, but not nearly to the extent that he is. Which is why he was the perfect person to write a book about the brand.

American Spirit: Wild Turkey Bourbon from Ripy to Russell covers the history of Wild Turkey from the earliest distillery on the land where Wild Turkey stands now, to the creation of the brand, to today. It’s a fascinating, though quick, read for fans of both history and bourbon. And if you want to know more about the expressions that Wild Turkey has released both current and historical, he’s got you covered there too. About a third of the book is dedicated to them, showcasing both the background of each and his impressions of them.

I really like this book and highly recommend it. It has a permanent place on my bookshelf of whiskey histories. My only wish is that it was even longer. I want more of it! In fact, I like this book so much that I want to give away a copy to one lucky reader. Just enter below and I’ll ship to one random entrant as soon as the second printing comes out. The giveaway ends midnight on August 26th, 2020. Good Luck!

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Book Review: Whiskey Master Class by Lew Bryson

June 30, 2020 Eric Burke

IMAGE: Front cover of Whiskey Master Class by Lew Bryson. Subhead reads: The ultimate guide to understanding Scotch, Bourbon, Rye, and More.

It was Father’s Day weekend when I finally got around to reading Lew Bryson’s newest book. I’m really good at buying new whiskey books, but I’m really bad about reading them. Mostly because I’ve been learning about bourbon for quite awhile now and most books are geared towards newcomers.

Well, guess what? I’m a simple man. If Lew Bryson writes a book and it says that it is a Master Class on Whiskey… well, I’m going to read it. I was fully prepared for the term “Master Class” to be hyperbole. But even if it was, I knew I was going to learn something. Lew Bryson has been learning and writing about whiskey for longer than I’ve even been drinking the stuff. He was the Managing Editor for Whisky Advocate for many years. He is currently the Senior Drinks writer for the Daily Beast and is a contributor to Bourbon+ magazine. Let’s just say that this guy knows more than most.

And guess what? Even though I like to think I have a very broad knowledge about whiskey, including its history, its types, and how it is made, I learned something in almost every chapter. And my poor wife. I’d interrupt her reading of books and watching of videos with exclamations of the things I found interesting. And I did that a lot. (Proofreader’s note…this is his wife, he really did.)

This book truly is a Master Class on Whiskey. There is no hyperbole in the the title. This is going on the shelf with other whiskey reference books and I have a feeling it will soon be stuck full of scraps of paper and dog-ears to mark the most useful places. And don’t think that just because folks who know a lot about whiskey can learn stuff from the book, that it will be over the heads of the enthusiastic whiskey newbie. This is the type of book that I was looking for as I scoured libraries and bookstores for books on whiskey as I was starting out.

I highly, highly recommend this one to both people new to whiskey and to those of us who have become jaded by whiskey books. I really enjoyed it.

Book Review: Camp Cocktails by Emily Vikre

May 7, 2020 Eric Burke

IMAGE: The front cover of Camp Cocktails by Emily Vikre

I have enjoyed camping my entire life. But, as I got older, the way I camped and the things I enjoyed about it changed.

When I was a little boy, my father took my brother and me on a twice-yearly fishing trip to Northern Minnesota. We’d pack all of our gear into a boat, drive to an island campsite and pitch a tent for the week. There was no running water, no toilets that you didn’t dig for yourself, and best of all no one else around. My dad and the other adults would be out fishing no matter what. Rain or shine. Once the rest of us stayed in the tent for the week due to heavy downpours. Another time there was a tornado that went over the island. But no matter what, we always had fun. For a kid like me, it was complete freedom. I’d swim in the lake, gather the wood and tend the fire all day, I’d read ten books while I was there and listen to the music that I wanted to listen to. Those trips are some of my best memories as a kid.

As I got older, I took trips with the Boy Scouts. Once we went on a canoe trip to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, also in Northern Minnesota. I had fun on this one, but the Boy Scouts didn’t allow nearly the freedom that I enjoyed on my other trips to the area. The hiking and canoeing and hanging out with friends was fun, but I bristled under the structure that they put in place.

After I got married, my wife and I started tent camping again with our daughter. I mostly went with other family members, so I still bristled a bit at the forced structure that the family’s planners saddled us with. But that was made up for by the family gathering around the bonfire at night. My family likes their drinks and we can get a bit rowdy. We were asked not to come back to campgrounds on more than one occasion.

After a while, I realized that waking up sore because of the cold damp ground and sticks that somehow appeared under the tent (even though you were positive that you cleaned the area) was no longer for me. I’ve had a couple of different camping trailers. Sold one, should probably sell the other. But these days, when I camp, I’m almost always in a cabin. I love campgrounds, I love the campfire and the camp drinks. But I don’t love dragging a trailer across the country when I can get just as good of an experience in a cabin that is already at my destination. And if I decide to splurge on a hotel for one night of my trip, I don’t need to find a place to park the trailer overnight.

Luckily for me, a recent book I bought can help no matter what type of camping I am doing. If I have access to ice, there are recipes for that. If I have a cabin with all the amenities, there are recipes for that. And if for some reason I were to try camping as I did as a kid (not likely) then there are recipes for that as well. The book is called Camp Cocktails and it is by Emily Vikre. Ms. Vikre is the owner of Vikre Distillery in Duluth, Minnesota. I’ve reviewed one of their gins in my gin line-up a while back. I didn’t make the connection when I ordered the book, I just thought it sounded interesting.

And it was!. The writing is fun. The foraging tips are super cool. And best of all, the cocktails are great. At least those that I’ve tried. The next time I go camping, even if I’m just pretending on the deck for the evening, I’m going to make sure I plan ahead and get the ingredients for some of these cocktails.

I really liked this book. It is available on Amazon for about $20 and I highly recommend it.

BourboDid you enjoy this post? If so, maybe you’d like to buy me a cup of coffee in return. Go to ko-fi.com/bourbonguy to support. And thank you, BourbonGuy.com is solely supported via your generosity.

Or if you click the Amazon links above, and make any purchase (doesn’t have to be this book), they will give me a little affiliate money. And hey, if you are an iOS user, look for Bourbon Guy in Apple News. Thanks!

Bar/Restaurant Review: Whiskey Inferno, Savage, MN

February 21, 2019 Eric Burke

IMAGE: Exterior of Whiskey Inferno in Savage, MN

I almost never go out to places in my home state of Minnesota that offer great craft cocktails or have a great whiskey selection. Mostly because I live in the outermost ring of suburbs and most of those places are a half hour to forty-five minute drive away into one of the two Downtowns. Plus, we don’t have a great taxi system and I’m too much of a luddite to have an Uber account.

Well, that has changed. A couple months ago a new restaurant opened in Savage, MN called Whiskey Inferno. As a bar, it is a whiskey and craft cocktail bar. As a restaurant, it serves steaks, BBQ, and seafood. Last night was my first visit and it certainly will not be my last.

The atmosphere is relaxing in a dark wood and leather upholstery sort of way. There are Edison bulbs that supply accent light and at least one gas fire to supply ambiance. The whiskey selection is vast and drinks are the focus of the menu. There are two pages of craft cocktails that include riffs on many classics such as the Negroni, Old Fashioned, Whiskey Sour, Sazerac and Toronto cocktails among others. There is a two-column page of bourbon, a page of beer, a page of wines, a page of scotch, a half page of rye, a half page of “other” whiskeys and a page of non-alcoholic drinks. They also have quite a few whiskey flights on the menu, though I was a bit confused by the inclusion of Four Roses Single Barrel in a “Wheated” bourbon flight.

And of course, there is food. Out of the eleven pages in the dinner menu, only two are devoted to food. But I wouldn’t count that as a bad thing. With entrees including five different cuts of steak, ribs, brisket, fried chicken, and a selection of seafood based dishes there is something for everyone. Well, everyone who will eat meat that is. I didn’t notice a vegetarian selection as even the salads had egg or seafood on them.

So enough about what we could have had, what about what we actually did have? To start, my wife and I each ordered a cocktail. My wife had a Smoked Manhattan made with Maker’s Private Select. It arrived in a smoke-filled box emblazoned with the Maker’s logo. It was a pretty cool presentation and, since the snow kept a lot of customers home, many surrounding customers were enticed to inspect the box on its way back to the bar. I had a barrel-aged riff on the Toronto cocktail which they call the End of the Line. Both were delicious and their remnants paired well with our entrees. For food, my wife had cornbread and a cup of Texas chili which she said was better than her two previous favorite chilis (her own and Silver Dollar). I had their fried chicken with garlic mashed potatoes and smoked gouda mac and cheese. The fried chicken was delicious and the sides were very good. Prior to leaving we each had a pour off of their bourbon list. My wife had Blanton’s while I had a pour of their private barrel of Old Forester. We were asked “would you like those neat?” which is much nicer than having to request it that way. Neat pours were served in Glencairn glasses with the option of one or two ounce pours.

I had a great time at Whiskey Inferno. Though this was my first visit, I will certainly be back. The food was great and I can’t wait to try some of the other entrees. And I seriously can’t wait to work my way through the cocktail menu.

Whiskey Inferno is online at: WhiskeyInferno.com

BourbonGuy.com accepts no advertising. It is solely supported by the sale of the hand-made products I sell at the BourbonGuy Gifts store. If you'd like to support BourbonGuy.com, visit BourbonGuyGifts.com. Thanks!

Bourbon Justice: How Whiskey Law Shaped America by Brian Haara

October 30, 2018 Eric Burke

I state in my Statement of Ethics that, if I ever discuss a product that is produced by one of my friends, I will disclose it at the beginning of the article. I also state that I will disclose if I received a review copy. Brian Haara is a friend of mine. I did buy the book to support his work, but I also received a review copy prior to the publication date as well. All opinions on the work are my own, but it won’t hurt to keep in mind that I might be biased.

IMAGE: A copy of Bourbon Justice: How Whiskey Law Shaped America by Brian Haara and a glass of bourbon to enjoy with it.

I had been reading SippnCorn.com (now housed on BrianHaara.com) long before I met its author in real life. It was, and is, a great resource into bourbon history. I interviewed Brian Haara, lawyer and the proprietor of the site back in 2015. In it, he let loose the secret that he was starting to write a book and ever since that time, I have been eagerly waiting for it to arrive.

Back in April, it finally hit Amazon as a pre-order. I immediately placed my order, without even knowing the publication date, and settled in to wait for my copy to arrive. Interestingly, the publisher reached out to me to see if I wanted a review copy of the book. Since I was anxiously awaiting the book, I decided to accept so that I could read it early.

Let me tell you, Bourbon Justice: How Whiskey Law Shaped America is a great book! Brian Haara tells us the fascinating story of how many very litigious bourbon folks ended up, often accidentally, crafting a new and different American commercial society that is still with us today. Lawsuits that started with bourbon ended up affecting industries as far reaching as women's lingerie and mouthwash.

Brian covers topics such as the development of Trade Mark and Brand Name rights, advertising and "puffery," consumer protection, and truth in labeling. And along the way, he delves into the history of many familiar Bourbon brands and distilleries. He even included topical tasting notes. In the end, you will learn something about bourbon, you will learn something about business, and you will learn something about the less talked about history that made America the country it is today. I highly recommend that you run right out and buy it.

But one of you won't have to do that! Remember how I said I had preordered it, but that I ended up with a review copy? Well, I like supporting my friends so I wanted to make sure that I still bought a copy. But as you might expect, I do not need two of the same book. My purchased copy is set to arrive on Monday and as soon as it does, I'd like to ship it off to one of my readers. If you'd like an opportunity for that to be you, enter below! The winner will be drawn on November 7th, 2018 and notified via email. I’m sorry, but I can only ship this to addresses in the United States and Canada due to international shipping costs. Good Luck!

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BourbonGuy.com accepts no advertising. It is solely supported by the sale of the hand-made products I sell at the BourbonGuy Gifts Etsy store. If you'd like to support BourbonGuy.com, visit BourbonGuyGifts.com. Thanks!

Bourbon+ Premiere Issue

October 18, 2018 Eric Burke

I state in my Statement of Ethics that, if I ever discuss a product that is produced by one of my friends, I will disclose it at the beginning of the article. Fred Minnick is my friend. And while I don’t know his exact relationship with the publication he is Editor-in-Chief of, I did buy the subscription to support his work. All opinions on that work are my own, but it won’t hurt to keep in mind that I might be biased.

IMAGE: The premiere issue of Bourbon+. A magazine about bourbon.

It’s been over 15 years now since I started my career. My second career, actually. My first was as a shipping coordinator at a metal stamping factory. Eventually, the grind of factory work wore on me to the point where a change was needed. Enter college and a fancy degree in graphic design.

My first real job in my new career was as one of a team of designers for a log home magazine. I eventually worked my way up to the Design Director position. I had a team of designers and was in charge of how the magazine looked and the experience our readers had as they interacted with it.

One of the proudest moments of my working life was when I walked into a random Barnes & Noble, in a part of the country that was nowhere near home, and found one of “my” issues of the magazine on the newsstand. If the world had developed smartphones yet, I would have probably snapped a photo of the page with my name on it.

Eventually, that job went away, and I moved on to other areas of design work. First newspapers, then agencies, marketing departments and now freelance. But my love of magazines never went away. Somewhere in the back of my head was a little dream that one day I would make my own. So it was with great interest that I learned that my friend Fred Minnick was going to be the Editor-in-Chief of a new Bourbon-focused publication. If I wasn’t going to realize my little idea, I couldn’t think of a better person to vicariously realize it through.

Bourbon+ Premiere Issue

Purchase Info: I subscribed to this at a $35 yearly subscription price. I see on the Bourbon+ website that you can do it for $30 if you so desire.

Nose: The delightful odor of ink on paper.

Mouth: Are you kidding? I’m not tasting this… I will however keep tasting the Four Roses OESQ single barrel that I was sipping on while I read the issue.

The issue is delightful. The book is a satisfying nine by eleven-ish inches in size. The paper feels like it has a slightly “soft-touch” coating to it. Most people like this…I’m not a fan, but I can live with it. The issue is beautiful. The layout is easy to read, with large and luxurious margins. It’s filled with beautiful large full-page, full-color photos. Even the ads are good looking. And the content?

Well, the content is fantastic. I mean, with names like Fred Minnick, Carla Carlton, Chuck Cowdery and Lew Bryson in the issue excellent content is expected. And the excellent content was delivered. There are departments and columns covering everything from entertaining to cocktails to craft distilling. Feature articles include a profile on Maker’s Mark’s Bill Samuels Jr., the science of corn, and even rum. This is a wide-ranging and comprehensive read covering all of the interests of the bourbon lover. I loved it and can’t wait until the next issue.

Barrel Strength Bourbon: The Explosive Growth of America's Whiskey by Carla Carlton (and other stuff I'm giving away)

September 20, 2018 Eric Burke

It’s Bourbon Heritage Month and as such, I am celebrating all things bourbon. Not just the liquid, but travel, books, and merch as well. Tonight we talk about a book that I’ve had on my reading list for over a year now.

IMAGE: The front cover of the book Barrel Strength Bourbon by Carla Carlton

I have had Barrel Strength Bourbon: The Explosive Growth of America's Whiskey by Carla Carlton on my Reading List for over a year. I bought the book right after it came out. Possibly even pre-ordered it since I tend to do that. The book arrived and I set it in a pile of other books to read the next time I went on vacation.

Eventually I went on vacation. And I promptly lost the book. But the funny thing was that I didn’t realize I lost the book until I was packing for the next vacation and tried to find it. I knew that I had been too busy to read on the previous trip, but it wasn’t in my travel bag. And it wasn’t in my office…or my living room…didn’t get brought down to the library I keep in the lower level…it wasn’t even in my bedroom with the stack of books I keep in there.

So I bought the book again on my Kindle to read on my way to Kentucky last week. Upon my return home…I found the book on the bookshelf in my office where I keep my bourbon books. I couldn’t find it because I had put it away.

But guess what? I do not regret buying the book twice. It’s a damn fine book. It is informative, yet written in an approachable and entertaining manner. The author draws on both other recognized sources as well as interviews with people inside the bourbon industry. In other words, you can trust that she knows what she is talking about. I’d say this is a fantastic book for those just getting into bourbon history. And even if you already know all there is to know about the subject, it is still a fun read. I highly recommend you go buy it. Maybe even twice like I did.

However, even though I purchased the book twice, I find that I don’t need both a physical and a digital copy. And since the digital copy takes up less room, I’d like to pass the physical one along to one of my loyal readers. Not only that, but I’d like to give you a lot of other bourbon stuff that I’ve gathered over the years. These are either items that I thought were cool enough to buy (but never ended up using) or items that I was given along with samples/while attending events. (None of these were provided by the brands or authors for the purpose of giving away and they are not affiliated with the give away. I just wanted to be nice.)

For a view of what is being given away, see below the entry form. Contest ends on Friday, September 28th and winners will be chosen randomly after the contest conclude. Winners will be notified via email. Good Luck!

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Blog

The Rebirth of Bourbon: Building a Tourism Economy in Small-town, USA (Economics of Vice)

Wilderness Trail Owner Honored

Four Roses to Expand Visitor Center

Bourbon+ Premiere Issue