There’s plenty of new whisky coming out this week—and some new whiskey experiences to look forward to as well. Uncle Nearest has opened its Shelbyville, Tennessee visitors center with a host of attractions and more to come, including a stillhouse in 2020. Meanwhile, Bardstown Bourbon Co. is now offering several tour experiences in addition to its on-site restaurant and bar.
Although it officially debuted in June, Kentucky Peerless straight bourbon ($70) is now expanding its availability to California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, New York, and Texas; by next year, it will be available in 45 states.
Buffalo Trace announced details of the 2019 Antique Collection earlier this week. There aren’t any big shake-ups or surprises, although George T. Stagg is coming in at its lowest proof ever.
Macallan unveiled Edition No. 5, a fully American oak-matured single malt packaged in a striking custom purple box. The whisky is available in limited amounts for $120.
Two new whiskies from Islay’s Kilchoman Distillery are hitting shelves: the 9th edition of Kilchoman 100% Islay and a 9 year old single malt distilled in 2010. Both whiskies are priced at $110, with 1,440 bottles of each available in the U.S.
Barrell is rolling out Batch 021 of its bourbon. Priced at $90, the 10 year old whiskey is available in limited amounts.
English distillery Adnams is debuting in the U.S. There are 4,200 bottles each of Adnams single malt ($60) and Adnams rye malt ($80).
Finally, Hillrock Estate has a pinot noir cask-finished version of its Solera Aged bourbon coming out. There will be 600-1,000 bottles available, priced at $105.
Read on for full details.
Macallan Edition No. 5
Style: Single malt
Origin: Scotland (Highlands)
Age: Not stated
Proof: 48.5% ABV
Price: $120
Release: September 2019
Availability: Limited edition
Need to know:
The fifth release in Macallan’s Edition series was blended by whisky maker Sarah Burgess and consists entirely of liquid matured in American oak—a combination of first-fill bourbon casks and first-fill and refill sherry casks.
Whisky Advocate says:
Edition No. 5 has brilliant purple packaging—a color unique to this whisky. The color was custom-designed for Macallan by Pantone Color Institute vice president Laurie Pressman as an homage to the complexity of the whisky. Like all Macallans, Edition No. 5 is bottled without any added coloring—the liquid’s golden hue is totally natural.
Kilchoman 100% Islay (9th Edition)
Style: Single malt
Origin: Scotland (Islay)
Age: Not stated
Proof: 50% ABV
Price: $110
Release: September 2019
Availability: 12,000 bottles, including 1,440 for the U.S.
Need to know:
The ninth release in Kilchoman’s 100% Islay series, this whisky was made from 2007 and 2009 barley crops—all grown on the farm surrounding the distillery, then malted on-site before being mashed, fermented, and distilled. The bottling combines 43 bourbon barrels matured in traditional-style dunnage warehouses.
Kilchoman 2010 Vintage 9 year old
Style: Single malt
Origin: Scotland (Islay)
Age: Not stated
Proof: 48% ABV
Price: $110
Release: September 2019
Availability: 15,000 bottles, including 1,440 for the U.S.
Need to know:
This limited-edition release combines 30 first-fill bourbon barrels and three oloroso sherry butts. Outside of single-cask releases, it’s the first age-statement whisky from Kilchoman.
Whisky Advocate says:
Although it’s still a young distillery—just 14 years old—Kilchoman has gone from strength to strength. The distillery recently doubled its capacity by installing two new stills and other equipment, as well as expanding its malting facilities so that even more 100% Islay (which is all produced, from seed to bottle, at the distillery and its surrounding farm) can be made. Look for many more great things to come!
Barrell Bourbon (Batch 021)
Style: Bourbon
Origin: Multiple (KY, IN, and TN)
Age: 10 years old
Proof: 53.17% ABV
Price: $90
Release: September 2019
Availability: Limited edition
Need to know:
The latest release from Barrell combines straight bourbons from Kentucky, Indiana, and Tennessee. The mix includes an unspecified number of 10 year old barrels, chosen for their combined dry, woody, and palate-coating qualities, along with 18 barrels of 14 year old bourbon.
Whisky Advocate says:
Barrell’s reputation as a blender speaks for itself. Look for reviews of Batches 018 and 019 in the Fall issue, on newsstands October 8!
Adnams Single Malt
Style: Single malt
Origin: England
Age: Not stated
Proof: 40% ABV
Price: $70
Release: Fall 2019
Availability: 4,200 bottles in the U.S.
Need to know:
Made at Adnams Distillery in Southwold, England, this single malt is distilled from locally grown barley and aged at least five years in new French oak and bourbon casks.
Adnams Rye Malt
Style: Malted rye
Origin: England
Age: Not stated
Proof: 47% ABV
Price: $80
Release: Fall 2019
Availability: 4,200 bottles in the U.S.
Need to know:
Distilled from 75% rye and 25% malted barley, this whisky aged for at least five years in new French oak casks. The rye was grown by company chairman Jonathan Adnams at his nearby farm.
Whisky Advocate says:
Adnams has been a brewery for well over 125 years, and still makes beer today. The company opened a distillery in 2010; in addition to whisky, it makes gin, vodka, and other spirits, including an eau-de-vie distilled from Adnams Broadside ruby beer. The distillery uses a 75 year old proprietary yeast to ferment its grains for whisky.
This is the third whisky from England available in the U.S., after The English Whisky Co. and Cotswolds.
Hillrock Estate Solera Aged Pinot Noir Cask-Finished Bourbon
Style: Bourbon
Origin: Multiple (NY and undisclosed)
Age: Not stated
Proof: 46.3% ABV
Price: $105
Release: Fall 2019
Availability: 600-1,000 bottles
Need to know:
This limited-edition release from Ancram, New York’s Hillrock Estate Distillery sees its solera-aged bourbon undergo a finish in Shea Vineyard Block 23 pinot noir casks.
Whisky Advocate says:
Hillrock Estate’s solera system—a series of barrels that are continuously partially emptied and refilled—is a fairly unique method of whiskey making, and aims to create consistency from batch to batch. While the distillery currently makes all its whiskey on-site, when it opened in 2012, it initially filled the solera with sourced bourbon to get started, adding its own bourbon as that liquid came of age. (Hillrock will not confirm where the sourced whiskey was distilled, but it is either Kentucky, Indiana, or Tennessee.) Because the solera method never fully empties the barrels, some trace of that initial bourbon is still in there—meaning this whiskey technically comes from two different locations.
