"the nose and delivery are just about as good as it gets." - Jim Murray's Whisky Bible 2019 Sazerac Rye dates back to the 1800’s and symbolizes the tradition and history of New Orleans saloons. It was at the Sazerac Coffee House on Royal Street where local patrons were served toddies made with Rye whiskey and Peychaud’s Bitters. The libation became know as the “Sazerac” and America’s first branded cocktail was born. This 6 year-old version of the famous Sazerac Rye is produced at the scenic Buffalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort (probably using a 'barely legal' rye recipe), home of numerous other whiskies such as Eagle Rare 10 year-old, Eagle Rare 17 year-old, Blanton's, Rock Hill Farms and George T. Stagg. The beautifully designed bottle harks back to the pre Civil War days when barrels of whisky were poured into ornately engraved decanters supplied by the distiller, displaying the colour of the whiskey to good effect. In what seems to be a company tradition, the price is nowhere near the kind of money many other ryes command. Our re-tasting since last visiting this stalwart in 2008 found moderate aromas suggesting caraway and oak shavings then green apple, orange zest, wood spice and sweet nutty/vanilla notes. This is a soft, plush 'fruity' style without compromising depth of flavour - dried apricots, apply rye and white pepper come counterpointed by light vanilla oak. The keynote grain isn't aggressive like some others, while the balance is near perfect, and there's dark rye bread, more pepper and a subtle muddled mint refreshing the fade. In short - Sazerac is a broad appeal whiskey with enough mid-palate sweetness, complexity and kick to convert one-eyed Bourbon nuts - or even the odd malt enthusiast. Keep this as the 'proper' choice for a Manhattan or Sazerac Cocktail. 45% Alc./Vol.

In 1874 M.W. Heron, a bartender, developed Southern Comfort in his bar near La Rue Bourbon in New Orleans and first served it in traditional fashion from a whiskey barrel. In 1934 after a short break in production due to Prohibition, Southern Comfort introduced their current distinctive label featuring the now famous Currier and Ives lithograph of a Southern plantation house on the banks of the Mississippi. The plantation is known as "Woodland Plantation", built in 1834. Southern enthusiasts can visit the newly renovated mansion, which now operates as a nine bedroom country inn. Southern's identity as a bourbon lies only in its origins. Its inception was in an awful whisky batch that Heron was attempting to improve. Actually, Southern Comfort was originally a Peach Liqueur, and one of the few peach liqueurs on the market. Produced using neutral spirit and over 100 ingredients, the final liqueur matured for eight months prior to bottling. Since then the formula has changed and Southern is now branded a 'whiskey liqueur'. Sweet and rich with a molasses background and faint medicinal flavour, it's America’s “Take it easy Drink”. Enjoy it straight, on the rocks or with cola.

Presently run by Master Distiller, John Lunn, who continues the hands on process as set forth by George Dickel and again by Ralph Dupps, Dickel whiskey is produced from a mash of corn, barley and rye. The grains are finely ground at the distillery before being cooked. They are then cooled in mash tubs by pure spring water from Cascade Spring, located about one-half mile up the road from the distillery. Fermentation is begun using a proprietory yeast, followed by a double distillation - firstly in a column still, then in a pot-still. The process of charcoal mellowing then occurs, which defines the difference between Tennessee whiskey and bourbon whiskey. In this process, the double-distilled whiskey is filtered through sugar maple charcoal. Dickel's mellowing process is unique in that it is chilled prior to the filtration process. This process of chilling the whiskey resulted from George discovering that the batches of whiskey he tasted during the winter were noticeably smoother than those he tasted during warmer weather. He called this process chill mellowing. The first step in the mellowing process is selecting and cutting sugar maple trees. Trees are cut in the winter months when the sugar maple's rich flavour is stored in the trunk of the tree. The trunks are allowed to season and cut into strips. These strips are hand-stacked and set ablaze in the open air. This process allows the smoke's impurities to escape from the resulting hard charcoal. The hard maple charcoal is crushed by hand and packed into one of six mellowing vats located at the distillery. About ten feet of charcoal is packed into each vat. Two virgin wool blankets are placed on the top and bottom of the charcoal. The top blanket ensures that the newly chilled whiskey uniformly reaches into the vat, while the bottom blanket keeps the charcoal from escaping as the whiskey leaves the vat. The entire chill charcoal mellowing process takes seven to ten days to complete, and though this extra process is time consuming and expensive, the distillery believes the end result speaks for itself. The whisky is finally aged in new, charred American white oak barrels. Full barrels are aged just up the hill from the distillery in the industry's only single-storied iron-clad warehouses. Dickel No.8 received a silver medal in 2005 at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition. More recently it was lauded with the prestigious Gold Medal. Tasting notes: Bright topaz. Aromas of toasted toasted marshmallow, sweet corn and vanilla bean as well as hints of rye freshness. A youthful but nicely rounded whiskey with attractive corn, toasty oak, cocoa and peppermint notes leading into a gently spicy finish. Value buy. 40% Alc./Vol.

To preserve the subtle sophistication that makes it so sharable, Basil Hayden's Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey 750mL is aged to the perfect expression of its novel, spicy-sweet flavor profile. On the nose is spice, tea, hint of peppermint. The taste is spicy, light-bodied, and gentle bite, with a dry, clean, and brief finish. Late in the 18th century, Master Distiller Basil Hayden Sr. left his Maryland home for the greener pastures of Kentucky, bringing his family and reputation with him. Not yet privy to the old guard’s ‘rules’ of bourbon, legend has it that Basil set out to make a batch simply using the ingredients he had on hand, unaware of what the traditionalists might think of his mash. What resulted was a bourbon with a uniquely high-rye mashbill, combining the sweetness of corn with the spicy undertones of rye. The purists may have been displeased, but not the neighbors who tried it. Over 200 years later, the Noe family pays tribute to Basil’s masterful discovery with a high-rye, small batch bourbon that embodies the spirit of that very first recipe.