Redbreast Tawny Port Edition
The Redbreast brand has long been fans of using cask maturation as part of their whiskey’s identity, such almost always utilizing some component of ex-sherry casks of some sort in their core offerings and many of their limited editions. The Redbreast Tawny Port Edition was launched in 2023 as the third release in the brand’s Iberian Series, which looks to pair whiskey with esteemed wine producers from the Iberian penninsula. It is a single pot still whiskies aged in ex-bourbon and ex-Oloroso sherry casks, then transferred to ex-tawny port casks before being married and matured in freshly seasoned tawny port hogsheads for 14-25 months, resulting in layers of influence.
Stranahan’s Distiller’s Experimental Batch 005
Stranahan’s is one of the oldest distileries in the United States. While they have kept a solid core offering over the years, they have also featured annual releases, single casks and limited series. The Distiller’s Experiemental Batch is only available at the distillery itself or the connected Aspen Whiskey Lodge. This series is, as the name connotes, made up of experiments concocted by head blender Justin Aden. Regulations surrounding whiskey allow much more freedom to experiment than some other places, which allows this series to really stretch into all kinds of finishes, grains and other territories not even seen in major releases. The Stranahan’s Distiller’s Experimental Batch 005 was released in 2022. This single malt was aged for six years and two months, and finished for a gin cask that had formely held a single malt scotch. The distillery has not disclosed what specific scotch or American gin the cask previously held, or the exact length of the finish.
Whiskey Del Bac Distiller’s Cut Summer 2023
Stephen and Elaine Paul founded Hamilton Distillers in 2011 in Tucson, born out of the question if smoke drying barley with mesquite wood could impart something unique to a whiskey. After a lot of experimentation, it turned out that the answer was yes. While the distillery eventually settled on their core line, they were continually experimenting with different ideas, the essence of what got them started in the first place. Some of those early experiments involving mash bill and maturation have started to see the light of day over the last couple of years, including their line of Distiller’s Cuts, which are released thrice a year and named after the seasons. The Distiller’s Cut Summer 2023 was a true mixing of elements. One batch was aged in new American white oak and finished in ex-rhum agricole barrels (rhum agricole is a style of rum made from freshly-squeeze sugar cane instead of molasses, often made in the French West Indies). A mesquited tequila petit eau (water aged in tequila barrels, which does in fact absorb some alcohol from the wood over time) was added and the whole was given a base of the Classic before being blended in stainless steel tanks. Nicknamed “Abbey’s Blend” after Abbey Fife, one of the Hamilton’s distillers (though now in marketing) who was responsible for creating this particular offering.