The popular photo-sharing app Instagram began as a start-up called Burbn, “a game-play location-based service… named, in whimsical Silicon Valley fashion,” after co-founder and CEO Kevin Systrom’s interest in “fine whiskeys and bourbons.” Source: “The Money Shot” by Kara Swisher,…
Over the weekend, I mentioned 1792 Ridgemont Reserve. You might know that the 1792 in the name is a reference to the year that Kentucky became the 15th state. But did you know the bourbon was called “Ridgewood Reserve 1792” when it…
Established in 2008, Koval Distillery is the first craft distillery within Chicago’s city limits since Prohibition. The name Koval is Yiddish for “blacksmith,” but also refers to a black sheep.
“How do you tell a moonshiner in Kentucky? That Mason jar makes a little mark on their nose.” That’s the wit and wisdom of Jimmy Russell, master distiller at Wild Turkey. Jimmy loves to have a little fun, so here…
During Prohibition, a rum-runner named William Frederick McCoy was known for never watering down his product – when you bought spirits from him, you were sure to get the genuine deal. Some say this is the origin of the phrase “the…
In 2012, Kentucky distilleries filled one million barrels with bourbon (1,007,703, to be precise) – the first time they’ve hit that milestone since 1973. That brought total inventory to 4.9 million barrels, which means there are more barrels of bourbon aging in the Bluegrass than there…
The impetus for the modern drinking straw was… the mint julep. Tired of his natural rye-grass straw (the standard at the time) shedding in his drink, Marvin Chester Stone patented a wax-and-paper version in 1888. In the 1930s, Joseph B….
The tool used by master distillers to draw a small portion of bourbon straight from the barrel for sampling is called a whiskey thief. Resembling a large straw, it is typically made of copper.
Strictly speaking, today’s Shot isn’t about bourbon. It’s about something that pairs beautifully with bourbon in cocktails: bitters. One of the best-known names in bitters is Peychaud’s. The brand is owned by Sazerac, which is based in New Orleans. But…
Proof is the percentage of alcohol by volume, doubled. For example, if a bourbon is 90 proof, that means it is 45 percent ABV. But where did the term “proof” come from? According to bourbon historian Michael Veach, the term harkens…
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