Jefferson's Bourbon: The Art of Blending

After visiting two bourbon distilleries, I met with the founder of another bourbon company, but one which does not distill any of its own bourbon. Instead, they engage in the art of blending, producing intriguing small batch bourbons.

While having lunch at Proof on Main with my good friend Fred Minnick, we were joined by Trey Zoeller, the founder of Jefferson's Bourbon, and his father, Chet Zoeller, the author of Bourbon in Kentucky: A History Of Distilleries in Kentucky. It was an informal meeting but the subject of bourbon dominated our discussion. Both Trey and Chet were very personable, and it was a very pleasant and informative lunch. I still though would have liked to spend even more time with them, discussing bourbon and their company.

Trey's family roots in alcohol production extend back at least eight generations, to his great, great, etc. grandmother, Martha McLain, who was a moonshiner. Unfortunately for her, she ran afoul of the law. Around 1799, Martha was arrested for selling liquor without a proper license, which she was doing only to support her six children.

(Trey on the left, Fred Minnick in the middle, and Chet on the right)

Trey began blending bourbon back in 1997 and launched his own line in April 1998. He purchases all of his bourbon from other distilleries, often small unique lots which larger distilleries don't find profitable enough to disseminate. He generally blends about 3-4 different bourbon recipes, from 8-12 barrels, to create the three different Jefferson's Bourbons. These are all small batch bourbons, and the blending is truly an art, trying to create an interesting and complex product that all possesses excellent taste. Trey feels this is a "different style" of bourbon which may not be for everyone, but one which makes him proud.

Obtaining sufficient supply is always a challenge, especially as he seeks out quality. And one of their biggest challenges is competing with the larger bourbon producers, though Trey is very happy that their company has been growing by about 30% each year. They produce about 25,000 six-bottle cases annually. Their bourbon originally caught on with local bartenders, and they spread the word to others about it. Currently, Jefferson's Bourbon sells well in the Boston area so my local readers should be able to find it at the better liquor stores.

I was fascinated by Trey's tale of an experiment they recently conducted in ocean-aged bourbon! Trey celebrated his 40th birthday on a friend's ship in Costa Rica. The friend also has a small dishing boat and Trey got the idea to store five barrels of bourbon on his friend's boat while it traveled the sea. The barrels were strapped to the boat and spent 3.5 years at sea, baking in the heat as well as moving around frequently. Allegedly, the ship lost two barrels when their steel bands popped, though there is always the possibility that the men aboard the boat decided to taste test the bourbon themselves.

When Trey examined the bourbon, it found that it had caramelized and had an extremely dark color, looking almost black in a photo. Trey stated that it had a briny taste and was very complex for its age. He is planning to release some of it commercially so it will be quite intriguing to get a chance to taste the final product. Based on this experiment, Trey is next going to transport some bourbon barrels down the Ohio River, as old distilleries once did.

When you look at a bottle of Jefferson's Bourbon, what do you see? Look just at the bottle, its shape and form, not the liquid inside. Does it appear familiar? Trey's intent was to create a bottle that would resemble a  perfume bottle so that it would appeal to women! A very interesting marketing device.

Jefferson's Bourbon has three main products: Jefferson's, Jefferson's Reserve and Jefferson's Presidential Select. All three are probably best when drank neat or on the rocks, though of course you could use them in a cocktail if you so desired. They also produce a Straight Rye Whiskey which works very well in cocktails.

I greatly enjoyed the Jefferson’s Reserve, which I found to be smooth, elegant, subtle, and complex with a compelling melange of flavors. Each sip will bring to mind a new flavor, from caramel to honey, from butterscotch to figs, and much more. This is definitely a bourbon to savor on its own, rather than lose any of its complexity in a cocktail. Trey has created a superb bourbon which you need to seek out.

It was a pleasure to chat with Trey and Chet, and I wish them much luck with Jefferson's Bourbon. They are blending an exciting product, worthy of your attention, and I look forward to what they will develop in the future.

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Buffalo Trace Distillery: A Taste of History

“How well I remember my first encounter with The Devil's Brew. I happened to stumble across a case of bourbon -- and went right on stumbling for several days thereafter.”
--W.C. Fields

Van Winkle, Elmer T. Lee, Blanton's, Eagle Rare and more. These are all excellent bourbons that happen to be produced by the same distillery, Buffalo Trace. So when deciding on which distilleries to visit while I was in Kentucky, Buffalo Trace was at one of those at the top of my list. The distillery runs several different types of tours, from spooky ghost tours to the more architectural driven post-Prohibition tours, and I ended up taking their hard hat tour, which is more of a behind the scenes look at the distillery.

The Buffalo Trace Distillery sprawls across approximately 119 acres, with about 114 buildings. As soon as I stepped upon the premises, I was struck by the strong smell that permeated the air around the distillery. It was a dominant yeasty smell, actually a pleasant aroma, almost like a massive bakery was on the premises. I later learned it was from grains which were being dried. They dry out old mash and then sell it to farmers as "distiller's grain," which often ends up being fed to animals.

The land upon which the distillery lays once had many paths, called traces, for great herds of buffalo. One such path was known as the Great Buffalo Trace and led to the nearby Kentucky River. This was the origin of the distillery's current name, an homage to the history of this region. The first settlers were established in this area around 1775 and within 25 years there would be a thriving community.

The first known distillery in this area was established in 1787, so a distillery has been at this location for about 225 years. It would not be until 1857 that the first modern distillery was constructed here, and it used steam power, a significant technological advance at the time. It was later purchased by Colonel E.H. Taylor Jr., a famous historic figure in the bourbon world, who continued to add innovations to the distillery.

During Prohibition, the distillery was extremely fortunate to obtain one of only four legal permits, allowing them to continue to distill alcohol, yet only for medicinal purposes. Distilleries which lacked such a permit had to send their barrels to the distilleries that did possess them. Doctors could prescribe a person a pint of bourbon every ten days and this led to more than 6 million prescriptions in Kentucky alone. Sure seems like Prohibition caused many, many people to be ill and require some medicinal alcohol. Or at least it caused many people to claim to be ill.

After the repeal of Prohibition, Albert Blanton took over the operation of the distillery, continuing to improve its production, and he is commemorated with a statue on the distillery grounds. In 1992, the distillery was purchased by the Sazerac Company, and in 1999 they renamed it Buffalo Trace, also starting to produce Buffalo Trace Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey.

The current Master Distiller is Harlen Davis Wheatley, who has occupied that position since 2005, though he has worked for the distillery since 1995. Buffalo Trace now produces 14 different brands, including Van Winkle, Old Charter, W.L. Weller, Elmer T. Lee, Rock Hill Farms, Benchmark, Eagle Rare, Blanton's. Hancock's Reserve and Ancient Age. These bourbons are generally aged from 4-23 years.

Our hard hat tour was led by Fred, who did a great job explaining about the distillery, from its history to the details of the distillation process. The distillery was still operating during my visit, and they would not stop distilling until June, restarting operations after Labor Day. About 350 permanent employees work at the distillery, which generally is operational each day from 6am-10pm.

Buffalo Trace uses distillers grade corn from Kentucky and Indiana, and does not use any GMO corn. Their basic mashbill has 70%-80% corn, and of their fourteen brands, 12 are rye dominant while the other two are wheat dominant. The same mashbill can lead to different tasting bourbons, such as Buffalo Trace and Eagle Rare which both are small batch that use the same mashbill. Blanton's, which is 6-7 years old, and Elmer T. Lee, which is 10 years old, are both single barrel, using the same mashbill.

This cleverly designed mural is on the outside of one of the buildings, and it is interesting as it appears to move with you as you walk by it.

They have three stills, two of which are four stories high and located in the same building.

One of their buildings, three stories high, contains 10 large fermentation vats and they can ferment about 180,000 gallons per day.

Most of their equipment is geared to large scale production, thousands of gallons at a time. This allows them to produce sufficient product for 14 different brands.

They buy their yeast from Fermentis, based on their own formula, and they use that same yeast for all of their brands. They keep some of their yeast strain in five separate places so that it will never be lost.

We walked through the mash fermenter room, seeing lots of large tanks containing the mash, the bubbles in the mash caused by carbon dioxide. There is a "No Swimming" warning here, which could actually be a hazardous activity. They allowed us to taste some of the mash, which generally was very sweet.

I find it fascinating that Buffalo Trace has a special experimental program, where they produce small batches of bourbon, trying to alter all sorts of aspects of the production, testing various factors. The program began in 1989 and have tested items such as aging bourbon in fine grain, coarse grain, double barrels, with oak chips, French oak, and finished in barrels that once held Chardonnay, Zinfandel and Cabernet Franc. There are about 1000 barrels of bourbon currently in the program and some will eventually get released in the Buffalo Trace Experimental Collection label. Twenty products have so far been released under this label.

Since 2007, their experiments have been produced in a special micro-distillery, pictured above. This is a combination pot still/column still and can produce 1-10 barrels of bourbon, as opposed to previously when they had to make a minimum batch of 70 barrels. This allows them to conduct more experiments, and it is much more cost effective than producing the far larger amount. Innovation and experimentation are very important so Buffalo Trace deserves kudos for their program.

The distillery owns 12 warehouses, where approximately 320,000 barrels of bourbon are aging. We spent some time in Warehouse "C," which was originally constructed by Colonel E.H. Taylor Jr. in 1881. It holds about 24,000 barrels, separated by recipe and not brand, and the floorboards are still original. The walls are separated from the ricks so if the wall happens to collapse for any reason, the barrels will be fine. This has been beneficial when a terrible storm damaged the warehouse, yet the ricks remained secure.

Colonel E.H. Taylor Jr. once produced a bourbon named "Old Taylor" and in November 2009, Buffalo Trace decided to replicate this historical bourbon. They used the original recipe and it is currently aging in one of their warehouses. There is not a planned release date yet, as they will conduct periodic taste tests to determine when it is ready for release.

After the tour, we finished with a tasting of four of their products. First, was the Buffalo Trace Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey, which is about 8-9 years old and 90 proof. I found it to be smooth, with plenty of spice notes, vanilla, mild caramel and hints of sweetness. Good for drinking on its own, or mixed in a cocktail. And at around $25, it is a good value too.

The Eagle Rare Single Barrel is about 10 years old and 90 proof. It was also silky smooth but spicier than the Buffalo Trace. Its flavors were more complex, a melange of caramel, almonds, honey, vanilla, and dried fruits. A lengthy and pleasing finish really satisfied my palate. It costs around $30 and it too is a very good value. This is definitely a bourbon I would prefer drinking neat, though it can enhance a cocktail as well.

One of the surprises of the tasting was the Buffalo Trace Bourbon Cream Liqueur. It resembles Bailey's Irish Cream, but I much prefer the Buffalo Trace. It is made with real cream and has a rich, creamy and sweet taste, just pure hedonistic pleasure. I even tried some mixed with some root beer, which was kind of like a float without the ice cream. Unfortunately, it is currently not sold outside of Kentucky, though I did buy a couple bottles while I was there.

A bourbon distillery making vodka? Yes, that seemed strange to me as well but Buffalo Trace seemed to think it worked well together. Their Rain Vodka is certified organic and is produced from 100% organic white corn. The use of corn does provide a link to their bourbon. They have a dedicated vodka still and this vodka is distilled seven times. It actually had an interesting taste, with a bit of sweetness, and was fairly smooth, enough that you probably could drink this alone on ice. I was not expecting it to taste as good as it did, and it is worthy of a recommendation.

They are working on another vodka, which they will name HDW CLIX. The HDW are the initials of their Master Distiller, Harlen Davis Wheatley. The CLIX is the Roman numeral for 159, which will be the number of times that the vodka is distilled. That is an incredible amount of distillations though I am not sure that many is really necessary or will accomplish anything. At some point, multiple distillations probably won't produce any noticeable changes. But I am intrigued to see the final product.

Buffalo Trace Distillery is a fascinating place and if you are in the area then you definitely should take one of their tours. The distillery has a firm foot in its historical past yet its other foot is firmly in the future, devoted to innovation and experimentation. They produce plenty of excellent bourbons and you should explore the various brands that they make, enjoying the diversity of flavor profiles.

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Four Roses Bourbon: A Unique Distillery

"Four Roses straight up, water on the side."
--Detective James "Popeye" Doyle (played by Gene Hackman) in French Connection II 

After long days of exploring the Chianti Classico region of Tuscany, our group often met for a final drink at the hotel bar, to unwind a bit before heading off to bed. My drink of choice was Four Roses Bourbon, one of the roughly 6 or 7 bourbons they carried. In Europe and Japan, Four Roses is extremely popular, and has been for years, but it is still very much under the radar in the U.S. That should change with time, once people realize its quality and uniqueness.

Back in August 2011, I met the Four Roses Master Distiller, Jim Rutledge, at a local media event. He was personable and quite knowledgeable, and his bourbons were quite compelling. My previous article, Four Roses Bourbon: Back In The U.S.A., discussed the history of the distillery as well as providing plenty of additional information about bourbon and tasting notes on the three primary products of Four Roses. You might want to read that article first, for background details, before proceeding with the rest of this post.

When planning my visit to Louisville for the Kentucky Derby, I knew that I had to visit a couple of nearby bourbon distilleries and Four Roses was one of the places at the top of my list. They run frequent public tours and there were five other people on the tour I attended. It began with an interesting fifteen minute video about the distillery and bourbon, though I caught one error. The video stated a couple times that "white oak" barrels must be used to age bourbon though according to the law, any type of "new oak," and not just "white," is permissible.

After the video, our guide, Don, led us through a tour of the distillery. Distillation operations had been shut down for the summer, giving them time to perform maintenance. Thus we didn't get the chance to view any work in progress. It is common practice for bourbon distilleries to close during the summer as the heat gets too intense for work. For Four Roses, the water table from the nearby river also decreases, making it more difficult to operate. Four Roses though closes earlier in the season than many other distilleries.

The architecture of many of the buildings is an aesthetically pleasing Spanish style. Back in 1910, when the buildings were constructed, the owners also had holdings in Southern California and they liked the Spanish style buildings found in that region. Thus, they decided to emulate that style in Kentucky and in 1987 the buildings were placed onto the National Register of Historic Places.

Yes, they even grow roses on the grounds.

In the picture above, there is a multi-story building visible in the background on the left side of the photo. That is one of the former Four Roses' rack houses, where bourbon barrels were stored, but that is no longer the case. Instead, other distilleries use those rack houses for their barrel storage. At a different location, Four Roses has about 20 warehouses, each on an acre of land, and there are approximately 24,000 barrels in each warehouse. At any one time, the distillery has about 300,000-350,000 barrels aging in these rack houses.

So why did Four Roses stop using the older rack houses? They decided that they wanted to age their bourbon barrels in single-story warehouses, to allow for more even aging throughout the rack house. In multi-story buildings, the barrels on different levels will age at different rates as the higher levels get hotter than the lower ones. To avoid this, some distilleries will rotate their barrels though that is laborious and time consuming. Blending can also compensate for the discrepancies in aging. Four Roses though avoids worrying about this as their barrels generally age consistently together.

Four Roses mills all of their own grains, bringing in whole kernel corn, and they seek corn which swells just right for their purposes. They use two different mashbills, grain recipes, including the OE (which is 75% corn, 20% rye, and 5% malted barley) and the OB (which is 60% corn, 35% rye and 5% malted barley).  These recipe are at least 40 years old, and the rye is intended to add richness and spiciness to the blend.

Besides the two mashbills, they also use five different, proprietary yeasts, thus making 10 different recipes. They are probably the only distillery using more than one yeast, and acquired four of those yeasts once Seagram shut down business. The five yeasts include: V=delicate fruitiness, a classic bourbon profile; K=slightly spicy, slow aging, also a classic bourbon profile; O=rich fruitiness, red fruits; Q=floral essence, delicate, aromatic; and F=herbal, minty, little floral. So each combination of mashbill and yeast will lead to a different flavor profile, providing a wider range of flavor profiles than many other distilleries can create. They sometimes even combine a couple of yeasts for another flavor profile.

The distillery is highly automated and it only takes about five men to operate. Once a batch of bourbon is completed here, it will then be transported to one of the rack houses.

The facility has 23 fermenters, 16 made of Red Cyprus and 7 stainless steel. Red Cyprus is now a protected tree so they cannot produce any more cyprus fermenters. It is a flavor neutral wood so it does not affect the taste of the bourbon at all.

Four Roses produces three main brands in the U.S., including Yellow Label, Small Batch and Single Barrel. Check my previous post for some tasting notes on these bourbons. In addition, they produce some limited edition bourbons each year.

Besides the U.S. brands, Four Roses also produces two which are unique to the Japan market, the Black and Platinum. Japan has always been a huge market for Four Roses and these two bourbons were created specifically in that market during the 1990s. When Kirin purchased Four Roses, it was decided to continue to make these two bourbons only available in Japan. There is always the possibility that could change in the future, and I sincerely hope it does.

I was fortunate to get to taste the Black and Platinum (pictured above). Both bourbons use a combination of the two mashbills and the Black uses the K yeast while the Platinum uses the K and V yeasts. Both bourbons were silky smooth and absolutely compelling, with the Black presenting more of a spicy and complex profile while the Platinum was more floral, though still with plenty of spice notes. These were perfect sipping bourbons, delicious on their own without the need to be in a cocktail. They taste differently from the three U.S. brands, though you still can detect a thread of similarity. The Japanese are lucky to have these two excellent bourbons available.

Four Roses produces plenty of exciting products so you should expand your bourbon horizons and try some of their bourbons. You won't be disappointed.

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Harvest: Local Cuisine, Killer Bread Pudding

Sometimes on vacation I just want to enjoy a dinner out, to not take notes or photos of my meal. Yet sometimes that meal is so impressive that I still need to write about it, even though I can't provide as much detail as maybe I desire. The restaurant though should be recognized for its high quality, even if that mention is brief.

While in Louisville, we dined out one evening with my friend Fred and his wife, selecting a restaurant that none of us had ever been to before. We took a chance, dining at Harvest, a "locally grown restaurant," situated in the downtown NuLu district of East Market Street in Louisville. Led by Chef Coby Ming, their concept is compelling: "Our philosophy is very simple – to produce outstanding, regionally inspired, seasonal cuisine from the freshest and finest local produce in a casual fine dining setting. This is something that we are very passionate about and we are truly grateful to the community for supporting our locally grown ‘farm-to-table’ vision."

As for specifics, they pledge to source at least 80% of their food from farmers and growers within a 100-mile radius of the city. The farmers must be "...committed to sustainable farming practices and impeccable standards of animal welfare."  Adorning the walls of the interior of the restaurant, you will find large photos of the farmers they rely upon. The dominance of those photos is appealing.

They carry numerous craft beers, including local ones, as well as plenty of different bourbons. For their cocktails, they use seasonal local ingredients and also craft many of their own bitters, syrups, and tinctures. Their wine list did not possess any local Kentucky wines but the list is interesting, with an intriguing and diverse selection of wines from across the world. We chose to drink a 2009 Eyrie Vineyards Pinot Noir ($78), an excellent Oregonian Pinot, priced at about twice the usual retail.

The dinner menu is essentially divided into Starters (about 8 choices from $6-$13) and Entrees (about 8 choices from $12-$19) with some daily specials. Many of the choices have a southern flair, showing some good creativity. The selection is diverse enough for both carnivores and vegetarians.

We began with the Daily Bread Board ($6), which were warm zucchini rolls and though I am not usually a fan of zucchini, these were quite tasty. A nice herbal taste, fluffy in texture with a crisp exterior. The Cheese Board ($13) with sweet pickled onion jam, peach butter, and crostini had local Kentucky cheeses, all three which were excellent, including a delightful and subtle blue cheese. My Salad ($10) contained house greens, asiago crisp, sunny side egg, pretzel crostini, and cracklins, topped by a spicy basil vinaigrette. An excellent blend of flavors and textures.

For my entree, I opted for the Buttermilk Fried Chicken ($19) with a chive hoecake and topped by a smoked peppercorn gravy. Moist, tender white meat chicken with a crispy, flavorful coating and a light and smoky gravy. An excellent fried chicken which should please anyone, and which satisfied me. I also got to taste the Crispy Pork Confit ($17) with pickled jalapeño-bacon grits, honey glazed vegetables, and a smoked onion jus. The pork was meaty and tender too, and the grits were especially intriguing, with a spicy kick to them.

For dessert, I had an amazing Bourbon Bread Pudding, which was piping hot, and bursting with flavor. The textures and tastes worked harmoniously and it was a decadent pleasure. One of the best bread puddings I have tasted in quite some time, and it is worth going to Harvest just for this dessert.

Service was very good, personable and attentive. Their philosophy is compelling, the food is tasty and prices are reasonable. I give Harvest a strong recommendation and would definitely return the next time I visit Louisville.

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Corbett's Restaurant: After Derby Delight

After a long, fun and exciting day at the Kentucky Derby, the first time I had ever attended that grand event, we all traveled to a local restaurant, Corbett's, for dinner. My good friend Fred had chosen the venue, making reservations months before, and it offered a special Derby prix-fixe menu. Fred had also arranged for wine pairings with our dinner.

The restaurant was opened in December 2007 by Chef S. Dean Corbett. It is housed in a beautiful mansion, which was constructed in 1850, and we sat in one of the lower levels, a semi-private room which was elegant without being pretentious. Overall, we had a superb experience, with delicious and creative food and some intriguing and tasty wines. I would give Corbett's a hearty recommendation, especially considering how well everything went despite the fact the restaurant was well packed with Derby goers.

We began our dinner with flutes of Charles Ellner Cuvee de Reserve Brut Champagne, a delicious Champagne with lots of fruit and floral notes. A nice start to the evening.

As an amuse-bouche, we received a Smoked Salmon Parfait with Baesetra Caviar, Creme Fraiche, and Essence of Dill. Lots of creaminess, briny notes, and bursting with flavor.

For our appetizer, our dish presented a Diver Scallop atop Lobster thermidor with a Gruyere Crisp and Red Mustard Demi-Glace. Perfectly seared, the scallop was tender and moist, and the thermidor was flaky with sweet lobster meat. And who wouldn't enjoy a crisp of gruyere?

Our next wine was the 2008 Fontina Candida Luna Mater, Frascati Superiore, a blend of 50% Malvasia di Candia, 20% Malvasia del Lazio, 10% Greco, 10% Bombino and 10% Trebbiano. An amazing white wine, full bodied with intense flavors of pear, orange, herbs, and mild spices. Complex and intriguing, a wine I want to seek out to fill my cellar.

For a Salad, we had Mache, Compressed Watermelon, Jicama, Radish, Capriole Farm's Goat Cheese, and Pignoli topped by a Cilantro Vinaigrette. Everything was very fresh, with a nice contrast of sweet and bitter, crisp and creamy.

The 2009 Domaine Roger Lassarat Close De France Pouilly-Fuisse was a very pleasant Chardonnay, with a restrained but noticeable use of oak. The oak served more as an accent than the dominant flavor of the wine.

Next up was a dish of Mero Sea Bass accompanied by Artichoke & Country Ham Ravioli, Morels, Fava Beans, Basil Sauternes, and a Charred Tomato Sabayon. A savory, tender fish was complemented by the light sauce and even the ravioli appealed to me though I am usually not an artichoke fan. Once again, all of the elements of this dish worked well together.

As an intermezzo, there was a refreshing Yuzu Gelee with Meyer Lemon Sorbet.

The 2006 Poderi Elia Barberesco Serracapelli was an approachable and delicious Italian red with black cherry, plum, vanilla, and mild spice notes. Tannins were moderate and the finish was lengthy and pleasing.

The Creekstone Tenderloin with Lyonnaise Pommes Anna, Carrot Flan, Beet Coulis, Gary Farms Mustard Greens, and Sauce Perigueux was our final entree. The beef was very tender and the sauce enhanced the flavor of the meat. The potatoes and flan were both quite delicious, and it was another well balanced plate.

The only course which didn't really impress me was dessert, a Bittersweet Chocolate & Bourbon Bread Pudding with Sea Salt Caramel Sauce, Local Strawberries, and Frozen Rhubarb. This was really not my idea of a bread pudding, and was more like a dense cake or brownie. The flavors were good, I just found it difficult to consider it as a bread pudding, especially as I previously had such a fantastic bread pudding at another Louisville restaurant. Though kudos to the pairing of a 20 Year Old Port with this chocolate dessert.

Overall, the restaurant, dinner and wines impressed me. The sommelier, Troy Ritchie, did an excellent job of selecting the wines to accompany our meal, and our servers, Erin and Cecelia, were professional and attentive. I would love to try this restaurant another time for their regular menu, and recommend that if you are in Louisville, Kentucky, to check out Corbett's.

Great choice Fred!

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