American Whiskey
American Whiskey
Josh Judd , General Manager at Seven Grand in San Diego .
Miriam Portney , Bar Director at Portland , OR ’ s Canard .
Collins , CO . “ They ’ ve become wildly popular out of nowhere ,” he says about Old Elk . “ Wheated bourbon has always been a popular sub-category , but now I ’ m seeing more and more people playing with wheat . It ’ s just a smooth grain that makes for a soft , easy whiskey . People are responding to that just because it ’ s so easy drinking .”
Josh Judd , General Manager at Seven Grand in San Diego , is seeing American single malts starting to gain traction with consumers . The brand that represents the segment ’ s potential to Judd is McCarthy ’ s . “ They ’ ve really perfected it over the years ,” he says .
Local whiskey distillers are also pulling out all stops to take a piece of this growing category ’ s market share . In Ohio , Canepa says the state ’ s 60 distilleries are working hard to cultivate a loyal fan base by offering tours and experiential events . “ The local favorites reflect the unique flavors , craftsmanship and stories associated with Ohio ' s whiskey producers ,” he says . “ This suggests that local consumers appreciate and prioritize locally made products ."
SINGLE BARRELS REMAIN STRONG Barrel programs , at both bars and in stores , remain an enormous driver of business , as they promise customers something exclusive .
“ We ’ re seeing appreciation and demand grow for the rare whiskeys in exclusive barrels , which we have here at the Wynn ,” says Boarini . She recently oversaw the launch at Wynn Las Vegas of an exclusive whiskey barrel program at its Tower Suite Bar . It includes 13 offerings from Blanton ’ s , Buffalo Trace , E . H . Taylor , Maker ’ s Mark and more , in addition to a full whiskey list .
Bank & Bourbon recently began featuring an exclusive Blanton ’ s Private Barrel in its bourbon flight for $ 32 . The bourbon flight also features Wathen ’ s Single Barrel , Jack Daniel ’ s Single Barrel Select and Four Roses Single Barrel .
Demand for single barrels has enabled retailers to drive traffic to their stores . Businesses have embraced single barrels as a creative way to differentiate offerings and partner with producers .
Agnes says their single barrel program in Minnesota is divvied up between the 50 municipal liquor stores throughout the state . “ It allows some of the smaller stores to handle a pretty nice unique product ” he says . “ It ’ s a great program because it ties us all together as a municipal liquor operation .”
As a special touch in Minnesota , they ’ ll sometimes bring in a local celebrity to help pick the barrels along with customers .
Julio ’ s was one of the pioneering retailers in single barrels . These days , Maloney ’ s noticing that some consumers are becoming more discerning in their choices . “ There ’ s a culling going on ,” he says . “ Retailers are sort of stemming the tide and making sure they ’ re getting a really good product .”
COCKTAIL CREATIVITY With such an explosion in producers , styles and expressions , bartenders are having a field day with whiskey cocktails .
For example , Boarini uses Wynn ’ s single barrel selects for her take on the classic Whiskey Sour , combining Maker ’ s Mark Wynn Signature Cask Whiskey , lemon juice , simple syrup and egg whites .
And Old Fashioneds abound . In Dallas , Alex Aland , General Manager Hotel Zaza Dallas and its restaurant Dragonfly , offers what it calls a Bourye Old Fashioned for $ 20 , made with TX Bourbon , Russell ’ s Reserve 6 Year Rye , Demerara , Angostura bitters and Regans ’ No . 6 orange bitters .
“ There are so many cities where people are really pushing the envelope ,” he says . “ I ’ ve even done a chamomile take on the Old Fashioned , which adds an herbal quality to it .”
Miriam Portney , Bar Director at Portland , OR-based Canard , says it ’ s been a challenge getting her hands on all the cool new American whiskeys she ’ d love to be experimenting with these days , such as ryes . And the new single malts are so varied , she would need to taste them on a one-by-one basis before deciding how to use them in cocktails . “ I feel like I haven ’ t wrapped my head around any kind of singularity with it ,” she says . “ There would be some minimal intervention in some because they ’ re so terroir driven that you don ’ t want to stomp on it too much .”
At Big Star in Chicago , crowd pleasers include Buffalo Trace ’ s Antique Collection and Pappy Van Winkle , with Michter ’ s close behind . Beverage Director Laurent Schroeder-Lebec also likes to work with local distilleries . “ Those have been really enjoyable to put on the menu and feature in cocktails ,” he says . One example is 3
26 StateWays | www . stateways . com | Fall 2023