New Spirits Releases - May 20, 2022

Octave Barrels is an Australian single malt from Starward which is aged in shiraz red wine barrels. In more detail, the barrels held Yalumba The Octavious, an old vine shiraz from the Barossa Valley in South Australia. Yalumba, the oldest family-owned winery in Australia, has its own cooperage and they crafted these 100L octave barrels from American oak to age this wine. Starward took these freshly-dumped octave barrels and filled it in 2018 with their new make spirit for their signature single malt. It was bottled in 2021 and has been released in the US in May 2022.

This bottling from the House of Suntory is one of four in its 2022 Tsukuriwake Selection, a collection of single malts from Yamazaki Distillery which highlights the foundational pillars of the whisky brand. Tsukuriwake means "artisanship through a diversity of making" and this release features the single malts that were aged in Japanese Mizunara oak, a species native to Japan. This was first launched in Japan in 2020 and is available in select global markets as of June 2022 including the US.

This bottling from the House of Suntory is one of four in its 2022 Tsukuriwake Selection, a limited edition collection of single malts from Yamazaki Distillery which highlights the foundational pillars of the whisky brand. Tsukuriwake means "artisanship through a diversity of making," and this bottling features the single malts that were aged in oak from Northern Spain. The brand claims that this parcel for Yamazaki is its "depth enhancer." This was first launched in Japan in 2020 and is available in select global markets as of June 2022 including the US.

This bottling from the House of Suntory is one of four in its 2022 Tsukuriwake Selection, a collection of single malts from Yamazaki Distillery which highlights the foundational pillars of the whisky brand. Tsukuriwake means "artisanship through a diversity of making." Peated malt is considered by Suntory to be the "hidden accent" for Yamazaki. This was first launched in Japan in 2020 and is available in select global markets as of June 2022 including the US.

This bottling from the House of Suntory is one of four in its 2022 Tsukuriwake Selection, a limited edition collection of single malts from Yamazaki Distillery which highlights the foundational pillars of the whisky brand. Tsukuriwake means "artisanship through a diversity of making" and this release showcases the single malts that were aged in 480L puncheon casks crafted from American oak. Suntory considers Puncheon to be the heart of Yamazaki. This was first launched in Japan in 2020 and is available in select global markets as of June 2022 including the US.

First released in April 2020 for the brand's Operation Crush COVID-19 fundraising campaign, this is the third annual release of Laguna Madre. It's the rarest and oldest Texas straight bourbon for the brand at 8 years of age. The first four years were spent in traditional new charred American oak barrels. Then the bourbon was placed into toasted French Limousin oak barrels for an additional four years of maturation. Only 1,014 bottles are available for this 2022 Release which launched in mid-May 2022.

This is the second release in the Founders' Cask Strength Series following a rye bottling which launched in 2021. This straight bourbon, made entirely in-house at Smooth Ambler's facility in West Virginia, is made with their bourbon mash bill #2 (71% corn, 21% rye, and 8% malted barley). It's matured in new American oak (char #4) and matured for 5 years in the Appalachian climate. It's bottled without chill-filtration at a cask strength which will vary for each batch with an expected six to be released per year. The first batch is available as of June 2022 nationwide.

This is the first bottled in bond straight bourbon to be released by J. Rieger & Son located in Kansas City, Missouri. It was made from a mash bill of 56% corn, 30% rye and 14% malted barley and was distilled in a copper pot still in the fall of 2015. It was matured for 6 years in standard 53-gallon charred American white oak barrels at their location and bottled in the Fall of 2021. Released on June 2, 2022 in select Missouri and Kansas retailers.

This whiskey from Texas-based Balcones Distilling is a special release in its corn whiskey portfolio. Made with the brand's 100% roasted blue corn recipe, this straight corn whiskey is a bottled in bond release as well-- a first for the distillery. So it's the product of one season from one distiller and is aged in a federally bonded warehouse for at least 4 years. To add another twist, the barrels used for the entire maturation process were formerly used to age tequila. Bottled at 100 proof, Big Baby 2022 is available as of May 2022 across select states including Texas, California, Arizona, Florida, Illinois and New Jersey.