Whiskey: Bowman Brothers Virginia Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Distillery: A. Smith Bowman Distillery. It was originally located on the Sunset Hills Farm in Fairfax County, Virginia but was relocated in 1988 to Fredericksburg, Virginia in Spotsylvania County due to the rapid development of the Northern Virginia landscape.
Age: Unlisted.
Proof: 90 Proof (45% ABV)
Notes: This small batch Virginia whiskey has been distilled three times using corn, malted barley, and rye in a copper still. John, Abraham, Joseph, and Isaac, the four brothers, all served in the American Revolution. This whiskey is intended to honor those brothers for their service in freeing our nation from the clutch of England’s rule. For what it offers, this whiskey may be a little expensive at the listed price of $30 for a 750ml bottle. Overall I’d rate it a 6/10 and would drink it if it was offered, but this may be my first and last foray with B.B. Small Batch.
Color: Pale Rust
Nose: Sweet corn, a very light note of vanilla.
Taste: Smooth when it first hits your lips, there is not an immediate bite but it does grow slightly on the way down. There is a touch of vanilla to this whiskey, but you have to search for it a little bit.
Finish: Short and mellow. I drank this neat to grasp its full flavor, but would probably be best served over ice.

Reviewed by Adam Boyd, Washington D.C. Correspondent, BourbonBlog.com

For more information, visit www.asmithbowman.com

Popularity: 14% [?]

Bourbon: Kopper Kettle Virginia Whiskey
Distillery: Distilled, Aged, and Bottled by Belmont Farms of Virginia, Inc., Culpeper, Virginia, USA
Age: 2 Years Old
Proof: 86 Proof (43% ABV)
Notes: I discovered this little gem hidden in the back corner of the liquor store. The secret to Kopper Kettle is that it is made in a genuine 1930’s era copper pot still in the same fashion that fresh corn whiskey was distilled at the time of our ancestors. Just think of the founding fathers getting ripped on Virginia Whiskey and shouting “RULE NUMBER TWO, GUNS FOR EVERYONE!” Kopper Kettle is a triple grain whiskey (corn, wheat, and barley), double wood, and twice distilled. If you are crafty in the ways of creating BBQ sauces, this would be a prime candidate to use, and we at BourbonBlog.com would love to hear your recipe if you were to come up with one!
Color: Pale honey with the tiniest hint of amber.
Nose: Very sweet, the apple wood is strong almost overpowering any other smell you could gain.
Taste: Oak and Apple wood are very prevalent in this whiskey giving it a very sweet taste. There is only the lightest twinge of spice when it first hits your lips.
Finish: Incredibly smooth aftertaste, there is a bit of a tingle that follows at the end, but very pleasant.

Reviewed by Adam Boyd, Washington D.C. Correspondent, BourbonBlog.com

For more information, visit them at www.virginiamoonshine.com

Popularity: 14% [?]

The BourbonBlog.com reviews an unaged Kentucky Whiskey pot distilled from malted rye. It is Wry Moon from Corsair Artistan Distillery

Whiskey: Wry Moon Whiskey
Distillery: Corsair Artisan Distillery, Bowling Green, Kentucky and Nashville, Tennessee
Proof: 46% ABV;  92 proof
Notes: Unaged Kentucky Whiskey Pot Distilled from Malted Rye
Color: Clear
Nose: Grainy yet smooth. Corn and rye.
Taste: Touch of sweetness and rounded. Much better than many unaged whiskeys.
Finish: Nice balance of grain and sweetness.

Whiskey review by BourbonBlog.com‘s Tom Fischer and Stephen Dennison along with Adam Meyer and Brad Kerrick of The Bourbon Review.

Popularity: 14% [?]

Moonshine is making a comeback and Corsair Artistan Distillers has again impressed by taking us down home with pumpkin pie and moonshine blended into each sip. 

Whiskey: Corsair Pumpkin Spice Moonshine Review
Distillery: Corsair Artisan Distillery, Bowling Green, Kentucky and Nashville, Tennessee
Proof: 42.4% ABV;  85 proof
Notes: Pot Distilled Pumpkin and Spice Flavored Whiskey. They load their pot sill’s vapor basket with ginger, nutmeg, allspice, cinnamon and pumpkin, then redistill the whiskey to infuse and marry all the flavors.
Color: Clear
Nose: Smooth brown butter, creaminess with pumpkin, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg all prevalent. 
Taste: Pumpkin, vanilla, and traditional pumpkin pie flavors..could it get any better? Clean and creamy.
Finish: Long, sticks on the palette. Marzipan.

Whiskey review by BourbonBlog.com‘s Tom Fischer and Stephen Dennison along with Adam Meyer and Brad Kerrick of The Bourbon Review.

Popularity: 13% [?]

The BourbonBlog.com team reviewing some most innovative whiskeys we’ve ever tasted and they’re coming from  Corsair Artistan Distillery here is the first…

Whiskey: Triple Smoke Single Barrel Whiskey
Distillery: Corsair Artisan Distillery, Bowling Green, Kentucky and Nashville, Tennessee
Proof: Barrel Proof 59.2% ABV; at118.4 proof
Notes: Pot distilled American malt whiskey from cherry, beechwood, and peat smoked barley.
Color: Medium Amber.
Nose: A bold smokiness with background of sugar.
Taste: Peat comes through on front end and becomes sugar-coated toward the middle with some hints of the cherry. “Scotch like” in a small way and backed and well-balanced with sweetness.
Finish: Nice balance of grain and sweetness.

Whiskey review by BourbonBlog.com’s Tom Fischer and Stephen Dennison along with  Adam Meyer and Brad Kerrick of The Bourbon Review.

Popularity: 13% [?]

This is one of the best vodkas we have ever reviewed at BourbonBlog.com, and well worth the money for the quality and the bottle…Read the review and then watch the video with Dan Aykroyd below.

Vodka: Crystal Head Vodka
Distillery: Crystal Head Vodka Distillery, Canada
Proof: 80; approximately 40% ABV
Notes: This company is owned in part Dan Aykroyd. This Vodka bottle and brand concept come from the story of the 13 Crystal Heads across the world. “The Crystal Heads are said to contain vast knowledge and enlightenment capable of unlocking our most enigmatic ancient mysteries. Alone, each is believed to house radiant psychic energy, which has magical powers and healing properties.”
Color: Clear
Nose: Smooth Vodka, not overpowering.
Taste: Unctuous and lingering. So clear, smooth and tasteless. It is very light expression of the distillates. The epitamy of what a sipping vodka should be.
Finish: Clean and smooth

Popularity: 11% [?]

Recently, these bottlings came across my desk, courtesy Infinium Spirits and Republic National’s Cumberland Division. I sat, pondering what to do with the tequilas held inside these two, beautiful vessels. Then, a thought occurred to me: why not a side-by-side? Not wanting to leave well enough alone, I decided upon a special tasting with two friends- Gayle DeMerssmen, a cocktail enthusiast and Elyse Glickman, Editor-and-Chief of the recently launched Liquid Living Magazine.

The Tequiladero’s Hand

The primary aspect separating these two tequilas, I found, was their involvement with wood. The Corralejo kissed the wood at 4 months in a combination of French, American and White Oak. The Casa Noble embraced the wood for the maximum 364 days (to be called ‘reposado’) in new French oak.

The differences couldn’t have been more drastic. In color, the Corralejo was just off-white; the Casa Noble, a light tawny. Both noses had a restrained agave expression. The former possessed a certain crispness, the latter a buttery roundness. On the palate the Corralejo had a citric backnote that also hinted of sea-air, while the Casa Noble expressed butterscotch and vanilla. Tequilas tend to taste predominately like agave- like tequila. You simply can’t get past the fact that they are distillates of a cactus, which is a good thing.

Priming the Palate

This technique involves tricking the palate into thinking it is tasting something in the actual drink or food by turning on taste receptors prior to the actual enjoyment of the cocktail/dish. Simply put, one enjoys a raw, singular product before then turning attention to the main attraction.

On this occasion, I played to the marriage of citrus and tequilas. Like the tradition of biting the lime before the shot, just enhanced. We ate ‘Extreme Sour Apple Pop Rocks,’ available cheaply online. These not only have the CO2-influenced tactile effect of waking the taste buds up, they also have the mouth-puckering effect of citric acid.

The Corralejo loved the effect, with it’s just-above blanco expression. The Casa Noble didn’t- the vanilla and butterscotch not only were overpowered, they fought it out on one’s tongue.

At the end of the day, the three of us found this experiment not only entertaining, but enlightening. As is often the case- when questions find answers, these solutions produce a whole new set of queries. Such is the beauty of the culinary journey.

Article written by BourbonBlog.com‘s Beverage Consultant Chef/Mixologist Stephen Dennison.

Popularity: 12% [?]

I was prepared to run the commonly-trod ground of the tasting (nose, taste, finish.) I was absolutely ready to do the necessary research, phone calls and back-work that lay the grounds for a great review. Then I tasted this product- Tres Leches Triple Cream Liqueur. I was struck not only by its textural and flavor depth, but I was even more impressed by its finish. The longest I have ever seen from any spirit. Seriously, this coats the palate and simply won’t let go. Breathe five minutes down the road and you will experience this spirit as you have just finished your first drink.

It must have something to do with the lactates. Like drinking a glass of milk- it stays with you for quite some time, even if you brush your teeth. The entirety of your maxillofacial sensory system is awashed in the cool, round and creamy glow. It simply binds to any cells it comes into contact with, even as vapor.

Don’t get me wrong. It is a crème liqueur, similar to Bailey’s. Bailey’s it is not, though. This is a much bigger, badder beast. It is the undisputed champion in this category, trust me.

I enjoyed it so much; I introduced it to some friends after a dinner at my house. Now I have to go buy more.

Review and article by BourbonBlog.com’s Beverage Consultant Chef/Mixologist Stephen Dennison (

Popularity: 14% [?]