Flavored whiskey catergory increasing!

[ThomasH]

While at the liquor store today, I saw a new entry into the flavored whiskey category. Jeremiah Weed introduced " Cherry mash flavored blended bourbon whiskey". This particular version is 90 proof. I didn't know anyone was making bourbon using a cherry mash. Or maybe its Kirsch blended with bourbon whiskey. Who knows. It appears that Beam opened the floodgates with Red Stag. I thought the designation on the label was sort of peculiarly written!

Thomas

[chazjaz]

The same company (Heublein) makes a 100 proof Bourbon Liqueur. I had to try it and thought it was pretty good if you like sweet alcoholic drinks.

[CygnusX-1]

I saw a segreams 7 dark honey drink along with the new evan williams honey reserve the other day.

[loose proton]

and pre-bottled egg nogs abound this holiday season.

[cowdery]

Jeremiah Weed as a brand has been around a long time, maybe 40 years or more. It its similar to Southern Comfort although it contained a little whiskey back when Southern Comfort did not. (It does now.) I assume "cherry mash" means to mash up some cherries, not mash as we normally use the term in whiskey-making. This hardly started with Red Stag. Phillips Union had a cherry-flavored Canadian whiskey (with a little bit of bourbon) several years ago.

I may be wrong but I always thought of Jeremiah Weed, like Southern Comfort, as a liqueur, not a flavored whiskey. A blended bourbon would be a blended whiskey in which the whiskey component is all bourbon, but it's still probably 60+% GNS and 40% or less aged whiskey. A liqueur might contain whiskey but not in any minimum amount, while a blended whiskey must be at least 20% whiskey. The difference between that and a liqueur is mostly the amount of sweetener.

Red Stag is a little different in that the entire alcohol component is straight bourbon so, among other things, it has to be at least 80 proof, while a flavored whiskey can be 70 proof, but no less. A liqueur can be any proof.

[ILLfarmboy]

So, how long will it be before all this flavored stuff crowds out the real deal on the back bars of the nation's taverns and nightclubs?

Sometimes when I go to a restaurant the waitress goes on about the flavored ice teas they have, peach, strawberry, raspberry etc. No, I'd like some tea flavored ice tea, please. Will trying to order unadulterated bourbon in a bar be the same sort of ordeal in the future?

[Ruby K]

So, how long will it be before all this flavored stuff crowds out the real deal on the back bars of the nation's taverns and nightclubs?

Sometimes when I go to a restaurant the waitress goes on about the flavored ice teas they have, peach, strawberry, raspberry etc. No, I'd like some tea flavored ice tea, please. Will trying to order unadulterated bourbon in a bar be the same sort of ordeal in the future?

Oy.Seriously. I sure hope not.

[p_elliott]

So, how long will it be before all this flavored stuff crowds out the real deal on the back bars of the nation's taverns and nightclubs?

Sometimes when I go to a restaurant the waitress goes on about the flavored ice teas they have, peach, strawberry, raspberry etc. No, I'd like some tea flavored ice tea, please. Will trying to order unadulterated bourbon in a bar be the same sort of ordeal in the future?

They don't know what bourbon is in a bar now( or a liquor store for that matter) without all this new BS being added to the mix.

[cowdery]

It's ultimately a good thing because it shows there is interest in the category. Back when bourbon was moribund, nobody would have launched a flavored bourbon because the word "bourbon" would have been the kiss of death. Now, as I've said about Red Stag, you have people who want to think they're drinking bourbon but they want it to taste like peach schnapps, ala Southern Comfort.

The other factor is the whole cocktails thing, which is so huge right now, and also driving new products because the cocktail cultists are always looking for the next new thing.

Ultimately the consumer will decide but I don't think there is any danger looming here.

[p_elliott]

It's ultimately a good thing because it shows there is interest in the category. Back when bourbon was moribund, nobody would have launched a flavored bourbon because the word "bourbon" would have been the kiss of death. Now, as I've said about Red Stag, you have people who want to think they're drinking bourbon but they want it to taste like peach schnapps, ala Southern Comfort.

The other factor is the whole cocktails thing, which is so huge right now, and also driving new products because the cocktail cultists are always looking for the next new thing.

Ultimately the consumer will decide but I don't think there is any danger looming here.

The only big problem I have is the people with lack of knowledge don't know the difference between KSBW and flavored whiskey. And it will hurt the industry in the long run. If the Distilleries would make it clear in their ads, the liquor stores would keep them separate on the shelves, and the bartenders had a clue. I would be OK with it.