Are There Any Small Bourbon Companies?

[bobbyc]

We met the Pogues!

It was indeed a pleasure to meet the Pogues. However they manage their business is fine by me and I have only best wishes for continued success for them.

The Pogue family is A1 in my book. Now, if there were only some single Pogue sisters....

I guess that's the fantasy isn't it, Dane? To marry the distillers daughter and drink the finest White Dog at the wedding!

[gr8erdane]

You betcha! Marry the distiller's daughter, drink that white dog, and learn the business from dear old daddy so I don't have to work these night shifts anymore! Then everytime we have a youngun, put back a barrel to be opened on their 18th birthday. So sorry junior, you'll get some when you turn 21....if there's any left at that time.

[BSS]

I would hope you don't think I'm the one making an off hand insult or putting words in someones mouth. There are a lot of great brands out there that are in fact "slap a label on it"(there could have been a more PC term used instead) brands. In my opinion, thats what any brand that's bought from someone and then labeled and sold as their own product. Does that make it a bad product or improper business practice? Typically no.

When he said it was an insult, the first thing I assumed was that it was not true, especially when he said that they do neither. So thats why I asked the question.
Brandon

[bobbyc]

Then everytime we have a youngun, put back a barrel to be opened on their 18th birthday.

That explains the big families! 10 barrels of fine 18 year bourbon is some pretty good jingle! There's more where that came from! Bring on the Grandbabies we'll lay aside 2 barrels for each of them.

[TNbourbon]

Peter, as you can see, you and your family won some honest appreciation and welcome from many of us with both your bourbon and your personal appearance at our Bourbon Festival gathering. You present a fine bourbon product. I have a bottle I obtained in September in KY, and I can't wait for your production and distribution to expand to Tennessee.
(Another)

[BSS]

Let me ask another question. According to the Pogue website and the neck tag on the bottle, it states "Now, the fourth and fifth generations of Pogues return to offer the discriminating whisky drinker a 91 proof (45.5% alc./vol.) small batch bourbon of superior quality crafted using the original Pogue recipe under a time-honored and fixed formula, never changed or cheapended in character."

My intrepation of this is that the Pogues either make the product from start to finish using the original Pogue recipe, or they have another company make the bourbon using the original formula. Stress the "original" and "fixed" formula as stated in the information supplied by the Pogue company. If like others on the board state, and the Pogues buy their whisky from another producer, does that mean the producer is contracted to make a batch with the original Pogue recipe and then it's aged for the Pogue's?

[squire]

How Peter and his family do it is their business and I applaud them for stepping up to the plate and providing a new expression for our enjoyment. I will buy a bottle as soon as one crosses my path and thank him for the opportuny.

Regards,
Squire

[BSS]

I totally agree that how the Pogue's do there business is their business, but this forum gives outsiders (like us) the opportunity to explore these business practices. A good portion of the postings on this site deals with questions or information about the distilling business. Particularly Chuck and several others have spent many hours exploring just about everything about bourbon and the business of it. I can’t begin to think how many threads that specifically discuss the origins (i.e. ‘it taste like something from this or that distillery’) of a certain bottling or even the legitimacy of its marketing (i.e. Woodford Reserve, Makers, or Bulliet). A few examples would be:
Bulliet Discussion Woodford Makers and Woodford
For me, my talents as a taster are very poor. On the other hand I grew up and still live within a mile of 3 distilleries. My interest is more of the culture and business side of the bourbon industry. Which luckly many others on this board enjoy too.
Brandon

[tdelling]

> Pardon my taking offense at the derogatory "sitting at home in our underwear"
> comment and the equally insulting "slap a label" remark by "Tim".

I apologise for implying (okay, outright saying) that the Pogues make
their bourbon by sitting around in their underwear. I know that it takes
a lot of work to get a bourbon to market. I also apologise for the
slapping-a-label remark as well... you certainly have a handsome bottle,
and good design isn't easy, nor is dealing with bottle makers.

The Pogues have done nothing but treat us StraightBourbonites well, and
I wouldn't want my flippant remarks to sour that relationship in any way.

What I should have said in my post is that, although we're all happy to
see Old Pogue continuing their family traditions and bringing America's bourbon
heritage into the modern day, they are not at present operating a distillery
of their own that makes bourbon start to finish, from grain to the bottle.

Tim Dellinger

[musher]

To what extent do these non-distilling distilleries (Like Pogue, Van Winkle, etc) have their own mash bills, cooking recipes (times and temperatures), and most importantly, their own strains of yeast?