Beam Signature Craft Wheated Bourbon + 6 other new labels

[BourbonJoe]

Hear hear!

My favorite quote from a craft distiller,..."it comes off the still at such a high quality that it only needs one year of aging."

Yeah Oscar and If your Aunt had balls, she'd be your Uncle. (long time no see)

Joe :usflag:

[OscarV]

Yeah Oscar and If your Aunt had balls, she'd be your Uncle. (long time no see)

Joe :usflag:

[OscarV]

The brown rice Beam might be nice.

I would assume that the rice would be of a mild taste allowing the sweetness of the corn to come through.

The same way it does with a wheated bourbon.

[squire]

I find them all intriguing, wonder if the rice version was designed with the overseas market in mind.

[BrooklynBorbone]

I don't know how off Noe is on saying that these will trickle out. Remember, Beam has a new owner, a Japanese owner now. The Japanese LOVE limited, small release stuff. Whether its shoes, cars or whiskey. Beam has never really been in that market before Japanese ownership like other distilleries have been. Correct me if I'm wrong, but hasn't the only real limited product before the switch been the Distiller's Masterpiece? And even that was just a gift shop bottle. Bookers 25th came after the switch as well, and I'm sure that may have been part of a market test for the soon to be new owners...worked pretty well.

[ModernThirst]

I spoke with a beam spokesman over the Holiday, and he had a little information to share.

These were all distilled at Clermont and Boston (he has had quite a few people ask if the wheated iterations may have been sourced at makers or had anything to do with Makers Mark since it's the same grain they use). These were all experiments began, obviously, 12 or so years ago by jim beam, and were planned long before the purchase with Suntory was considered. They were undertaken as an experiment to deal with changing prices of grains.

In other words, there was a temporary (or maybe projected?) rye price spike about 15 years ago that scared them, and they wanted to be prepared should one of their main ingredients become cost prohibitive and/or greatly impact the cost of the final product in the marketplace. It was a proactive defensive measure that has turned into a new product for them.

[squire]

Makes as much sense as anything else I've heard though I expect there were other considerations as well.

[tanstaafl2]

Has anybody seen the Beam Quarter Cask in the wild yet? It is beginning to show up in reviews but I don't know if this is just samples or if us common folk can get it yet!

http://www.drinkspirits.com/bourbon/review-jim-beam-signature-craft-quarter-cask-whiskey/

http://whiskycast.com/ratings/jim-beam-signature-craft-quarter-cask/

4 to as much as 8 years in quarter casks seems like a long time unless they are used quarter casks.

And still not sure I would bother to get it anyway (OK, I probably will get at least one!). But the proof used by Beam continues to be a disappointment to me. Probably fits better with the average buyer but they probably aren't as likely to get out of their standard purchasing rut as we whiskey nerds, umm enthusiasts, are.

[ModernThirst]

Makes as much sense as anything else I've heard though I expect there were other considerations as well.

I'm sure the release has a lot to do with the current marketplace. He said they had just never decided what to do with them until recently, but they prefer to not age anything over 12 years anyway, so this was always the time that a decision to release them, blend them, or sell the barrels to an NDP had to be made.

[suntour]

Can't remember where I read it or the source, but these badboys are gonna be $50 / 375mL. Yikes.

[petrel800]

Can't remember where I read it or the source, but these badboys are gonna be $50 / 375mL. Yikes.

Not saying you're wrong as the above link is not from the "source," but the drink spirits review indicates $39.99/750 which is inline with the last 2 they did. The 12 yr old and the Spanish Brandy.

[tanstaafl2]

Can't remember where I read it or the source, but these badboys are gonna be $50 / 375mL. Yikes.

Not saying you're wrong as the above link is not from the "source," but the drink spirits review indicates $39.99/750 which is inline with the last 2 they did. The 12 yr old and the Spanish Brandy.

Always possible they could go crazy with the special grain variations in the "Harvest Bourbon Collection" and try to price them like the BTEC bottles rather than these first three releases I suppose. But I hope that won't be the case. If they do that would perhaps decrease my interest somewhat.

Although probably not! No point in trying to kid myself...

[tanstaafl2]

Can't remember where I read it or the source, but these badboys are gonna be $50 / 375mL. Yikes.

Not saying you're wrong as the above link is not from the "source," but the drink spirits review indicates $39.99/750 which is inline with the last 2 they did. The 12 yr old and the Spanish Brandy.

[petrel800]

Well, that is a hefty markup for an experiment.

[GaryT]

Well, that is a hefty markup for an experiment.

Agreed - I'll be passing. I think BT proved that people will pay a lot for experimental whisky (and while some of those have been interesting, a couple were damn near undrinkable; who wants to feel like the butt of a prank/joke after shelling out that kinda cash?)

[smknjoe]

Cheese 'n' crackers! I'm so glad I stocked up on bourbon when I did. Beam's putting out $100 dollar bottles of bourbon?!?

[ModernThirst]

So Fred Noe spoke last night at the Bourbon Society and we asked about these releases. The Brown Rice and one of the ryes (High rye, I think he said) are due out this year, with the rest next year. He said they werne't his idea, but when he started as MD, Jerry Dalton came to him and said hewanted to experiment with different grains as Fred's first real "outside the barrel" project due to the previously mentioned rye shortage. So they barreled some and that was pretty much it.

Fred said it's been in the back of his mind off and on since then, but he didn't really have a specific plan for them, not knowing if they'd be good or not. This is a one-time thing, as they didn't continue with the grain experiments over the years.

[Josh]

I wish they were cheaper, but I'm glad they're available in 375 ml bottles even at $50. I'm much more inclined to spend $50 on a bottle that size than be stuck with a full bottle of an experiment that might not be very good even if it's less money per ml. I know I'm probably in the minority on this.

[squire]

That price is easier to swallow and I can see how some would be inclined since it's a one off.

[TunnelTiger]

I'm a sucker for a one off. They've got me if I see them.

[garbanzobean]

I wish they were cheaper, but I'm glad they're available in 375 ml bottles even at $50. I'm much more inclined to spend $50 on a bottle that size than be stuck with a full bottle of an experiment that might not be very good even if it's less money per ml. I know I'm probably in the minority on this.

I feel similarly. If I'm going to be stuck drinking a mistake, I'd rather drink 375ml of mistake than 750ml.

[tanstaafl2]

I'm a sucker for a one off. They've got me if I see them.

I feel similarly. If I'm going to be stuck drinking a mistake, I'd rather drink 375ml of mistake than 750ml.

.

Sadly, that describes me as well, as much as I may have already protested otherwise about getting them in this thread! :smiley_acbt:

[dSculptor]

Hey,

I figured this was as good as any spot to post this ... recently tried the finished with brandy one.... this has got to be the first whisky (if you can call it that) that I should have poured out as soon as it hit my lips,absolutely terrible stuff, it was poured from a friends bottle ,so I forced myself to drink it,just out of respect, but not without letting him know how bad it was, in the end he agreed also. I suppose if you were a brandy fan it might be ok,because that's all I tasted was old grapes.:puke:

[jburlowski]

Hey,

I figured this was as good as any spot to post this ... recently tried the finished with brandy one.... this has got to be the first whisky (if you can call it that) that I should have poured out as soon as it hit my lips,absolutely terrible stuff, it was poured from a friends bottle ,so I forced myself to drink it,just out of respect, but not without letting him know how bad it was, in the end he agreed also. I suppose if you were a brandy fan it might be ok,because that's all I tasted was old grapes.:puke:

My reaction was the opposite: I liked it... a lot. But then I like Spanish brandy (which tastes significantly different from what most Americans think of as brandy). Unfortunately it is, IMO, significantly over-priced for what it is.

[tanstaafl2]

My reaction was the opposite: I liked it... a lot. But then I like Spanish brandy (which tastes significantly different from what most Americans think of as brandy). Unfortunately it is, IMO, significantly over-priced for what it is.

I liked it as well although the brandy influence was pretty subtle to me. I find Spanish brandy tends to have far more of a moderately dry sherry character than other brandy does.