HIRSCH Whiskey Takes Inspiration From “The Greatest Bourbon You’ll By no means Style”  

What we’re consuming: Three releases from HIRSCH Chosen Whiskeys

The place they’re from: Crafted in Bardstown, Kentucky, HIRSCH is a part of the bigger Hotaling & Co. portfolio (Nikka Whisky, Junipero Gin, Outdated Portero Whiskey, and so on.)

Why we’re consuming these: In case you’re unfamiliar with HIRSCH, there’s fairly a backstory right here. The present model is loosely a part of a lineage that features what was as soon as thought of one of the best American whiskey ever produced: A.H. HIRSCH Reserve 16-Yr-Outdated, distilled in 1974 and the centerpiece of Chuck Cowdery’s e book The Greatest Bourbon You’ll By no means Style. 

If yow will discover a bottle of that valuable liquid, be ready to shell out north of $8,800 (although we discovered it on Frootbat for simply $5,630). The Whiskey Wash does a pleasant condensed historical past of the unique HIRSCH bottle, which was distilled at what could be often known as Michter’s Distillery in 1974 in Pennsylvania by Adolph Hirsch, an funding banker and philanthropist. The bottles featured a mash invoice of 75% corn, 13% rye and 12% malted barley.

The liquid wasn’t used, and after an unusually lengthy growing older, the distillery was acquired in 1989. Julian Van Winkle III bottled what was there beneath the moniker A.H. Hirsch Reserve. It will get sophisticated after this, because the model went by way of just a few acquisitions till it will definitely ended up beneath the San Francisco-based Hotaling & Co. (previously Anchor Distilling Firm), which now has a modest vary of bottles launched beneath the HIRSCH banner.

And these HIRSCH whiskeys, whereas nodding to the previous, are their very own factor. 

“We had been attempting to determine what they really did with that unique mash invoice, and it was identical to a primary bourbon — excessive corn, slightly little bit of rye and slightly little bit of malted barley,” says head distiller Kevin Aslan. “So internally, we determined to go heavier on the malted barley than common — the malted barley introduced a pleasant rounded character to the unique. So we thought, ‘We’re going to make the most of a mash invoice excessive in malted barley.’”

So it’s not a enormous connection. “We’re not devoted to 1 type or to 1 state,” Aslan says. “The model began in Pennsylvania with that 16 Yr. Then we introduced it right down to Indiana and Kentucky. So the model now could be actually about journey and exploration.”

HIRSCH does supply its product (primarily from Bardstown but in addition Indiana), although at this level they’re selecting the mash invoice, yeast and barrel location within the warehouse, so it’s pretty proprietary. And a lot of the releases are a mix. “I’m actually stunned what a mix can deliver to a whiskey,” Aslan says. “You’ll be able to specific sure traits in another way — you’ll be able to deliver out flavors you need and make others extra delicate.”

For his or her current Double Oak launch, HIRSCH married a youthful and older bourbon collectively and matured them for a secondary period of time in a used bourbon barrel. “That basically softens it up,” Aslan says. “It offers the whiskeys time to combine.” 

Let’s see how these numerous mash payments and barrel growing older strategies add up (the model additionally has a Single Barrel and a Cask Power launch, the latter of which was completed in 30-Yr-Outdated Hine Cognac XO barrels).

How they style:

• The Horizon combines two straight bourbons distilled in Lawrenceburg, Indiana: 94% of the mix is distilled from a conventional mash invoice and aged a minimal of 4 years, whereas the remaining 6% is distilled from a high-rye mash aged six years. Bottled at 92 proof, the rye spice and black licorice notes dominate at first right here, whereas butterscotch, creme brûlée and orange zest come out in subsequent sippings, all rounded out by a creamy mouthfeel. 
• The Bivouac (pronounced “be∙voo∙ak,” that means short-term camp and not using a tent or cowl) combines two straight bourbons distilled in Bardstown, with a lot of the mix a mash invoice of 74% corn, 18% rye and eight% malted barley, aged a minimal of three years (the opposite half is a six-year bourbon with the next malted barely ratio). It actually does style like a mixture of the 2, with the malt word amplifying the vanilla, caramel and nutty popcorn notes. 
• The Single Barrel Double Oak is a Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey that has been double-barreled in New American Oak and completed in used American Oak barrels. Comprised of two mash payments blended at totally different ratios — an eight-year excessive malted barley and a three-year high-rye — our bottle got here in at 127.7 proof. The oak spice is rather more current right here, together with a little bit of menthol, darkish fruit, baking spices and vanilla. It calms down a bit after the primary sip, although when you like an actual barrel affect, that is your jam. 

Enjoyable reality: So, what’s up with the italicized The that begins every HIRSCH launch? “It’s a little bit of an homage to the packaging of the unique HIRSCH bottles and their fancy fonts,” Aslan says. “It’s additionally a little bit of a press release — it’s not Horizon, it’s The Horizon.”

The place to purchase: Numerous HIRSCH expressions can be found on ReserveBar for $33-$261.