Bourbon: an overview of 8 brands + sub-brands

Bourbon - is a real American alcoholic beverage made mainly from corn.

Interestingly, the only state in America where the production of this drink is legally allowed is Kentucky.

Most amber spirits lovers often confuse whiskey with bourbon, but to find out once and for all which brands are bourbon, we will make a brief review of the brightest and most interesting representatives of this category.

More about bourbon и how to drink properly

Jim Beam

It is the most famous bourbon in the world. Although in 1795, when Jacob Beam prepared the very first batch of the drink for testing, he did not expect such a success.

According to experts, one of the main factors of success of this bourbon is a special recipe of yeast, which was developed by Jake himself almost 225 years ago. They are used to this day to produce Jim Beam.

In America, by the decision of the Senate, this brand of bourbon was awarded the title of national drink.

The Jim Beam distillery also produces other brands of bourbon:

1. Red Stag

2. Basil Hayden's

3. Knob Creek

4. Booker's

5. Baker's

Maker’s Mark

This is a special kind of premium bourbon, which is produced in a limited batch of no more than 19 barrels per year.

In 1840, a factory was built to produce Maker’s Marked by the creator of the drink's recipe, Bill Samuels, but the first bottle of bourbon was sold only 118 years later in 1958.

The brand's corporate identity was developed by Bill's wife, she came up with the original cognac bottle shape, and the main sign of the drink's authenticity is the red wax dripping down the neck of the bottle.

Blanton’s

This is a unique type of bourbon that is produced almost by hand. It is a pure drink without any additives or blends. It is bottled directly from the barrel and then corked. No more than 250 bottles are produced from one such barrel, and each of them has its own individual number.

The creator of Blanton's bourbon is Albert Blanton, who invented the single barrel technology. He worked and studied for 50 years and in 1984 finally launched the production of the legendary drink.

The cork of the bottle has a figure of a horse and a jockey, which is a recognized trademark of Blanton bourbon’s. In Kentucky, the tradition of horse breeding is as strong as the tradition of bourbon production. In addition to the horse and the jockey, each bottle has individual letters engraved in different positions on the statuette to spell out the word BLANTONS.

Woodford Reserve

A premium brand of American bourbon produced in limited batches at the distillery formerly known as Old Crow Distillery. James Christopher Crowe built it in 1812 in Kentucky. But after a stunning success, after a while the distillery went into oblivion.

The second life of bourbon was given by Brown-Forman. It bought and restored the plant in 1995 and resumed production of Woodford Reserve according to James' old recipe.

The blend of the drink includes about 40 varieties of single malt and grain whiskeys, the minimum aging period of which is 6 years.

Wild Turkey

A classic bourbon that is no less popular than Jim Beam.

The history of the drink began in 1855, when Austin Nicollet was the owner of a fairly successful shop that specialized in selling alcohol, spices and coffee. And to diversify its range, Austin developed his own bourbon recipe and launched it on sale (until 1870, the drink was sold exclusively in barrels).

The modern name of the brand appeared in 1940, thanks to wild turkey hunters. They liked the taste of bourbon so much that they suggested calling it "Wild Turkey".

Today, this brand is owned by the Italian manufacturer of wines, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages - Gruppo Campari.

Four Roses

This is a great bourbon that is produced in America and bottled in Scotland. However, due to a special accident, this drink is absolutely unpopular in the United States and practically nothing is known about it there. Since the 50s, this brand has been produced mainly for export to Europe and Asia.

The production and sale of this bourbon began in 1860, and the official registration of the Four Roses trademark took place only in 1888.

Today, the brand is owned by Four Roses Distillery LLC, and it is gradually trying to bring the legendary whiskey back to the US market.

Kentucky Tavern

The legendary Kentucky Tavern bourbon was created and launched by James Thompson in 1900.

The bourbon is aged in white oak barrels, which is considered one of the best woods for long aging of spirits. The wood has high strength and an exceptional level of vanilla notes.

Currently, the Kentucky Tavern brand and the right to produce and sell the drink belongs to Sazerac.

Johnny Drum

This is an outstanding bourbon produced in Bardstown, Kentucky, by Kentucky Bourbon Distillers Ltd.

Johnny Drum was awarded a Double Gold Medal at the World Spirits Competition held in San Francisco in 2010. The famous critic Morgan Murphy said: "This whiskey has notes of rye and pepper with sweet vanilla overtones and hints of cigar.".

Update: 10.02.2018

Category: Whiskey and Bourbon