Bourbon Tasting: Evan Williams Single Barrel Vintage

Ever wondered how a simple birthday toast could turn into a deep dive into whiskey history and appreciation? Join us on the B-Team Podcast as we toast to Josh's birthday with a special tasting of the Evan Williams Single Barrel Vintage bourbon. You'll learn about the fascinating history of single-barrel vintages and the evolving bourbon market landscape. Hear Matt's triumphant tale of tracking down this bourbon gem in Northwest Arkansas for just $35, and enjoy our lighthearted reflections on bourbon scarcity during the pandemic. It's a journey filled with laughter, camaraderie, and insights into the bourbon world that promise to expand your appreciation and maybe even inspire you to bolster your own whiskey collection.

But that's not all—our conversation takes a historical twist as we unravel the story of the Bottled-in-Bond Act of 1897. Discover how Colonel Taylor and fellow Kentucky distillers courageously addressed dangerous practices in whiskey production, leading to a pivotal law that raised the bar for whiskey safety and quality. We share personal stories of how these historical insights have influenced our whiskey experiences at home, offering practical tips for fellow enthusiasts balancing family life with a passion for quality bourbon. Raise your glass for an engaging episode filled with humor, heartfelt stories, and a shared love for the storied spirit of bourbon. Cheers!

Transcript

Speaker 1 0:11

Welcome to the B-Team Podcast. I am your host, josh Saffron, with my co-host, matt Mars and our permanent guest Rob Nelson. We're here every week to talk to you about all things Bentonville, bourbon and business the B-Team Podcast. Be here. Welcome to the B-Team Podcast. I'm your host, josh Safra, with my co-host.

Speaker 2 0:29

Matt Morris and our permanent guest, rob Nelson. Welcome, bobby. Hey, bobby, thanks for being here with us today. Yes, sir, yeah, it's always good when and it's Josh's birthday, so we brought a little special Evan Williams single barrel vintage because Josh is vintage, so we brought some vintage. I was going to bring a cupcake in today for him with a candle, but I kind of ran out of time.

Speaker 1 0:50

Well, in fairness, you texted my wife and said what is Josh like? And she told you I like $140 bottle and you showed up with a $35 bottle. So I know how that makes me feel about it, where I stand in your relationship. When's the birthday party?

Speaker 2 1:01

I stand in your relationship. When's the birthday party Tonight? Oh, at your house. I didn't get invited. It's at your house, it's at your house.

Speaker 3 1:08

Trick or treat, trick or treat it's on my feet.

Speaker 2 1:11

Give me something good to eat, I'll give you something good to eat.

Speaker 1 1:15

Well, oh boy. And we always have Russ here, the man the, by the way, that was.

Speaker 2 1:23

Yeah, we were so fortunate.

Speaker 1 1:24

The fact, that he moved here from Dallas for us to be on the B-Team podcast and he likes to come on the podcast. Well, he moved here, forget his kids and his grandkids. He moved here for the B-Team podcast, which I really when you think about that for a second, you go wow, that's a big deal.

Speaker 3 1:36

That's a little unknown, fun fact. You know that I moved up here because who knew when I moved up here three and a half years ago that three years into this, when we'd be doing this podcast, you knew it was a premonition Visionary, it was very yeah, it was very 1984-ish.

Speaker 3 1:53

So the reason, and speaking of 1984, you know that's the year that Blandon's released the original single barrel of the United States, 1984. And now we're having a single barrel today from Evan Williams. That's the only single barrel that I know that does have a vintage date on it. So, technically, all single barrels can have a vintage because they're from one specific year. Because a single barrel has to be from one specific year, it can't be because it's not a blend, so they're the only ones that will then, on their single barrel, put on the vintage date.

Speaker 3 2:27

So this was distilled in 2016.

Speaker 3 2:32

And this is what's really cool on these guys, too, is they do put the date it was distilled the day it was dumped for bottling.

Speaker 3 2:39

So we know with confidence this is eight years, two months right now, and while you originally, you know, brought this out over 20 years ago, about 20 years ago, everything was about 10 years. But then when we get into the bourbon, where we are today, you know hard to find whiskeys and so forth, and if you know rise bourbons, you know any whiskies you were talking about, thinking about. You know this is a brand that was everywhere and then during the pandemic, it was nowhere and then heaven hill took it off the marketplace and they are bringing it back in select retailers around the united states, like again, matt found this up here, uh, in northwest arkansas recently, but when we're at the distillery in september you know, I did buy some and they the lady did say that it's select retailers of kentucky and then it's going to be going out into select markets around the United States, which is good, because for a valued brand you bought this for $35? Yeah, for a $35 bottle of bourbon in this day and age, it's a great value.

Speaker 2 3:37

Well, of course, and it was half gone, so I mean, so I get $17 of value to take care of me.

Speaker 3 3:43

Evan Williams. He's a legacy distiller. He was the first one to have his license before Kentucky was a commonwealth. What's the proof on this? This is 86.6 proof.

Speaker 2 3:55

He's right Now because Evan Williams doesn't dip a lot of their bottles.

Speaker 3 4:03

No, they're single barrel and they'll do some of their limited releases. But they're single barrel and they'll do some of their limited releases, but their single barrel. They've been doing this dip Okay.

Speaker 2 4:10

I think it's kind of cool when they do that. I like the dip, yeah. Now, when you back in the day, Were you selling this kind of stuff? I've always been bullish on this brand. I showed him this and he was like bring that one. I love that.

Speaker 3 4:26

I'm very bullish. I was very sad, just like again. You know, one of my favorite bourbon is from Heaven Hill, is Hedery McKenna. When that went off the marketplace it kind of was a bummer, because that is really one of my favorite bourbons day to day. And then when this all of a sudden left the marketplace, it's one of those same things Because, again, when the bourbon bullies and hoarders started finding out about this, they go wow for $30 a bottle. And then it was off the shelves everywhere.

Speaker 2 4:52

For an eight-year.

Speaker 1 4:55

I mean, it's an eight-year bourbon. Somebody texted me that Henry McKenna was up in Jane and for $45. I saw that I hadn't seen that pricing in forever.

Speaker 2 5:01

It's like $80, $75.

Speaker 1 5:04

Well, I've saw it $45, $97.

Speaker 3 5:05

I saw it the other day for $75, $80 here locally, but when you texted me, jane, $45 for McKenna, I go. Is that? I mean they're just moving it? That was crazy.

Speaker 1 5:17

I mean that's the price when I was buying them.

Speaker 2 5:19

Was that the 10-year? Yeah, the 10-year.

Speaker 1 5:23

It's a fantastic price.

Speaker 3 5:24

Anyway, Heaven Hill, because they're an independent, family-owned distillery. The Shapiro brothers and again I did buy that five brothers I want to talk about that sometime at another time. Everything they have is quality because they're an independent, family-owned distillery so they're not tied accordingly or anything on Wall Street. They keep their products down about $10 to $15 more than the average, because they can, because they're independent.

Speaker 2 5:50

So here's a question I have for you, russ Are all of these eight years in chain? No, they're not. They move up, or?

Speaker 3 5:56

down.

Speaker 1 5:56

Because, I have a 2012,.

Speaker 2 5:58

and I didn't have time to look to see what the date was. I would probably, so you didn't bring me a 2012 for my birthday, you brought the 2015?. Well, that's just what I. It was closer to the crowd, it was grab and go man, it wasn't as dusty.

Speaker 3 6:13

It wasn't as dusty as the other one, if I remember correctly, the 12, the 12, the 10. At least you brought something.

Speaker 2 6:21

I came empty-handed. All those were 10. But I made it Okay, we're bringing the 12 next.

Speaker 3 6:24

Now that could be a 9 or an 8, but I know they have been a lot of 10. I used to have a lot of 10.

Speaker 2 6:29

So that was like 28 bucks when I bought it. I bought it at the grocery store. That was back when you could buy bourbon at the grocery store, but for 86.6 proof for an 8-year-old single-barrel bourbon this is good stuff to know.

Speaker 3 6:44

Again. If we were to do the formal tasting this afternoon, this would be in the front of the lineup. I would put this in the front of the lineup before Blanton's are right there. With Blanton's in the lineup For 86.6 to start off, you can't beat it against another good cocktail whiskey yeah, I'm a fan.

Speaker 2 7:01

This is very tasty and, again, that's good. It's your birthday present.

Speaker 3 7:05

He is a true legacy distiller. Who's your birthday?

Speaker 1 7:09

Try it with the dropper.

Speaker 3 7:11

Try it with the dropper guys.

Speaker 2 7:13

Okay, we gotta do the dropper. I don't have much of this. Well, we got more here. Get a little nipper in there. A little nipper, my birthday present. So, rob, he's been traveling so much. Wow, that's spicy. He and I haven't had a nipper in a long time. I'm going to just leave that alone, because Bart Nelson's always open, but Well, when it's you eating in. Brewer, it's kind of hard to get an invite. No, Matt's been adulting. I don't think it changes this one much either. I think for me the spice level accelerated.

Speaker 1 7:47

There's a big difference, I think, with the— Really.

Speaker 2 7:50

Yeah, I like it just as much.

Speaker 1 7:52

I just want you to have some more of my birthday present before you go.

Speaker 2 7:55

But again it's just a lot to love. Here I do a little bit more fascinating around.

Speaker 3 8:00

Again. This is one of these brands where people walk by it. Just like I tell people all the time, go back to Evan Williams block label, go back to. I think one of their best values from Evan Williams we're going to reveal one of these days is their bottle and bond. Oh, we use that at fishing in Wyoming.

Speaker 2 8:17

Yeah, that's what we use for everything $25. For all of our old pastures and all that.

Speaker 3 8:21

You can't beat that as a $20 to $25 bottle and bond Everything from Evan Williams. I always think they just knock it out of the park again. To see this again in the marketplace makes me happy. You guys made my day on Halloween. How about that?

Speaker 2 8:37

So real quick for the viewers right Single barrel coming from a single barrel. Correct, Right Small batch just above the single barrel coming from multiple barrels, but not as many as most.

Speaker 3 8:47

So two plus barrels can equal a small batch. Right, our government does not regulate what a small batch is to each distiller. They let their blenders do their thing. So technically, like you see at Jefferson's they'll say very small batch, that's four or five barrels. So you're going to have about 25, 50, 75 barrels as a small batch and then bottle and bond. Bottle and bond act from March of 1897 simply means a minimum of four years in the oak, put in a bonded part of the government used to be a government warehouse but now inside the distiller. So once it comes off the still this clears the water we have in front of us Before it goes to the barrel you declare it as a bottle and bond that it sits in that warehouse in a bond apart for a minimum of four years. But that could be a large batch. It could be a large batch Unless it says, like we were just talking about Henry McKenna's single barrel, that'll be one single barrel and this is the same.

Speaker 3 9:43

One barrel. There's no blood here at all.

Speaker 2 9:45

This barrel 79 is only going to taste. All these are only going to taste and all single barrels. So can you have a small batch bottle and bonded? Yes, you can. Okay, you can't have a single batch bottle and bonded, we can have a single. I think you can have anything bottled as long as you pay the government to keep it in there as long as you follow the laws, the government laws you're moving it to their place or you can inside the distillery.

Speaker 3 10:09

Now too you can.

Speaker 2 10:10

It used to be just back in 1897 so what's the benefit of bought, like all right, that label, so like as a consumer? Why do I, why would I want to buy that so back?

Speaker 3 10:21

we're educating here so I'm just gonna do today.

Speaker 2 10:23

Today it's probably not as big of a deal true, but back.

Distillers and Government Regulation

Speaker 3 10:26

So back in the day, up to 1897, so march of 1897. Uh, colonel, you know, colonel taylor and other distillers from kentucky went to the government when they, you know, get what they want to washington said help, police our industry. We have distillers that are blinding and killing our customers the way they're treating the methyl alcohol and distillation. So they were trying to stretch out that alcohol. But with methyl alcohol we know what's going to do to you over time, what it's going to do to you kill you and blind you. Because they were stepping on it with tobacco and other herbs and spices so they could stretch their supply out. Guess why would they stretch their supply out? To make money.

Speaker 2 11:07

Bastards yeah.

Speaker 3 11:09

And so Colonel Taylor and other distillers went to the government. So in March of 1897, the government wrote this law and if you're going to be a bottle and bought product, you're going to go into a bonded warehouse the Bonded Act of 1897, you're going to be not put into the bottle after proofing it down less than 100 proof. It's going to be right at 100 proof. Age, the minimum of four years, and it's going to be from one distilling season. So that distilling season is going to be January to June or July through December. So that's your distilling season. So technically, just like this vintage Evan Williams, technically a bottle and bond can be a vintage dated bourbon. But to put bottle and bond vintage dated X, y, z, a, b, c is too much information for the average consumer to say I just want to drink my whiskey, I don't want to have all this other micro information and macro information. They just want to drink it because they enjoy it and they move on to something else.

Speaker 2 12:14

Does that answer your question? It did. And just to let you know, after our trip to the trail I came home and rearranged all my shelves. Oh, got to see it. After all the education, I haven't seen them. I would have been invited over.

Speaker 1 12:26

Will you get an invite over if you make the Ian and Brewer cut?

Speaker 2 12:36

Will you come over and see it someday? That'd be great. Yeah, it's funny because, yeah, you guys are still running around little ones and your wives have got you on daddy duty all the time. So, yeah, yeah, bar nelson's always open. Yeah, well, cheers.