If you’ve paid attention to the spirits world in the last decade, you’ve likely seen a lot of sustainability practices. You might have heard about the carbon-negative gin from English brand Cooper King or Mijenta Tequila, which not only has a sustainable designer and environmentalist as one of its founders, but its labels and boxes are even made with recycled agave waste. And while we’re all for sustainability and doing your part to help the environment, neither of these brands use sustainability to exclusively make their products taste better like one whiskey brand is doing.
A sustainable sipper
Buzzard’s Roost Sipping Whiskey might be the most aptly named whiskey ever made. With a name like that, you know exactly what you’re in for when you crack open a bottle. The unique thing is how the brand can guarantee its product is sweet, mellow, and sippable. And it’s all about sustainability. This sipping whiskey is only $39.99, and Buzzard Roost credits one practice for their ability to keep the price so low — they re-use their proprietary whiskey-soaked barrels for secondary maturation.
The newest addition to the brand’s range of super-premium bourbons and rye whiskeys, this American whiskey is 105-proof and was designed as flavorful sipping whiskey as well as a versatile mixer for Old Fashioneds, Manhattans, and other whiskey-centric cocktails.
This sourced whiskey begins with a mash bill of 75% corn, 21% rye, and 4% malted barley. It’s first aged in charred oak barrels. It then has a second maturation in previously used proprietary whiskey barrels for a total age of at least 36 months minimum.
“We had great fun creating our first American Whiskey,” Buzzard’s Roost Master Blender Jason Brauner said in a press release. “We had the pick of our whiskey-soaked barrels and the flavor profiles each designed for. We think we’ve come up with something delicious as a sipper and will elevate any whiskey cocktail.”
The result is a surprisingly complex sipping whiskey with a nose of cinnamon candy, orange peels, candied almonds, and vanilla and a palate of almond cookies, cinnamon, candied orange peels, toffee, and toasted vanilla beans.
“I love that we can get a second use out of our proprietary barrels,” said Buzzard’s Roost CEO Judy Hollis Jones. “It’s a big environment and economic standpoint. After a single use for secondary aging our other Buzzard’s Roost whiskies, these barrels still have plenty of flavor in them.”
Where can I buy a bottle?
Sadly, you won’t be able to stroll into your local liquor store and grab a bottle of this unique whiskey, It’s only $39.99 for a 750ml bottle, but if you want to try this slow-sipping whiskey, you’ll have to visit the Buzzard’s Roost Whiskey Row Experience in Louisville, Kentucky. As of right now, it’s only available at the distillery experience. At least this gives you a reason to take a road trip to Louisville. While you’re headed there, why not take in some of the other exceptional distilleries along the way?
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