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After The Flood
Another year, another WhiskyFest down in the books. Malt Advocate magazine's annual festival celebrating all there is to celebrate about whiskies was, by all notes, a rousing success. Many exhibitor booths were four-to-five deep with patrons and customers paying $110 a pop to sample whisky. This having been our third WhiskyFest, we had to look long and hard for some new brands.
One that stood out was Duncan Taylor & Co, Ltd., purveyors of some of the finest single malt and single grain scotches on the planet. At their booth attendees were treated to a serious crash course in single cask, non chillfiltered and non-colored scotches, all with steep price tags; their 20-year-old "Rare Auld" retails at around $120 a bottle. But damn if it wasn't tasty.
WhiskyFest was also bittersweet, as fans of whisky and industry professionals alike paid their respects to Diageo Master of Whisky Martin Duffy. Recently appointed the Bushmills Whisky Ambassador to Ireland, Duffy left for a two-year stay in Dublin yesterday where he's ostensibly supposed to "teach the Irish to drink." And good luck with that. Duffy was largely responsible for putting together the "Whisky Week" events leading up to the fest, and a roast in his honor Saturday night at Chief O'Neill's drew out co-workers and well-wishers. His efforts will be sorely missed.
There's more to WhiskyFest than just whisky. Other spirits and brews were represented.
North Shore Distillery had a major presence at WhiskyFest. Owners Derek and Sonja Kassebaum brought out their full line of gins, vodkas, and cordials. North Shore Aquavit is worth a look: teeming with caraway and anise, it has a wonderful mouthfeel.
The Kassebaums also were previewing their newest offerings, white and green absinthe (pictured), which Sonja Kassebaum said should be hitting local shelves in a couple weeks once the finished label art is ready. The 110 proof white absinthe has a sharp, herbal bite to it. the 124 proof green absinthe is, oddly, smoother than the white. It also has an amazing mouthfeel. With absinthe shaping up as the year's new hot spirit, this should sell well.
Greg Hall of Goose Island has been preaching the gospel of barrel aged beers to attendees the past few years at WhiskyFest. At his seminar Friday night, Hall unveiled Goose Island's newest barrel-aged beer. Slated for an autumn release, "Juliet" is brewed with 25 percent rye malt and aged for six months in Robert Craig cabernet casks. Augmented with brett yeast for a secondary fermentation and infused with marion berries, this is unlike anything Goose Island has ever brewed before. It has the weight and consistency of a hearty ale with the sour flavor of a lambic or fruit beer
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Chuck, I should have met up with you. I was there! Did you try the bierschnapps? Crazy. Did you sit in on any tasting/seminar things?
The Juliet I sampled was part of Greg Hall's barrel-aged beer seminar. I also sat in briefly on the Japanese whisky seminar. Years of being in the service industry have honed my BS sensor to detect that those seminars are sales pitches for the marketing companies representing their specific whisky brands (the great whisky debate comes to mind). They're entertaining, but the best sales pitch is to go to the booths, taste 'em out, and ask questions.
That's where the women are at, anyway. From sales reps to those Delilah's employees in Betty Page getups, you'd be hard-pressed to leave the main hall.
No, no, I agree. Most of that stuff is done by marketing and sales reps, polished to a dull shine, and slapped in front of you. But, I did get to try some pretty rare bourbons from Heaven Hill, so that was pretty cool.
I liked the main hall the best too. For my first time for being there, it was pretty overwhelming. Should have planned a little better.
It can be daunting at first. This year's version seemed smaller. There was a lot more room to walk or, in my case, ogle the reporters from Irish Public Radio (who knew?).
This event reeks of douchey goodness.
How do you not walk out of there hammered?
Because I'm a pro, matty. I'm a pro.
Wait, I walked out of there hammered. But not too hammered. Does that make me a semi-pro?