Japanese Cocktails.

This month, Suntory and Chronicle Books are releasing a new book called Japanese Cocktails, by Yuri Kato. Born and raised in Japan, Ms. Kato's book explores Japan’s cocktail heritage, near mystical spirits, traditions, travel destinations and more. Two chapters are dedicated to whiskey, the history of Japanese whiskey and Japanese whiskey cocktails.

One Japanese-originated trend that is becoming popular here is the ice ball. In the U.S., the ball is usually molded, but most Japanese bars stay true to tradition by hand carving each ball with a pick from a large block of ice. This is usually done by apprentice bartenders, who almost always start at the carving board. The large, round ice balls are great for whiskey drinks because they melt more slowly than cubes, thus preserving the flavor profile of the whiskey.

The book's official release date is February 17, but it is apparently available now on Amazon.

Suntory, which is underwriting the publication, is the largest distilled spirits producer in Japan.

Potemkin Craft Distilleries.

Thanks to High West Distillery & Saloon, I have coined a new term: Potemkin Craft Distillery. It’s a play on the term ‘Potemkin Village,” which is defined as "something that appears elaborate and impressive but in actual fact lacks substance."

The original term refers to Grigori Aleksandrovich Potemkin, who allegedly had elaborate fake villages constructed for Catherine the Great's tours of the Ukraine and Crimea, in an effort to show his colonization efforts there were successful. It came into common usage during the Cold War, to refer to similar Soviet efforts to portray living conditions in the USSR as better than they actually were.

I call High West a Potemkin Craft Distillery because the company’s most highly touted products, its Rendezvous and Rocky Mountain Ryes, are whiskeys High West did not make but, rather, merely bought and bottled. In the fine print, High West explains that they “sourced the whiskey from back east while we are waiting for our own whiskey to age."

I am skeptical in part because no one who has taken this approach has subsequently replaced their third-party product with a house-made one.

In High West’s case, the High West Distillery & Saloon in Park City, Utah, just opened in December of 2009, but High West has had a still and a distilling license for four years. They could have a four-year-old whiskey of their own creation on the market right now, but they don’t.

The splash page of High West’s web site talks about "award winning small batch mountain crafted spirits." Another page talks about how "High West Distillery & Saloon started with one man’s passion to make a great Rocky Mountain Whiskey." It doesn't mention that his dream is, so far, unrealized.

Finally, on the product page, after the words, "High West Distillery crafts products for people who want great taste and appreciate quality ingredients, small batches, and the distiller's personal touch," comes the admission that the whiskeys were made somewhere else by someone else. It is hard not to conclude that High West’s intention is to fuzz the distinction.

Why do I keep harping on this? Because I have repeatedly had the experience of someone raving to me about this terrific whiskey made by this little distillery in Utah. When I explain that the whiskey was most likely made in Indiana, not Utah, they express disbelief and disappointment. Until High West calls its business "High West Distillery, Saloon & Rectifier," I will continue to call them a Potemkin Craft Distillery.

There are micro-distilleries such as Finger Lakes, Dry Fly, Garrison Brothers and others who have eschewed the course of buying spirits for resale and have, instead, found a business model that allows them to only present products of their own manufacture. I tend to regard those companies more highly than I do companies that take the other approach. That's my prerogative as a consumer.

So while I commend High West for making some exceptional orphaned whiskeys available to the marketplace, I continue to find the company's Potemkin Craft Distillery pose disingenuous.

Bourbon and Catholics.

The Rev. William Francis Medley's ordination as bishop of the Diocese of Owensboro takes place this afternoon.

This blog does not ordinarily report news of the Roman Catholic Church, but Father...soon Bishop...Medley's last name caught my eye. In his new diocese, his family is best known for making whiskey.

I don't know Bishop Medley's family background, but he hails from Marion County, Kentucky. He served at several churches in Bardstown, including St. Joseph Proto Cathedral. Most recently he was pastor of St. Bernadette Parish in Prospect, a suburb of Louisville.

The Medley family has been in the Bardstown area (Washington, Marion and Nelson Counties) since the early 19th century, when John Medley brought his family there from Maryland. That state had been founded by Lord Baltimore as a haven for English Catholics. Other early Catholic settlers in that part of Kentucky included the Beams, Wathens, Haydens and other prominent names in Kentucky whiskey history. In 1901, George Medley took his branch to Owensboro. Several different Medley-owned or Medley-led distilleries dominated the whiskey industry in Owensboro thereafter until the last one closed down in 1992. That distillery, now called Charles Medley Distillers Kentucky, is trying to make a comeback under new ownership.

The Owensboro Diocese has 79 parishes and approximately 52,000 believers.

Yum!

Last night I was in Austin, Texas, and looking for something to eat. During the day, I had heard how Austin has seen a boom recently in food wagons, including some operated by legit chefs. It is a lot cheaper than starting a new restaurant and in a city that holds its weirdness as a point of pride, why not?

Typically, it's a trailer in a parking lot. The trailer is both kitchen and sales counter. It's strictly carry-out unless you want to sit on the curb.

The one I happened upon last night was about where Fifth Street meets I-35. I had been promenading east along Sixth Street, naturally, where there is a large concentration of drinking establishments, and had just turned around to head back west when I spotted it. The operation wasn't all in the trailer, as the BBQ cooker was out back. It was conveniently located next to Twins Liquor Store.

I got the two meats plate ($8), with brisket, beef sausage, potato salad, pinto beans, dill pickles, raw onions, and two slices of white bread (all the appropriate fixings), then picked up a 375 ml of J.T.S. Brown bourbon at Twins ($5.99).

The brisket was a little fatty but had great flavor. That flavor just came back to me as I was thinking about what to have for dinner tonight. There is plenty of good Q in Chicago, but not in my neighborhood, and it's pretty miserable out tonight, so foraging in the fridge will probably be my dinner strategy.

Street food is always a roll of the dice, but I had a good feeling when I saw the people hanging around the Night Ministry free coffee wagon parked on the same lot. This one came up a winner.

New. Reader. Mailed.

I just now walked across the street and dropped the latest issue of The Bourbon Country Reader (Volume 12, Number 5) into the mailbox.

This time we remember the proud whiskey-making history of Peoria, Illinois. Don't laugh. In 1880, Peoria led the nation in distilled spirits production (most of it whiskey). Peoria distilleries made more than 18 million gallons, compared to just 15 million for all of Kentucky.

Speaking of Kentucky, the Kentucky Distillers' Association has just released a report about bourbon's economic impact on Kentucky. We share some highlights.

And we review the Woodford Reserve Master's Collection Seasoned Oak release.

The Bourbon Country Reader is published six times a year. Subscriptions are $20/year for U.S. addresses. $24.50 for Canada, and $28.50 for everybody else. Click here to subscribe with PayPal or any major credit card.

Sazerac Explains, Sort Of.

When I heard that Sazerac had withdrawn from the KDA, I sent a note to Sazerac spokesperson Angela Traver asking why. Here is her reply:

"After being a member of the KDA for a long period of time, we elected to evaluate that membership and decided that it is in the best interests of all our distilleries to chart a course independently of the KDA. Tours at Buffalo Trace and Tom Moore will continue. We have even added some new and fun stuff to our Trace Tour—a Cooperage Display provided by Independent Stave and a trip into Warehouse D, which has a few surprises. We also will be opening some riverfront hiking trail and the Firehouse Café this spring. Lots of good stuff!"

That may be all the explanation we are going to get for now. I won't speculate, but it's worth noting that the primary work of the KDA isn't tourism promotion, it's lobbying the Kentucky legislature and other parts of state government. Buffalo Trace is the only distillery in Frankfort, the state capital. There clearly is some kind of disagreement at work here, although no one so far is saying what it is.

Sazerac Quits KDA, Bourbon Trail.

On New Year's Eve, the Kentucky Distillers' Association (KDA) received a letter from Sazerac, Inc., notifying it that Sazerac was withdrawing from the KDA effective immediately. No reason was given.

Since it is no longer a member of KDA, Sazerac's two Kentucky distilleries--Buffalo Trace and Tom Moore--are no longer part of the Kentucky Bourbon Trail.

The people at KDA have not subsequently received an explanation, and have not announced the resignation as such, but today they put out a routine press release about the election of officers and directors (Chris Morris is the new Chairman), and Sazerac's name was notably absent. Upon being asked, they confirmed the facts above.

No explanation has been given by Sazerac.

The KDA, organized in 1880, now includes Beam Global Spirits & Wine (Jim Beam and Maker’s Mark); Brown-Forman; Diageo North America; Four Roses; Heaven Hill and Wild Turkey.

We'll know eventually what this is all about. For now, don't read too much into it. It certainly does not mean Sazerac is planning to stop offering tours at either of its distilleries. What is does mean remains to be seen.