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I'm not sure that small barrels harm the maturation of whiskey at all; see Laphroaig's excellent Quarter Cask scotch, as an example. As an aside, some of the c
by packetized 11y ago
I'm not sure that small barrels harm the maturation of whiskey at all; see Laphroaig's excellent Quarter Cask scotch, as an example.
As an aside, some of the current rock-stars in the 'artisanal' non-distiller producer world make extensive use of MGP/LDI products - High West and Smooth Ambler come to mind. Templeton is an easy (and deserving) target, but I'd rather highlight the resellers that are blending MGP, and are doing amazing things with it. If you're ever in SF, I'd be happy to buy you a flight of whiskies sourced from MGP (sans Templeton) that all exhibit wildly different profiles; it may or may not change your views on MGP.
- tptacek 11y agoThere are High West products I love --- Midwinter's, for instance --- but most of what they sell is forgettable. But I mean, I agree that there are some good MGP users (Angel's Envy is another) --- the problem is, most bottlers who resell MGP aren't good. Wait wait what I meant to say was yes, next time I'm in SFBA (probably mid-Jan), you can definitely buy me whiskey.
- packetized 11y agoBarreled Manhattan Double Rye, Rocky Mountain Rye (12, 16, 21yr), Yippie Ki-Yay... there's a lot to love in High West's line. Also, I'll wager you haven't heard of most of MGP's bottlers - MGP wants it that way. Look at Willett, KGB, et al. Ps: Hard Water on the Embarcadero is fantastic. Hit me up.
- tptacek 11y agoThe annoying thing is that a lot of MGP's resellers also distill high-quality products, and use MGP to fill out their lines.
- kasey_junk 11y agoIt doesn't bother me much. There are what 10 real bourbon distilleries in the world that can produce at commercial levels? If those companies couldn't contract distill then everything would be more expensive & if the little guys couldn't buy from them they also wouldn't be able to do orphan barrel releases or experimental.
- tptacek 11y agoI agree, but if I'm going to buy an MGP rye, I'd rather pay for the Bulleit label than the Willett label. If I'm going to shell out for a Willett bottling, I'd like to think it's something special. Nothing at all against MGP. And major brands using MGP are much less problematic than the "artisanal" "distillers" who do nothing at all but slap a label on MGP.
- deleted 11y ago[deleted]
- dnr 11y agoCan I join? :) I've tasted a few of those but always happy to try more rye. And yes, what I had in mind with my original comment was mostly Willett, and the fantastic Rocky Mountain Rye 21yr.
- spilk 11y agoThis contains a fairly comprehensive list of all operating whiskey distilleries in the US, including brands that label MGP's product: http://recenteats.blogspot.com/p/the-complete-list-of-american-whiskey.html http://recenteats.blogspot.com/p/the-complete-list-of-americ...