SO LONG 2021 AND HELLO 2022 Happy New Year! Under the backdrop of a difficult year globally, 2021 was an amazing year for Barrell Craft Spirits—thanks, in no small part, to the support of our friends, fans, and followers. As we turn the page into 2022, we’re taking a moment to look back and appreciate the best moments of the past year. Here’s what stands out the most. NEW BARRELL RELEASES We launched several new whiskeys in the past year, including BCS Gray Label Whiskey, BCS Gold Label Bourbon, and Barrell Seagrass. Have you tasted them all? We hope so. (If not, visit our store and snag some bottles while they last.) INTRODUCING STELLUM We also launched the brand-new Stellum Spirits in 2021. Inspired by minimalism and simplicity, Stellum is a culmination of everything we’ve learned from decades of experience choosing, blending, and maturing the best American whiskeys. In its first year on the market, Stellum Bourbon and Stellum Rye have earned more than a dozen awards. We also introduced a single barrel program. Shop online for an up-to-the-minute selection of everything Stellum. AN ABUNDANCE OF AWARDS It’s always gratifying to be recognized, and we’re grateful that 2021 brought plenty of accolades for Barrell Craft Spirits from some of the most respected competitions in the country. At the Ultimate Spirits Challenge in New York, four of our products scored 94 points, two were listed in the Ultimate Top 100 Spirits, and ten of our products earned 91 points or higher, putting them all in the “Excellent, Highly Recommended” category. At the San Francisco World Spirits Competition, 14 of our spirits were awarded Gold medals or higher, including 6 Gold medals, 8 Double Gold medals, and two Best-In-Class recognitions: Best Small Batch Bourbon and Best Overproof Rum. BCS won Blender of the Year at Fred Minnick's Ascot Awards and the John Barleycorn Awards. In addition, Barrell Dovetail won Best American Whiskey at the John Barleycorn Awards for the Spring of 2021. Barrell Bourbon Batch 029 received the highest rating for bourbon in the Whisky Advocate magazine Fall 2021 issue, as well as Barrell Bourbon Batch 028 receiving 92 points. Whisky Advocate also put Batch 026 on their list of the 10 Highest-Scoring Whiskies in the Spring 2021 Buying Guide. Wine Enthusiast gave our Private Release Bourbon A01A the highest score of any bourbon reviewed in 2021, 96 points, while Barrell Bourbon Batch 026 picked up 93 points. Finally, we were mentioned and featured in many prominent outlets this year, including Newsweek, Food & Wine, GQ, Men's Journal, Robb Report, UPROXX, Inside Hook, Gear Patrol, and Maxim. GIVING BACK 2021 also gave us the chance to be thankful and give back. We became a sponsor of the Ocean Foundation supporting their work to restore coastal habitats, specifically the conservation and replanting of seagrass meadows. In addition, a portion of the sale price of every bottle of Seagrass with an Ocean Foundation hangtag goes toward funding this important work. These bottles are available at select retailers across the country as well as here. We also sponsored the Bourbon Charity Thanksgiving fundraiser, which raised over $60,000 this year. 100% of all donations raised went to No Kid Hungry, Dare to Care Foodbank, St. Mary's Foodbank, Boys and Girls Clubs of America and Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee. Most recently, we were honored to participate in the Kentucky Bourbon Benefit, an auction whose proceeds support victims of the December tornadoes in western Kentucky and help rebuild communities affected by the storms. REACHING OUT We expanded into a few more states this year, including Alaska, Maine, Vermont, and Wisconsin, as well as Alberta, Canada. We have Ohio on the list for 2022.
CELEBRATION TIME When we raised our glass to a happy, healthy, and joyous 2022, here’s what was inside: the Lady Midnight, a cocktail developed by BCS’s Assistant Blender and Single Barrel Program Manager Nic Christiansen. She was inspired by a bone marrow dish by former Chef Bobby Benjamin at Butchertown Grocery in Louisville, Kentucky. “He used bourbon barrel smoked sugar in the dish, and I loved the way the bourbon and savory bone marrow worked together,” says Nic. “I immediately wanted to create a bourbon cocktail with bone marrow.” Nic decided to infuse sherry with bone marrow using a technique called “fat washing,” which allows you to imbue the flavor of oily or fatty ingredients into alcohol. She chose Pedro Ximenez sherry for its rich, sweet, raisiny quality, which serves as a perfect counterpart to the savoriness of the bone marrow. Complex yet elegantly simple, the Lady Midnight counterposes powerful high-proof bourbon with the soft, layered richness of bone marrow sherry and warm spice accents from Becherovka, a Czech liqueur, and Bittermen’s Xocolatl Mole Bitters. “It’s the kind of cocktail you can have with dinner, or afterwards with a dessert and good conversation,” says Nic. LADY MIDNIGHT
2 oz Barrell Bourbon New Year 2022 .75 oz bone marrow Pedro Ximenez Sherry (recipe below) .5 oz Becherovka 2-3 dashes Bittermen’s Xocolatl Mole Bitters Combine all ingredients into a mixing glass, fill with ice and stir 10 to 12 times. Strain into a cocktail glass and enjoy. Bone Marrow Sherry Place four split marrow bones on a tray and roast in the oven at 450 degrees for 20 minutes. Allow to cool for five minutes. Scrap marrow out of bone and into container with lid, then pour 1 bottle of Pedro Ximenez Sherry into container. Whisk marrow and sherry together, then seal the container and place it in the freezer overnight. The next day, remove the container from the freezer. Scrape off the layer of fat on the top of the frozen sherry and discard, then allow the sherry to thaw. Once the sherry has thawed, fine strain through a chinois and cheesecloth to remove any fatty solids. Store in the refrigerator for up to 30 days.
GET THE WORD OUT
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If you're a bar or retailer that wants to do a Tasting with us, send an email to contact@barrellbourbon.com. We're happy to participate in and promote these.