NIGHTCAP: March
Mistakenly I thought February was the busiest month in memory…. Mardi Gras in February was something, but March was a level of exhaustion I haven’t known in years. I kicked it off with my girl’s birthday, a funeral for a friends mom, three weddings (two in one day JFC!), and the New Orleans Bourbon Festival. I think I aged a year this month.
Some boring stats- the site had more unique visitors and page views in its entire history, thank you so much for continuing to spend some of your precious internet time here with me. I cannot express how much it means to me, and it only serves to reinforce my belief that more than a few people are interested in something other than simply doom scrolling Reels. Let’s get right into it.
I love a piece of art showing a robot sipping on a La Louisiane in New Orleans..
I will have a recap column of the New Orleans Bourbon Festival shortly, but I want to share that the best thing I tasted all week was the All Rye from 291 out of Colorado. I can’t stop thinking about it and I can’t wait to purchase my own.
US Spirits exports rose by 30% over last year, exceeding $2 billion. Remarkably total exports haven’t yet returned to the pre-orange-guy-tariff-tiff. So no, the bubble hasn’t popped, it’s not even close to starting. It is worth noting that the tariffs could be reimposed if an agreement with the EU on steel and aluminum is not achieved by the end of this year.
The Last of Us on HBO is a terrific show, it’s delivering a different take on a post-apocalyptic zombie universe. It reminds me of how good the first season of The Walking Dead was before it devolved into Carl not staying in the house, governor one eye, whatever the hell the cosplaying dude with the tigers was, and baseball bat Fonzie. What does this have to do with whiskey you ask? Well, if a fungus is gonna get us all, may it be the Devil’s Share that is plaguing parts of Kentucky and Tennessee.
Remember the 200-year-old New York City liquor store that got popped selling fake Taylor Four Grains? Yeah, they paid a $100,000 fine and no one got fired. The article is revealing, employees were buying with their own money from private collectors, selling it to the shop they worked at, and then selling it on the shelves. No controls to prevent this, no accountability, and lots of incentive for fraud. As always, buyer- BEWARE. And also maybe stop paying stupid prices for average whiskey?
If you don’t think that Buffalo Trace knew what they were doing when they put the “Aged 10 Years” etching on the front of the current Eagle Rare, then I have a bottle of Four Grain from NYC to sell you…. A guy I work with told me that he had recently had a side by side of Eagle Rare, and Eagle Ten year. I couldn’t bear to ask him which one he preferred, I knew that answer already, fortunately I didn’t have to ask, he excitedly told me- “That ten year was awesome.” The world keeps on spinning somehow, miraculously. Let this serve as yet another reminder that SazCo is undefeated in the marketing arena.
Futuristic space girls love to pose with a Manhattan. They do it for the gram probably.
Blue Run Spirits just released their blueprints for Owl Park Part: Deux, I mean, blueprints for their new distillery and boy does the internet have thoughts! Here’s why I think you should pay attention- an entire generation of whiskey drinkers is not beholden to the old stories legends and lore, and don’t have the same link to the romanticism to history that others do. Newer drinkers have different expectations for what they want to experience, and they are going to love this thing, Yes it’s super modern, and it will seem out of place when compared to the old facilities, but the new generations won’t care. This is Rabbit Hole on steroids, and I cannot wait to see it.
Maryland lawmakers are considering whether or not to make Maryland Rye, or Maryland Rye Whiskey as the states official spirit. It’s a short article, but I was left with the mind blowing piece that there are now 12+ distilleries in Maryland making Rye. FUCK YEAH!
Lux Row Distillers has announced Rebel Rye. No snark here aside from the “defiantly smooth Rye Whiskey” horse hockey that’s on the label, this thing is going to make a splash. 51% Rye, 45% corn, 4% malted barley. $19.99. 100 proof. Here’s a new Rye that will fight for cocktail space. Cheers to Lux for doing this. Now if only Sagamore could….. or would…..
Texas based Milam and Greene has announced that it has finished its expansion of its distillery which will increase their production to 1,000 barrels annually. Read about the details here.
On Neptune City they have super thick cocktail glasses that keep the drink cool with liquid nitrogen housed inside the glassware. Don’t drop it.
Campari just emptied some trucks full of scratch to add distilling capacity at Wild Turkey. This is for increased bourbon production. I guess it was cheaper to add another distillery than to purchase a handful of smalls. Interesting to note that it was super-mega-millions-lotto type of money. Over $150 million.
RNDC fresh off the slapping fight club that is their legal battle with SazCo, is now partnering with LuxCo. LuxCo is clearly intent on world domination, and I wonder how the fight for shelf space is going to play out with this flood of products and wide distribution that RNDC should be able to provide. RNDC should be mighty motivated on squeezing out their former clients, which honestly shouldn’t be too much of a problem because LuxCo wants to be on the actual sales floor in front of actual customers and actually for purchase, you know, not in the back room.
Knob Creek just popped a 7-year age statement on their Rye, so get ready for that. Someone on Twitter asked who was the last brand to add an actual age statement rather than remove one….. easy answer- Old Overholt red cap. Another Beam flex.
I just ordered the very first ever Islay Rye whisky from Bruichladdich. Yes, you read that correctly. Scotland Rye. No it’s not a single malt. The stats are 5-years old, 55% Islay grown rye, 45% malted barley also grown on Islay, UNPEATED, 100pf. Aged in first fill bourbon casks and first fill American virgin oak casks. I cannot wait to try this, and the story of it is awesome. Also, note to American distilleries, this is how you tell a story and share information on a website. Looking at you Preservation…..
Fancy a Vieux Carre friend? bee*boop!bop. That will be 427 credits please. bee-boop-bop. With those prices this is obviously Las Vegas or NYC in the future.
In Celebrity whiskey news-
Steph Curry of Golden State Warriors fame is releasing “Gentleman’s Cut Game Changer” Bourbon. 75% corn, 21% Rye, 4% malted barley, aged minimum 5-years and 85 proof. Distilled by Boone County. Oh my, are you ready for the gobbledygook? Buckle up…. “I’ve learned over the years that life is best enjoyed in the close company of others. It’s those moments of celebrating a milestone, enjoying endless laughter into the evening, or simply an unpredictable night of carrying on that makes for a memory you can always reflect on. I’ve long found that these unforgettable evenings are often best enjoyed with a rich and nuanced bourbon in hand, which is why I’m proud to have helped carefully craft a new signature Kentucky Straight Bourbon.” I’m going to give Steph a former hometown discount on the snark here, but it’s really tough to resist fortunately this next bit will let me blow off some snark steam…..
Nic Cage, yes, THAT Nic Cage (Real name- Nicolas Kim Coppola) is releasing a bourbon. It doesn’t yet have a name, but “Straight to DVD” is a decent idea, but apparently he trademarked his own name for use in a bourbon brand, so there goes my decent idea. A source stated that “Nic is a whisky and bourbon man and is branching out into that. He has great taste so this will be good stuff.” Oh brother. If the label isn’t absolute bonkers I will be severely bummed out. Remember, this is the guy that has owned a garish tomb in New Orleans since 2010. I have no reasonable expectation for “tasteful” in any way shape or form and neither should you. This is the guy that was in Las Vegas (not the movie, real life) and got thrown out of a Landry’s. Of all the places to go in Las Vegas, he went to Landry’s. Something about “great taste” or whatnot. Also, what’s the over-under on this being a sub-86pf release?
I’m pretty sure those AR goggles aren’t the reason for seeing double.
This months listicle foolishness-
You likely know how I feel about “listicles” but here’s another that told me something I already know- Barrel Proof in New Orleans is one of the best Bourbon bars on this here planet Earth. The 15 Best Bourbon Bars in the United States. The article really doesn’t describe it well, but hey, it’s on the list. So when you visit, and you ask me where to go…. just understand that this place will ALWAYS be at the top of the list.
Listicles typically offer cotton candy for the brain, and the brain can’t stop clicking on them. They usually represent the dumbest list of things for under X amount of dollars, or what the top 10 independence day pairings with hotdogs are, and THIS freaking nonsense. Yes, a pairing for each sign of the Zodiac. I know you wanna click that link, because even if you don’t believe in the absurdity of mystical star bullshit determining your personality, you Virgo’s absolutely MUST know what goes with your sign. There’s no way you don’t click on that link. I have to tip my hat to the writer of this piece, it’s the first time I’ve seen it done and any originality online must be recognized.
Ok here’s your cocktail listicle because I know your brain is craving that cotton candy, and it’s actually a good one for once. 15 absolute best Rye whiskey cocktails (two of my current obsessions make this list)
Some cocktails are so strong you need an allen wrench to turn it down a bit.
These are a few whiskey cocktails I am currently obsessed (yay another list, but not a listicle!)-
The look a futuristic robot patron will give a robot bartender for making their old fashioned TOO DAMN SWEET!
Thirteen things I think-
I think I really want to try this new 100% malted Rye from New Riff. Aroostook Rye is Kentucky grown, and malted in Indiana, and I think I need it.
I think this is the year that Pinhook gets noticed by the whiskey hoarders. 7-year-old vertical series Rye came out here in Louisiana and was sold out everywhere within 48 hours. It’s also the smallest batch to date. Don’t sleep if you’re trying to complete a vertical.
I think the Oscars got it right this year, Everything Everywhere All At Once was a fabulous picture, endearing, sad, delightful, touching, exciting, interesting, humorous, and a reminder of how powerful the imagination can be when put to film perfectly.
I think I might have festival fatigue. It’s a real thing here. Now who’s ready for Tales of the Cocktail in July? CAN I GET AN AMEN?!
I think this new Powers Rye whiskey is gonna be a killer. For $32 and 100% Irish grown rye from a legendary distiller, you can take my scratch right now.
I think the American Single Malt hype won’t last. There’s been so many damn good ones over the years, why will people care now? I think they will for 15 internet minutes.
I think that I’m in love with French Oak barrels. Will someone please put some Rye in one now?
I think it’s a miracle that New Orleans has survived this long without decent Mexican food. It’s another notch on the resilience belt for New Orleanians.
I think there are about to be toooooooo many blue checks on Instagram. It’s an easy boost for accounts, and will cause your feed to look very different.
I think I might be blue checked so long as I don’t have to my face as my profile, errppp looks like that’s a requirement, I like my logo, so no blue check.
I think a brand or two will be bought in the next month or two.
I think it’s time for me to get a real cat again, I might just name it Sagamore.
I think you are going to see more blogs using AI generated artwork, hey it’s already happening and you don’t even know it.
In the future, people will still drink good cocktails in New Orleans.
Secondary market things I find interesting-
In last months Nightcap, I noted that a batch 1 of Boss Hog closed at $13,600. This month? Two more closings- $13,500 and $12,100. So it seems we have a benchmark going forward. It’s north of $12k. A remarkable sum.
I also discussed how the prices for the other versions of Boss Hog continued to go up. Siren’s Song, the recent version, closed at $960. LapuLapus Pacific 8th edition $715. Magellan’s Atlantic 7th Edition $1410. Samurai Scientist Version 5 had three listings close at an average of $1050 per. I would expect that these prices will only continue to rise, and that any new releases will be snatched up quickly for flip money.
Another PiggyBank decanter closed for $1060. Wild that this price has been consistently breaking the $1000 barrier.
Pappy 15’s have stabilized at $1500 per. There was a time when I thought these might set a new level at $2000, but I’m no longer sure this will be soon.
Heaven Hill 27-year olds have risen slowly to $1850 average. With the limited amount of these bottles in comparison to other so-called limiteds, I’m surprised that this price is so low. Collectors and investors typically like small units produced, and this one was very very limited. Time will tell if this finally blows up.
Knob Creek 18 continues a slow crawl up in price. It had 5 listings and they all closed at an average $289 per. I predict it breaks the $300 average in the next month or two. This is up from January when it was averaging $250.
AH Hirsch Gold Foil 16-year routinely breaks the $4,500 threshold in auctions. This has been going on forever. However, something very interesting happened this month. Four no-reserve auctions closed at an average of $3,325 for the Gold Foil edition (released 2003). There was no damage to the labels, or seals, so I have no idea what happened here but it’s worth paying attention to.
Buckle up Booker’s fans… Last month I discussed Theresa’s batch from 2019 closing for $170 and Tagalong from 2021 at $150. Well get ready to clutch your pearls, because this month we had some big movement for Bookers. 2018’s Kentucky Chew closed for $285!! Tagalong closed at $155 a slight uptick from last month. 2022’s Ronnie’s Batch hit a whopping $200!!! Kentucky Tea, also from 2022, netted $175. When bottles can double in price on secondary markets, that’s when the investors begin to take notice, and start their acquisitions to hold/sell. Like it or not, Booker’s has joined the investors portfolio.
EH Taylor small batch Bourbon’s had a slight overall decrease (not enough in my opinion) from February’s average of $165, down to an average $144.28. There were multiple listings. This is still crazy money for a very average Bourbon.
The Taylor single barrel Bourbons were flat compared to January ($250 average), where a huge amount of listings still managed to maintain an average closing price of $232.77. More stupid money spent.
I truly feel sorry for fans of Buffalo Trace, it seems that no matter what label is out there, and at what price, it will eventually become the next hottest thing as the supply dries up and people are forced into a lower quality, lower priced, and available offering, only to find it the next hottest thing, AGAIN. This latest insanity? Hancock’s Reserve with multiple-listings closing on average at $136.
Ok, since we’re swinging at Buffalo Trace and their sad sack fans who keep getting priced out, let’s pile on some more shall we? Rock Hill Farms broke the $500 threshold not once, but twice this month. Average price? $510. FIVE HUNDRED AND TEN UNITED STATES DOLLARS. This resulted in an end of the month flood of listings and the large amount of items available depressed the average down to $360. I expect the floor to sit at $400 in the coming months.
Russell’s single rick house nonsense averaged $530, and upon learning this news I wonder why I am not roaming the streets half naked mumbling to myself.
Jack Rye is averaging $425 for the month. So it’s high, but cooled a bit. I don’t expect that to last however.
Parker’s Curacao, that bottle that sat and sat and sat and sat and sat at MSRP, had a dozen listings all close at an average $400. What in the holy hand grenade is going on here? It wasn’t well regarded, or well reviewed, and now it’s a $400 bottle?
Red label Evan Williams jumped this month to $170. That’s up $50 from last month…..
4 listings of Pinhook Collaboration batch #1 with Andre Mack averaged $250 sales. I wonder what this will do for the price moving forward.
Kentucky Owl Dry State had several listings that landed at the $1500 price. With the sellers premium, that only comes out to $175 profit. I mean, not bad, but still a large outlay for such a return. I think that this bottling will go much much higher in the years to come as it’s so limited.
Lastly, this actual Unicorn bottle from LDI that was given out to some of their employees as thank you’s just prior to the MGP buyout, closed at $4,225. It was a 23-year-old 95/5 Rye, and less than 300 bottles were ever released of this barrel proof, uncut, untreated, unfiltered, straight from the barrel monster. Can you imagine? That’s 14 Elmer’s, or 8 Rock Hill Farms.
Don’t you judge me. At least three people reading this will understand. Probably. Rachel might also be a robot.
Support Local New Orleans-
10 Cent Baking is a local treasure and passion project of an amazing human being. She’s slowed it down a bit recently, I’m sure it’s tough to turn a hobby into a business, only to find the business part of it makes the hobby less of a hobby and more of you know, actual work…. but she made time to make a wedding party cake for a good friend of mine and it blew past any expectations one could have for a perfect cake.
If you’re visiting New Orleans, you’d be forgiven for not making the trip out of the downtown area to visit a neighborhood joint, but if you love whiskey and you love not getting gouged on prices, then you must take the 12 minute Uber/Lyft trip to Backyard NOLA. You’ve been given a really good insiders tip here, take us up on it.
Some nightcaps require two straws.
That’s it for this month, I hope you enjoyed the Nightcap, as well as all of the AI generated artwork. Next month, I might use cats instead of “redhead pinup style robots drinking whiskey cocktails in the future.”
Cheers everyone!
- Mickey Pinstripe