Happy Friday!
Congrats to Dan Bergman who won the bottle of Pappy Van Winkle's 23 Year on July 31.
4 Shots:
HDH Mobile-Only Auction of Finest & Rarest Spirits August 15 and 16, 2019
| Bidding is now open for our August Mobile-Only Auction of Finest & Rarest Spirits which will be held on Thursday, August 15th & Friday, August 16th starting promptly at 8:30am CT. Please note, all purchases in the August auction must be collected from HDH’s warehouse by the buyer or buyer's agent. This two-day sale will rival HDH’s first spirits-only auction in size and quality, featuring over 1,880 lots of unique bottles estimated to realize $1.3-2.0 million. Bidders can utilize HDH’s industry-leading bidding platform, available via their mobile app or online at auction.hdhwine.com. The August auction features fine and rare spirits dating back to 1896 and includes the chance to purchase American Bourbon & Rye, Scotch, Japanese Whisky, Cognac and more. One of the highlights of the sale is a single bottle of Macallan 65 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky, Lalique Decanter VI, Distillery Bottled (est. $50,000-75,000). The sixth and final bottling in The Macallan’s The Six Pillars Collection is some of the oldest whisky released by the distillery. Only 450 bottles were released and HDH is pleased to offer bottle 236. Bourbon enthusiasts should note two single-bottle lots of Double Eagle Very Rare 20 Year Old Straight Bourbon Whiskey, Buffalo Trace Distillery (lots 353, 1597, est. $11,000-17,000). This very rare bourbon has matured for twice as long as the standard Eagle Rare and is a true collector’s item. Those searching for Japanese Whisky should browse the extensive selection including a historic bottle of 1975 Karuizawa Single Cask Malt Japanese Whisky, Cask #6736, Bottled by Number One Drinks Company (est. $3,200-4,800). The distillery closed its doors in 2011, and this is a true rarity and a bottle of legendary status in the world of whisky. Cognac lovers should note a single bottle of Courvoisier Cognac, Succession JL (est. $2,000-3,000) and a single bottle of Rémy Martin Louis XIII Grande Champagne Cognac, Late-Baccarat Era (1964-1968) (est. $1,500-2,200). The limited-edition Courvoisier, Succession JL was created to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the crowning of Napoleon and is a blend of the house’s finest cognacs from 1910 to modern vintages. HDH is thrilled to offer spirits connoisseurs the opportunity to bring home these unique bottles. Don’t miss the chance to bid on the incredible selection of spirits included in the August 15th & 16th Mobile-Only Auction of Finest & Rarest Spirits. Bidders should register via HDH’s mobile app or online at auction.hdhwine.com to place absentee and live bids. As always, Hart Davis Hart is committed to offering well-stored, carefully inspected bottles. Bidders should feel free to contact the bidding department at bids@hdhwine.com or 312.445.0100 of they have any questions about the bidding process or specific lots. |
| Important Collection Information: All purchases in the August 15 & 16 Mobile-Only Auction of Finest & Rarest Spiritsmust be collected by the Buyer or Buyer’s agent at HDH’s warehouse and are subject to all Illinois state and local taxes (10.25%). |
Alabama ABC Board holding sweepstakes for Pappy Van Winkle limited release 25-year-old bourbon
Pappy Van Winkle Bourbon fans better get ready.
Alabama’s ABC Board kicked off a special sweepstakes where only one of the highly sought-after, quarter century old bottles of bourbon will be available.
That single bottle of Pappy Van Winkle Limited Release 25-Year-Old bourbon will be sold August 24th in Montgomery.
The sweepstakes being run on the ABC Board website allows for 150 winners who are of legal drinking age in Alabama.
One of those winners will be able to snag that rare bottle of Pappy Van Winkle, which can fetch more than $10,000 if resold.
The sweepstakes is open to all Alabamians of legal drinking age through August 20th.
Winners will be notified August 21st along with their position in line.
Winners will have to be in line on the morning of August 24th at the ABC Select Spirits Store 72 located on Eastchase Parkway in Montgomery.
ABC officials say winning the sweepstakes does not guarantee winners will get any specific limited release product that will be available that day.
Pappy Van Winkle Bourbon fans better get ready.
What liquors are on list for ABC Board sweepstakes event?
It’s never too early to start talking about fall bourbon releases, but it seems the crop mentioned here is aiming to get out just ahead of the season.
About 40 different liquors will be available at the Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board’s limited release event in Montgomery on Aug. 24, with some in limited quantities.
On Wednesday, the ABC Board announced that customers could enter an online sweepstakes for a drawing to secure one of 150 spots in line the day of the event at the ABC Store on Eastchase Parkway in Montgomery.
Customers could begin registering for the drawing today. Registration ends on Aug. 20 and the drawings will be Aug. 21. More information is available on the ABC Board website.
The day of the event, customers can choose from products in groups 1, 2, and 3. Customers can get one bottle from group 1 until those are depleted, two bottles from group 2 until those are depleted, and two bottles from group 3 until those are depleted.
The two bottles from groups 2 and 3 must be different brands.
Here are the brands and prices:
Group 1
Pappy Van Winkle Limited Release 25 Year Old (only one bottle available): $1,869
Mr. Sam Canadian Whiskey: $350
Whistle Pig 15: $250
E.H. Taylor Barrel Proof: $70
Kentucky Owl Confiscated: $125
Kentucky Owl Rye 11 year: $200
Old Fitzgerald: $130
Weller 12 year: $45
Single Oak Project: $80
Group 2
Clyde May Cask Strg. Bourbon: $90
High West Bourye: $80
Michter’s Single Barrel: $123
Wild Turkey Master’s Keep Rye: $150
Elijah Craig Barrel Proof: $60
Jefferson’s Ocean Cask Strg: $104
Jefferson’s Reserve Pichon: $145
E.H. Taylor Single Barrel: $60
Stagg Jr.: $50
Willet Pot Still: $57
Foursquare 2007: $100
Henry McKenna BIB: $40
Willet Family Estate Rye: $67
Group 3
Blanton’s: $60
1792 Full Proof: $50
1792 12-Year: $50
Kentucky Vintage: $40
Old Bardstown Bourbon: $25
Old Bardstown Estate Bottled: $40
Noah’s Mills: $67
Sazerac Rye: $30
Elijah Craig ABC Pick: $28
Buffalo Trace: $28
Isaac Bowman Port Finish: $40
Old Forester 1910: $55
Russell’s Reserve Single Barrel: $60
Russell’s Reserve Single Barrel Rye: $65
Smooth Ambler Contradiction: $40
Weller Antique 107: $50
Weller Special Reserve: $29
Maker’s Mark 46 Private Select: $75
Kentucky Whiskey Bar To Feature ‘At Least 1,200-Item’ Whiskey List
Entrepreneurs usually create a business and then build a customer base.
Brian Shemwell and Tom “Fish” Adams are doing it in reverse.
This fall, the pair and their silent investors will open Barrel & Bond in Paducah, Ky., a small western Kentucky city of 30,000. On its shelves will be 1,200 to 1,600 unique American whiskey labels ranging from unicorns to dusties to modern rarities and value pours.
“It’ll kind of have it all, but only good stuff,” says Fish Adams. “We’re not getting into business to sell a bunch of crap.”
Of course not, because their ready-to-drink customer base, the 475-member Paducah Bourbon Society, has educated palates. About half of PBS members are locals; the other half drive to monthly meetings from surrounding counties in Kentucky, southern Illinois and nearby Tennessee.
“Drinking alone isn’t any fun, so we got our friends involved,” says Shemwell. “We always thought it would be 30 or so of us sitting around sharing our whiskey. We had no idea the bourbon society would ever get this big.”
Adams and Shemwell met five years ago and formed PBS a year later. As membership rolls swelled, they began plans for a serious whiskey-centric bar.
“The discussion began with, ‘What if the Paducah Bourbon Society had its own home?’ and the talk turned to how we could make that happen,” Adams says.
Currently, PBS gathers at freight house, a nationally regarded farm-to-table restaurant owned and operated by chef Sara Bradley, runner-up finisher in Top Chef 2019. The restaurant serves a menu of snacks and staffs its solid cocktail bar, which boasts about 200 bourbons. Attendance at some meetings fill all of freight house’s 175 seats.
“Find me better market analysis than four years of a bourbon society that’s grown to the size of this one,” Shemwell says.
Brian Shemwell and Tom “Fish” Adams of Barrel & Bond (image via Steve Coomes/The Whiskey Wash)
Liquid Assets
Longtime whiskey collectors, Shemwell and Adams searched the shelves and stock rooms of stores in any town they visited. Early on, it took little persuasion to get retailers “to get rid of shit that’s been sitting around too long,” Shemwell says. Some were clueless as to why the men wanted long-neglected pints and spider-webbed bottles others ignored.
Between them, “we have thousands of bottles, which is all we’ll say,” says Adams. “The real numbers might anger our wives, too, so we’ll keep it a secret. Now we’re in the process of inventorying all of it.”
Since Kentucky allows for vintage whiskey owned by consumers to be sold to retail establishments, Shemwell’s and Adams’ bottles will be purchased by Barrel & Bond to stock its shelves.
“That’s what we’re bringing to the business: bottles, knowledge and sweat equity,” Shemwell says. Their investors are funding Barrel & Bond’s buildout in an historic 1890s building along Paducah’s reemerging downtown riverfront. “We’ve not even connected with distributors yet to start getting current releases.”
“But we’ve already got pretty good relationships with distributors,” Adams adds.
That’s because both are longtime private barrel pickers who, according to Adams’ estimate, “have been on at least 200 picks.” Though frequently invited by many to lend their palates and opinions, neither is paid for the work.
“That’s going to become another thing Barrel & Bond is known for: our picks,” Adams continues. The bar will have a package license for selling private picks and other bottles. “We’ve done those for a long time for others. Now it’s going to be just for us.”
The Barrel & Bond experience
While traveling for employers, Shemwell visited bars in search of ideas of what he wanted to implement at Barrel & Bond. Mostly, he says, he and Adams want “a great bourbon bar that has to be for the people who know bourbon, love it and want to engage you in conversation about it. That’s our goal. It also has to be fun; we won’t be dicks about it. That’s why the Paducah Bourbon Society is so fun: we’re not dicks about it.”
Adams says it’s also about pride in Kentucky and its whiskeys.
“I want them to understand the craftsmanship of it, to appreciate a product that’s world renowned, the best of its kind and made in Kentucky,” he says. “I want people who’ve never experienced it to slow down, sip it and take notice of all those really great flavors in bourbon.”
Barrel & Bond feature two large rooms: the bar, and a separate event space. They say to expect lots of brick, wood concrete and steel used in its construction to create an industrial look, but the walls, as expected, will be covered with bottles.
Shemwell says, “It’ll be a whiskey library with a rolling ladder, pretty similar to Jack Rose (Dining Saloon),” referring to the legendary Washington, D.C. spot. “The other side will be for private parties, events, rehearsal dinners and such. … All of it will be well lit. We’re too old for dark bars.”
A small bites menu of foods that pair well with whiskeys will be offered.
“Down the road we want to have a whiskey menu on a (mobile) tablet, and maybe (a database) one you could link with your phone,” Shemwell says. “We want them to have all the information available: distillery, flavor profile, whether its sweet or spicy … and to be able to tag those whiskeys and organize them by brand or era or price. We want people to walk away knowing more about bourbon than when they came in.”
-Cheers, Chris
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