I have written a good bit about Booker's, the cask strength bourbon in the Jim Beam Small Batch Collection. This past weekend I picked up the 2019-1 Batch, Theresa's Batch, so rather than recounting the history and comparing it to Knob Creek Single Barrel 120 proof releases that are older and that many say are … Continue reading Brief tasting notes: Booker’s Theresa’s Batch, 2019-1

Well, Game of Thrones is back for its final season! To say my family is generally excited about this is an understatement. One of my step sons actually texted me and Catherine last night asking if we were "ready" for Game of Thrones tomorrow night. I replied, you betcha, and he replied with "Excellent!" I … Continue reading GOT Scotch? Game of Thrones Limited Edition Scotch From Diageo – House Lannister Lagavulin 9 Year Old Islay Single Malt

Yesterday, I went by Hokus Pokus to pick up a couple of bottles, and was told again by the folks there that people still come by the store and ask "What's Drell Drinking?" as they are readers of my blog. So, I spent some time looking at their shelves and making recommendations, and decided to … Continue reading “What’s Drell Drinking?” – A Brief Guide to Great Bourbon at Hokus Pokus in Alexandria, LA

Well, after a busy last two weeks I finally got to open this one-Barrell Bourbon Batch 17. Again Barrell is adding some MGP (Midwest Grain Products) juice with some Kentucky bourbon, likely Heaven Hill, against their palate of Cascade Hollow (Dickel) bourbon used in all of their bourbons. This has some nice age on it, … Continue reading Barrell Bourbon Batch 17: one of Barrell’s best yet

Well, after the Knob Creek label on the Hokus Pokus pick, Hokus Pokus decided to sort of put me on the label of their Elijah Craig Private Barrel bourbon. Yes, I have a black leather chair, a wooden desk, and a green banker's lamp on said desk. If they had put a bow tie on … Continue reading Lawyers, Bourbon and Money Will Get Me Out of This; Elijah Craig Hokus Pokus Private Barrel

I haven't blogged in the last two weeks; call it an unintentional Mardi Gras break, with my Krewe's ball two weekends ago, and then the actual weekend which culminated in the tour de drunk through South Central Louisiana - Mamou, Eunice, Crowley, then back to Eunice - old school South Louisiana Mardi Gras. I've been … Continue reading Post Mardi Gras Bourbonlog, Bourbon Pairings with Tapas, and review of Bird Dog Ten Year Old “Very Small Batch” Bourbon; Surprisingly Good!

I have to confess, this is my first time trying Basil Hayden's. I really do skew toward higher proof bourbons, and out of the Jim Beam Small Batch Collection, Knob Creek and Booker's have been my go to's. It wasn't that long ago that I finally tried Baker's, a seven year old 107 proof bourbon, … Continue reading Basil Hayden’s 10 year old Bourbon from the Jim Beam Small Batch Collection; a lot of flavor despite the low proof

My friends know that I lobby my local, Hokus Pokus, to get certain barrel picks, including the amazing Four Roses pick from last year. I had also been pushing for them to do a Knob Creek barrel pick, given how awesome ones I have had from Binny's are. My lobbying paid off. I got invited … Continue reading Hokus Pokus Knob Creek Store Pick; 14 years and three months old, I helped pick it and it’s awesome but what they did to the label…

Yes, another store pick I picked up in New Orleans last weekend is a cask strength version of a bourbon that is readily available - Belle Meade XO finished bourbon. Belle Meade is a pre-prohibition brand now made at a distillery in Nashville, Tennessee. Their juice is generally pretty good all by itself. But they … Continue reading Belle Meade XO Cognac Finished Cask Strength Bourbon from Martin Wine Cellar in New Orleans

Last weekend I was down in New Orleans for my Mardi Gras krewe's annual dinner, and Catherine and I decided to make a weekend of it. Catherine and I ate at Briquette, which I highly recommend to Buffalo Trace fans like myself; my review of the spirits menu revealed that all of the specialty cocktails … Continue reading Ragged Branch Virginia Straight Bourbon Whiskey – Cask Strength Selection for Keife & Co. in New Orleans