The Restaurant Guys

The Spirits Project: Scotch - Invergordon 27 Year (1988)

Making the experience of super-luxury spirits crazily affordable and accessible!
Read more about the Spirits project.

• Suggested retail price: $299
• Thursday, March 9 (for as long as it lasts), we're pouring one ounce for $9

Invergordon is a relatively new player in the game of Scottish whisky. Invergordon Distillers was founded in 1960 to purchase the Invergordon grain distillery, the construction of which had only started the previous year. Its purpose was, and remains, to make fine grain whiskey in exceptional Coffey stills (a special kind of still).

The ownership has changed hands more than a few times and I won’t bore you with those details. Through it all, it became apparent that the particular Coffey stills at Invergorden were consistently turning out some of the best and most interesting grain whisky in Scotland. Grain fell quite out of favor in recent history, owing to the tremendous popularity of single malt.

While it’s true that most grain whisky is best used for blending, independent bottlers have long recognized the exceptional character of Invergordon. The very talented folks at Duncan Taylor (merchant) have been doing a fine job promoting this category in their Rare Auld Grain series.

Here we have a barrel of Invergorden that was distilled in 1988 and bottled in 2015 at 27 years in the barrel. I’m very excited to open a bottle with you this evening.

Next week in The Spirits Project
Red Breast 21 Irish vs Midleton Rare

The Spirits Project: Inchgower 20 Year Scotch (1995)

Making the experience of super-luxury spirits crazily affordable and accessible!
Read more about the Spirits project.

• Suggested retail price: $449
• Thursday, March 2 (for as long as it lasts), we're pouring one ounce for $13

Inchgower 20 Year Scotch (1995)
Blackadder Raw Cask 20th Anniversary

In 1870, the landlord of The Tochineal Distillery doubled the rent. Much to his surprise, distiller Alexander Wilson decided to move rather than pay the new rates. He removed the stills and all the equipment from Tochineal and in 1871, founded "The Great Distillery of Inchgower" nearby. The Tochineal buildings still exist, but they have never made whisky since.

Inchgower is in Banffshire, not far from the mouth of the River Spey and just on the outskirts of the fishing town, charmingly named Buckie. Despite being a relatively small-scale distillery, Inchgower holds up to 60,000 casks, most of which is sold to larger houses for blending. There have been no official releases by the distillery, but there are quite a few merchant bottlings that are quite well received.

This particular bottling was taken from a single barrel, distilled in July 1995 and matured in a sherry butt. It was bottled in September 2015 at natural cask strength of 57.6%, non chill filtered and with no added color. There were 582 bottles made.

Tiny bits of the charred cask settle at the bottom of each bottle: Blackadder's 'Raw Cask' signature. We look forward to opening a bottle with you Thursday evening.

Next week in The Spirits Project
Scotch - Invergordon 27 Year (1988)
Duncan Taylor Rare Auld Grain

The Spirits Project: Monymusk 10 Year 'Raw Cask' Rum (2004)

Making the experience of super-luxury spirits crazily affordable and accessible!
Read more about the Spirits project.

• Suggested retail price: $159
• Thursday, February 23 (for as long as it lasts), we're pouring one ounce for $5

Blackadder Cask Selection
190 bottles produced
Jamaica

Monymusk rum is all about the aging and the skill of the merchant that does that aging. The base spirit comes from the large, modern distillery called Clarendon. Clarendon produces mostly generic rum that is sold off to other bottlers.

A small amount however, finds its way to Inswood, formerly a distillery in its own right and now a blending and aging house. Inswood is where various grades of rum are blended and barrelled and then aged in a bonded warehouse. The resulting rum is released as Monymusk.

Jamaica was once home to 155 distilleries so it has a long and unique rum history. Today, there are just five distilleries and much of their produce is sold off in bulk. It's left to the few remaining distilleries to keep up the tradition of style and quality of this classic heritage.

The folks from Blackadder purchased this single American Oak barrel of Monymusk, distilled in 2004 and bottled it separately at cask strength (116.2 proof) with no artificial color, no cold-stabilization or filtration. Tiny bits of the charred cask settle at the bottom of each bottle: Blackadder's 'Raw Cask' signature. We look forward to opening a bottle with you Thursday evening.

Next week in The Spirits Project
Inchgower 20 Year Scotch (1995)
Blackadder Raw Cask 20th Anniversary

The Spirits Project: Armagnac - Domaine D'Aurensan Armagnac 1975

Making the experience of super-luxury spirits crazily affordable and accessible!
Read more about the Spirits project.

• Suggested retail price: $449
• Thursday, February 16 (for as long as it lasts), we're pouring one ounce for $14

The Rozès family has been distilling Armagnac for four generations. Their Domaine d’Auresan is a 5 hectare estate with southwest facing vineyards situated on chalky, clay soil. The latest generation, headed by sisters Sophie and Caroline, are moving the domaine to organic and biodynamic viticulture.

Trying to achieve the purest spirit possible, the fermentation is done with natural yeast. No sulphur is used. The brandies are aged in local Gascon wood casks, that are made from trees that grow on the estate. They are then bottled according to their “Triple Zero” philosophy – no sugar, no coloring, no water. This is quite uncommon in spirits anywhere!

Armagnac from the region of Ténarèze are known for their richness and expressions of dried fruits – figs, dates – and sweet spice. The unadulterated brandies bottled by d’Aurensan express this terroir in a way more commercial bottlings never can.

Next week in The Spirits Project
Monymusk 10 Year 'Raw Cask' Rum 2004

The Spirits Project: Springbank 14 Year Blackadder "Statement Series" 2001 Edition 14

Making the experience of super-luxury spirits crazily affordable and accessible!
Read more about the Spirits project.

• Suggested retail price: $589
• Thursday, February 9 (for as long as it lasts), we're pouring one ounce for $19

All Blackadder whiskies are single-barrel bottlings, with no chill-filtering and no color added. Their "Raw Cask" bottlings are bottled at cask strength, passing only through a rough sieve. Most whisky is filtered and most of it is cold stabilized. Cold stabilization is a process by which the whisky is brought near to freezing so that certain oils and natural fats (that can make a lower proof spirit go cloudy) fall out. This is done purely for cosmetic reasons. The Blackadder folk don't believe in it. Likewise they don't believe in added color. I like these guys!

The Statement Series, is the absolute finest bottlings from Blackadder. This Springbank "Statement Series" is one of 132 bottles, from a single cask that was distilled on May 31, 2001 and bottled in September of 2015.

From Blackadder

Blackadder Raw Cask whisky are released at cask-strength, which keeps them from ever becoming cloudy. The bottles even contain flecks of barrel char that are not filtered out. It's as natural and raw a whisky as if you yourself popped the bung out of the barrel and drew it. This is how whisky was sold in days of yore, by the barrel.

Springbank is a delicious and quirky little distillery in the tiny region of Campbeltown. The malts from Campbeltown tend to be dry, a little briny, and much loved by connoisseurs. Springbank is perhaps the best known example. They definitely have a cult following, and we are members of that cult.

Next week in The Spirits Project
Domaine D'Aurensan Armagnac 1975

The Spirits Project: Distillers Art Bunnahabhain 27 Year Scotch 1988 (by Hunter Laing)

Making the experience of super-luxury spirits crazily affordable and accessible!
Read more about the Spirits project.

• Suggested retail price: $350
• Thursday, February 2 (for as long as it lasts), we're pouring one ounce for $14

Bunnahabhain stands on the shores of the Sound of Islay, which separates Islay from Jura on the East. The ship that seems to be waiting there has been there since 1974, when it ran aground on the rocks. Tourists once bought Bunnahabhain (‘Boon-a-havn’) (or more affectionately 'Boon-a-hobby') almost by mistake on the way to see the ship. It was the top selling brand at the Scotch Whisky Heritage Centre in Edinburgh, but in the larger world it was strictly a cult following. It was founded in 1881 – the same year as Bruichladdich – and for the same reason: to meet the rising demand for whisky for the blending industry. Due to the isolated nature of the zone, the first owners had to build roads, houses and grocery shops for the distillery workers, as well as a school for their children. Bunnahabhain became an example of a self-sufficient community.

The malt whiskies produced on the isle of Islay are generally pungent and salty; since 1883, Bunnahabhain has contradicted this. It produces a smooth almost wine-y whisky, with an impressive constancy and regularity. A few years after the construction of Bunnahabhain, the owners joined up with two other distilleries, forming Highland Distilleries. Closed for a short period in the early eighties and re-opened almost immediately, since 1963 Bunnahabhain has operated with two pairs of stills. The whisky is elegant and layered. While softer than most Islay, you still get a whiff of the sea. (info taken from For Whisky Lovers)

This 27 year old was bought in barrel, and then bottled by the Hunter Laing & Co, a family company that was founded by Stewart H. Laing. Stewart started first as a blender, and later as a bottler of some of the finest single cask scotch whiskies in the market. With nearly fifty years in the industry, Stewart learned the whisky business from the ground up, starting as an apprentice at Bruichladdich Distillery. The company's scotch blends were frequently best-sellers in their main markets of Asia and South America. They are now available here.

Stewart's father, Frederick Laing was an exporter who acquired many hundreds of casks from distilleries all over Scotland, providing unrivaled resources. Today, Stewart is joined by his sons Scott and Andrew. Expert single cask bottlers in their own right, they know the importance of selecting the most distinctive casks for the discerning single malt consumer

Thursday evening, we will open one bottle at precisely 6:30. When it's gone, it's gone. I hope to see you there.

Next week in The Spirits Project
Springbank 14 Year Blackadder Raw Cask 2001

The Spirits Project: Fuenteseca Reserva Tequila 7 Year and 9 Year

Making the experience of super-luxury spirits crazily affordable and accessible!
Read more about the Spirits project.

• Suggested retail price: $199 & $249
• Thursday, January 26 (for as long as it lasts), we're pouring one ounce of each for $14.00

Last week's Tequila was a big hit and delicious. This week we continue with the theme. From a different producer, we present you two Tequila with extraordinary pedigree.

Enrique Fonseca Cerda was born in Jalisco. Following a tradition started by his great grandfather, Enrique grew up by his father's side in the agave fields of Atotonilco, . After college he turned his study to all things agave-related.

Enrique expanded the family’s agave plantings to satisfy an ever-growing demand for rich, highland agave by Jalisco’s largest tequila distilleries. When those distilleries later colluded to limit the prices they would pay farmers, Enrique became determined to wean his fate off of the international liquor conglomerate’s and bought his own distillery.

He was able to acquire the Tequileña in the town of Tequila itself. It was equipped with a copper double-column still, a stainless steel still and copper pot alembic still. To that essential equipment, Enrique added agave roasting ovens, fermentation tanks and a number of barrel facilities. Today the modern Tequileña distillery stands as one of the finest in the tequila industry.

From a legacy of more than one hundred years of agave cultivation and twenty-five years in tequila distillation, Enrique Fonseca now stands over one of the industry’s largest private agave holdings in addition to possessing one of the largest stocks (24,000 barrels) of superlative, very old tequilas. With Fuentesca, he has begun to release single-vintage tequilas with an age statement, among the oldest ever to come into the market.

Thursday evening, we will open one bottle each of TWO different bottle ages at precisely 6:30. When it's gone, it's gone. I hope to see you there.

Next week in The Spirits Project
Distillers Art Bunnahabhain 27 Year Scotch 1988

The Spirits Project: Tres-Cuatro-Cinco Extra Añejo Tequila Grand Reserve Limitada

Making the experience of super-luxury spirits crazily affordable and accessible!
Read more about the Spirits project.

• Suggested retail price: $399
• Thursday, January 19 (for as long as it lasts), we're pouring one ounce for $12.50

La Tequileña "Tres-Cuatro-Cinco" Tequila is made by The Foneca family. The Fonecas have been crafting Tequila in Jalisco for four generations. This Extra Anejo Reserva Limitada is a blend of three, four and five-year aged tequilas (tres-cuatro-cinco, get it!), made entirely of Weber Blue agave. It defines the category of Luxury Tequila.

It is packaged exclusively in crystal decanters by Alonso Gonzalez, a noted Mexico City artist. Only 1000 have ever been produced. Each bottle is signed and numbered. It is rare and highly collectible. The blend of three distinct, aged tequilas make for a complex and sophisticated final product, cognac-brown in color, and unlike any I've ever seen.

We will open one bottle at precisely 6:30 PM. We're going to offer this as long as the spirit lasts. If it's not gone tonight, we'll extend Spirits Project pricing through Friday.

The Spirits Project: Bourgoin "Microbarrique X.O.--Single Cask" Cognac 1994--22 year

Making the experience of super-luxury spirits crazily affordable and accessible!
Read more about the Spirits project.

• Suggested retail price: $149
• Thursday, January 12 (for as long as it lasts), we're pouring one ounce for $9

You would be hard-pressed to find anything quite like Bourgoin Cognac. This is a completely independently owned family operation. Look above for the people that make it. The family estate is located in the village of Tarsac, in the commune of Saint Saturnin, in Charente. They consider themselves terroiriste, as they are grape farmers first, then fermenters of their own grapes and then elaborators of Cognac only from that wine. This is quite rare in modern Cognac.

They have been at it at Bourgoin since 1909. They are bottled by hand by individual plot and from individual vintages into only half bottles (we have two ready for this evening). They are made without filtration, dye, sugar, caramel color or any pumping whatsoever. This "Microbarrique" bottling is an atypical XO cognac with 22 years of age. It is finished with a finish in micro-barrel of 10 liters that has been treated with a "crocodile bushing" (45 seconds touching flame). This fire at the finish is designed as a tip of the chapeau to lovers of single malts, Speyside in particular. It remains a round and beautiful cognac, with good fruit, vanilla, salted butter caramel, and a whiff of strawberry. Distilled two years after we opened our doors, it is finally time for you to come and drink it. See you at 6:30 or shortly thereafter.

We will open one bottle at precisely 6:30 PM. We're going to offer this as long as the spirit lasts. If it's not gone tonight, we'll extend Spirits Project pricing through Friday.

Next week in The Spirits Project
Tres Cuatro Cinco Tequila

The Spirits Project: WhistlePig Rye "Boss Hog III" The Independent

Making the experience of super-luxury spirits crazily affordable and accessible!
Read more about the Spirits project.

• Suggested retail price: $295
• Thursday, January 5 (for as long as it lasts), we're pouring one ounce for $9

In 2006, Raj Bhakta purchased a 500-acre dairy farm in the rolling hills of Vermont’s Champlain Valley. Today, the farm, which is being painstakingly restored to grow organic rye grains, is home to Master Distiller Dave Pickerell’s WhistlePig Rye Whiskey. Pickerell has Master’s Degree in Chemical Engineering, and served as Chairman of the Kentucky Distillers Association when he was Master Distiller at Maker’s Mark.

After leaving Maker’s, Pickerell embarked on a journey to find the perfect rye whiskey. “Rye, in its own essence, is just a brilliant grain,” says Pickerell. “I wanted to do rye because it’s America’s historical whiskey.” During the Revolutionary War, English blockades of American ports prevented the colonists from purchasing molasses in order to make rum. As a result, American distillers, including George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, started making rye whiskey.

WhistlePig is one of the few 100% rye whiskies available today. “Rye is the brat of whiskey grains. The higher the percent rye you get, the worse it behaves,” says Pickerell. “It gets sticky. It foams. A lot of my colleagues laugh at me for persisting to work with 100% rye because the nuisance level of going from 95% to 100% is unbelievable. Most people stop at 95%. We go ahead and push the envelope and make it 100%.”

After fermentation, WhistlePig is aged for ten years – first, in new American oak casks and then in second-use bourbon casks on the farm in Vermont.

Boss Hog Limited Edition

The Boss Hog bottlings are special single-cask reserves. They are limited and hard to come by. This Third Edition is the first rye whiskey ever finished in hogshead barrels. A hogshead is a 250 liter Scotch cask, the largest barrels in the whiskey business. These particular hogsheads were refitted with new American oak heads. Boss Hog III "The Independent" is a 14 year whiskey, bottled at cask strength (60.1%) into numbered bottles. This is a truly unique and truly American 100% Rye spirit at.

We will open one bottle at precisely 6:30 PM. We're going to offer this as long as the spirit lasts. If it's not gone tonight, we'll extend Spirits Project pricing through Friday.

Next week in The Spirits Project
Bourgoin "Microbarrique - Single Cask" Cognac 1994 - 22 year