Magazine Review: The Bourbon Review

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Magazine Review: The Bourbon Review

Unread postby bourbonv » Sat Jul 19, 2008 12:39 pm

The Bourbon Review: Summer 2008, The Bourbon Review, LLC.Contents, Illustrated, pp82.

This is the first issue of a magazine dedicated to Bourbon Whiskey, The Bourbon Trail and Kentucky. The magazine is a full color glossy illustrated magazine that is well designed. The stories are interesting even if they do seem a bit canned, but what else can be expected on the first issue. The publishers are all from the Lexington, Ky area and the articles and advertising proves this. They are mostly about Lexington people, but to the credit of the publishers, they did pick some interesting Lexington people to discuss. The stories mentioned on the cover are "Traditions of Gainesway", "Businessman Larry Redmon", and "Master Distiller Fred Noe". Gainesway is a horse farm north of Lexington and the interview with the owner Antony Beck will interest horsemen but is written to appeal to casual tourist interested in Kentucky's horses as well. Larry Redmon is a bar owner and singer in Lexington who owns "Redmons" and "The Bluegrass Tavern". The article is very interesting with bourbon discussion on several levels. The least interesting article is the Fred Noe article. It reads like a canned article from the marketing department of Jim Beam. One would hope that someone will tell Fred that using the old "Barrels were charred to take the fish smell out of the barrel" story makes him appear ignorant of the mechanics of the barrel. The only way to get the fish smell (and taste) out of a barrel that held fish for a prolonged length of time is to burn it to ash. There were a few times in the article that it seemed Fred was being himself and not repeating the story line from marketing and they add some interest to the story. Let us hope that more of that will come out in future interviews.

The magazine has short descriptions of each of the distilleries on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail and they could have been copied straight from the marketing brochures at the distillery. There are some whiskey reviews and cocktail recipes a list of upcoming events and a couple of other stories in the magazine. The illustrations are all very well done and it was nice to see that Julian and Preston Van Winkle were not the only father and son team as Jimmy and Eddie Russell are also shown together in the illustrations. The other thing that is interesting about this nagazine is their mission statement, proudly listed on the credit page. They have a mission to support Kentucky's land and water resources and give free advertisement to non-profits as well as 50 hours manpower and 1% of their profits to such organizations as the Bluegrass Conservancy, this issues recipient of free advertisement.

The magazine is offered on line at thebourbonreview.com. You can subscribe to the magazine or look for it your local distillery and liquor store where it is a free magazine, paid for by advertising.
Mike Veach
"Our people live almost exclusively on whiskey" - E H Taylor, Jr. 25 April 1873
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Re: Magazine Review: The Bourbon Review

Unread postby bourbonv » Mon Jul 28, 2008 11:16 am

I would have thought this review might have created a little more interest than it has so far. I think it is great that there is going to be a magazine dedicated to bourbon and other American Whiskey. I am looking forward to being able to read about bourbon someplace other than the token two articles a year in Malt Advocate or Whisky Magazine. Before this only Chuck's Bourbon Country Reader focused on Bourbon and even though Chuck is a very good writer and I respect his opinion greatly, it will be nice to have other people writing about Bourbon on a regular basis. Besides, it is going to be free in the Liquor Barns and other select liquor stores in Louisville. I have already suggested that they contact LeNell for distribution and Howies favorite, Montgomery County Liquor store as well. I am sure they will be happy to add your favorite store to the list if you contact them.
Mike Veach
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Re: Magazine Review: The Bourbon Review

Unread postby bunghole » Mon Jul 28, 2008 1:03 pm

Mike,

I think the limited availability of the publication is the reason for the lack of comentary. Fat chance of the Virginia ABC stores ever carrying this or putting it out in plain sight if they did.

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Re: Magazine Review: The Bourbon Review

Unread postby cowdery » Mon Jul 28, 2008 9:27 pm

The thing about any publication, especially one like this, is what they do in issues two, three, four, etc. This looks more like something made as a one-off, for distribution at something like the Bourbon Festival, and not as a viable, on-going publication. As easy as it is today for anyone who wants information about even the most obscure subject to find it, I can say from my own personal experience that interest in American whiskey is still very limited. It's bigger than it was ten years ago, but is it enough to support a glossy magazine? I'm skeptical.
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Re: Magazine Review: The Bourbon Review

Unread postby angelshare » Wed Jul 30, 2008 2:34 pm

Does anyone know anything about who is publishing or writing for the magazine? If it's news to Hall of Famer Mike Veach and the Enthusiast's writer of choice, Chuck Cowdery, it's hard to imagine we are the target readers. Although possible, it's equally hard to imagine the publishers of a glossy bourbon magazine are unaware of SB or BE. SB is the third link on a Google search for "bourbon!" Thirty minutes of research on BE or SB would reveal the level of respect these two have attained in the bourbon community. A piece from either of them in the premier edition would have been huge in getting this group interested in the ongoing publication of a bourbon magazine.

Maybe issues 2, 3 and 4 will prove that assumption about the target readership wrong...but we're skeptical.
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Re: Magazine Review: The Bourbon Review

Unread postby bourbonv » Wed Jul 30, 2008 3:38 pm

I have met the guys publishing this magazine. They seem to have their act together. They have been in contact with the KDA and received the KDA's blessing, which helps. They are working on an issue for September and will be handing it out at the Bourbon Festival. They are in the planning stage for a December issue as well, so they seem to be in it for the long run.
Mike Veach
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Re: Magazine Review: The Bourbon Review

Unread postby bunghole » Wed Jul 30, 2008 4:33 pm

I just spent about 15 minutes browsing http://www.thebourbonreview.com and it looks OK. I read the short article on the Van Winkle's. All surface intel without much depth. The photography looks very amaturish overall. Some of the pages have a very hastily thrown together look. It appears that the publishers spent far more time and effort in signing up paid advertisers. I realise that without them we wouldn't be talking about The Bourbon Review at all as it wouldn't exist. They also have a forum online that has all of 5 posts. My suggestion to them would be better photography, coupled with well researched and better written articles. Stuff the fluff and dig for the good stuff!

Linn
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Re: Magazine Review: The Bourbon Review

Unread postby cowdery » Wed Jul 30, 2008 9:44 pm

A word of reality about new publications. Most of them give away most of the advertising in their premier issue. The reasons for this are fairly obvious, and it's one of the things you budget for with a new publication. This is in no way a criticism, it's how you start a magazine. Also, since it's always the writers who get screwed, the writers and other creatives probably aren't being paid. Not yet. Again, that's how you get something like that off the ground. Printers and the like are usually not nearly so accommodating, so that's where the money goes.

I suspect their concept is very tourism oriented, so even though it's a periodical it's going to run the same basic stories over and over, for that person with a very casual interest. We need to see how they're going to distribute it, but if it's primarily a giveaway distributed at events, at tourist sites, and at hotels and other tourism infrastructure locations, then that's what it is. If they're honestly trying to build a subscriber base, they're not going after it very aggressively. I think it's mainly going to be a freebee, which means it's for tourists.

Note also that it's a quarterly. So is Malt Advocate.

I wish them all the luck in the world, whatever it is they are trying to do. A rising tide raises all ships.

And thanks to Dave and Tina for the very kind words. They're always appreciated.
- Chuck Cowdery

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Re: Magazine Review: The Bourbon Review

Unread postby angelshare » Fri Aug 01, 2008 9:03 pm

The kind words are well earned, but you're welcome!

Just to clarify, we were only arguing that us folks are not likely the people they're trying to reach, not that it's a bad thing.

cowdery wrote:A rising tide raises all ships.


But it raises prices, too! Hmm...maybe that is bad... :lol:
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Re: Magazine Review: The Bourbon Review

Unread postby p_elliott » Mon Sep 08, 2008 11:01 am

OK I'm a little new here and a novice with bourbon but on their "about us" page they list hops as ingredient in bourbon??? Or am I stupid ?
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Re: Magazine Review: The Bourbon Review

Unread postby cowdery » Mon Sep 08, 2008 5:42 pm

Hops sometimes are an ingredient in bourbon yeast mashes, but not in bourbon itself. If they're saying that, they're just wrong.

Jim Rutledge just told me they're publishing their second issue in time for the Bourbon Festival. He's favorably impressed by what they're doing.
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Re: Magazine Review: The Bourbon Review

Unread postby bourbonv » Wed Sep 17, 2008 3:10 pm

The second issue is out and I will add a review of it as well when I finish reading it. I am impressed so far from looking at the article titles. They look like interesting articles. I did read the one that Dale (NeoTexan) was interviewed for about Maker's Mark collecting and enjoyed it.
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