Four Roses Small Batch

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Four Roses Small Batch

Unread postby NeoTexan » Thu Aug 03, 2006 10:54 am

As e-mailed to me today"


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Some of you may have heard rumors about Four Roses introducing another brand this year. We couldn't talk about it earlier, because we had a very tight schedule to meet in order to make the introduction come to fruition in 2006. But, as you have already surmised, all the pieces of a big puzzle have fallen into place and we will introduce Four Roses Small Batch Bourbon this year. Like Single Barrel a couple years ago, Small Batch will officially be introduced during the Kentucky Bourbon Festival in September.


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Unread postby Mike » Thu Aug 03, 2006 1:09 pm

Something to look forward to. Based on my limited experience with the Single Barrel (one bottle) and what others have said about it, Mr Rutledge knows his stuff!
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Unread postby Mark » Thu Aug 03, 2006 5:17 pm

Wow, great news Dale, thanks for sharing it. :cheers: I just wish we could get it out of KY around here in the nE at some point. Same goes for the Single Barrel... I know they have trouble making enough but they do make great products and it should be shared with others across the US! lol
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Unread postby bourbonv » Thu Aug 03, 2006 6:06 pm

At a Four Roses dinner at the Bourbon's Bistro a few weeks ago, Jim hinted that there would be several new products introduced as stocks of whiskey increased to support the brands. He hinted that there would be a 90 proof version of Four Roses as one of these products.

Four Roses is in a very interesting position with two mash bills and five yeast strains to play with, there are many different flavors they can introduce. Being a historian and not a math major I can not calculate the exact number of combinations but I am sure it is huge. There are ten distinct whiskeys that can be bottled as seperate flavor profiles and then when you start marrying the whiskeys from two to five different whiskeys making the profile it becomes mind boggling. What ever they do, I am sure with Jim Rutledge in charge, they will be very tastey products.

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Unread postby NeoTexan » Thu Aug 03, 2006 6:55 pm

Mark wrote:Wow, great news Dale, thanks for sharing it. :cheers: I just wish we could get it out of KY around here in the nE at some point. Same goes for the Single Barrel... I know they have trouble making enough but they do make great products and it should be shared with others across the US! lol


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Unread postby brendaj » Sun Aug 27, 2006 4:43 pm

Well, got to taste the Small Batch and, it looks like Four Roses is offering up another winner!

I went to Four Roses with Chuck and Gayle Friday morning, and we had a great time. We sat for a couple of hours and chatted with Jim Rutledge, Terry, Yumiko and Al Young. They could not have been more gracious.

The new Small Batch is weighing in at 90 proof, 7 years old. It is the mingling of 4 of their 10 different flavor expressions (the result of the 2 mashbills and 5 yeast strains Mike mentioned). This first batch will contain 17 barrels. And its some pretty tasty stuff. I found it to be alittle more robust than the Four Roses SB I've tasted, spicier, with a nice tingle to the lingering finish.

And I'm not normally one to be impressed by packaging (if its good Bourbon, I'd be happy to carry it home in a bucket... :wink: ) but they've hit a home run with this one. Simply beautiful bottle with their trademark 4 roses embossed on the front, and the label die-cut around the embossed roses.

All in all, I believe Kirin is the best thing that ever happened to Four Roses. They are allowing Jim Rutledge the running room he deserves, to develop a collection of expressions that will make the Bourbon industry proud!
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Unread postby brendaj » Sun Aug 27, 2006 5:35 pm

Gayle had his camera, and shot a photo of the bottle (before we managed to empty it... :lol: )
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Unread postby brendaj » Sun Aug 27, 2006 5:44 pm

Gayle shot this one too.
Very small room, very intimate gathering...that's Jim Rutledge on the right.
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Unread postby brendaj » Sun Aug 27, 2006 6:13 pm

And here's one of Chuck, Gayle and me. Please know that I am not nearly as trashed as I look... :lol: Its about 11am, and I'm just seriously hanging from the night before. I'm having a great time, it just hurts to laugh... :sad3:
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Unread postby Bourbon Joe » Mon Aug 28, 2006 9:35 am

You people just had too much fun. Thanks for the pix Brenda.
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Unread postby Mike » Mon Aug 28, 2006 5:30 pm

Well, sure is nice to see some of our favorite BE characters. Chuck and Gayle (BE originals) are obviously in good company. I am sure I speak for many when I say I love all the pics you guys post! They are enjoyed by us outlanders...............you know I am not kidding about this. You guys have opportunitties we don't have and we can take a minor part in them through you!!

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Unread postby EllenJ » Mon Aug 28, 2006 6:46 pm

Brenda (and Chuck and Gayle),

I'm totally impressed with the selection of whiskeys being sampled in the tasting Gayle photographed!
This is the sort of range I'd be likely to present. Was this Jim's selection?

It takes real chutzpah to offer a comparison (especially to blabbermouths like you guys!) of "the new baby" with the likes of Maker's Mark, their own single barrel (although notably not the 100-proof single barrel),Van Winkle's best, something I can't figure out but looks like it might be 1795, and even -- hold the press, boys! -- Four Roses blended! As visitors will surely confirm, that's MY KIND of tasting selection! Huzzah!!
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Unread postby Bourbon HQ » Tue Aug 29, 2006 4:31 pm

No, actually we didn't taste all those other bourbons. Those were their collection they were discussing I suppose. We ONLY tasted Four Roses products. They were VERY good. The small batch was very nice.

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Unread postby cowdery » Tue Aug 29, 2006 10:32 pm

As most of you know, Bulleit is made at Four Roses. When Tommy Bulleit does a tasting with people from the press and the trade, he will pour samples of Bulleit along with Jack Daniel's, Maker's Mark and I forget what else, but four or five competitors. Four Roses is not afraid to put its whiskey side by side with any competitor.

I don't think Bulleit is the best thing they make, but it's good and widely available. It looks like the Four Roses branded products are staying in Kentucky.

One of the reasons Four Roses can't expand its distribution is that half of its output is contracted to Diageo for Bulleit, I. W. Harper and for the straight whiskey component of its blends, such as Seagram's Seven.
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Unread postby EllenJ » Tue Aug 29, 2006 11:26 pm

Well then, despite the fact that the samples in Gayle's photo happened not to be part of that particular tasting, Bravo! to Four Roses for being the kind of distillery who'll do that. I'm impressed.
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