transcript

Speaker 1:
[00:09] It's This Week in Bourbon, and if you're getting started, you just hit the ground running. And here's your headlines for April 24th, 2026. Sazerac has formally offered $15 billion for Bye Brown Forman, and they're not taking it. And Uncle Nearest could be forced to shut down in the next 30 days, plus Buffalo Trace has announced the release of its Eagle Rare 30. And before we get started, here's a quick word from our partners. Hey, everyone, it's Kenny here, and I know you're just like me. We all love a good, poor bourbon to wind down at the end of the day, especially right maybe before we go to bed. But right now, those Kentucky nights are starting to get humid, and that nightcap actually ends up spiking your core temperature and can ruin your deep sleep. And that's why I actually got myself an 8 Sleep Pod 5. It's a smart cover that goes right on your existing mattress and it can cool down to a crisp 55 degrees. So no more hot feet at the end of the night for me. It has an autopilot AI. It can actually sense my body signal and knows how to adjust the temperature automatically, helping me get actually more sleep at the end of the night as well too. It's really the difference between waking up foggy and actually feeling rested. And for me, it's been a game changer. So you can use my code. It's Bourbon Pursuit. So go to 8sleep.com/bourbonpursuit, and you can get up to $350 off your own Pod 5. You can also get it 30 days to try it at home, and I'm confident that you're going to love it. Go to 8sleep.com/bourbonpursuit. This episode is brought to you by Sip & Bourbon, the app built for bourbon drinkers. Discover new bottles, explore curated recommendations, and connect with fellow whiskey fans just like yourself all in one place. There's no gimmicks, just great bourbon and a smarter way to sip. You can download the Sip & Bourbon app today, or you can visit at sipandbourbon.com. That's S-I-P-N bourbon.com or just grab it on the app store. I get to talk about whiskey festivals all the time on the show, and I have seen this one firsthand, and I know the type of crowd and the enthusiasm that's there. And if you're a fan of craft whiskey, you need to be going to Bruisel Fest. And it's back for its third year, and it's shaping up to be the number one craft whiskey festival. So mark your calendars for August 29th, or 2026, where you'll get pours from smaller brands from all across the country. You can sit on educational panels and meet the faces behind some of your favorite bottles. Ticket sales will kick off on April 27th with early access for those Bruisel Club members. And Early Bird General Mission starts at only just $80. They have VIP tickets at 210, but those discounted prices will only last until the end of May. So whether you're a seasoned collector or just now getting into craft whiskey, this is the festival you can't miss. Go to brusel.com/festival2026 to learn more about tickets.

Speaker 2:
[03:10] Whisky Wednesdays Round 19 is here. And the Bourbon Buddy bonus means more bourbon and more winners. For just five bucks, you can win a great bottle for you and a friend while supporting a different nonprofit each week. And every ticket from the full 12 week round goes back in for the big June 24th grand prize. A six bottle Buffalo Trace collection for you and your Bourbon Buddy. Get your tickets now at give270.org. Charitable Gaming License ORG0002703.

Speaker 1:
[03:39] You hear us talk about whiskey clubs all the time on the show, but there's a common theme. Most of them are about keeping people out. There's insane membership costs. There's no choice what bottles you actually receive. So here at Pursuit Spirits, we're changing that game. That's why we introduce P Club. It's our way of bringing our distillery straight to you. We've scrapped the whole mystery box model. So as a member, you get total control with a customizable cart. You can choose anything from our everyday offerings that may or may not be available on retail shelves around you. Or we have once a quarter brand new exclusive distillery gift shop only releases that will never hit store shelves. And that includes everything from our Melwood Legacy collection. Plus you'll get 10% off all merch, invites to VIP virtual tastings with Ryan and myself, and $15 off distillery experiences here at our home at Whisky Row in downtown Louisville. It's not about being exclusive. It's about finally having the access you deserve. Join our inner circle today at pursuitspirits.com/p-club, or just go to pursuitspirits.com and hit that p-club link to come and join us. Kayak gets my flight, hotel, and rental car right.

Speaker 3:
[04:49] So I can tune out travel advice that's just plain wrong.

Speaker 2:
[04:52] Bro, Skycoin, way better than points.

Speaker 4:
[04:56] Never fly during a Scorpio full moon.

Speaker 3:
[04:59] Just tell the manager you'll sue, instant room upgrade.

Speaker 2:
[05:03] Stop taking bad travel advice.

Speaker 1:
[05:05] Start comparing hundreds of sites with Kayak and get your trip right.

Speaker 3:
[05:09] Bad advice?

Speaker 1:
[05:10] You're talking to me.

Speaker 2:
[05:11] Kayak.

Speaker 1:
[05:12] Got that right. Hey, everybody, welcome back. It's This Week in Bourbon. I'm Kenny. Hey, Ryan Cecil here. Hitting the ground running. Hitting the ground running, man. You know, they always say that, it's like, I can't remember a job interview I haven't been on. And somebody goes, you know, we just need somebody that can hit the ground running. I know, so to please enlighten us, where did that originate from? Well, well, I'm glad you asked, Ryan, because during the Victorian era, railroads became the new fast way to transport. So workers and passengers would often jump on the moving train instead of waiting for it to stop to quickly get to their destination. And those who landed smoothly would quite literally hit the ground running. Yep. Now, and now it's just a job, job description. Yep. Or it's an expectation. It's an expectation. You know what you're doing? Well, come on, you could hit the ground running. So yeah, that's right. Well, happy pre-derby week. I can't believe. I know. Well, I can't believe it's here. The seasons are changing. It is now great. I got the V-neck on today to let the chest hairs breathe a little bit. Get some sun. Yeah. We're not in a hoodie here for once. So it's finally coming around. We'll be in tank top soon. It's funny, you actually, before we started, we were trying to figure out a bottle to bring to be able to taste. He was like, did you bring anything for a derby pick? I was like, you mean the horses are already available for picking? I was like, I didn't think they're available yet. No, they will come out Tuesday. They will be soon. Post-dates, I think, Tuesday. Yeah, so that'll be fun to be able to see that. Obviously, derby time is when this city comes alive. And if you have an opportunity to actually come and witness and be a partake in the spectacle, that is the Kentucky Derby. It is something that is very awesome, that is a once in a lifetime opportunity. And so hopefully you get a chance to come here one of those days. But as a insider, I will tell you, Ryan and I, when was the last time you actually went to Derby? I actually went last year. Okay, well, bad example. I did take a 10-year hiatus in between. And I only went because I was graciously invited through a friend who had somebody, I think, back out. And they were like, I got first four tickets covered. We have our own bar. He's like, sign me up. And it's all taken care of. I was like, what about transportation? He's like, yep, got that taken care of. I was like, that's the only way I'll do it anymore. It was nice. So you have to go very high brow. I, on the other hand, yes, I probably haven't been in about 10 years. But as a local, a lot of folks that are local, we don't actually go to the Derby or the Oaks very often. It's always gotten pushback. It used to be a very local thing to go on Oaks Day. And then it became Thurby, which was Thursday. And now, it's almost become Wednesday. It's Wednesday. It's like the locals' day. Next year will be Tuesday. I know. But here's the thing though. I think it's what $10 gets you in on a Wednesday or something like that? For general admission? Maybe. Yeah, maybe. Yeah. Yeah. Versus all the other days, at least Derby and Oaks. I mean, you're talking hundreds of dollars. But you do get free food and drink, which is okay, except tisks, shame, shame. On Churchill Downs, changing the start time for the Oaks. I think the whole entire city is very upset about that one. Yeah, because it's now prime time, 8.30 or something like that, which normally Oaks is like 6.15, 6.30. You're like, all right, go to Oaks, get out of there, go to one of my favorite restaurants here in town. But now everybody will be at the track because I think they're pushing the all-inclusive, eat dinner there, watch it and they're trying to get more better TV ratings on the West Coast and stuff. But we'll see. It's one-time experiment. I am bummed for all our bars and restaurants that really count on that revenue because Derby Week is a huge revenue stream for our local economy. So yeah, it does suck that they kind of poo-pooed on everyone and took all the glory for themselves. Lauren, my wife brought this up the other day too. It's like, can you think about all the Derby Eve parties that are there to help raise money for charity? They screwed over every single one of those as well. That's true. Hopefully, it's a one and done situation. I hope it's one and done for the city and for everybody else. I hope Churchill, not to say that we have any influence over it, but just know that we would also like for people to come and visit us at Trial and Error on Derby Eve as well, which we will be open on Derby Eve. If you had to be done with Oaks that day and you're like, I'm not done partying, come on down. Or you're not going to track the day and just need somewhere cool to hang out till you go to Derby on Saturday? Yeah. Come see us. Yes, come and see us. Some other announcements before we get into something here too, is that if you happen to be here tomorrow, Saturday, April 25th, shout out to Steve Breen. He's going to be doing everything over at the Kentucky Burby, and that is to raise money to help fight Parkinson's. That's going to be at Progress Park. You can get your info at kyburby.com. Did you watch Shrinking by any chance? Oh, yeah. I love that show. Fuck Parkinson's. Yes, exactly. Yes. Parkinson's. Him and Michael J. Fox. Yeah, yeah. Sorry to our listeners out there from our colorful language there. SLB Drinks will be doing a takeover here at Trial and Error as well on April 25th. Sarah will be in DC here in the next couple of weeks, so hopefully, maybe she has some stuff lined up, and then obviously, we'll have another whiskey weather takeover still happening on May 20th as well. But before we get into the news, Ryan, what's the bottle we have in front of us? Yeah. Obviously, a little self-promotion here, but we have our Pursuit Whiskey Row Series Pick. So they do a Whiskey Row Series Pick once a year in coordination with Derby timing. The great folks at Evergreen, Justin's House of Bourbon, Watch Old Proper, Doc Crowe's, our good friend John Schumach is one that orchestrates all this, and then- Stacy from Kentucky Bourbon Festival. Stacy from Kentucky Bourbon Festival. So they partner with the distillery here, usually on, well, typically on Whiskey Row, because it is called a Whiskey Row Series, but they graciously chose us. We sat down, tasted their, gosh, I don't know, a ton of different bourbons and ryes. We landed on this absolutely stellar double-oaked rye. It's the first one that we've ever done, a tobacco stay with our rye whiskey. And so it released today at our gift shop, and we only got five cases of it, but it sold out in what, 45 minutes? Something like that. But don't let that discourage you. You can also find these at Justin's House of Bourbon, Evergreen, Watch Hill Proper, and... Yeah, that's about, sounds about right. And Doc Rose. Doc Rose, yes. You can get it. And you can still get it. We have two bottles here available by The Poor. That you can try it, but we'll taste it. Oh yeah, I guess we should probably try it. What are you going to rate it, Ryan? Oh, sideways on the... No, it is absolutely stellar. I mean, our rye is just so sweet, fruity, decadent, brown sugar, buttery, but this tobacco stave just makes it a little bit more walnutty, some maple. But then there's this cherry pipe sweetness that's just lingering through. If you love cherry pie, this one's going to be right up your alley. Cherry pie or cherry pipe? Pie and pipe. And pipe. It's a cherry pie flavor blunt. That's what I was about to say. Now we're coming up to Derby, we get to come into our one-year allocation of actually having a cigar too, don't we? Oh, yes. That's the only time of year. It's the only time of the year. Time to light them up. I still taste it from last year. Smoke them if you got them. Yep. All right. One last bit of news is that we are searching for a few more ambassadors. We need a few people in Illinois. So if you happen to be in the Joliet area or maybe in the North Shore or Highland Park area, feel free to shoot me a message. Obviously, we're still looking for people all around the great state of Texas, mostly figured around Dallas and Austin, Reno, Nevada, and I think we just got somebody from Orange County. But hey, California, big patch of land. So if you're around there, we could use you. Shoot me a message, Kenny at pursuitspirits.com. All right, Ryan, industry news time. Let's do it. Ready to go. So first is that Jeptha Creed is expanding their lineup of visitor experiences coming in 2026 to celebrate their 10-year anniversary. This is known as their farm to your glass philosophy that they use for their heirloom, bloody butcher corn and whatnot. So it's an updated distillery and tour tasting for just a good like $15, which is very reasonable. For a new single barrel thieving experience, they'll be launching on March 1st, which is going to be offering behind the scenes access to barrel selections and flavor profiling, and that's going to be for $45. Additionally, they're debuting an immersive farm to your glass experience for $35 that focuses on the agricultural roots and multi-generational legacy. Very cool. I have to admit, I haven't been there in probably eight years ago. But I was impressed by the property. They got a really cool like lounger in the Rick house. That's what I see the pictures of. Yeah. Every time I drive by there, it looks crowded. I mean, so I know that's awesome. Ten years is a huge milestone for them. So it's very cool. It sounds like some great whiskey experiences too. That's what it's all about. You can buy and drink bourbon anywhere, but it's about creating that connection. That's right. How do you create that connection, that everlasting memory? Yep. Well, here is the big one. Sazerac has formally offered $15 billion. I feel like this is a Austin Powers moment here, right? $32 per share to acquire the Louisville rival Brown-Forman. This bid represents a significant premium for Jack Daniel's maker whose stock has already surged around 25% or maybe so, who knows, since the takeover rumors began in late March. And a merger with Sazerac, which is, you know, who consolidated two of Kentucky's most powerful spirits dynasties under a local family-owned control. This would actually, despite some of the appeal of the bid, the industry analysts still suggest that Pernod Ricard may still hold the advantage. And we'll talk about that here in a second. But the deal could face actually more intense antitrust scrutiny due to the high concentration of Bourbon brands between the two industry giants here in Kentucky. So, I feel like this is probably going to be ripe for another roundtable discussion here, because there's no way this will be solved in a month. No. But seeing how this will play out between the two, there was an article that came out, I believe, yesterday from New York Times or whatever it is, and said that the Brown family isn't really interested in a Sazerac takeover, and they are favoring more towards the Pernau side, which I looked at it and I said, listen, if I'm a Brown member and you offer me 15 billion, I go, well, that's generational wealth right there. So, maybe you're not getting all that. The shareholders are good. Yeah. Well, I mean, they still own controlling and sharing. They still have a lot of, they still have a lot of stock, okay? So, they would still get generational wealth out of it. However, for- However, they already have generational wealth. Yeah. Well, that is very true. But, you know, it's like a lot of industries, right? You could take that and you could spin it into something else. A great example, what's the other Bourbon brand? Ingram Micro, Ingram Distillery, right? I mean, the Ingram family, they've got their hands in all kinds of things between tech and boats and whatever. Yeah. Now Bourbon. So you can always take that money and spin it to something else. However, if you want to create something that I think will still be around for generations to come, the Pernod side is the way to go. Well, and too, like, I would think Brown-Forman could leverage Pernod's international distribution better than, like Sazerac would probably utilize Brown-Forman's international distribution. And whereas Pernod, I think, has a bigger footprint with their brand portfolio internationally. So I think it makes more sense from the get-go when this came out. I was like, this is Sazerac classic PR. Like, it's like being at a... I'm glad you said that. That was in my mind. It's like, are they just doing this to make headlines? Because it's like me being at these charity auctions where they auction off a single barrel pick. And like, the first bid comes out at like 5,000 bucks. And I know I'm not going to win, but I just want to... 5,000 and one, Bob. I just want to raise my hand just so I can be seen in part of it, knowing that full and well, they're not going to take... That's not going to be the winning bid. And so I feel like... I mean, for Sazerac, it makes a whole lot of sense because Brown Forman has a bigger footprint than Sazerac, I would assume, with Jack Daniels and whatnot. It's hard to say because Sazerac's not publicly traded, but in my bag, when I was like, I pernod makes much more sense strategically for the Browns. But it is impressive that Sazerac is able to have the capital and the free cash flow to make even this offer a possibility. So yeah, it's wild. But I think it's more like classic, like Sazerac's brilliant at PR. And I think this was more that strategy. It's either that or we have no idea the amount of fireball and buzzball sales that happened behind the closed doors. Yeah, I was reading Mark Brown's, and like buzzballs is now the number two or three selling RTD. And it was like growing 47% month over month. And so the buzzball machine might be taking over the fireball machine. I would imagine, I mean, everything has a shelf life, right? The thing is like, I think fireball has been around since we were in college, right? Oh, 100%. Yeah. So it's had a good 20-year run, but you're going to have these cyclical things. I was at Lynn Family Stadium. There was the Louisville Kings, which is the new, I don't know, you would call them a AAA football team? It's a minor league football team. Minor league football team, yeah. And whatever. And I go there, and the first thing I see walking in is that there are Sazerac-branded bars everywhere, and there's just buzz ball bars. Yeah. And I kind of cringe a little bit. But don't be wrong, the company is great, they're doing marketing, that's what they do. But I feel like, I'm just like, we get in the line and we order everything except buzz balls because I'm like, I'm 43 years old about to be, it's like I'm not ordering a cookies and cream shot to sit there and watch some football. So I order something else, but handed off to them, that's what they're doing. They're doing a fantastic job of being able to make that happen. They found a way to have that target demo, and they're latching on to it. They're going for it. It's just not my cup of tea, but that's perfectly fine. Yeah. I mean, fireball. I mean, there's still people that love taking the shooters and shooting them, put them in the freezer. At Christmas time, they come in candy canes. I can't tell you time golf scrambles people have fireball in their coolers. Oh, God. I still get hit with fireball shots all the time. Do I turn it down? Absolutely not. No, no, I'm still a partaker. Yeah, and two, it's amazing, especially when we do all these market visits and we're doing ride-alongs and you go to stores and every parking lot I pull into, I'm stepping on three or four empty fireball. And now it's gonna be, buzz balls aren't as compact, so they'll stick out a little more. I was actually in a market visit in Seattle last week and this guy walks around and he's like, see the four packs of the fireballs, where's the 10 packs at? So he's like, yeah, it's over here. And he pulled it out of the case that has like the spring load underneath of it. So it only comes up. So I was in his hurt hand. I got to say it. Well, on the other juicy gossip story over here, the appointed receiver for Uncle Nearest, Mr. Philip G. Young has issued a dire warning to a federal court that the prominent whiskey brand is insolvent and could be forced to shut down within 30 days without continued emergency funding. The company has defaulted on more than $108 million in loans. If you haven't paid attention to anything we've been talking about on This Week in Bourbon for the past like four months, and it's currently surviving on cash infusions from its lender, Farm Credit America. The receiver's report paints a picture of severe financial mismanagement citing unfiled tax returns, unreliable records, and in an effort to stabilize the business for a potential going concern sale, by the end of June, the receiver has already slashed the workforce by 38 percent, moving liquidated to non-core assets or starting to liquidate non-core assets, including the luxury properties on Martha's Vineyard and in Cognac, France. Yeah. I don't know if we brought this up before, but it's always been like they haven't filed tax returns since 2018, which is like. But at that point, I'm like, how's the bank give you money if you don't file tax returns? It's like, our banks are twice a year. They're on it. Give me your tax terms. As soon as April 15th, they're like, God, this year's tax returns? Sure. Send it over. Yeah. I think with the receivership, I'm assuming Farm Credit has paused having to collect payments for, which is helping the company stay afloat. But yeah, it seems like the end is near for Uncle Nearest, unfortunately. It is. Unless they can find a buyer to absorb and take all this over. If I was a buyer, I've been like, this better be pennies on the dollar. That's what it's going to be. Who knows? Sazerac, this is your opportunity. I got a new Tennessee Distillery. Yeah. I was like, just keep expanding. Go ahead and keep swooping up while things are down. Our last news story here is that Diageo has officially opened its new $415 million manufacturing and warehouse facility in Montgomery, Alabama, spanning 360,000 square feet and it's going to serve as a strategic hub for the Southern United States, boasting a multi-million case capacity to support the company's North American supply chain. A notable technical feature is that the facility is the focus on sustainability and automation, utilizing five on-site automated guided vehicles, electric boilers for sanitation and real-time water and energy metering, and has already created approximately 100 permanent full-time jobs, and the construction phase is going to support roughly around 750 new positions. Other than that, the total investment cost is $415 million. Wow. Because you got to put that billion dollars of inventory somewhere. Hopefully, go somewhere after it gets there. Yeah. That's cool. Yeah. It's good for Alabama, a good state of Alabama. How about it? Then you've already heard it here on the news as well. So Bruisalfest happening in Opelika, Alabama as well too. You can get your tickets for that. But hey, stick around. We got Bourbon Release News coming right up. I'm Bryn Elliott.

Speaker 4:
[25:23] I'm the master distiller here at Four Roses.

Speaker 2:
[25:25] Name is Chris Morris.

Speaker 3:
[25:26] I am the master distiller emeritus for Woodford Reserve.

Speaker 4:
[25:30] With High Proof Tours, when you visit the Kentucky Bourbon Trail, we make your drive come alive with stories from master distillers and industry insiders. A phone guided audio tour from High Proof Tours guides you on the right roads to your next distillery so you can get lost in this story, not in the sticks. Visit highprooftours.com and get 30% off your tour with promo code bourbonpursuit.

Speaker 1:
[25:53] Hey everyone, it's Kenny here. Did you know that you can get ad free episodes by joining us on Patreon? Yeah, it's that easy. So if you love the show, you can help keep the whiskey flowing by joining our community over on Patreon. Bourbon Pursuit is fueled by grassroots supporters and listeners just like you. For as little as $5 a month, you're in. But at $10, not only do you get ad free episodes, you get a Bourbon Pursuit t-shirt, a bottle tote bag, and a whole lot of other perks. So consider supporting and joining our community over at patreon.com/bourbonpursuit. Come check it out and join the community. You, me, everybody else listening to this podcast right now, we all like to have our nightly bourbon. You've probably noticed, especially as you get older, that your sleep, it starts taking a hit. That's because alcohol ends up increasing your heart rate and your temperature. But the 8 Sleep Pod 5 is here to fix it. It's a smart cover that fits on your current bed, and it uses an autopilot AI system to learn your patterns, cooling you down to a crisp 55 degrees to ensure that you're still hitting those deep sleep stages. Plus, when you wake up, you get a full report every single morning. Ninety-nine percent of their heart rate accuracy was no wearable required. It's how I stay recovered during these hot Kentucky summers. Now remember, it's not a medical device, but it is the largest sleep data set in the world working right with you. You can use code bourbonpursuit at 8sleep.com/bourbonpursuit, and you can get up to $350 off your own Pod 5. Plus, you can try it 30 days risk-free. That's 8sleep.com/bourbonpursuit.

Speaker 3:
[27:30] No one goes to Hanks for spreadsheets. They go for a darn good pizza. Lately, though, the shop's been quiet. So, Hank decides to bring back the $1 slice. He asks Copilot in Microsoft Excel to look at his sales and costs, and help him see if he can afford it. Copilot shows Hank where the money's going, and which little extras make the dollar slice work. Now, Hanks has a line out the door. Hank makes the pizza. Copilot handles the spreadsheets. Learn more at m365copilot.com/work.

Speaker 1:
[28:05] Hey, everybody, Bourbon Release News time. It's always the favorite time of the year. I'm pumped. Is it? I'm hitting the ground running. You sure are. Stay on that train. Here we go. This first one, it is the headline here. It is the big one, Buffalo Trace. They're in the news every single week for us. They have announced the release of Eagle Rare 30, the oldest age-dated bourbon to date. The whiskey was matured in Warehouse P. I think at 30 years old, I don't think you say matured, you say it matured. Matured in Warehouse P. It's one of the distilleries to purpose-built experimental warehouse designed to test how controlled environments and extended aging can elevate American whiskey. It's a 101 proof expression intended to challenge traditional maturation limits in Kentucky climate by managing evaporation and barrel influence over three decades. It's going to have a hand-blown crystal decanter featuring a hand-hammered gold-plated eagle's wing and an internal glass eagle sculpture all housed in a bespoke display box. To celebrate the launch, they're partnering with Bottoms for an online auction starting on April 24th, which includes the first two bottles produced and a luxury stay at the distillery's private stag launch. This is going to be available in limited quantities, likely around 200 bottles starting in May of 2026. With a retail price, wait for it, $12,500. Wow, but it's 30-year-old bourbon, man. But okay, so they're saying like, it's their oldest. Because when I read the press release, it said the oldest, or the 30 is the oldest bourbon ever. But I guess they're talking about their- It has to be theirs. Yeah, because there's- I've had a 42- Played a Boat just had a 30-year-old. They had that. I've had a 40, 41, and a 42. Yeah. Exactly. Yeah. By the way, my 40, 41, and 42-year-old, that was not good bourbon. It was fun, but I would never go- we've had it. Yeah, but they said in traditional rick houses where you've been in this last drop, where it's refrigerated, low humidity, or maybe high humidity, I don't know, whatever conditions to preserve. They wanted to just not change, really. Exactly. I think they took barrels that were, I don't know, say 15 to 20 years old, combine them into existing barrels to help slow down the evaporation. Sorry, I got a tickle in my throat. But it just makes you want to drink some more of it there, huh? That's right. But $12,000, I mean, the bottle does look sick with the topper and everything. I mean, I think it's pretty cool. Well, you could have that or you could have a down payment on a car. That's true. It's whatever you think is working. Or a European vacation. Yeah, or a European vacation. Obviously, it would be really cool to try. We'll never get a chance to try it. But good for them, it's pushing the bounds of American whiskey and where it can go and creating a sense of luxury that had probably never been there before either. Totally. Yeah. In addition, so the Permanent Disabled Jockeys Fund, the PDJF as they like to call it, and Kentucky Senator Bourbon have partnered for a limited 140 bottle single barrel bourbon release to benefit injured riders. This offering is a part of the brand's Jim Bunning release, which honors the Hall of Fame baseball player and the former Kentucky Senator. This specific barrel was selected by 2026 George Wolfe award-winning jockey, Julian Leperoux. Ooh, he always wins. He's good. I'm just so glad that I've been around in horse racing long enough that I said his last name correctly. Yeah. You're like, oh, it's Pat Day. This is bottled at 126.4 proof. It's a 75-21-4 mash bill, and it's going to be available for purchase at the Frank and Dino's in Lexington and Blinker's Tavern in Covington, Kentucky. Very cool. Yeah. I mean, jockeys. I mean, you think just riding around a horse is, there's definitely a ton of injuries and it's a hard job for these folks, so it's cool that some of this has helped supporting them. Jim Bunnings, yeah, definitely one of our coolest senators ever. Baseball player. I'm a huge baseball fan. I know you are, Mr. Coach. That's right. I had a game last night. Yeah. You got the dub. If anybody needs a tip on how to slide it. Need pitching lessons? You were a pitcher, weren't you? I was a pitcher. That's right. What about sliding into home? What kind of tips can you give for that? Well, depends if you're trying to avoid the tag or you're like, I don't know, you have to read it when you're getting there. If the catcher catches high, you kind of head first, get low. If you're trying to sweep around them, you're going, yeah. Or if you just try to, they've gotten really where you can't just steamroll the catcher anymore. Oh, you can't? No. Oh, that's not fun anymore. I know. That's like getting rid of the whole, like people like ice checking. Well, I'm saying on a kickoff. Oh, yeah. Yeah, you can't rush the field anymore. You've got to wait till he catches it. Exactly. Yeah. So yeah, if you need sliding tips, hit me up. All right. There you go. Well, another one is that Jack Daniels is coming out with a new small batch rye release. And I got a chance to try this one. And Jim and I failed me. So I'm actually reading directly from the press release over here. It's a limited release of small batch rye. And it's going to consist of five different high proof batches of Tennessee rye sourced from different places of Coy Hill, Boiler Hill and Fire Brigade Field Houses. The one I got to actually... Fire Brigade. I actually did get to try the Fire Brigade. We have a sample of it. So we'll try that here soon. It's going to be in 375 Ml bottles. And the proof points are ranging. They're all hazmat. So 142.7 up to 146.1. And it represents some of the most unparalleled and limited edition Tennessee rye whiskey emerging from Lynchburg as there. There's going to be a total of 129 barrels that all came, spanning around 18 months of when they had actually started from matured, with an average age around 10 years across. It's the typical mash bill, 70% rye, 18% corn, 12% malted barley. And these will be available exclusively for $65 a bottle. That's their best product. Jack Daniel's rye. It's phenomenal. Was the last year one the Coy or the 10 year? I can't remember. 10 year? I can't remember which one was rye versus bourbon anymore. That's true. But it was freaking killer. It was 140 something. And I'm like, stupid hazmat. But it was really good. I mean, that's the thing. It's like, they have, They have rye really good though. I know. It was like, pour me a second. I was actually not going to have a second one. I was like, you know, I'm just going to drink some water. You know, just kind of ran it all out. But now that you're pouring, I guess I'll take one too. I think that what Jack Daniel's has done in their large category of just very special releases, every single one is knocked out of the park. I haven't had a bad one yet. And I think this is what gets people really focused back on Jack Daniel's again, and can help. Unfortunately, they don't have a near enough of this to satisfy the demand that could be out there. But if nobody's buying the shelf stuff and you can have more of the Coy Hill releases later on, and you could sell it for a much higher margin, you might be on to something there. Yeah, and it's so good. I love it. Yeah, it is. Well, this is a very, very short one. Michter's is releasing their US1 Barrel Strength Sour Mash Kentucky Whisky for the first time in May of 2026. And it's for the first time the story is ever going to be released, this particular mash bill. Because yeah, because sour mash is usually like very low proof, isn't it? I think so. I was like, I'm trying to find the press release real quick. But yeah, typically it is kind of like that. Here it is. So it's, Jim and I failed me again. This is going to be $120 for this particular release, 111.5 proof. But it just said, yeah, this is going to be the first time it's ever released, probably till national distribution. Cool. Yeah. They don't fail at Michter's. I'm sure it's good. They don't. Moving on to our friends over at Hard Truth and Indiana over there, they've announced release of their Mizunara Finished Wheated Bourbon, marking the second expression in the distilleries, 2026 Barrel Finishing Reserve Collection. It's a 24-barrel batch. It's 69% corn, 19% wheat, 12% malted barley, bottled all at cask strength, and it finishes with Japanese Mizunara Wood. Mizunara Wood. Sorry about that. The official release is set for May 9th, priced at $70. You can also go there and get started at Hard Truth's outdoor music season. It's a great venue. It's up in the hills, some hollers, and you got great amphitheater there, cool restaurant, grab a beer or Mizunara Rye. I feel like you missed a calling like with being able to play an instrument over here, Ryan. I know. My whole life, I've always been like, I want to learn the guitar. I want to learn the guitar, but I've never taken the time to learn the guitar. I know. We got one right here behind us. I know. Just never. I got an amp and everything. As soon as we got this guitar, I bought the amp and I was like, you know, I'll start learning to play. I said maybe eight seconds. A few whiskey geeks would just drink the same damn thing all the time. Instead of wanting new products, I could learn the guitar. Take time to learn the guitar. We got to keep you on your feet there, Ryan. That's how it is. So moving on here is that BR. Distilling. If you don't know who they are, it's the people behind Blue Note. Big River. Yes. So they have launched a new limited expression of Distilled in Kentucky, Aged in Memphis, and this is their small batch, Wheated Bourbon. The production utilizes significant temperature swings from Mississippi and the Wolf Rivers to push the liquid deeper into the wood. They refer to this method as the Memphis Heat, or Memphis Magic. That's what we call it. They can't take it. We're going to put that one in a trademark, Memphis Magic, as we had that one. It's a 21% Weeded Mash Bill. There are about 2,800 cases of this, and be available at 100. That's a big release. Yeah. 101 proof, and carries a suggested retail price of $45. There is some to that Memphis Magic. We've experienced it ourselves. We've moved some barrels from Kentucky and New York and all over down there, and damn, did they turn out good. I know. Whether it's the boats, it's the rocking of 53-foot trailers down I-65. Not really too sure. Rib seasoning flowing out through the air. Just dry rubs everywhere. I feel like I want some ribs and some barbecue now. I know. My neighbor had to go to Memphis for his daughter's track meat or something, and he's like, what's the best ribs? And I was like, you're like, hold on, buddy. I got a story for you. Yeah. He ended up going to Cozy's, and he was like, that was the best bite of fish I've ever had in my life. And I was like, I told you, man. At some point, Cozy's Corner in Memphis, you got to start paying for this advertising. Like, we're pretty sure. Bourbon Pursuit discount. I know. Help us out over here. Well, speaking of other weeded things, Maker's Mark has announced the second release of their Star Hill Farm Whisky. It's the brand's first new mash bill and first wheat whiskey again over in 70 years. This is moving forward. It's a final blend of 27% wheat, 62% malted barley, and 11% malted, sorry. 27% wheat, 62% malted wheat, and 11% malted barley. There we go. There you go. Got it. It says the bottle at cash strength was 116.4 proof and available for a suggested retail price of $100, but not only in the United States, but also our friends all around the world in the United Kingdom, Australia, Japan, and other duty-free locations. The duty-free? All right. I don't understand the duty-free. Well, yeah, because it doesn't feel like you're getting a deal. You don't get a deal. Then when I was flying back from France, I went to a duty-free and they were like, well, you can't buy this. You're going to Kentucky. I was like, I'm in an international flight. They're like, no, you can only buy it going to Europe. Like to Europe? Yeah. You couldn't come coming back? Yeah. I was like, well, I don't want to haul a bottle all around Europe and then bring it back. I don't know. The prices don't seem that great. I don't know. I just don't understand the duty-free thing. I think it would have been even better. But people were in there buying damn perfumes and purses and makeup. I'm like, don't you have Sephora in here? There's got to be a good department store around here. I feel like you should have done, I think everybody's kind of guilty of this. You see a good deal in the store, be like, I can't get it now, but I'll come back in a week and you go and you hide it in the store. Yeah. If you go and you buy bottle duty-free and you figure out like, where can I hide this in the airport that nobody's going to find it for a week? Or just have lockers there for you. Or that. That would be too easy though. I feel like we need some scavenger. They wouldn't even sell me zins. They had zins and they're like, no, you're going to Kentucky, you can't buy these. I'm like, I'll use them here. I need them. I'm Joneson, man.

Speaker 2:
[41:43] I need them right now.

Speaker 1:
[41:45] I need them. All right. Well, I'm glad you got your zin kick in. That's right. Well, other kicks that are happening is Four Roses. They're announcing the second rotation of their single barrel collection that is starting to hit stores nationwide this May. The latest release features three of the distilleries, 10 of the unique bourbon recipes. So you're going to get OESQ, OESF, and OBSK. Each of these are selected between seven and nine years old, bottled at 100 proof, and a price of $50 per bottle. Best value in Bourbon. It's really good. I mean, I'm an OESK fanboy. K and OESV, I think, are the two that I typically like. Yeah. I would imagine if I had to go through, and somebody hold the feet to the fire on this, if you've been a Bourbon Pursuit Patreon member forever, and you have every single Four Roses that we've ever selected, if we've actually hit on all 10 recipes or not. Because I feel like we've hit on a bunch, but I'm not too sure. I feel like we've had to, but maybe not. I mean, we've done at least 20 or 30 of them. That's true. Still can't guess them. I know. Hey, Mandy, you want to play the game where you can stump the chump and Ryan and I get two out of 10? We haven't done a Four Roses pick in what? Four or five years at least? Three at least. I know that for sure. Maybe three or four. We need to do another one. Well, if you're listening to us out there in Four Roses land, we're open to it. Yes. Well, the last one, actually, that was the last one. That was the last one because it was going to be the Maker's Mark one again and we already talked about that. So that's it. That's This Week in Bourbon. Perfect. Head in the ground running. I know. I still have just a little bit more left of my Pursuit United Tobacco Stave Whiskey Roast Series 2026. I have to do more of these. That's freaking killer. I know. The Tobacco Stave for the win again. I know. In my experiments, it didn't turn out that great and then throw it in a barrel and it worked out. It worked out fantastic. All right. Who knows? We got a lot more good things coming too. Why don't you tell the folks that have selected barrels from this before, what they'll expect coming into the second half of year too with new stave profiles? Yeah. We got 10 more new stave profiles, probably six or seven coming from independent stave and the others from Oakwise. We got some really fun ones. I don't want to name the names. You don't have to. Just tell them, hey, you're selecting barrels from us. We got new stuff now. We got new fun stave profiles that are turning out really nice. Kenny can vouch and he's normally like, these are just okay. I know. I had one earlier and I was like, damn, this is really good. I know. I'm excited about those. If you picked a couple of barrels and you're like, I need some new, we got some new stuff coming your way. We sure do. Well, that's it, y'all. Well, if you haven't had a chance yet, make sure you come and you see us here on Whisky Row. You can go and check out pursuitspirits.com with the Visit Us button. Also, if you're just happen to be in town and you're visiting everybody else, that's cool. Just come to trial and error. You can come and try every single pursuit expression we've ever released over 300 different ones at our bar here. You can see the recording studio that you're hearing this or watching this from right now as well too. That's right. With that, cheers everybody. We'll see you next time. Toodles.