While this blog is primarily used to document production practices, bourbon recommendations, and general education, I figured I would take the time to reflect on my visit to Brewzle’s inaugural whiskey festival in Opelika, AL.
I first met TJ (the man behind Brewzle) at the Bourbon Festival here in Bardstown after he did a review of The Bond: Eternal at The Blind Pig. For those of you that don’t know, Brewzle is a YouTuber who makes content about all things whiskey—bourbon hunting, reviews, ranking favorites, and his experience at events like barrel picks and whiskey festivals. He has amassed roughly 700k subscribers doing what he enjoys most: drinking whiskey with his friends and family. TJ is a great guy. Someone who’s caring, altruistic, and keen on helping others expand their palates. When the camera turns off his energy and personality is the exact same; a far stretch from other creators in the online space.
Let The Festivities Begin
On the first night of the festival, Ben (my chaperone for the weekend) and I found ourselves at TJ’s house enjoying phenomenal pours from his collection as well as bottles other brands had brought with them. I had some of my favorite pours ever that evening, including:
- Frey Ranch’s Cask Strength 100% Wheat Whiskey: Creamy with a powdered sugar like sweetness.
- Leiper’s Fork Single Barrel Bourbon: Picked by Fred Minnick, this bourbon was a complete raisin bomb (in the best kind of way).
- Found North – Peregrine: Living up to its reputation as a ‘BTAC’ killer, I had the pleasure of sharing this balanced and complex blend of 20-27 year old Canadian whiskies with my newfound friend, Mak.
A Drink To Remember
The pinnacle of this tasting, however, was a pour of 1964 Rebel Yell that TJ was excited to share with me. The bourbon was vastly different from the whiskies of today. You could taste how tight the wood grain was on the barrels, giving it lots of leather, caramel, and vanilla notes, with an experience only comparable to a bottle of 1980 Wild Turkey 101 (Austin Nichols) that I own.
To me, this was like finding a “unicorn” out in the wild. The bourbon had been distilled at Stitzel-Weller, under the oversight of the Van Winkle family. This bourbon would later become infamous after Julian Van Winkle III bottled it under his line, Pappy Van Winkle.
Brewzle’s Inaugural Whiskey Festival: Day 2
After getting fueled up at Cracker Barrel the next morning (and the obligatory trash-talking that ensued when we ran into Auburn fans), Ben and I headed to the festival for a day’s worth of drams and conversation. We passed out samples of The Bond and The Bond: Eternal, and made our signature Thornbush lemonade to give to the VIPs while we waited for the crowd to rush in.
As soon as the gates opened, a flood of thirsty festival-goers began quickly lining up at our booth. Next, a crowd gathered at Pursuit Spirits, then Neeley Family Distillery, and slowly, every producer was passing out samples of their products left and right. This was one of the most engaged crowds I had ever served before. They were asking questions about the distillate, how I blended it, and what made us different. I was in awe with how interested they were in everyone’s products.
Towards the end of the night, I headed to the stage with TJ for a live tasting and review of The Bond bourbon (you can watch it here!). After catching some flack for my “11-year-old palate,” I had to reach into my happy meal and see what flavor notes I could gather for each of the whiskies. Of the two, Brewzle’s choice for best bourbon was The Bond, while I politely agreed to disagree in favor of The Bond: Eternal.
Eternal Gratitude
When it was time for Ben and I to load up and hit the road again, I began to think about how far we had come since the inception of our brand.
After watching TJ’s channel for years, it was quite an experience to get on stage with him and be treated as a peer. This is a feeling that I often have in my position; it almost feels foreign to have mutual respect from many of the figures I look up to. But, If that’s what it’s like to work in an industry of leaders with larger-than-life reputations, it’s a feeling worth getting used to.
While I thoroughly enjoyed the weekend, I’m not so sure that Ben enjoyed ‘driving miss daisy’, my song choices, or me talking his ear off all weekend long. Fortunately, though, we made it back to Kentucky just in time for another tasting on Sunday, where any grievances were quickly whiskey’d away.
