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Don't you worry your pretty little mind, that Tennessee statement in the title does NOT come from Dickel. Pursuit Spirits is reinventing the 'sourcing' game by laying down very specific runs of barrels at three distinct distilleries in order to carve out a blending space that is very much their own. Striving to make a whiskey that is unique in a market as saturated as it is today is no small task, but having the brand ownership be long-time whiskey geeks certainly helps. I recently had the wonderful experience of getting the behind the scenes tour of two fantastic new opportunities for the Pursuit Spirits brand to grow into. One is a huge warehouse that certainly has quite a bit of storage potential - perhaps enough headspace for a still? The second is a really awesome consumer-facing space that could be one of the best destinations on whiskey row. Both of these spaces need a ton of work done before they're ready, but it was certainly cool to see the "before" of what is definitely going to be something awesome if Kenny's and Ryan's dreams have enough dollars behind them to come to fruition. Check out some of the images below for a sneak peek of your own. We toured both of these locations in depth and enjoyed a plethora of the Pursuit offerings. Everything I had was certainly up to snuff quality wise and I found myself going back to their sherry finished rye the most as we sipped and chatted. Back to the whiskey at hand... The Pursuit United flagship blend first debuted at the start of 2021; the brand was founded in 2018 by Kenny Coleman and Ryan Cecil following their wildly successful podcast Bourbon Pursuit. They talk about growing their brand amongst the heavy competition that "big bourbon" poses in one of their recent episodes. Okay seriously this time, back to the whiskey. I'd like to note that Kenny sent me home with this bottle at no cost to me; I'd like to thank him and Pursuit Spirits for allowing me to give this an honest review with no strings attached. Company on Label: Pursuit Spirits Whiskey Type: Bourbon Mash Bill Percentages: Undisclosed proportions of 2 high rye and a wheated bourbon mash bills from: Kentucky (Bardstown Bourbon Company) - 75% Corn, 21% Rye, and 4% Malted Barley Tennessee - 80% Corn, 10% Rye, 10% Malted Barley New York (Finger Lakes Distilling) - 70% Local Corn, 20% Red Winter Wheat, 10% Malted Barley Proof: 108° Age: NAS Further identification: This is the inaugural release of Pursuit Spirits take on a flagship blend; it will bear a batch name moving forward so whiskey nerds like us can keep track of the changes through the years Nose: Light hot chocolate powder and level oak fills my nostrils on an initial inhale. Buttermilk pancakes, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg provide a wonderful breakfast array for me. Deep inhales produce confectioners sugar and malt chocolate butterscotch covered bundt cake aromas. The nose-feel has such an interesting texture to it; it reminds me of heavy wool. Light complexities of popcorn kernels, tiramisu and modeling clay provide a rabbit hole for the nose to investigate. Vanilla builds marvelously late in the glass. Overall the nose is wonderfully approachable and features a deliciously sweet medley that I think just about anyone could appreciate. Palate: My first sip is elegantly layered with cinnamon crusted coffee cake, chocolate chip cookie dough and raspberry tart. Normally I might liken this kind of profile to something coming out of a French patisserie, but this inherently feels American. Perhaps that means it's a touch overly sweet, but I'm here for it. The mouth coating is sticky and spotty like maple syrup with globs of good nuttiness hanging around in fun pockets for later enjoyment. As I sit and swish a small volume I find a lot of great dried fruit bubbling up. The proof gets a little out of hand when doing this, but it's nothing a seasoned bourbon drinker can't handle. I find this pour to slowly edge towards the feeling of pairing of a good red wine with a scrumptious after-dinner dessert. Everything is thoroughly satisfying about the flavor profile, the mouthfeel and the evolution; I'm not usually one to write home about blends, but this is very tastefully executed. As I sip down near the bottom of the glass I find that the profile has mellowed out fairly drastically. Praline is the introduction, cherry hots are the main course and a malted milk ball swings in for a satisfying arc. My last sip is an amalgamation of the body of text above; a satisfying sip for any occasion, except perhaps a tired day, where this might do well proofed down just a touch more. Yum! Rating: 4/5 (Really good; I want one of these on my shelf.) I've seen many new companies in the last handful of years try their hand at blending and sourcing. Most of them fail. If batch 1 of Pursuit United is an official pedigree of Ryan and Kenny's blending skill however, they're in for a bright future.

I'd recommend the Blueberry Port finished bourbon from Starlight & grab an Old Soul Tintype while you

For this review, I had the pleasure of exploring a single barrel straight bourbon whiskey. Company on Label:  Two Souls Spirits featuring Blackfork Farms Whiskey Type:  Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Company on Label: Michter's Whiskey Type: Straight Rye Whiskey Mash Bill Percentages: Undisclosed Proof

fun, hands-on tour, master distiller and blender Murphy Quint was generous enough to thieve samples straight With bottled-in-bond and straight rye whiskey already in solid rotation at the distillery, Cedar Ridge Company on Label:  Cedar Ridge Whiskey Type:  Straight rye whiskey Mash Bill Percentages: 85% rye, 12%  105 ° Age:  NAS ~2 years Further identification: This double barreling of Cedar Ridge's flagship straight

Company on Label: Jack Daniel Whiskey Type: Blended Straight Whiskey Mash Bill Percentages: A blend of

This twice-barreled bourbon comes to us from the legendary lineup of Old Forester 'Whiskey Row' bourbons. I've long wondered how I'd rank this up against 1920 - a whiskey I know and love. I've always thought this to be the more tannic sister to that release, but never ventured into a writing anything down on this bottle. Old Forester's website describes the history behind this release, saying: On October 22nd. 1910, a fire on the bottling line halted production of Old Forester. Mature whisky ready to be bottled, instead was stored in a secondary barrel. What emerged was a delightful whisky, remarkable enough to become an entirely new expressions – Old Fine Whisky. Today mimicking this historic bottling, this unique expression of Old Forester has undergone a second barreling, granting it exceptional character, a smooth and sweet flavor and a clean, crisp finish. Entering the second barrel at a low 100 proof allows more of the sweet wood sugars to dissolve into the whiskey. 1910 Old Fine Whiskey is the fourth and final expression of the Whiskey Row Series, presented at 93 proof. A cult favorite experiment is to mix this in equal parts with 1920 to create '1915'; let me know if the comments if you have ever tried that & if I should give it a go too! Company on Label: Old Forester Distilling Company (owned by Brown-Forman) Whiskey Type: Bourbon Mash Bill Percentages: 72% Corn, 18% Rye, 10% Barley Proof: 93° Age: NAS Further identification: This is the old style label 1910 that had the words 'Old Fine Whisky' overlayed with the explanation body of text Nose: I can smell the candy sweetness coming off this glass from quite a distance. Port wine ladened oak and marshmallow jump out at me first. Leather, plum and raspberry sit in the nostrils strongly with a hint of something synthetic tying everything together. A swirl of the glass releases a huge wave of black pepper, chocolate and allspice. Nutmeg settles back in quickly after the explosive effects of the perturbations of the glass subside. A glutton for punishment, I swirl again... This time drying vanilla and heavy charcoal char jump out at me. It is so drying it stings the back of my throat slightly, forcing a sip of water before even getting into tasting. Light, tranquil raspberry continues to be the dominant fruit. Let's jump down into a sip now. Returning I continue to find a lot of wood tones. A dusty funk forces me to sneeze. Herbal green tea with just a hint of lemon begins to sit in the low glass. The empty glass smells metallic alongside honey and overnight oats. Palate: This is incredibly fruit forward on first sip. I get creamy plum, raspberry and dried cherries. The linger is short and drying as the nose was also eliciting. Another sip is quite tannic with dark jams interlacing with herbal notes now. A slight raisin flavor introduces a new found spice I wasn't prepared for. Nutmeg meets butter... oddly. Again I return to a plum, raspberry and cherry medley as the glass starts to get lower. My last sip is all wine tannins and chocolate. Dry cornbread, plum and molasses mix nicely in the linger which is still short despite having a handful of sips to build up some backbone. Rating: 3/5 (Decent. I can go either way on it.) While there is great volume of flavors on this pour and a nice array of different characteristics a whiskey drinker can pull out of this pour, I don't think the overall storyline of this glass is quite cohesive. It seems to just throw things at you at any given moment and never feels like it has a true purpose. I think whiskey drinkers new and old can find something to love in this glass, but I couldn't see it as my personal daily sipper (hence why I am still drinking the old label before they updated their artwork!). Let me know below if you agree or disagree with my rating. Cheers!

Additionally, my knowledge of Indiana whiskey reached as far as MGP and a tiny bit of Starlight . Whiskey Type:  Straight rye whiskey finished in toasted French oak Mash Bill Percentages: 78% Indiana

Company on Label:  Redwood Empire Distilling Whiskey Type: Straight Rye Whiskey Mash Bill Percentages

Company on Label: Heaven Hill Whiskey Type: Straight Corn Whiskey Mash Bill Percentages: 80% Corn, 8%

Company on Label: High N' Wicked (Distilled by New Riff) Whiskey Type: Straight Rye Whiskey Mash Bill

Company on Label:  Wild Turkey Distilling Co Whiskey Type:  Kentucky Straight Rye Whiskey Mash Bill Percentages Ranking: Wild Turkey Master's Keep Triumph 10 Year Kentucky Straight Rye Whiskey Brook Hill Indiana Straight Rye Whiskey Barrel 1607 "Want" Parker's Heritage Collection 10 Year Kentucky Straight Rye Whiskey WRITTEN