Highlights From The American Whiskey Trail

A map of liquid treasure stretching across the south

The American Whiskey Trail is more than a place for bourbon enthusiasts to appreciate what they’ve spent so much time investing in, but it’s a means to do so through immersion at the source. To feel its place of origin, its terroir. Comprised of a dozen or so major distillers, many more smaller boutique distilleries, and a sundry of bourbon-related POIs (for example: coopers, still-makers, …

Hawaii’s Kō Hana Agricole Rum

Manulele Distillers' pure cane sugar spirits draw from 34 heirloom varietals

In the middle of an aquaponics farm on Hawaii’s island of Oahu, Manuele Distillers produce a very unique spirit: Kō Hana Agricole Rum. Here, farmers grow 34 different types of heirloom sugarcane plants that were meticulously collected over a three-year process. Each varietal is then distilled for a single-origin rum with a very distinct flavor (though, they do have one blend of multiple distillates). This …

Pierre Ferrand’s Exemplary Double Cask Reserve Cognac

Alexandre Gabriel's latest spirit defies expectation and emboldens a historic category

Imaginative isn’t the first word that comes to mind when sipping most cognac. In fact, it’s fairly far afield from the traditional descriptors. And yet Alexandre Gabriel, proprietor of Maison Ferrand, continues to demonstrate a knack for unleashing products within the category that defy expectation. His latest, Pierre Ferrand Double Cask Reserve Cognac sees a unique double-aging process—first in French Oak Cognac barrels and then …