BYCU
Move over Scotland and Kentucky. The Japanese are taking over whisky. From Forbes: At the 2012 World Whiskies Awards . . . Suntory's Yamazaki 25-year-old was voted World's Best Single Malt, while Nikka won the top spot in the Blended Malt category. Suntory now exports well over 10,000 cases a year to the United States alone, with France and the UK not far behind. With their exceptional equilibrium, smoothness and delicacy, these whiskies are redefining an ancient art. When I ask Mike Miyamoto, a former master distiller at Suntory, why their whiskies are becoming so popular across the world, his reply is terse: 'Quality. We are trying to make our whisky better every year.'"
The article is pretty interesting, though lengthy.
Gardening . . . with BYCU
One of the best drinking stories of the year comes from the (yak) Huffington Post. It combines gardening, distributism, and beer. Booze From Local Crops Booming.
The process is sometimes referred to as "grain to glass" ”“ the beer-and-whiskey version of the foodie slogan "farm to table." Both phrases imply a connection to fresh, local ingredients. Tuthilltown is part of a larger hand-crafted booze movement that has Wood Creek Distillers in Colorado growing its own potatoes for high-end vodka and Wigle Whiskey in Pittsburgh using local, organic heirloom rye.
