Lee Anne Wong- Chef and Maker’s Mark® Cookbook Editor

Bourbon Cornbread

1 cup cornmeal
1 cup all-purpose flour
¼ cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons Maker’s Mark® Bourbon
1½ cups whole milk
4 eggs
½ cup vegetable oil

1 cup sweet corn kernels, pulsed in a food processor

1. Preheat the oven to 400F. In a large bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk together the Maker’s Mark® Bourbon, milk, eggs, oil, and shredded corn. Add the wet mixture to the dry ingredients. Stir until well combined.
3. Pour the batter into a greased pan (loaf or cake pan). Bake for 25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool before using.

Elad Zvi – Co-Founder, Bar-Lab

Apples and Bourbon

RECIPE:
1 ¾ parts Maker’s Mark® Bourbon infused with apples
½ part Aperol ® Apertivo Liqueur
¾ part lemon juice
½ part thyme honey
Dash maple bitters

1. Add all ingredients into a shaker. Add ice. Shake vigorously.
2. Strain over ice into a rock glass. Garnish with thyme spring and apple slice.

Tim Love – Owner & Chef, Lonesome Dove Western

Prep Time: 15 minutes. Cook Time: 4 hours. Level: Intermediate

Bourbon Chili

Serves 4-6
2 pieces dried Ancho chilies
1 piece dried Pasilla chile
2 pieces dried Guajillo chilies
2 pieces dried Chipotle chilies
1 cup Maker’s Mark® Bourbon
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 lbs. boneless beef short ribs
3 cups onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon Mexican oregano
½ teaspoon dried thyme
¼ cup dark brown sugar
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
½ cup masa harina, if desired
Salt and black pepper

Additional Maker’s Mark® Bourbon, if desired

1. Toast the chilies in a large, dry skillet over medium-low heat until lightly charred and fragrant, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a bowl.
2. Bring 4 cups of water to a boil and pour over the chilies. Weight the chilies down in the water and submerge with a paper towel. Allow the chilies to soften for about 20 minutes in the hot water. Drain the chilies once they are soft, reserving the soaking liquid. If you prefer your chili to be spicy, remove only the stem of the chilies, leaving the seeds intact. If you prefer a milder chili, take the time to open up the softened chili peppers and remove the seeds before adding the peppers to the blender.
3. Add the softened chili peppers to the blender with 1 cup of Maker’s Mark® Bourbon. Puree until smooth.
4. Heat a large skillet or Dutch oven over high heat. Pat the short ribs dry with a paper towel and season them generously with salt and black pepper. Add the tablespoon of oil to the hot pan. Reduce the heat to medium high. Sear the short ribs on all sides until well browned, about 3-4 minutes per side. Remove the short ribs to a plate and pour off the browning liquid and fat into a small bowl. Return the pan to the heat.
5. Add the chopped onion and minced garlic to the skillet and cook until softened, about 10 minutes, stirring oftenAdd the cumin, oregano, thyme, brown sugar, vinegar, browning liquid, chili water, and chili puree to the pot. Season with a heavy pinch of salt. Cover with a tight fitting lid and simmer over low heat until the meat is very tender, about 3 hours, turning the ribs every 30 minutes and adding water as necessary if the braise becomes too dry.
7. Once the short ribs can break apart with a spoon, remove the ribs from the stew and break the short ribs apart into small chunks using two spoons or forks.
8. The chili braise in the pot should be the consistency of a thick soup, reduce over low heat if necessary, or add more water to reach desired consistency. Skim any excess fat and oil from the surface of the chili and discard. Stir the pieces of short rib back into the chili braise. Add an extra splash of Maker’s Mark® Bourbon if you want.
9. Thicken the stew with masa harina (fine cornmeal makes a great substitute) if you desire: Ladle 2 cups of chili into a bowl and stir in the masa harina. Return the mixture to the pot and stir in with the rest of the chili. Simmer for 15 minutes. Serve the chili hot garnished with chopped scallions, cilantro, and/or sour cream.

The Whisky Barrel Launches New $USA Online Whiskey Shop

Specialist Scotch whiskey merchant TheWhiskyBarrel.com today launches a new international online whiskey shop. Customers can now benefit from secure $USD transactions without having to consider currency exchange when using their VISA, MasterCard or American Express cards to buy the finest Scotch online to be delivered to their door.

Shipping to all 50 US States and 50 further countries, the new USA & International whiskey shop offers a great section carrying over 1,000 Scotch, Bourbon and Japanese whiskies, including the outlets own exclusive release, available for mail order delivery within 3 business days.

European customers can continue to purchase delicious Scotch and world whiskies from TheWhiskyBarrel.co.uk

To shop for whiskey, or to enjoy our online resources for whisky connoisseurs, please visit http://www.thewhiskybarrel.com

The Whisky Barrel

www.thewhiskybarrel.com

E: info@thewhiskybarrel.com

T: +44 (0)845 2248 156

E-pistles keep coming in, this time by foreign correspondent Jacob Krodel (or Jay Kro as he calls himself on Facebook)

He is a US Army helicopter pilot currently stationed in Korea, and he is reporting about a visit to Blaue Maus in Bavaria, which is – if I’m not mistaken – the first German whisky distillery ever. Check it out at THE E-PISTLE

All whisky tastings take place on Thursday nights from 7:30pm until approximately 10pm at the Tolbooth Tavern, 167 Canongate, Royal Mile, Edinburgh, Scotchland. You’ll find this location on Google Maps at the bottom of the page.

Tickets : £17*/20 or when a tasting’s theme requires buying more expensive bottles the increase will be reflected proportionally in the ticket price.

At least 5 drams, cask strength being the preferred option when a choice is available and affordable.

Refunds only possible if tasting not sold out or if ticket can be resold.

The tastings aim to inform and entertain. The relaxed approach is still structured and props are used so the tastes and smells of the various influences on production can be experienced first hand, for example there will be the opportunity to smell and/or taste both malted and un-malted barley, yeast and new make spirit.

The tasting usually ends with a raffle where every entrant wins a miniature’s worth of whisky left over from previous tastings, entry to the raffle is an additional £2 and any further donations being collected for World Vision’s ‘Sponsor a Child’ scheme (we’ve collected more than £2000 to date).

All tastings include oatcakes, shortbread and chocolates.

The Tollbooth offers meals up to the time of tasting. ENTRY BY PREPAID TICKET ONLY – prices from £20/17* *first timers & members discount, 13 month membership = £10 Want to taste the whiskies but can’t attend? We can bottle them for you to take away. Empty minis always appreciated.

Sept. 6th, 20th

Oct. 4th, 18th

Nov. 1st, 15th (a Glencadam vertical), 28th

Dec. 13th and 27th.

Visit the Jolly Toper at http://www.jollytopertastings.co.uk/

Loch Fyne Whiskies Has Some News 

‘New from Longrow’

Due soon:

Longrow (replacing CV)

Longrow Red

Coming in the next few months:

Springbank 12yo Calvados Wood – October 2012

Springbank 21yo – January 2013

Longrow 10yo Rundlets & Kilderkins – January 2013

Miniatures:
Longrow
Hazelburn 12yo

Best regards,
Loch Fyne Whiskies
david@lfw.co.uk

SCOTCH WHISKY INDUSTRY NOW IN “A GOLDEN AGE”, SAYS BENRIACH’S WALKER

“east of Beirut, the world is booming”

BILLY WALKER, the scotch whisky veteran who resurrected the fortunes of BenRiach and GlenDronach, believes the industry has entered “a golden age”.
 
Mr Walker, who next week is going out to Mongolia to do tastings as part of a trade mission, is upbeat about the prospects for the industry.
 
“We really are in an extraordinary period which can definitely be classified as “a golden age”. The amazing thing about scotch whisky is that this little country of some 5.2m people has successfully secured the position of making scotch whisky the absolute international drink of choice. 140 million cases were exported worldwide in the last twelve months and exports generated over £4 billion for the UK balance of trade.
 
“But in many ways in the UK we have become obsessed with our own economic situation and we perceive the world to be the same. Yet, for whisky, the core markets were never really that depressed in spite of the economic indicators. And the truth is that, east of Beirut, the world is booming.
 
“Emerging markets like China and India haven’t got anywhere near where they will be yet. Mongolia where I’ll be next week is absolutely in its infancy but there will be opportunities, as there are with places like Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan. Add onto that Russia where the rouble has recovered and which is having a boom time just now. South America is clearly enjoying significant economic advantages as well. Mexico has become a big big market for scotch, and you’ve got untapped Africa waiting in the wings.
 
“That’s why the industry has to believe the data and forecasts feeding into these markets. It’s very encouraging but we’re only scraping the surface. So from an operational production point of view, the industry has to provide for this demand which will be for twelve years out. If you add them up, the total is greater than the sum of the parts, that’s for sure.
 
“That’s why we’re in this golden period which I believe will endure for quite some time. We don’t have the same industry shape that we had in the past; we’ve had so much consolidation and as a result it appears to me there are no weak players in the industry. In my opinion, that forms the fundamentals of a solid future.”

The Relaxed Whisky Weekend

7 – 9 September 2012  
  
Fellow whisky enthusiasts,

Just one more week and it’s Maltstock time again! We’re all really looking forward to it. It promises to be a fantastic weekend.  We have a record number of 9 very interesting masterclasses for you. There will be music and entertainment, and a Barrel Race!. And excellent food! Of course there’s the brilliant BBQGuru team with a whole hog and BBQing with Ardbeg. The Highlander Inn will make you the best Scottish breakfast. And on Saturday afternoon there will a delicious selection of food to match whisky.

It wouldn’t really be a whisky weekend without whisky…. Well there’s plenty to share and enjoy! We have most independent bottlers represented. The latest additons are Malts of Scotland and Wilson Morgan. But many more, please visit our website to see who all will be at Maltstock. Full Proof is there again as well with his amazing collection of some of the best old and new whiskies. And of course there’s the big Share and Enjoy table where all our visitors share whisky they bring.

Masterclasses
Just a wee reminder to all of you coming to Maltstock. Please let us know your Masterclass preference before 31 Augustus. Won’t be easy to choose though. The launch of the very first Four Roses single barrel for Europe is definitly something to look forward to. But the first tasting by Tatsuya (Suntory) in Holland is as well. Sam Simmons (Balvenie) and Donald MacLellan (Glendronach) will surely bring something very special. And the guys from Master of Malt named their tasting ” Something Special”.  Billy Abbott (Speciality Drinks) and Tony’s Virtual Glenfiddich Tour will make sure we get the perfect start at Maltstock! Aberfeldy is one I really look forward to. And last but not least there’s Georges Nosing Academy!

Whiskyquiz
The Whisky Shop Dufftown team has been working hard to create a challenging and fun whisky quiz for the forthcoming Maltstock. To win you are going to have to be a team of cunning minds and have a good bit of whisky knowledge as well. There will be 8 rounds including famous whisky people, distillery visitor centres and the hard facts on the malt whisky capital of the world so get revising. There will be great prizes for those that know their malt.  Do you have what it takes?  If you are the type of person that knows the capacity of the distilleries on Islay and exactly what Balvenie distillery looks like you may have a chance. But don’t expect these questions to actually appear. That would be too easy!!!

Raffle
The whiskyquiz isn’t the only opportunity to win some great prizes. There’s also a big raffle. We would like to thank all who contributed this year. What a fantatsic raffle we’ve got.

Maltstock 2013 tickets at a discount
Starting  September 7th tickets will be available for Maltstock 2013. If you buy your 2013 tickets before midnight Sunday 9 September they’re just € 175,- After midnight they will be € 195,-. Just like this year it’s an all inclusive price.

To all of our guests this year: we will send you an e-mail next week with all the latest information and with your masterclass schedule. Looking forward to meeting you all and enjoy a relaxing weekend! 

Arthur, Bob, Eline, Rogier & Teun
http://www.maltstock.com/