Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/113109
PHOTO: RICHARD CARLETON HACKER IRISH WHISKEY aged a minimum of 12 years. In addition, Black Barrel���s greater proportion of single pot still whiskies are blended with small batch grain whiskies that have been matured in deep-charred Wild Turkey barrels, and then inished in toasted ex-sherry casks. The result is a rich, spicy dried fruit���laden muscular shove onto the palate from this very atypical Irish whiskey. ���But Black Barrel didn���t just happen,��� notes Di Vito. ���We don���t do anything signiicant with the brand unless we���ve researched it with bartenders irst. I���ve been in this industry for 12 years now, and I���ve never before been a part of a brand that really includes the trade in the decision-making process as much as Jameson does.��� Di Vito thinks this is why on-premise, Jameson continues to outgrow off-premise. ���That, for us, is a testament to the hard work and focus that we put into the on-premise bartending community and the feedback they���re giving us,��� he says. ���That���s why Jameson continues to go from strength to strength���and solidify And with good reason, for the ads put an historical���if somewhat romanticized���spin on the various adventures of John Jameson and his ongoing quest to bring his whiskey to the people, thereby personifying the Jameson family motto that appears on every bottle: Sine Metu (Without Fear). Each commercial follows a theme, such as ���The Lost Barrel,��� in which John Jameson dives into the sea to rescue a barrel of his whiskey, or ���The Hawk of Achill��� that has Jameson saving not only his whiskey, but a whole town from the clutches of a mythical Celtic bird. Another dramatic Jameson happening is occurring this month with the expanded launch of Jameson Select Reserve Black Barrel, a limited edition that is only distilled one day each year. Now, after emerging earlier in New York, Illinois, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Washington, D.C., it will expand into 14 other major markets by July 1, with an on-premise 92 / the tasting panel / march 2013 sampling program scheduled for March, April and May. Priced at $37.99, Black Barrel is a notable departure for Jameson. ���We use a small batch corn grain not present in any other Jameson whiskey,��� notes Di Vito. ���We also have a higher portion of single pot still whiskies within the blend versus Jameson Original, and a higher percentage of this is aged in charred oak barrels, with some virgin oak as well. So it���s as smooth as Jameson but has a deeper richness and a creamy mouthfeel.��� Those are all characteristics of single pot still whiskies, so it wasn���t surprising that last March, while attending the Universal Whiskey Experience in Las Vegas, I sampled Black Barrel and found it slightly reminiscent of Redbreast 12 Year Old. My observation was conirmed by the fact that, unlike Jameson Original, which is aged ive to seven years, Black Barrel is