Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/12827
vanilla and hints of caramel. On the tongue, this complex bourbon smoothly brings a crisp, clean wood fi nish that gives no burn. But the magic behind this product is not its color, sleek bottling or grand allure. It’s the men behind the bottle. W Comedy in the Bottle Like vintners tending to wines, the bourbon-makers at the Barton Distillery in Bardstown, KY passionately tend to every barrel stored in their ware- houses, sampling distillates and four-, six- and eight-year-old bourbon in barrel until it’s ready to bottle. But there’s something different between the passion of most winemakers and the boys at 1792: You’re quite likely to bust a gut after spending a day with Master Distiller Greg Davis and Chief Chemist Ken Pierce. If they weren’t in the bourbon business, they’d most likely be comedians. For more than 12 years, Davis and Pierce have worked along- side each other, amusing guests and making great spirits. While the duration of their working partnership is nothing unique, especially in the whisky business, it’s their camaraderie and jovial spirit that perhaps give 1792 its most unique qualities, including a consistently rich, velvety taste. “That’s one of the things that’s very special about us,” Davis says; “you don’t fi nd a chief chemist and master distiller getting along a whole lot.” At that statement, Pierce slaps his leg, laughs and says, “Nope . . . we’ve been here too damn long!” By bourbon business standards, Davis is just a pup. He’s the youngest master distiller among the bourbon makers, while Pierce is a fi fth-gen- eration whiskey maker (“I’m just the fi rst one who has made whiskey legally,” he quips). Together, they are creating high-quality bour- bon retailing around $30. 1972 Ridgemont Reserve was selected as the offi cial “toasting bourbon” of the 2010 Kentucky Bourbon Festival. “I am trying to give consumers a whiskey that is an expression of a good bourbon,” Davis refl ects, “one that somebody comes over and says, ‘That’s what I’m going to have for my cocktail.’” Di≠ erent Bourbon Although it’s hard to fi nd Davis or Pierce not joking around, they actually do take their jobs seriously. And they take their competition seriously—but not in the way you might expect. Davis says his bourbon is not better than anybody else’s; july 2010 / the tasting panel / 71 Master Distiller Greg Davis checks the progress of a fermentation. hen you bring 1792 Ridgemont Reserve to your nose, you’ll fi nd many great qualities that come through on fi rst whiff. Subtly hitting the olfactory sense is a unique full bouquet of fruits, deep