In Chuck Cowdery’s early 2022 edition of his quarterly print piece, “The Bourbon Country Reader,” he says MGP should kill off the George Remus brand and find another name for the otherwise good bourbon created for that SKU. Not only was he a successful Prohibition-era bootlegger, he murdered his wife for infidelity. Linking legal businesses to “criminals and crime,” Cowdery writes … is an especially bad idea for makers and sellers of alcohol.” The brand was created after the portrayal of Remus in HBO’s “Boardwalk Empire” caught the attention some Cincinnati entrepreneurs. According to Cowdery, they sourced some MGP whiskey and labeled it “George Remus Bourbon,” MGP later bought the brand for itself and began growing it a couple of years ago.

Ever played this whiskey dork game? You go to a bar or restaurant and rapid-survey the bottles while thinking, “Had it. Haven’t. Have it. Hate it.” When I looked at this list of 20 top-selling whiskeys in the U.S., I added a new response. “Who drinks that?” I like several brands on this list, but I prefer their higher-proof siblings. But dang, does that mean those who spend less to drink softer spirits actually Southern Comfort—which is No. 15 on the list? I don’t even recall seeing a bottle of SoCo outside of the press sample I got a year or so ago. And Skrewball lands at No. 14? And here it comes … Who drinks that? A Heaven Hill employee I know once said to me, “I can’t believe they bought Black Velvet!” Well, look closer, hoser, it’s the 13th-most popular whiskey in the U.S. (Far as my Black Velvet score: Haven’t had it.)