Steve Coomes

Steve Coomes is a veteran journalist and book author specializing in whiskey, tequila and restaurants. When not writing, he leads virtual and in-person food and spirits pairings.

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The Bourbon Drinker's Guide to Coping with February

I’m here for the party so I’m not leaving. Unlike Steve, I don’t have a curfew or a standing bedtime. Halftime is for bathroom breaks, bourbon refills, and another trip to the food spread to see if anything new hit the table while I was watching the game.

Rye Whiskey Reviews

Sagamore Double Oak Rye Whiskey Review: A Bold Oak-Heavy Experience

The palate leads with cedar, bitter chocolate, new oak, clove and black pepper. It leaves the tongue tingling more than burning, but either way, it's spicy beyond what you normally encounter with 96 proof.

Tequila Reviews

Alma del Jaguar Nocturna Tequila Review: A High-Proof Blanco Experience

Despite its 101 proof–a feistier number in tequila than in bourbon–it drinks nicely, and is quite supple, allowing more extended sipping. Have some dried spicy mango around to enjoy with this. Mexican desserts would be a plus.

Bourbon Whiskey Reviews

Old Forester 117 Series 'Warehouse I' Review: A Limited 11-Year Bourbon

This is flat-out delicious. Kudos to whoever chose 95 as this spirit's proof. It's bold and beautiful, complex and loaded with character, velvety, weighty and luxuriant but without the bite of cask strength whiskey. Sometimes you gotta love medium proof bourbon.

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Get To Know

Like a train, Chattanooga Whiskey Co.’s growth comes from strong momentum

Part of why he believes Chattanooga has enjoyed double-digit growth over so many years is its affordable price. The SRP of its flagship 91 proof, priced at $35, is well within the reach of everyday drinker preferences. Depending on age and quantity, its Experimental releases range from $50 to $80.

Rye Whiskey Reviews

Middle West Spirits Dark Pumpernickel Rye Review: A Unique Cask Strength Experience

According to Middle West, this is the first dark pumpernickel rye whiskey made in North America, and its mash bill contains 80 percent of that grain. Want a rye that's not a dill Katz's Deli pickle? Try this.

Rye Whiskey Reviews

Bulleit 10 Year Rye Whiskey Review: A Decade of Bold Rye Flavor

This also is a delight on the palate: tingly, tropical-fruity (ripe pineapple/cooked pineapple and under-ripe banana), cherry and orange hard candy, light caramel, white chocolate with a subtle hints of dill and toasted oak.

Bourbon Whiskey Reviews

Bulleit 10 Year Bourbon Review: Aged Perfection at 91.2 Proof

I'd have an incredibly hard time understanding any bourbon fan wouldn't like this amazingly reliable, well-made and well-aged bourbon. It embodies everything that's right and unique about America's native spirit...

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Industry News

Bourbon slowdown is officially and undeniably real

Whether viewed from the 10,000 foot perspective of a publicly traded global company or the grass roots of 'Merica, the story is the same. The whiskey industry that we’ve fallen in madly in love with—and sometimes hatefully mad at—is no longer the juggernaut it was 10 years ago.

Bourbon Whiskey Reviews

First Taste: Four Roses New Single Barrel Collection

The deep copper color of these bourbons all but screams, “I’m 7 to 9 years old and one heck of a bargain at $49.” It’s a good visual reminder of the high-quality product in the glass and the fact that Four Roses simply never disappoints.

Get To Know

Bourbon de Luxe’s tiny relaunch is a hit, but market headwinds concern its owners

Barrels don't sell like that; they sell in lots. You’re allowed to try a couple from each lot, and you pick the lot you want. Anyone that tells you that, “I tried 1,000 barrels,” can go kick rocks. That's not how it works.

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This Round's Mine

8 Bourbon Trends We Want Gone (or to Stay) in 2025

If you've never visited Punch.com, it's a great booze-centric website with great info, stories and cocktail recipes. The site's crew did a running commentary of which drink trends should disappear next year, and we thought it so good that we decided to do

Industry News

MGPI CEO to resign as sales slide, inventories swell, stock sinks

MGPI’s struggles with soft sales and high inventory appears to reflect similar battles being fought at American whiskey makers large and small. Since about the middle of 2023, all American whiskey sales have declined steadily.

Get To Know

Fred Noe turned Jim Beam’s 90th anniversary party into a masterwork in storytelling

In August, the James B. Beam Distillery threw itself a 90th post-Prohibition anniversary party. The event centered on stories told by co-master distillers Fred and Freddie Noe while sips of seven Beam whiskies were poured for guests over a few hours. As the audience was invited to ask questions, the

Bourbon Whiskey Reviews

TX Texas Straight Bourbon Whiskey Review

This tastes like too many other 90-proof American whiskies on the market: ordinary and even cautious. This tastes as if it was made to risk offending no one. It's inoffensive in every way possible, but that also renders it quite plain.

Bourbon Whiskey Reviews

Angel's Envy 2024 Cask Strength Bourbon Finished in Port Wine Barrels

This year's port note is more wine like that's driven by the addition of tawny port barrels to the finishing regime. Where earlier port notes were sweeter and pleasantly candied, this is more intriguing: fermented, tarter, angular and dark cherry-candied.

Australian Single Malt Whiskey Reviews

Pinhook Collaboration #3 Australian Single Malt Whisky Review

Classic single malt notes of honey and dried raisin dominate the palate before warmed oatmeal and cream weave into the mix. Spice character is the only thing hinting at its respectable 114.8 proof, yet it's so delicate at that proof–well below it, I'd swear, were this a blind tasting.

Bourbon Whiskey Reviews

Hard Truth Bottled-In-Bond Wheated Bourbon

A first sip serves up fruit and spice: golden apples, ripe banana, cinnamon, cocoa and a bit of black pepper. Keep after it and you get a bourbon toddy that, given its high corn and wheat mashbill, needs no warming or honey; it's sweet and subtle enough on its own.

Get To Know

Marlene Holmes's distiller stories are great, but now her own story is rivaling those

By 2018, Holmes had logged 28 years at Beam and was looking for a new challenge in distilling. At age 59, she enjoyed her work, but she'd begun sniffing around opportunities in craft distilling. Ironically, it would be another Beam employee who’d steer her to Milam & Greene.

Bourbon Whiskey Reviews

Mary Dowling Toasted Double Oaked Wheated Bourbon Review

It's truly dynamic on the palate, shifting from toasted oak to baked fruit then twisting sideways to toasted cinnamon bread and poached spiced apples. Every sip lays down another layer of dark flavors (tobacco, fig a little leather) to build up the rich finish.

This Round's Mine

Will U.S.-based Stoli Group’s bankruptcy ground Kentucky Owl?

Recent releases of Kentucky Owl and Wiseman whiskies weren’t building brand confidence either. What made the Kentucky Owl bourbon created by founder Dixon Dedman and partners Mark and Sherri Carter so fantastic were deep stocks of rare, old and high-quality sourced barrels. Either those dried up...

Annual Summit

2024 Bourbon & Banter Summit Recap Report

Join us as we recap the Bourbon & Banter Summit 2024 in Louisville, featuring exclusive tours, tastings, and unforgettable experiences.

Bourbon Whiskey Reviews

Safai Straight Bourbon Review: A $300 Kentucky Contender?

BOTTLE DETAILS * DISTILLER: New Riff Distillery * MASH BILL: Not fully disclosed, though honey-roasted malt is mentioned. * AGE: 8 years * YEAR: 2024 * PROOF: 112 (56% ABV) * MSRP: $300 * BUY ONLINE: Safai Bottle Shop STEVE'S NOTES SHARE WITH: Any whiskey fan who likes weighty, slightly woody bourbon. WORTH THE PRICE:

This Round's Mine

Marketing genius, powerful pricing and misguided tequila thieves in the news

Apparently, the black-market value of Santo Tequila, a celebrity spirit backed by rocker Sammy Hagar and TV food personality Guy Fieri, has a far higher value than I’d give it. But to at least someone, it’s worth risking prison time for stealing lots of it.

Bourbon Whiskey Reviews

Chattanooga Whiskey High Malt Bottled-In-Bond Bourbon Spring and Fall 2024 Reviews

The product development team at Chattanooga is a prolific bunch, churning out endless experiments with–based on those I've tasted–terrific outcomes.