Let me start off by saying that cherry flavored, peach flavored,
maple flavored, honey flavored, apple flavored, spice flavored et al whiskey IS
NOT BOURBON. It may have started off
with bourbon but the end result is not. These abominations are made for women
and frat boys who think they want to drink bourbon but don't actually
appreciate the flavors and subtleties that real bourbon has. Every crap
flavor some chemist dreams up takes shelf space away from America's spirit.
Bourbon can't be made anywhere but the US. It is protected just like Scotch can only be made in Scotland and Cognac only in France. Apparently it isn't protected from the "new coke" syndrome. Every new flavor decreases the shelf space of an established brand or pushes them out of the store entirely. Flavored whiskey makes up less than 10% of sales but has more shelf slots then its sales would indicate. Jim Beam's Red Stag (real bourbon fans call it something else) for example has 4 flavors now with each taking up at least one facing on the shelf. This pushes classic bourbons like the following off the shelf.
Bourbon can't be made anywhere but the US. It is protected just like Scotch can only be made in Scotland and Cognac only in France. Apparently it isn't protected from the "new coke" syndrome. Every new flavor decreases the shelf space of an established brand or pushes them out of the store entirely. Flavored whiskey makes up less than 10% of sales but has more shelf slots then its sales would indicate. Jim Beam's Red Stag (real bourbon fans call it something else) for example has 4 flavors now with each taking up at least one facing on the shelf. This pushes classic bourbons like the following off the shelf.
Old GrandDad 114
Old Forester
Old Forester Birthday Bourbon
George Dickel #8
Old Forester Birthday Bourbon
George Dickel #8
George Dickel #12
Elijah Craig 1.75L
Eagle Rare 1.75L
Eagle Rare 1.75L
Four Roses Small Batch
Baker's
Evan Williams 1783
Evan Williams Single Barrel
Wild Turkey Russell's Reserve
I'm sure there are others but that is all I can remember.
Baker's
Evan Williams 1783
Evan Williams Single Barrel
Wild Turkey Russell's Reserve
I'm sure there are others but that is all I can remember.
While some are available SLO that is not the same as having them on the shelf. You don't have to wait for weeks to buy something on the shelf. The PLCB selection of bourbon is already poor and having flavored bastardizations taking up space doesn't help. Our state store system claims to have about 87 Bourbons and Ryes (including multiple sizes of the same thing and not counting flavors) on the shelves across the state. Binny's in Chicago with just 29 stores claims 227. Therein lies the difference between having some cube rat in Harrisburg pick for you or having the market, meaning you the customer, decide what products should be sold.
Privatization IS Modernization. Accept nothing less.
