American Whiskey Report December 2025

Happy Holidays! Have you had enough hot toddies and eggnog yet? They are not the only winter cocktails. I love a good whiskey sour. It has to be made with egg whites, and the juice has to be fresh! You can swap out the lemon for other winter citrus to make it more seasonal. Here are some winter variations on whiskey sours for you to enjoy! Now on to the whiskey news you can use.

Product Releases

World Whiskey Society 12 year pear brandy cask

• The World Whiskey Society has released a 12 year old Bourbon finished in pear brandy casks.

• New Riff has re-released its popular Winter Whiskey and sherry finished malted rye whiskey. 

• Barrell Craft Spirits has released a new one in its Black Label Series, Barrell Toasted Dovetail Whiskey, a Cab/Port/Rum cask finished blend of Tennessee and Indiana whiskeys further finished in a toasted barrel, as well as a 21 year old toasted single barrel Bourbon distilled in TN/IN/KY and a series of three Bourbons in the Vault series finished in Apricot Brandy, XA Tequila, and Sauternes barrels, respectively.

• Lythgoe Bourbon has a new Bourbon honoring Pauline Morton Sabin, who led the charge to repeal Prohibition.

• Dry Fly has released its oldest whiskey ever, an 11 year old wheat whiskey called Last Cast bottled in honor of founder Don Poffenroth’s retirement.

Bardstown’s Normandie Calvados Brandy Barrel Finished Bourbon

• Bardstown Bourbon Company has released Normandie Calvados Brandy Barrel Finished Bourbon.

• Chattanooga Whiskey Co has released its Experimental Batch 046: Spiced Cacao Infused whiskey, a Bourbon liqueur.

• Blade & Bow has released a 30 year old Bourbon with a twist: only one bottle may be sold per day at the visitor center.

• Liberty Pole has released its first ever double-oaked wheated Bourbon made with Bloody Butcher corn and the distiller’s signature wheated Bourbon recipe.

Castle & Key Bourbon

• Castle & Key added two new whiskeys to its lineup this year: 6 year small batch and cask strength wheated Bourbon.

• Whiskey Thief Distilling has a holiday release bottle called Donner & Blitzen which is a Bourbon finished in a barrel that rested cinnamon in it previously.

• Wilderness Trail has released a 10 year old limited edition wheated Bourbon with a mash bill of 51% corn, 45% wheat, and 4% malted barley commemorating the 250th anniversary of the Wilderness Road that brought settlers into Kentucky.

• Silk City has released a Madeira cask finished Bourbon.

• Heaven Hill has released the Fall 2025 version of the Bottled-in-Bond Old Fitzgerald decanter at 11 years old.

People News

Adam Walpole, Director of Sales at Oxmoor Farm

• Adam Walpole has joined Oxmoor Farm, parent company of Oxmoor Bourbon, as Director of Sales.

• The KDA has announced its Leadership Academy Class of 2026:

• Corbin Arrasmith, Pensive Distilling Co., Newport

• Nolan Boswell, Green River Distilling Co., Owensboro

• Jasmine Clark, Lux Row Distillers, Bardstown

• Grant Cobb, Stedman Machine Company, Aurora, Indiana

• Emma Cochran, Blue & Co., Louisville

• Ally Edgington, Heaven Hill Brands, Louisville

• Nicky Edwards, Angel’s Envy, Louisville

• Katherine Foley, James E. Pepper Distilling Co., Lexington

• Dave Bob Gaspar, Town Branch Distillery, Lexington

• Michelle Harrison, Castle & Key Distillery, Frankfort

• Shawn Hughes, Bardstown Bourbon Company, Bardstown

• Cole Irvin, Brown-Forman Corporation, Louisville

• Dustin Letourneau, Campari America, Lawrenceburg

• Sophia Markley, Dark Arts Whiskey House, Lexington

• Jessie Martin, Larrikin Bourbon Co., Lawrenceburg

• Hannah Melillo, Whiskey Thief Distilling Co., Frankfort

• Haley Moloney, Augusta Distillery, Augusta

• Marshall Rogers, Kentucky Artisan Distillery, Crestwood

• Brent White, Jeptha Creed Distillery, Shelbyville

• Maggie Young, Bluegrass Distillers, Midway

Other News

O.H.Ingram facility in KY

• The O.H. Ingram brand home in Columbus, Kentucky will open to the public for tours starting in April of 2026.

• Buzick Construction has joined the newly-formed American Whiskey Association.

• Heaven Hill has celebrated 90 years in business, remaining in the control of the same family that founded the business in 1935.

• Lofted Spirits, parent company of Bardstown Bourbon Company and Green River Distilling, has broken ground on a significant bottling line expansion.

• The Kentucky Distillers’ Association has welcomed Benson Valley Bourbon as a new member.

• Vermont-based Whistle Pig has opened a new visitor experience in Louisville, Kentucky called The Whistle Pig Vault, which includes the Flying Pig cocktail bar.

Book Recommendations

• Fred Minnick has a new book out called Bottom Shelf, an autobiographical work about Minnick’s time covering the Bourbon industry and the personal journey it took him on.

Bonus Cocktail Recipe

The Fireside Confessional

The Muse’s The Fireside Confessional

1 oz Buffalo Trace Bourbon 
0.75 oz Meletti chocolate liqueur 
0.5 oz Ancho Reyes Chili Poblano Liqueur 
0.25 oz Brovo Uncharted Rhapsody 
0.25 oz St Germaine
0.25 oz Butter
2.0 oz hot water

Combine all the ingredients in a sauce pan and heat to approximately 150 degrees fahrenheit.

Then top with a Salted Whip Foam which is:
3 ounces Simple Syrup
12 ounces Heavy Whipping Cream 
1 Teaspoon of Black Hawaiian Salt

Dust with cocoa powder and garnish with a chocolate stick.