You may know them for their newly built Lux Row Distillery in Bardstown, KY. MGP reportedly paid $475M in cash and MGP stock value to Luxco. Come join us for a cocktail in our tasting room, tour our distillery, or pick up a bottle of Bear Creek Distillery spirits at your local liquor retailer. And MGP added their own brands to the list in 2016. As of this article, you can find their own products in just 13 states. Master distiller Greg Metze is the most underrated distiller of our day. It has been said that ever since automation took place, that the entire distillery could be ran by as few as 6 people if it ever came down to it. I knew before touring MGP Distillery that they are the largest producer of rye whiskey in the country, but seeing that size firsthand is amazing. There are also slight differences in a barrel stored upright versus a barrel stored on its side. Pre-1990s 7 Crown is believed to be a blend of whiskey recipes that consisted of the 4 primary recipes that were made at the Lawrenceburg, Indiana Distillery (more on those recipes later on) as well as various Kentucky distilleries and Canadian distilleries. MGP already had a large distilling operation in Atchison, Kansas, but looked favorably upon its acquisition of an aged whiskey producing powerhouse. And the Eight & Sand story? This is only a preview. Consumer Distiller MGP Ingredients Stock Plunged 24% on Disappointing Whiskey Sales Jan. 17, 2020 at 11:48 a.m. Barrel Craft Spirits recently announced Floridas Bluebird Hardwater recently launched Something went wrong. The whisky itself is distilled using MGP&rsquor;s 95% rye mash bill combined with 5% malted barley before being aged in new charred American oak barrels for 5 years. Here youll find travelogues, food guides, travel tips, and more all with a side of whisk(e)y. Whiskied Wanderlust is a whiskey and travel site based in Chicago. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. It also seems likely that the 5 whiskey brands they currently bottle in-house will expand as their wheated bourbon comes of age (its currently around 7 years old now). Barrel entry for every standard MGP mashbill is 120 proof, but the company recently began allowing custom barrel entry proofs for its contract clients; part of a slew of changes theyve made to compete with a growing number of contract distillers around the country. It was hard to wrap my head around the numbers, which MGP wouldnt disclose, at every stage of the process. They actually own two distilleries though we only hear about this one. Every Winning Bourbon From Our 2021 Taste Tests, Blind Tasted And Re-Ranked The Best Value-Per-Dollar Bourbon Whiskeys, Ranked All 19 Brands From The Buffalo Trace Distillery, Ranked 20.. Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet. So much of their quality, especially when it comes to their hallmark rye whiskey, is attributed to this limestone filtered, 56-degree water source just steps from the Ohio River. After Pernod Ricards purchase of LDI, the bond with Four Roses may have been broken, but they soon found themselves collaborating with the other distillery in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky: Wild Turkey (Pernod Ricard had purchased WT in the 1980s). We saw the Mother in action when we visited the fermenting tanks massive, bubbling yeasty brews that seemingly go on for miles, the smell of banana bread wafting through the air. They also have a wheat whiskey mashbill that has already been bottled by a few NDPs (such as Backbone Bourbon) and instantly showcased its captivating potential despite still being young. MGP Distillery's whiskey is all non-chill filtered and barreled at 120 proof (but the resulting bottling proofs vary). OLD FOURTH DISTILLERY Address 487 Edgewood Avenue SE, Atlanta, GA 30312 Get Directions Phone (844) 653-3687 Tasting Room Hours: Thursday 12PM - 7PM Friday 12PM - 10PM Saturday 12PM - 10PM Sunday 12PM - 7PM Tours run at the following times: 12pm, 2pm, 4pm and 6pm Walk-ins are welcome, or book your tour online. This warehouse can store a massive amount of barrels, to the tune of 300,000, which may make it one of the largest barrel-aging warehouses in the world. Old Fourth Distillery was launched by five friends (two of whom are also brothers) in 2013 with the aid of a Kickstarter campaign. In Kentucky, the alcohol percentage of whiskey goes up during maturation since the water evaporates faster than alcohol. But you can feel a slight shift happening within the company, a subtle sense of awareness of where that light is, as they continue to flesh out their own product line for the first time. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. While Indiana's neighbor directly to the south may get all of the American whiskey glory (ahem, Kentucky), the tiny town of Lawrenceburg has played an important role in American whiskey production for the past 200 years. They may have also been instructed to include warehouses with metal walls on their list as well. On September 29, 2021, MGP's historic distillery in Lawrenceburg, Indiana, officially became the Ross & Squibb Distillery. He makes most of the rye whiskey in this country, but receives little credit. La Casa del Caminos Comedor & the Rooftop Lounge Offer California-Inspired Citrus City Grille Reveals 2022 Christmas Eve Menu. One of the biggest surprises I learned while touring MGP Distillery was about maturation. E. Seagram Lawrenceburg Plant.. Light Whiskey should not be confused with Grain Neutral Spirits (GNS), which is another product that the Lawrenceburg Distillery makes a lot of. NDPs like Smooth Ambler, Mayor Pingree, Traverse City and others had purchased large amounts of MGP barrels only to return to MGP as they began to run out and were informed that there were no more left. Rossville Union Cask Strength Rye This rye is the same general age as the straight rye, but the blend is different, as is the batch size. Companies like Traverse City, Blaum Bros, Litchfield, Bull Run, Chattanooga 1816, Boone County and Manifest all built early reputations on the backs of MGP barrels before running out and releasing their own products to their fan base. Interestingly they're not all under MGP as a brand name but under various names including George Remus bourbon, Till vodka, and Rossville Union rye whiskey. Different buildings house different parts of the operation - the grain store, fermentation room, distillery, grain dryer, barrel warehouses, etc. The customer was just finally coming around to collect their barrels and bottle them up. Small batches of 10+ year aged bourbon and rye still pop up from time to time, but the truth of the matter was that every 10+ year old MGP bourbon that is released today has already been purchased years ago. For everyone else, they had to settle for the young distillate that MGP had only recently started to produce. Proof: 100. Realizing they could capitalize on their own expertise, they released a handful of bourbons, ryes, and even a vodka. George Remus Bourbon is a blend of 21 and 36% rye bourbons, aged 5-6 years and bottled at 47%. It is also used to cool their equipment. A lot like [Series] one but higher proof.. The company was purchased by Seagram in 1933 and has changed hands a few times since then.</p> <p>The company makes most of the country's rye-based whiskeys, along with a wide range of other spirits . With such a long history of producing quality whiskies, its no wonder Lawrenceburg takes special pride in its nickname, Whiskey City., The former Seagrams distillery in Indiana, now the home to MGP (image via Prairie Rose/The Whiskey Wash). You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. Kentucky bourbon distilleries are located east and south of Louisville. Thank you, Kelly, Posted by: MGPI swung open their doors and the barrels began to roll out. CL Financial Group (also affiliated with Angostura Limited) reached an agreement with them and bought the LDI plant and the Charles Medley Distillery in Owensboro, KY towards the end of 2007. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Joseph Magnus Bourbon Review - Cigar Blend | Bourbon Culture, [] Joseph Magnus bourbon brand built their reputation on sourcing large lots of MGP whiskey throughout the years, starting in 2015. Comments (5). MGP Sourced Stuff; Alliance Series - Independent Bottles; Special Releases; We're Sorry It's Not Whiskey; . An advantage to MGP now out of hiding is that it can release its own spirits, like its George Remus Repeal Reserve bourbon that launched last November. Copyright 2020 Kelli Nakagama. Whisky Brands That Are Made at MGP. A large majority of the stock that remained were purchased through contract agreements with other smaller NDPs until no more unclaimed barrels remained in the warehouses. MGP distillery. It's about the same age as their standard rye, but with a different ratio of rye mashbills. The other warehouse appears to be metal clad. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other. We spent some time in the Rack House, where the identifiable scent of wood and whiskey fills the air. Operating in Atchison, Kansas, and Lawrenceburg, Indiana, MGP began as a humble grainbelt distillery in 1941 and has since grown into a leading supplier of premium distilled spirits, and specialty wheat proteins and starches. MGP is the largest supplier of sourced, aged whiskey in America for the many companies that dont actually distill themselves (Non-Distilling Producers or NDPs), and theyre also a contract distilling powerhouse, working with customers from the earliest stages of the whiskey-making process. Theres a reason why everyone from Bulleit and Templeton to WhistlePig and High West sources from MGP. It makes quality products that make brands money and consumers happy. Our tour of MGP's massive operation included a bit of a history lesson on the town of Lawrenceburg, Indiana. In the meantime, MGPI will likely continue to expand its distribution of their own brand until all 50 states sell their products (and then proceed to examine markets overseas). The creamy palate has plenty of body for a good martini and is full of clean, vanilla notes that dissolve into a slight citrus finish. Their standard barrel entry proof for whiskey is 120. GNS usually utilizes the cheapest grain available on the market (which is almost always corn). Another LDI-Wild Turkey collaboration during this time saw engineers and managers at LDI involved in designing the upgrades for a new barrel dumping line and dry house facilities for the Russells. About MGP > Our Company. It is common now to find many brands out there like Tumblin Dice, Smooth Ambler, Barrell Craft Spirits and Backbone Bourbon Company releasing 4-5 year old aged distillate simply because there are no older stock available for purchase. Also present is the code 10 K 16 which likely stands . It gets immediate feedback from client brands about what is selling across the country. That higher pH aids in fermentation. Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features. Its great in a cocktail but perfect just to sip or put on the rocks. Instead of numbering the releases in meaningless batches, the label lists the number of barrels in each bottling. This may not make a lot of sense because of the steps that Seagrams took back in the day to have warehouses that would age consistently throughout the floors. (The TTB is the U.S. agency that regulates alcohol.) Error type: Deeply Nerdy Stuff About Jack Daniel's Production - Charcoal, Souring, Fermentation, 95% rye whiskey (a mashbill of 95% rye, 5% malted barley), 51% rye whiskey (51% rye, 45% corn, 4% malted barley), bourbon 36% rye (60% corn, 36% rye, 4% malted barley), bourbon 21% rye (75% corn, 21% rye, 4% malted barley). During this timeframe when the American sourced-whiskey industry was in its infancy, rules werent clearly established and improper labeling was commonplace among smaller bottlers. The MGP distillery rises in the distance over Lawrenceburg, Indiana, like the Willy Wonka Chocolate Factory. The timing was perfect as America had just started to exit the Great Depression and Prohibition had come to an end. This gives these products a point of differentiation from their many clients' products. Helping to earn this moniker is the fact that MGP sits directly on top of an aquifier that provides a reliable water supply for their products. The CL Financial ownership period experienced this as well. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. 2 spirits were outsourced from MGP in Indiana to get them started, however Glenn's Creek finished aging them in the barrels and 2 are 100% theirs from start to finish. The palate is heavy with caramel, vanilla, and toffee notes with a bold rye spice and a hint of smoke. E. Seagram Lawrenceburg Plant in Indiana began churning out various distillates including whiskey, clear spirits and other malted beverages for the Seagrams portfolio right away. Learn how your comment data is processed. Your comment has not yet been posted. Every distiller in Kentucky has been dumping millions of dollars into pristine landscaping, educational tours and new facilities to give each distillery its own unique appeal and lure to the tourists and whiskey enthusiasts alike. So far, most of the line of MGP spirits is available in about 13 states. Till Vodka This vodka is produced at the Atchison, Kansas distillery and made with locally sourced wheat. That includes not just bourbon and rye but vodka and gin, as the company has long been a producer of neutral grain. And of course they added a blended bourbon to MGP Distillerys whiskey brands: Eight & Sand. Cost: The tour costs $8. But geography played the most important role in why this area was picked for distilling. The largest vodka distillery in the United States is located in Portland, Oregon.. It soon became known as one of the best rye whiskeys available. Our founder, Cloud L. Cray, Sr., set out to create a company of makers and innovators that felt more like a family than a corporation. He was known as "King of the Bootleggers" and may have been the inspiration for Jay Gatsby. They're moving systematically rather than hitting the whole country at once. After our tour, we tasted a range of aged whiskies, including its new release, George Remus Straight Bourbon Whiskey, and a preview of its most recent launch, Remus Repeal Reserve, in honor of Repeal Day, December 5. The nose is full of clove, mint, and some dried fruits, while the palate shows more baking spice and brown sugar. Those two buildings are able to store 45,000 and 65,000 barrels respectively. Light Whiskey also didnt have a set mashbill or barrel entry proof, but Seagrams elected to barrel theirs at 140 proof. This brought to light a fact that rye whiskey that was not labeled as straight was allowed to have a certain percentage of flavor or color enhancers added in, cheapening the allure of how whiskey traditionally got its taste. In 2014, 3 years after MGP first took over the operations of the Lawrenceburg plant, they bottled a limited release of their own bourbon for the first ever Lawrenceburg Whiskey City Festival. In addition, MGP has positioned all of their products at a super-premium price point to allay the concerns of some clients who are selling below or above that level. Visit our Advanced Search page where you can filter and find any of our ratings and reviews from the last 15 years. Robb Report was recently able to tour the . We were unable to take pictures in the distillery room, but as it passes through several floors of a building we could really only see one section of the column still and a part of the squareish gin stills anyway. This cold water source is the key to keeping fermentation under control and maintaining consistency. "Eight and Sand" refers to a train going full-throttle (the eight) with added traction (sand on the tracks). But in 1962, the government was persuaded by the industry to allow a new set of guidelines for distilling bourbon to bring up the maximum distillation proof to 160 and the maximum barrel entry proof to be 125. 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