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kentucky owl is a fantastic bourbon with a great family story behind it.
c.m. deadman, an orphan in kentucky in the 1870's was gifted a distillery by his adoptive father as his wedding present. he distilled kentucky owl until prohibition when the government seized 250, 000 gallons of stock and put it into government storage. a fire burnt down the warehouse and some hypothosize that the bourbon was long gone by that time. dedman's son spent a good portion of his life trying to revover money from the loss to no avail. his son decided not to stay in the bourbon business but instead took over his mother's inn, beaumont inn, in harrodsburg. (2015 winner of the james beard award which recognizes the world's best chefs and restaurants) [for more information on the inn and it's history click here.] dixon dedman, c.m.'s great grandson partnered up with a couple of winemakers out of napa valley (sherri and mark carter of carter wines) about 6 years ago to bring back the family whiskey. story goes, dixon's father had been friends with the carters after meeting them at some inn conferences (related to his ownership of beaumont inn), after his passing, dixon reach out to the pair to see about a collaboration for a house wine. they offered instead to help him bring back his grandfather's bourbon. bringing back the family whiskey is something the dedman family had often mused about doing so dixon jumped on the opportunity. the bourbon is made in small batches, is uncut, unfiltered, and available only in kentucky. |
tasting notes:
batch #3 released december 2015-- our only current bottle on the shelf at bourbon on main. the nose is light, sweet, and creamy. notes of oak, slight cinnamon, and hints of barbeque. it initially tastes higher in proof than it actually is, and with a touch of water, becomes mild and rich. notes of sweet corn and sweet char. with air, look for a combo of green apple and cinnamon making you think of a spicy apple cobbler. according to sherri carter, this batch was made at the new peerless distillery in louisville kentucky. 
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