Even if you happen to wish to discover totally different whisky types, one that you could be not have seen is gentle whiskey. It’s a curious, mysterious style, and individuals are usually left questioning what it actually means. Spoiler alert: it’s not known as gentle whiskey as a result of it’s diet-friendly, due to its coloration, or due to its proof. The time period is partly meant to explain the whiskey’s flavors, however that isn’t the entire story.
By definition, gentle whiskey have to be produced within the U.S., with a distillation proof of greater than 160° (80% ABV) however lower than 190° (95%), and aged in new uncharred or used oak containers. There is no such thing as a rule on what grains can be utilized, a reasonably typical a part of most different whiskey definitions. It appears to fly within the face of what most individuals have come to anticipate from American whiskey. But gentle whiskey is present process one thing of a renaissance lately. The model, seemed down upon for many years, has instantly been producing some buzz.
One in every of Whiskey’s Best Flops
Mild whiskey was first acknowledged as an official model again in 1968, and was really a product of its period. The drinks panorama seemed a lot totally different again then: American whiskey had fallen into the doldrums, with U.S. distillers shedding market share, primarily to imported vodka. Determined for a technique to regain misplaced floor, some producers petitioned the federal government to vary the definition of sure whiskey types. The transfer was met with pushback from trade rivals, so the ATF (forerunner of the fashionable TTB) solved that downside by creating a very new class for the beleaguered distillers.
It was known as “gentle whiskey” as a part of a advertising and marketing technique—framing it as “gentle” sufficient to attraction to the common vodka drinker. The uncharacteristically obscure rules aimed to bolster the thought, utilizing excessive distillation proof and new uncharred or varied used barrels to maneuver away from the bolder flavors present in new charred oak-aged bourbons and shift nearer towards the extra flavor-neutral profile of vodka and Canadian whisky. The dearth of guidelines for a particular mashbill and people looser barrel necessities additionally meant that gentle whiskey makers may use mainly no matter components they needed.
Distillers heard the message loud and clear, and set about making gentle whiskey all through the early ’70s in anticipation of the subsequent scorching development. However there was an issue: The whiskey simply didn’t style all that good, and no person was . Mild whiskey completely did not seize the eye of vodka drinkers, who discovered that gentle whiskey didn’t work like vodka in cocktails, and it alienated the then-dwindling variety of bourbon lovers. Mild whiskey crashed and burned, happening as one of many greatest flops in whiskey historical past.
Gradual Rediscovery
Within the ensuing many years, gentle whiskey finally did discover a position. Overproduction had made shares each low-cost and plentiful, and it grew to become engaging to blenders. Shopping for gentle whiskey was a cheap approach for smaller producers to spice up quantity—and assist some bigger manufacturers like Seagram’s 7 Crown with margins. It did little to assist the model’s fame, however since there was now a market, some distillers started making gentle whiskey on an ongoing foundation to promote to different producers. One of many greatest fish in that pond was the outdated Seagram Distillery in Lawrenceburg, Indiana, higher recognized immediately as MGP’s Ross & Squibb.
That was the story for fairly a while. However all the things modified in March 2016, when Excessive West Distillery did the unthinkable: bottling a 14 12 months outdated MGP gentle whiskey. To say it was a raffle is an understatement. Excessive West had constructed its success on spectacular rye whiskeys at a time when rye was nonetheless an missed model. Now it was wading into utterly uncharted territory, showcasing a whiskey model that had been maligned and reviled over almost half a century. Towards all odds, Excessive West’s gentle whiskey was a hit, scoring 89 factors with our tasting panel. The discharge was so well-liked that the distillery introduced out a follow-up batch two years later, that included all the remaining gentle whiskey it had readily available. Excessive West had kick-started a brand new period for the model.
The Trendy Panorama
Excessive West made the blueprint for what fashionable gentle whiskey expressions would appear to be. Even immediately, most use the identical define because the one from Excessive West: distilled by MGP from a 99% corn and 1% malted barley mashbill and aged for not less than 10 years. The important thing distinction is that the newer gentle whiskeys are typically bottled at cask power, whereas Excessive West’s was proofed to 46% ABV.
One of the vital prolific gentle whiskey blenders immediately is Indianapolis-based Spine Bourbon Co. In 2014, founder Nolan Smith was making an attempt to formulate a spin-off of the model’s flagship bourbon recipe; he needed to make use of some older liquid so as to add complexity to the mix, however didn’t have the aged stock readily available. Scouring the market, he finally discovered some 2006 classic gentle whiskey on the market. After some trial and error, he finally landed on a mix of straight bourbon and rye, which was accented with only a bit of sunshine whiskey. The mix was dubbed Spine Prime blended bourbon and launched in 2015. Within the ensuing years, Spine would purchase extra gentle whiskey, which was used to make one other blended bourbon known as The Forge. Ultimately, it could bottle a light-weight whiskey as Triple Down single barrel.
Nolan is drawn to gentle whiskey for its comparatively easy, candy taste profile, which begins rising in full after 10–15 years, by his timetable. “When it will get older, it develops this excellent concentrated depth of sweetness that makes for a very cool addition to a mix.” Mild whiskey accounts for a small portion of Spine’s blends—roughly 5% of Prime and 10–15% of The Forge—however Smith argues that it’s integral. “It’s the crucial a part of what makes [The Forge] so cool,” he says. Spine’s older gentle whiskey shares, which Nolan says aren’t a superb match for the blends, are sometimes chosen for its single barrel program.
One other whiskey maker on this area is Jacob’s Pardon, which launched in 2020 and is made by grasp blender F. Paul Pacult. As a spirits author and historian, Pacult had all the time been conscious of sunshine whiskey, however he didn’t suppose a lot of it till he tasted the Excessive West launch. When he first stepped into his position at Jacob’s Pardon, he was most excited to lastly get an opportunity to play with the model’s 1,000-barrel stockpile of sunshine whiskey. “I began tasting by them, I used to be actually stunned by how completely scrumptious they had been,” remembers Pacult. “To be trustworthy, I wasn’t anticipating loads. As I began going by the barrels, I started to suppose we may do one thing with this, particularly the older ones.” The primary launch was a mix of aged MGP gentle whiskey and George Dickel Tennessee whisky, however Jacob’s Pardon quickly adopted with a single barrel gentle whiskey. The newest expression, aged 18 years in uncharred barrels, is bottled at an eye-watering 71.4% ABV.
Pacult says gentle whiskey works so nicely as a mixing element as a consequence of its malleability; most significantly, saying that regardless of the excessive proof it doesn’t actually overshadow the opposite elements within the mix. “It acts as a platform for different components to essentially shine, both the wooden or the opposite whiskeys within the mix. That’s why [blenders] actually prefer it a lot.” Pacult refuses to the touch any gentle whiskey youthful than 8 years outdated. He notes that older shares actually profit from uncharred oak, which tempers the sweetness whereas bringing out cherry-like notes.
Penelope additionally dabbles in gentle whiskey. Its American Mild Whiskey (ALW) launch has develop into a preferred addition to the lineup. Co-founder and grasp blender Danny Polise says gentle whiskey was “love at first sight” for him. His first foray was a 13 12 months outdated model encompassing 33 barrels from MGP (bought earlier than MGP acquired Penelope). Submit-acquisition, Penelope now has wider entry to MGP’s gentle whiskey shares and has since launched older expressions: The newest, a 17 12 months outdated, got here out in January. Polise is especially drawn to the “ethereal” profile of the whiskey, which he credit to the excessive distillation proof. He lovingly describes it as being “like 99/1 [99% corn, 1% malted barley] corn whiskey on steroids.”
Among the extra unorthodox gentle whiskeys belong to Austin Craft Spirits in Texas, which makes use of a very totally different recipe. Founder Tom Buchsbaum initially got down to make wheated bourbon however by accident broke a number of rules alongside the way in which—distilling at too excessive a proof and growing old it in used bourbon barrels. Somewhat than rework the recipe to suit the TTB’s bourbon definition, he determined to bottle it as gentle whiskey. He nonetheless makes use of that components immediately: An undisclosed mashbill that features Texas-grown white corn, pink wheat, and Wildfire malted barley, and growing old it in barrels sourced principally from native producers. Buchsbaum’s gentle whiskeys are notably youthful than the others available on the market, at 2 years outdated or youthful, however our tasting panel discovered that they maintain as much as their older compatriots. Buchsbaum says the key is utilizing smaller 25-gallon barrels and leveraging Texas’s intense local weather to hurry maturation.
What’s In A Title?
Ask any gentle whiskey producer what their best problem is, they usually’ll let you know it’s advertising and marketing. Despite the fact that it’s present process a resurgence, gentle whiskey continues to be a really exhausting model to promote—as a result of lingering detrimental fame it had within the ’70s and confusion amongst drinkers. One of many extra fascinating elements of sunshine whiskey’s renaissance is how every producer works to beat it.
Mild whiskey makers all complain that the identify doesn’t actually clarify the model.
Pacult sees the largest downside within the identify itself. Early on, Jacob’s Pardon made the aware determination to label their expressions as American whiskey somewhat than gentle whiskey to be able to sidestep the detrimental connotations related to it. “I want there might be one other identify, however I do know that isn’t going to occur,” Pacult provides. Over at Spine, Nolan shares the identical sentiment. “I simply want they’d name it one thing else,” he mentioned with fun whereas remembering some humorous conversations he’s had with confused drinkers. “It’s no massive deal, however initially, what is that this? It’s 140 proof they usually name it gentle whiskey?” Because it is part of Spine’s single barrel program, Nolan is commonly capable of introduce followers to the model by barrel tastings. He almost all the time features a gentle whiskey because the capstone of his tasting flights, which he makes use of to gauge how every group handles excessive proofs, and typically it sparks curiosity. “More often than not, you need to discover a group that simply has a particular relationship with gentle whiskey for them to wish to go down that path.”
Buchsbaum sees it otherwise. “Once we first made [Austin 101], we had been instructed it was going to should be gentle whiskey. And we had been nearly suggested in opposition to it, as a result of ‘nobody goes into the shop to purchase gentle whiskey.’” However he’s embraced the model, and doesn’t shrink back from the moniker. “Calling it gentle whiskey is describing it as what it’s,” he says. “And we’re happy with it.” Tom says that having the ability to pour samples for individuals actually helps break down among the confusion across the model.
7 Mild Whiskeys to Attempt
In case you haven’t tried a light-weight whiskey earlier than, it’s positively a mode value exploring, characterised by refined sweetness and ethereal notes of fruit, vanilla, honey, and different tender flavors which make it a super after-dinner dram or refreshing summertime sipper. Most gentle whiskeys have attributes that fashionable whiskey drinkers like: excessive proof, excessive age statements, and an occasional discount value. Because the class continues to evolve, the perfect of sunshine whiskey could also be but to come back, however now is a superb time to leap aboard to see what you’ve been lacking.
92 factors – Austin 121 Cask Energy, 65.6%, $94
Peach, apricot, vanilla, earthiness, apples, darkish berries, and a touch of anise
92 factors – King’s Household Distillery 17 12 months outdated Single Barrel Choose, 67.5%, $100
Caramel, mellow oak, light herbs, grape jelly, açai, cocoa powder, and anise
91 factors – Penelope 17 12 months outdated, 69.4%, $100
Candy baked cherries and raspberries, caramel, and balanced warmth
90 factors – Austin 101, 51%, $49
Golden Scrumptious apples, white pepper, peaches, and honey-covered wheat toast
90 factors – Spine Triple Down Single Barrel, 68.3%, $50
Cherries and raspberries, with water, salt water taffy, and vanilla almond ice cream
90 factors – Jacob’s Pardon 18 12 months outdated Recipe No. 3 Small Batch, 71.35%, $195
Yogurt-covered raisins, prunes, M&Ms, baked pears, cherry pie, and cracked pepper
