Distilled: Sipping Bourbon with Jim Gaffigan

Plus: Hunting dusties; whiskey cocoa bundt cake

Jim Gaffigan hails from the Midwest, but the comedian, actor, and cofounder of Fathertime Bourbon has spent plenty of time in the South, both on tour and while chasing whiskey. One thing he says he’s noticed about the region: “You can have a conversation about bourbon with an absolute stranger, and that’s fun.” That’s exactly what happened when he and G&G contributor Tom Wilmes sat down over a glass in Louisville. Almost instantly they were batting around favorite bottles, proofs, basement bars, and, of course, some whiskey humor. It goes to show that bourbon has a way of bringing people together. For those who like their pour with a side of adventure, this week we also dive into the wild world of hunting down dusties, and we catch up with food writer and longtime bourbon lover Kathleen Purvis to see what’s in her glass. Happy sipping.

“Some people collect action figures, and I joke that bourbon bottles are like action figures filled with liquor”—and more gems from our conversation with the comedian and cofounder of Fathertime Bourbon.

One bourbon lover’s attempt at tracking down vintage bottles pays off
with a lucky score.

The former food editor at The Charlotte Observer, Kathleen Purvis has covered food and drink in the South since 1989. She’s also the author of the cookbook Bourbon, among other titles, and a former committee member for the James Beard Awards. She has visited more than sixty craft distilleries over the past fifteen years or so.

“When I was working on my book Distilling the South, in 2016, the crew at High Wire Distilling in Charleston was already talking about this crazy new bourbon they were making. Food historian and plant collector David Shields had turned up a small amount of a red dent corn variety called Jimmy Red that was once prized by bootleggers. I was tickled when I came across a bottle in a South Carolina liquor store this summer, aged for seven years. High Wire is now making several expressions of Jimmy Red, including a bottled-in-bond and a version finished in sherry casks. Being a freelance journalist of limited financial means, I went with the original, a 95-proof straight bourbon. I wasn’t sorry. This stuff is packed with flavor. The first note is sweetness from the corn and a warm caramel taste, with a definite hit of brown sugar aroma. That’s followed with a nuttiness that speaks clearly of pecans. My first book was on pecans, so maybe I’m just primed for that flavor, but as I continue to sip Jimmy, I’ve been struck by that pecan flavor every time. I’m on my second bottle now—that first one disappeared quickly when I made the mistake of acquainting a few friends with it.”

—Wayne Curtis, G&G contributing editor

“Big, beautiful, and bold,” this cake from baker Matt Lewis’s new cookbook makes for one crowd-pleasing dessert (and pairs nicely with an after-dinner bourbon).

The Buffalo Trace Antique Collection this year adds a new expression: Colonel E.H. Taylor Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon, the first permanent addition to the vaunted lineup since 2006. The inaugural bourbon, aged fifteen years and four months and bottled at 100 proof, is a delicate beauty ripe with sweet aromatics giving way to cherry-infused tobacco and a whisper of oak.

Wild Turkey’s Russell’s Reserve Single Rickhouse series—which highlights how a specific microclimate affects aging—returns with Camp Nelson E. Blended from barrels pulled from the fifth floor of the tree-shaded, dirt-floored warehouse, built in 1946, the 128-proof bottling is also the strongest Russell’s Reserve yet, with a viscous mouthfeel and concentrated flavors of honeycomb, maple syrup, and oak.

For the first release in its Grain to Glass Specialty Barrel Series, Heaven Hill explores the influence of chinquapin oak across three six-year Kentucky whiskeys (a bourbon, a wheated bourbon, and a rye) matured exclusively in barrels made from the trees, found throughout the Midwest and Southeast. Rich in vanillin, the barrels accentuate notes of warm banana bread, toasted pecan, and brown sugar.

Old SteelHouse Distillery officially opens its downtown Bardstown tasting room with a ribbon cutting on Monday (October 27). The distillery is also reviving the historic Coxs Creek site, where the T.W. Samuels distillery began in 1844, as both a production facility and a visitor destination.

If you’re in Greenville, South Carolina, this weekend, you might catch the scent of smoke and bacon emanating from the Hog & Barrel Festival (October 24–25). The regional event brings bourbon and barbecue fans together for tastings and live music.

Tickets for Republic Bank BourbonVille go on sale today. The popular event—held April 2 and part of Louisville’s Kentucky Derby Festival—pairs cocktails and bourbon-inspired cuisine alongside pours from top Bluegrass State distilleries.

—Tom Wilmes, G&G contributor