Chasing the Unicorn: Bourbon & American Whiskey

Virginia's free E.H. Taylor Jr. Small Batch lottery closes tonight at 11:59pm — 340 bottles, no purchase required, and better odds than the marquee lotteries everyone actually chases. John also covers a Wilderness Trail founder signing bottles in Danville, and a same-day walk-up, pre-order, and lottery all running at once — the three ways an allocated bottle actually reaches you.

Heaven Hill confirmed a 6-8% wholesale price increase on Elijah Craig and Larceny, effective August 1 — the second hike on these two bottles in fourteen months. Elijah Craig Small Batch is headed toward $32-$33; Larceny toward $29-$30. Today's Chase: Old Forester Birthday Bourbon 2026 is already shipping, weeks ahead of its usual release date.

New Riff cleared TTB approval for its first 8-year Bottled-in-Bond, the Newport, Kentucky distillery's first age statement to rival the legacy houses. It's unallocated, shipping to Kentucky and Ohio shelves by Friday. Also today: Texas clears direct-shipping for craft distilleries, the TTB tightens "non-chill filtered" labeling, and a fresh Weller lottery opens in North Carolina.

Heaven Hill's Bernheim distillery restart has slipped from mid-July to early August after a fermentation-tank supplier delay. Bottling of aged stock continues on schedule, but Heaven Hill has told retailers to expect thinner Bottled-in-Bond allocations on Evan Williams and Elijah Craig through late summer. Also today: Four Roses names its first public Master Distiller successor track in a decade, and Wild Turkey finishes a debt-free capacity expansion six months early.

It's Sunday, and Franklin trades the rearview for the windshield. Michter's Toasted Barrel Finish pre-order and Virginia's George T. Stagg lottery both close Monday, July 20th, so this is the week to act. He also previews E.H. Taylor's August distributor ship date and the Kentucky Bourbon Festival in Bardstown, September 10–13.

This week's news ran on long bets: new warehouses at Heaven Hill, a second Peerless tasting room, and Buffalo Trace landing the next E.H. Taylor release at $54.99. Franklin also digs into a Louisville bar's blind wheated bourbon showdown, where Weller and Larceny came back nearly even once the labels were hidden. He closes with what's actually restocked and pourable this weekend, including New Riff Bottled-in-Bond and Buffalo Trace's walk-up O.F.C. Vintage 1994 allotment.

The Rickhouse Room in Louisville runs its sixth annual blind wheated-bourbon flight tonight — Maker's Mark, Larceny, and Weller Special Reserve, labels hidden, all three within $15 of each other. Owner Sara Beth Hoagland's staff trial last week nearly split down the middle between Larceny and Weller — a real surprise given Weller's bigger reputation.

Wilderness Trail Distillery launched its first single barrel program today. Co-founder Shane Baker tasted through thirty barrels of the distillery's wheated Bottled-in-Bond stock before picking the debut release: 189 bottles, $54.99, sold only at the Danville visitor center. No lottery, no distributor — future barrels rotate monthly, announced through the newsletter.

Buffalo Trace confirmed the next E.H. Taylor Jr. release will ship at 12 years old, 100.6 proof, and $54.99 MSRP — roughly five dollars under trade projections. National allocation lands around 18,000 bottles, shipping in August. In the same 48 hours, Heaven Hill raised wholesale prices on its value tier while Wild Turkey held 101 flat for a fourth straight year — a real-time contrast in how distilleries handle rising costs.

Peerless Distilling won final state licensing this week for a second tasting room on Louisville's Whiskey Row, opening to the public later this month. Peerless has run tight allocation since its 2017 relaunch, and this new door is built specifically to ease purchase limits that have frustrated visitors for years. It's the fifth new licensed tasting room the corridor has added since 2024 — Louisville is building its walk-in bourbon economy in real time.