Hudson Whiskey NY Baby Bourbon, 35 cl

Product Information

Hudson Baby Bourbon is an interesting expression, aged in small 2 gallon barrels and “sonically matured”. Yes, you read it right! The 100% corn spirit and the casks get some agitation with the help of bass speakers. Every bottle has been hand-filled and numbered, and sealed with a wax. No carbon or chill filtration has been used. Our Tuthilltown Spirits Distillery is a small, family-owned business that strives to produce the best whiskey it can. Hudson Whiskey is made using only the finest ingredients, such as corn, malted barley, rye, and water. Moins de 150 kilomètres au nord de Brooklyn, cette petite productrice de spiritueux, se fond dans un décors ultra rural, au flanc de la Wallkill River. We're not making whiskey the 'traditional' way, as defined for 80 years by the big whiskey producers," says Erenzo. "We are making it the way their grandfathers made it. We do all the work, hands-on, from scratch. All of our product is hand-made." Out in New Jersey, Sourland Mountain Distillery is bringing the farm experience to their distillery — the place is a working farm. The grain-to-glass distillery is all about offering something local and refined, albeit young. Their bourbon is aged for one year in new American oak, meaning it’s a prime candidate to test right now to see where this distillery will go.

The spirit is smooth and delicious with a medium weight, not too viscous and not too thin either. Right on the nose for a 46% ABV spirit. There’s a bit of alcohol burn on the finish that lingers for a while, but it’s not significant or unpleasant. Nose: Sweet creamed corn scents butt up against youthful notes like green wood, sharp cinnamon and lots of botanical scents. The rest of the nose has pretty standard traits of caramel sauce and some light vanilla. Ethanol is prevalent but it is sweetened up by the scent of just… sugar. No, it’s not really caramel or brown sugar or anything fun and exciting, just a kind of confectionaries’ sugar or something. There’s not much to like here. They also changed the name to “Bright Lights, Big City.” If that doesn’t sound like a name you’d give to a bourbon, I’m right there with you. But Hudson explains it away by saying that they want to be different from the other guys both in attitude and the way they market their whiskey. I suppose by giving it a name like that, they have achieved their objective.

Recently viewed

It is rare that I go into a review with a negative mindset for a whiskey I’m getting ready to partake, but I couldn’t really help it. The thing about this bourbon is that it already gives you all of the warning signs before you reach the edge of the cliff. It’s basically your own fault if you end up driving off the edge. Okay, so we know “straight bourbon whiskey” has been aged over two years and we know “bourbon whiskey” has not met that legal requirement. Is it even worth seeking out bourbon without the “straight” moniker? Yes. There are nuances and innovations happening that are upending the norm and leading to wholly new expressions. They’re not going to bear the slowly unfolding qualities of a 15-year-old Pappy, but they’ll certainly grab your interest. Baby Bourbon has won Gold Outstanding Medal at International Wine & Spirits Competition 2013. It is an exciting dram. Fresh and lively one. Still a draft of an whiskey on the palate but the aromas are quite good. Definitely a conversation starter because of its uniqueness. After a slumber of 6 to 24 months, Hudson Baby Bourbon Whiskey is brought to proof before each bottle is filled, sealed and numbered by hand. The bourbon has strong notes of sweet corn, vanilla and caramel intermingled with oak, which give it a fragrant and slightly floral aroma. Hudson Baby Bourbon earned the Silver Medal at the 2012 International Wines & Spirits Competition and the Double Gold Medal at the 2011 San Francisco World Spirits Competition. In addition, it earned a score of 91 points from the Beverage Testing Institute. De manière globale, la maturation est relativement courte, mais compensée par une interaction plus forte entre le bois et le liquide.

Finish: After the sip is complete, my mouth starts to dry out leaving behind more harsh, young, green wood notes. The sweetness has now completely evaporated and I find myself wanting to stop drinking this after only a couple of tastes. Score: 2/10 There’s little doubt that the design is unique and distinctive. It’s easy to spot a bottle of Tuthilltown’s product on the store shelves due to the shorter, fatter bottle design. The perfectly round shape is another smart move. Take Tahwahkaro for example, they tried a similar move with a wide bottle trying to get more shelf appeal than other new whiskies. But because they made their bottle thinner in depth as well as wider in width, store owners are likely to slot it in sideways, completely obscuring the label and making it actually harder to see. The perfectly round shape of Tuthilltown’s bottles, though, forces store owners to play ball and display the way they intended. Hudson knows that they can’t rely on a rebranding alone to sell new bottles, so a vast marketing team was assembled. Whatever went on during their brainstorming sessions, some of the most impressive looking media boxes that I’ve ever seen came out as a result. Hudson Baby Bourbon is a craft bourbon made by Hudson Whiskey, a New York-based distillery. The company was founded in 2010 by Ralph Erenzo and Brian Lee, who are also behind the successful Tuthilltown Spirits distillery. Hudson Baby Bourbon is made with a mash bill of 60% corn, 30% rye, and 10% malted barley. The whiskey is aged for at least nine months in new, charred oak barrels.Seriously, we’re not making any of this up. The process and science produce exact results every single time. No angel’s share. No opening up barrels to taste year after year, hoping they pop. Lix, of course, has won a slew of awards from both the engineering community and for his whiskeys.

But as with any bourbon it all comes down to the taste. So how did Hudson’s Baby Bourbon fair in my personal review? Let’s read on to find out… C'est dans le grenier de la Tuthilltown Gristmill que naîtra le projet de Ralph Erenzo et Brian Lee en 2003, créer une micro-distillerie. The Burn:** After the first sip I couldn’t notice any burn on my lips or tongue. Every sip was silky smooth with a nice hit of oak and mild burn at the finish. On a positive note, the young, grainy scents that I found in previous Hudson products have been toned down considerably with this release. Normally a modern bourbon is some mixture of corn and other ingredients. In this case, Tuthilltown Spirits makes their Baby Bourbon from 100% local New York grown corn.

Why Is It Called Baby Bourbon?

This is how bourbon matures. This is how bourbon develops its complexity and reduces its harshness. This is not what happens at any step of the process when making Hudson Baby Bourbon. The music they blast at these barrels (ugh) is nothing more than marketing. It doesn’t magically age their whiskey because it just doesn’t work. There is a mild, friendly, bright aroma as well as a warming sensation throughout the beverage. Popping, as he’s known to his friends, is the founder of Bourbon, Banter, and claims to hold the title of Chief Drinking Officer (CDO). His passion for Bourbon and his professional experience will allow him to spread the message of Bourbon.