New Batches of Found North Arrive

The Taylor brothers with their Found North whiskies

“We wanted to start a whiskey brand for more than a decade, but we weren’t convinced we could create something different that was really good,” Zach Taylor told me last week during a conversation with him and his brother Nick—the co-founders of Found North; “Starting a craft distillery meant we’d have no product for a long time, or we’d have to source from someone like MGP, but we didn’t think we could differentiate ourselves with either of those options.”

No shit.

Ever since I first left retail back in March of 2018, I’ve been thinking about my own personal action plan if I were to ever start my own whiskey brand. Do I want to invest millions in a distillery that might never make it? Or do I want to be the 500th new MGP-distilled whiskey brand on the market this year? Hence, why I don’t own my own whiskey brand.

“The Canadians think of the distilling and the aging process as prepping the paints, not painting the picture,” Nick added, explaining why he and his brother began looking north of the border for a solution; “In the US, much of the flavor decisions are made during distillation and maturation. Their paintings are more than half finished when they come out of the barrel.”

Canadian whiskies, with their variance in style, mash bill recipes, and still type, offer a broader palette (pardon the pun) for those looking to create a blend. Unlike today’s Bourbon brands, which start with the same corn or rye-based recipes aged in the exact same type of oak, Canadian producers have much more freedom. Look at the new Found North Batch 003 DNA as an example:

• The whisky was built around an 18 year old rye aged in ex-tequila barrels

• Blended then with an additional 18 year rye aged in ex-Speyside scotch casks

• A delicate 21 year old corn component aged in used American oak was then added

• The baking spice and brown sugar notes come from a 17 year rye and a 25 year corn, both aged in Hungarian oak.

The 2,792 bottle outrun came out to be a 17-25 year old marriage at 55.1% ABV with a final mash bill of 64% rye, 32% corn, and 4% malted barley. It definitely smells like rye on the nose, but there’s a candied ginger component on the nose that picks up on the palate as well. It’s surprisingly light in color, but don’t let that fool you: it’s packed with all sorts of pepper, spice, richness, and character. There’s a lovely sweetness as well that settles in beautifully on the third and fourth sip. Sipping neat without water, the first two sips are all power, then the graham cracker and vanilla notes start settling in with lovely grace.

Earlier in the year, in a blog I wrote for Mission Wine & Spirits, I described the 002 as such: “It’s not quite Bourbon, but it’s definitely not your typical Canadian whiskey. It’s as if Crown Royal and George T. Stagg had a baby, and this is what came out. For those of you longing to see Canadian whiskey blended and bottled with a Kentucky mindset, you’ve found your brand.”

The brothers agreed with that assessment completely.

“The really interesting question for us was: why aren’t Canadians making whiskey like this?” Nick asked; “With the pandemic happening, I’ve been tuning into presentations from Canadian distillers where they’re upfront about watering the whiskey down, adding caramel coloring, filtering, and other practices that have become somewhat taboo from the American perspective. The explanation is: this is just how we do it.”

Now we’ve got the second iteration of that masterpiece with the Found North Batch 004 built around a 21 year corn component, a naturally sweet 25 year corn component aged in Hungarian oak, balanced against two different ryes whiskies, both aged for 18 years. The first was aged in ex-Speyside scotch casks providing bright, fresh fruit. The second was aged in re-charred American oak. The 2,746 bottle batch features 18-25 year old whiskies, clocks in at 62.4% ABV, with a final recipe of 80% corn, 19% rye, and 1% barley.

If you like that extra sweetness, then the Batch 004 is your baby. It’s as rich and woody as it is powerful, and both of those flavor profiles are battling for dominance as the liquid passes over your palate. Once again, the George T. Stagg comparison is what comes to mind: a blistering whiskey with such strength and complexity that it’s almost impossible for your mouth to take it all in.

Zach and Nick began the Found North project by sourcing samples of different Canadian whiskies with the intention of bottling them as individual labels. There was just one major problem: they didn’t taste all that interesting on their own.

“We found a number of very cool whiskies, but we didn’t want to bottle any of them as a single entity.” Zach explained; “Canadian whiskey was designed to give the blender a number of assets to create. It’s like a huge tool set to create whiskey on the back end.” In short, it gave them the freedom to create an American version of Canadian whisky.

Of course, not everyone is fired up about the Americanization of long-standing traditions with distilled spirits. The French, for example, aren’t interested in creating high-proof, additive-free brandies just to capitalize on the current Bourbon fad. “Yet, there are other brands crushing in the United States that are moving towards that consumer,” Nick stated; “So why not make something for that audience?”

Canadian whiskey for Bourbon fans? That’s exactly what Found North is.

And…MAN…is it good.

-David Driscoll

A Passport To Armenia

When I came to work at Mission at the end of 2020, I knew next to nothing about Armenia and Armenian culture. Now that I work as part of a GIGANTIC Armenian family for an Armenian-owned business, I’m saying “barev” and “inchpes ek?” on a regular basis, and I eat about ten cans of Armenian nuts a month. 

I’m actually eating a huge handful of Castania Super Extra Nuts right now as I type this because it’s the best $9.99 you can spend on just about anything. If you don’t believe me, add a can to your next order and tell me what you think. I promise you’ll be adding a can to each subsequent order for as long as you shop here.

Living in California, we tend to think of ourselves as the center of the nut and produce universe, and while—as a born-and-raised Californian—I won’t argue the quality of California’s bountiful agricultural products, there’s some serious quality coming out of Armenia that many of us know nothing about. Over the course of 2021, I got to sample, taste, and enjoy all sorts of incredible Armenian produce from dried apricots to figs, and a number of outstanding brandies that outperform any counterpart in our industry, dollar for dollar. 

The apricot is the national treasure of Armenia, so it should come as no surprise that there are a number of apricot-flavored Armenian brandies, like the uber-popular Ararat Apricot for $27.99 that we sell mountains of every single week.

Fruit-flavored brandies are quite commonplace in the market, but pure fruit-distilled eaux-de-vie are always more expensive simply because of the cost of all the fruit and the tiny amount of spirit one gets from the actual distillation. 

But what if I was to tell you that there's an under-the-radar brand from Armenia that NOBODY has heard of, making a clean, powerful, pure apricot eau-de-vie for a price that doesn’t seem possible?

Granted it's not at the level of something like Rochelt eau-de-vie from Austria, but it's also $24.99 for a 750ml versus $299.99 for a 375ml, and it comes in a gorgeous squat bottle. 

Let me tell you about Mijnaberd Armenian fruit brandies.

Produced in Yerevan from local fruit grown entirely in the Ararat river valley, the Mijnaberd brandies are made with Charentes (or Cognac) style copper pot stills and—given they need to be shipped halfway around the world—present one of the most outlandish bang-for-your-buck values I've come across in years, if not a decade.

Never heard of Mijnaberd? You're not alone. But you're gonna want to know more after tasting these.

Let's break them down:

Mijnaberd Armenian Apricot Brandy $24.99 - Rested for two months in stainless steel before bottling, I've tasted this more times than I can count and I keep coming back to the same conclusion: holy fucking shit. Apricot distillation is not easy, as I learned over ten years ago when putting together a barrel-aged apricot brandy with Old World Spirits for K&L. The nose on this unaged eau-de-vie rivals products at quadruple the price. What I love about the palate is that it's bold at 45%, so there's heat, but the purity of the apricot is front and center. All I want to do is curl up by the fire with a can of Castania nuts and sip this baby into the wee morning hours. It's a stunning spirit from front to back. And, oh yeah, it's $24.99. 

Mijnaberd Armenian Mulberry Brandy $24.99 - What is a mulberry, you ask? The reason no one knows is because they're so delicate they can't be efficiently sold in most grocery stores. It looks sort of like an elongated blackberry and it can be even more tart, but with a woody character as well. Mulberries also tend to have a small green stem attached to them, and when picked these stems are fairly labor intensive to have removed. So imagine the labor that went into making this spirit! The nose alone is a spirits geek's dream come true. It's so utterly bizarre that I can't accurately describe it, but imagine something between wet fermenting grains, lavender, and fruit tea. At 50% ABV, it almost comes across like a white dog whiskey because of the tanginess of the fruit, but it finishes with far more complexity. I love, love, love this.

Mijnaberd Armenian Cornel Brandy $24.99 - Next question: what's a cornel? The cornelian dogwood plant produces what's known as cornel cherries, except they're not really cherries. They look like cherry tomatoes, but they have a bitter skin to them. I can't say I've ever tasted one, so I can't tell you how the spirit captures the essence of the berry, but I can tell you how the brandy comes across. The nose is like pure raspberry, but with a funkier profile that skews towards a roasted note on the backend. At 48% ABV, there's some punch, but it finishes with lots of sweet spices and a sizzle of tangy, tart red berries. So much fun!!!!

Mijnaberd Armenian 3 Year Old Reserve Apricot Brandy $29.99 - I remember selling half-bottles of California-distilled, barrel-aged peach brandy for $36 over a decade ago, and they sold out in seconds to all the cocktail guys we had in the store back then. This 3 year old apricot brandy from Mijnaberd is not only far better than that peach brandy, it's higher in proof at 53%, aged three times as long, and less than HALF the price!!! Rich and sumptuous on the palate, bursting with pure apricot goodness, rounded on the edges from the oak, with no added sugar or coloring. This is absolutely LEGIT. For those of you who like fruit spirits, this is like discovering buried treasure in your backyard. There are so many fun cocktails to make with this. The possibilities are endless.

Mijnaberd Armenian 3 Year Old Reserve Mulberry Brandy $29.99 - Take all the flavors I talked about from the standard unaged mulberry brandy, dial up the ABV to 53%, add the richness of oak, and have yourself a blast. There's nothing that tastes like this anywhere. If you're bored with everything in your liquor cabinet, this is definitely a fun vacation for just under thirty bucks.

As I was tasting these with my colleague Ara, he told me about how visitors in Armenia are often invited into homes by complete strangers while walking through the villages, handed glasses of homemade apricot brandy and maybe a bag of fruit and nuts as a gift. Since I can't do any international traveling at the moment, I have to imagine myself in Yerevan while drinking the Mijnaberd brandies and eating my Castania Super Nuts.

For those of you who think of drinking as a passport, and as a means of insight into another culture, I can't wait for you to try these products. All I've been able to think about since receiving these samples is: what else am I missing?

In a world that has been completely picked over, raked, and sorted through by booze hunters here and abroad, there are precious few secrets and even fewer surprises. If, like me, you're in need of that nostalgia—that sense of discovery that made drinking so much fun in the first place—then these are the bottles for you.

I'd take five outstanding, grossly-underpriced bottles of rustic Armenian fruit brandy over one mediocre, grossly-overpriced bottle of rebranded Bourbon any day of the week.

-David Driscoll

An Homage To Pasadena's Past

Every time I walk into my boss Vic Mankarian’s office, I look at this photo of his father hanging above his desk: Zohrab Mankarian, the original founder of Mission, who started the store as a tobacco and cigar specialist before branching out into wine and spirits.

As someone who takes pride in working for a family-run business, especially one with more than forty years of history (Mission opened in 1979—the year I was born), I often ask Vic about what the store was like when he first started, and what his father might have thought about our success today.

That’s when Vic began showing me old images of the store, pulling out boxes of photos from Pasadena’s past.

When I sat down with Pablo Moix from Rare Character earlier this year to select label images for our two new single cask whiskies, he showed me a selection of Pasadena-themed photos like the Rose Bowl and the Huntington Library. The Rare Character selections usually showcase local iconography based on the retailer’s location, so a San Francisco-based retailer might have a cable car on its label, whereas a New York retailer might have the Statue of Liberty.

While local pride is a wonderful thing, I wanted something more meaningful for Mission’s labels. Something more personal.

That’s when I remembered that old box of photos in Vic’s desk.

The first of two single barrel cask strength MGP Bourbons celebrating the evolution of our Pasadena flagship location, this 59.79% 5 year old label reminisces back to the 1980s when we were still known as Mission Tobacco! The store was still located in what is now our warehouse, and the original “Tobacco” sign was still painted white.

Bold and powerful on the palate, this is the type of Bourbon that Zohrab Mankarian—our original founder—would have paired with a fine cigar. Loaded with spice, vanilla sweetness across the palate, and plenty of oak from front to back, it's our first homage to Pasadena and the history of Mission Wine & Spirits.

Stay tuned for barrel number two!

-David Driscoll

A Game-Changing American Single Malt Whiskey

There was a time in my career when I would have told you unequivocally that Scottish single malt whisky was far superior, but Westland Distillery in Seattle made the best American single malt in the country. Yet, given how fast things are changing today, it's hard to say anything unequivocally about anything anymore.

American single malt whiskey has come a long way over the last few years, and I find myself discovering all sorts of new options (through bottlers like Lost Lantern), while re-tasting new efforts from established producers that have improved by leaps and bounds since the last time I tried them.

Look at Balcones Distillery out of Texas as a prime example; the single cask of European Oak-aged malt whiskey we bought from them last year is absolutely spectacular, and continues to convert new fans.

The folks at Virginia Distillery have also been coming out with some pretty cool releases lately, including a number of Scottish/American blends that are pushing the genre in a new direction.

And then there’s Westward Distillery out of Portland: perhaps the new king of American single malt with its beer-focused base, slow fermentation, and incredibly concentrated flavor. The malt whiskey coming out of this distillery is so beautiful, so rich, and so packed with sweet, malty flavor that we purchased an entire barrel directly from the distillery earlier this year. Having just revisited it for the first time since that day, I can say something else unequivocally that is actually quite shocking: for the first time in my career, I'm actually more excited about American single malt whiskey than Scotch.

While Scotland seems to be on autopilot, going through the motions to bring us an endless array of new whiskies with a rather minimal level of effort, many American distilleries are bringing their A game, hoping to take advantage of the momentum and win over some new converts during the process.

Case in point? Single barrel #295 from Westward Distillery: a 64.17% ABV vanilla bomb that expands over the palate like caramel-covered candy and weaves between crème brûlée, sweet stone fruit, and chocolate malt with a distinct beeriness on the finish that explodes into a buttery custard for the finale and leaves you begging for another sip.

I won't go as far to say that it's the best single malt whiskey I've had in 2021, but it's the most shocking in that I never, ever expected it to be this damn good.

While Bourbon has taken over much of the attention this year at Mission, I'm ready to get excited about single malt once again thanks to Westward. This whiskey smokes any similarly-aged, new single cask release I've had from Scotland this year. It's like pure candy for your palate and it changes continually, every taste offering something new and decadent.

-David Driscoll, Mission Sales Manager

The Best Whiskey Collaboration Of 2021

For those of you who know the story of Denver distiller Todd Leopold and how he resurrected the Three Chamber Still to create a style of rye whiskey not tasted since before Prohibition, we're back again to update you on the sequel to that amazing tale: the new Dickel x Leopold Bros Collaboration Rye Whiskey.

While the release of the Three Chamber Still whiskey as a solo act was thrilling, its original usage was more like the bass notes in a symphony.

Historically, the heavy-bodied, three chamber-distilled whiskies were blended with lighter column-distilled whiskies to create a harmony. In order to showcase the Three Chamber Still whiskey's capacity to add texture, richness, and weight to a blend, Todd teamed up with Nicole Austin over at George Dickel turn back the hands of time and give us another look at what American whiskey would have tasted like 100 years ago.

Bottled at 100 proof, with a rich, oily mouthfeel and heaps of baking spices on the finish, the new Dickel x Leopold rye collaboration is one of the most satisfying American whiskies of 2021 and is sure to make any serious whiskey historian extremely happy.

Our inventory is limited and our price is currently the best in the country, so we don't expect these to last. If you're a fan of both American history and American whiskey, it doesn't get much better than this.

-David Driscoll

Finding The Sweet Spot

If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

That's what we said to ourselves when selecting this 58.66% ABV single barrel of MGP rye whiskey from Stellum, part of the 95/5 mash bill Serpens edition.

Single barrel cask strength rye whiskey from MGP in Indiana continues to crush at Mission, so here we are again with another affordable option at a whopping proof.

There's no reinventing the wheel here. If you're a fan of that sweetly-spiced Indiana style, this is just a workhorse bottle looking to find its way into your bar. All the peppery, herbaceous rye character is right there on the palate, but with an absolutely charming sweetness that reminds me a bit of oatmeal or rye mash from the distillery.

From the folks behind Barrell Bourbon, Stellum is a new label primarily focused on marriages of different Bourbons and rye whiskies, but with a single barrel program as well. Stellum uses whiskies from Kentucky, Tennessee, and Indiana, and we had the opportunity to select a cask of rye whiskey from a few different sources, but the sweetness in this particular whiskey is what sets apart this barrel from all the others we tasted.

When you get that perfect balance of sweet and savory in a rye whiskey (at full proof, no less) it's just a wonderful thing.

Get ready to be charmed.

-David Driscoll, Mission Sales Manager

Our Best California Wine Value Of The Year

So I have a confession to make: we've been hiding one of the best wine deals of the year in our Pasadena store for the last month, as a reward for the locals who brave the lines to come see us in person. I'm apologizing right now for keeping these from you. It won't happen again.

To be completely honest, we've also been hoarding a bit of it for ourselves: the Mission staff. When you have a local wine made from fruit this good, by one of the region's most beloved winemakers, each entirely from a single vineyard, for a price this low, you tend to oscillate between immediately telling everyone, or telling absolutely no one. 

What exactly are we talking about here?

We're talking about local Sauvignon Blanc that tastes like white Bordeaux for fiteen bucks. Syrah that drinks like a Northern Rhône, and Mourvèdre that could pass for Southern Rhône, all for well under twenty, and made by Jeff Nelson! It's insane. Without a doubt, one of the best wine deals we've ever uncovered.

It's certainly the most exciting deal I've found since coming over to Mission this year.

For those of you who don't know Jeff or his Liquid Farm wine label, imagine an old world style of wine that embraces the local Santa Barbara County viticulture and climate by showcasing both the capacity for terroir and the potential for food-pairing with local California cuisine. 

To quote Jeff directly: "We were eating local, supporting mom and pop restaurants and farmers markets. In trying to support California wines, we typically didn't finish those bottles as eagerly as the old world wines on our table. That's when we decided to make wine from our own backyard in a style we craved."

The Liquid Farm wines get RAVE reviews year in and year out. As an example, the 2018 White Hill Vineyard Chardonnay $34.99 we just received in got a whopping 94 points from Antonio Galloni over at Vinous. The new 2019 Pinot Noirs just got a pair of 95s, and the new 2019 SBC Pinot Noir $39.99 just snagged a 92. They are the critical darlings of the SoCal wine scene.

Which brings us to Dandi. 

This past October, I drove up to Jeff's house for dinner and stayed the night (with his talking parrot Rio), and that's when he told me about Dandi. The goal with the Dandi label was to bring in two of Jeff's winemaking friends at Liquid Farm and extend the line beyond just Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, incorporating other varietals from fantastic sites along the Central Coast. 

The Mourvèdre is from nearby Vogelsang vineyard, the Sauvignon Blanc and Syrah are both from La Lieff, and all three wines—in true Liquid Farm fashion—are absolutely delightful. Jeff and team were focusing more on restaurants and wine bars with the label, but with the logistical issues during the pandemic they had yet to find a serious retail operation to take on the brand.

As a testament to our relationship, Jeff gave us a take-all price on the three current Dandi offerings if we could help launch the wines at Mission. After tasting the wines over a home-cooked meal, I was practically giddy about the opportunity. Here's the gist:

2018 Dandi Central Coast Syrah $14.99 (Normally $21) - Made in a fresh and easy-drinking style, the 2018 Dandi Syrah offers up juicy dark berries, black pepper, and violets, with a 13.5% ABV that never wallops you over the head the way a number of more-extracted, high alcohol California Syrahs can do. Bold enough to pair with steak au poivre, but light enough to put in the fridge with a slight chill, this is California winemaking at its absolute best value proposition.

2018 Dandi Central Coast Sauvignon Blanc $14.99 (Normally $21) - With a delicate richness and weight more reminiscent of white Bordeaux than the snappy, peppery Sauvignon Blancs we typically see at this price, the 2018 Dandi is one of the most-delicious and most-versatile California white wines we've tasted this year, offering up aromas of white flowers and stone fruit with an effortless, easy-drinking style. 100% barrel-fermented and aged in neutral barrels, it has a roundness on the finish that stands out from the standard pack of sub-$20 options.

2019 Dandi Vogelzang Vineyard Mourvédre $17.99 (Normally $25) - While Mourvédre (or Monastrell as its called in Spain) is normally used as a blending grape in Côte du Rhône or GSM wines, rather than a single varietal, this absolutely gorgeous single vineyard expression sourced from Vogelzang Vineyard in Happy Canyon has us convinced: we need more Mourvédre in our lives! Dark-fruited, juicy, but with just a hint of tannic grip, the savory notes on the finish make this perfect pairing for grilled meats, charcuterie boards, and just about anything else you want to throw at it! At 12.5% ABV, it's a local foodie's dream bottle.

If you want to know what we're drinking this holiday season at Mission, it's Dandi. And if you want to understand just why Liquid Farm is one of the best winemakers in California without breaking the bank, now's your chance.

Once they're gone, that's it. We've got just over twelve cases of each wine in stock for the moment, but the secret is now out. 

-David Driscoll

Sixth Floor Concentration

The general rule of thumb when picking a single cask of Bourbon is: the higher the barrel’s position in the rick house, the hotter the location. The hotter the location of the barrel, the greater the evaporation and concentration of flavor. It’s not a fool-proof formula, but it’s been working for us so far this year.

Beam is nice enough to give you a map of the barrel’s location in the warehouse each time we select a new cask of Knob Creek, so we keep picking casks from the upper stories. The concentration in this new barrel is clear, yielding only 132 bottles.

Our new 9 1/2 year old 120 proof barrel comes from the sixth floor of the rick house and offers the most dessert-like aromas from any Bourbon we’ve selected in 2021. There’s burnt sugar and molasses on the nose, with lots of oak on the palate, but the finish morphs completely into sawdust, savory notes, and tobacco. This whiskey is practically begging for a cigar pairing, but given the price, the proof, and the deliciousness, it will probably go down much faster than the cigar!

-David Driscoll