750 mL bottle- ~$24
- Purchased at Total Wine
Background
I’m always on the hunt for something I haven’t tried before, so every year when I take my West Coast trip I make time to stop by Total Wine in Brea, California, to see what they have that fits the bill. The one that caught my eye this time was something called Kalifornia Bourbon Whiskey.
First let’s dispel the notion that Bourbon can only come from Kentucky. With all due respect to my neighbors to the north, by federal law Bourbon can come from any of the 50 states in the union. If it comes from Kentucky, it will likely be noted as “Kentucky Bourbon” or “Kentucky Straight Bourbon.”
So then I had to think, “What the heck do Californians know about making Bourbon?” According to the company’s website, their ancestors came from “back east” so I’ll take it for granted that there is some knowledge was handed down generation to generation.
Kalifornia Distilleries is located in Temecula, California, part of the vast “inland empire” that includes Riverside and San Bernardino. I lived in Riverside County for a couple years so I know the general area, although Temecula has grown tremendously since the last time I drove through…my favorite term I’ve heard for it is “Trafficula.” Still…if time permits next time I’m out in SoCal, I might have to make a trip to see this place.
They make Unaged Corn Whiskey Moonshine, Peach Pie Moonshine, Le’moon’ade, and Kalifornia Vodka, in addition to the Kalifornia Bourbon that I’m presenting here today. All they had to say about it on the website is:
Our whiskey, like all whiskey is distilled mostly from corn. But we also add our special blend of rye and barley. It is then aged in oak casks that we once used to age our bourbon. Distilled 4 times over, our whiskey is smooth and warm. It can be enjoyed neat, on the rocks or in a wide variety of cocktails.
It is bottled at 80 proof.
Notes
The color is about what you’d expect from a Bourbon…medium amber. It had fairly thin and quick running legs after I swirled it around in the glass. The first pass under my nose revealed mostly just a corn whiskey aroma. Further, deeper inhaling revealed touches of vanilla and oak. Those notes got richer when I went ahead and stuck my whole nose in the glass.
Taking a sip, I found the Kalifornia Bourbon to be very light and mild on the lips. It had touches of honey and vanilla, backed up by a bit of graininess and a bit of a peppery, alcohol burn, then a clean, short finish. Smaller sips effectively eliminated that burning sensation altogether.
Since this was hitting me as a lighter whiskey than most Bourbons, I decided to go with a Dominican cigar that wouldn’t trample all over it. I selected Saga’s Golden Age in the Robusto size, a medium-to-medium-plus-bodied stick that has lots of subtlety in the profile.
The sweetness of the Dominican tobacco played well with the mildly sweet notes from the whiskey, while the whiskey did nothing to overpower the cigar. It seemed that they did well at bringing out the best in each other.
I will maintain that the best Bourbon still comes from Kentucky (Russell’s Reserve from Wild Turkey and Elijah Craig being among my favorites), but Kalifornia Distilleries has proven that good whiskey can come from the Left Coast, too. I found this to be a good lighter dram that I can recommend to go with mild to medium-bodied cigars.
