Hudson Whiskey NY Baby Bourbon, 35 cl

Product Information

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. The whole situation has a stench to it that one side is lying and the other side is trying to expose them. So it is with that in mind that I got my very own bottle of Hudson Baby Bourbon to finally settle this once and for all. I sampled it neat in a glencairn. Tasting Notes

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. 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. Despite the fact that the barrels have not yet been aged, they are still new charred oak barrels that have been reduced in size so that the wood to liquid ratio is higher. This improves the wood component of the whiskey, even at its very early stages. Bourbon is then aged for about 3 months before being bottled and sent to us for enjoyment.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. Share With: This is definitely a bourbon to share with others who know enough about bourbon to appreciate it’s unique production characteristics as well as it’s unique taste. If you have bourbon loving friends who haven’t tried it yet I suggest you all go in on a bottle and try it at your next tasting event. I also think it makes a great entry level bourbon for those that would benefit from something with a milder and sweeter taste before diving into some of the more traditional bourbons. 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. 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. Yep, it’s made from 100% corn. By definition, bourbon has to be made from at least 51% corn but you don’t really find bourbons on the market made from 100% corn. Another interesting detail is that the bourbon is aged in 3-gallon barrels instead of the industry standard 53-gallon barrels. They’re still new charred oak barrels but just smaller so the wood to liquid ratio is higher which adds a good wood component to the whiskey despite it’s young age. The bourbon is then aged for about 3 months before it’s bottled and sent out for our enjoyment.

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.In 1834 a Scottish chemist called James Crow invented the sour mash process. Or it might be better to say, he perfected and explained the process as it was probably something that some distillers were doing before. In the sour mash process a portion of the last ferment is added to the next to get things going rather like with sourdough bread, only better because you end up with whiskey. This raises the acidity of the fermentation which makes it hard for bacteria to survive so you’re less likely to get spoilage. The sour mash process meant getting a consistent ferment every time. 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.

This corn whiskey has personality, even though it isn’t quite ready yet. The producers of this American bourbon have done things their way, uncompromising yet experimenting. Writing their story in a unique and interesting way. Conclusion: Year 2016, Batch 13, Bottle 3973, non-chill filtered, 100% New York Corn and the “first legal pot-distilled whiskey made in New York since prohibition”. Tuthilltown ages their Baby in “special small American Oak Barrels” which explains how they achieve such a dark color and heavy oak influence from such a young whiskey. The other unique thing about Hudson Baby Bourbon apart from aging in 3-gallon instead of 53-gallon barrels and the fact that it’s 100% instead of the required 51% corn, is their use of sonic maturation by playing loud music to agitate the whiskey inside the barrels instead of moving the barrels themselves for the liquid to interact with the wood. With a bit of ice, nothing really changes. All of the flavors that were there originally remain there, which is not the typical experience. Usually when you add a bit of ice it tones down the stronger flavors and mellows things out a bit, but in this case there might not be anything to mellow out. The flavors were deliciously balanced to begin, so the ice just cools it down.Whiskey enthusiasts looking for unique handcrafted whiskeys have seen a surge in craft distilleries in recent years. Tuthilltown Spirits was founded in 2007 as a small business by three college friends who wanted to make a whiskey that reflected their rural roots and community. 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. The distillery re-branded their core lineup in late 2020 as the new whiskey came of age. Gone was the 100% corn mashbill that Hudson Baby Bourbon used and in its place was a new mashbill that uses 95% corn and 5% malted barley. Bright Lights, Big City

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. Did you know that since prohibition, Hudson Baby Bourbon is the first legal pot still whiskey produced in New York? Before prohibition farm distillers were a common sight in the state of New York. There were more than 1000 alcohol makers producing spirits from local grains and fruits. Hudson Whiskey was one of the earliest pioneers of the craft whiskey movement in the United States. Tuthilltown Spirits was the first distillery in New York to open since Prohibition, and it served as the state’s first whiskey since Prohibition. After Gable’s overview, we dove right into tasting the whiskey and that’s when Hudson Whiskey won me over. I enjoyed every single whiskey I tried that night – even the Baby Bourbon. Each whiskey was so distinctly different and unique compared to other bourbons on the market. The flavor profiles were a huge change in pace compared to what I’m used to and they really agreed with me. Knowing that the Hudson Whiskey line consists of very young spirits I’ve definitely changed how I think about aging when it comes to bourbon. So what was the point of that story? It makes me think that all is not right with this brand. For every review that calls it out for being young, astringent, ethanol-forward and unpleasant, there is a one where the reviewers claims their eyes have been opened to just how great this whiskey is and how it’s changed their views on the brand.

Ratings Breakdown

The new variant names reflect New York attitude and embrace the kind of characters, places and moments that only exist in New York.” Why? Well, it’s generally accepted that four years is the prime spot for many bourbons to age. But for whiskey to legally be called “bourbon”— sans the “straight” part — it simply has to touch new American oak for… really any amount of time, up to two years. That can ( and sometimes does) mean a matter of minutes. These days, bourbons that age less than two years are often called “young bourbon” or just “bourbon whiskey.” 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.