Friday Grab Bag

A look at industry news and Joe Canal's updates that we couldn't fully cover earlier in the week.

Ripped From The Headlines

There are laws that spell out the requirements for a Tennessee whiskey. The elements include the mashbill, the specifics of the barrel used for aging, and so on. Lawmakers in Tennessee are considering changes to the current law. Read about it here.

A trailer-load of a rare Canadian whiskey is missing. That's 1532 cases of Mastersons 12 year old, with a value of about $700,000. Read the whole story here, which includes tasting notes on a 12 year old whiskey that we'll probably never see.

Hungary abolishes three and four Puttonyos Tokaji grades, effective later this year. While this change won't have an immediate impact, if your favorite Tokaji falls in that range, you might want to stock up. The Puttonyos scale refers to sugar levels. Read about it here.

In California, a warehouse worker was arrested, accused of stealing over $400,000 worth of wine. That's about 350 cases. The story, with snark, is here.

In-Store Tastings

We're covering all of our product categories in Lawrenceville this weekend. On Friday, from 5:00 to 7:00pm, we're offering a complimentary tasting of Dad's Hat Whiskey. Based in nearby Bristol, PA, Dad's Hat is made by hand, in small batches, using only natural, local ingredients and the most careful methods. It's crisp, smooth and delicious, and is produced in the original home of American Rye Whiskey.

Also at 5:00pm, we have our weekly specialty Growler tapping. Our featured brewery in March is DuClaw Brewing Company, and we're tapping Naked Fish.
 Like most traditional Stouts, Naked Fish is medium-bodied and nearly black in color, with a light tan head. But where Naked Fish turns the stout style upside down is in its flavor profile. Gourmet Chocolate Raspberry Coffee is added to the grain bill to produce a taste experience you’ll never forget.

Finally, we have our regular weekly wine tasting on Saturday, from 1:00pm to 3:00pm. You can find the tasting menu here.

We've just added a Lost Distillery Scotch Whisky tasting for Friday, April 11, from 4:00 to 6:00pm. In their words: "The Lost Distillery Company is an independent boutique Scotch Whisky company. We are obsessive about our craft and uncompromising when it comes to whisky quality. Our mission is to create present day expressions of legendary whiskies that belonged to the craft of whisky distilling almost a century ago."

There's also plenty to taste in Woodbridge. The normal wine tasting schedule is in force, with the Friday hours 4:00 to 6:00pm and 1:00 to 3:00pm on Saturday. Friday's tasting is themed to the arrival of Spring, as suggested by the staff. You can find both Friday and Saturday tasting menus here.

And the Woodbridge specialty tapping of DuClaw Naked Fish will be at 6:00pm on Friday.

                           Now In Stock

Both stores have received a limited amount of the Canal's Family Selection Elijah Craig 12 Year Old Single Barrel Canal's Family Selection. A genuine small batch Bourbon, it's named after the Rev. Elijah Craig, the man who discovered the method of making true Kentucky Bourbon when he stored his wares in barrels that had been charred in a fire. Single Barrel means that the Bourbon is bottled exclusively from one hand-selected barrel, rather than from a blending of 70 barrels for a typical Bourbon. This leads to uniquely rich and distinct flavors.

Due to arrive today is a new Canal's Family Selection product: Maestro Dobel™ Tequila. This tequila is sourced from single estates and is distilled from 100% blue agave and bottled in Jalisco, Mexico. Each bottle of Dobel™ Tequila is double-distilled, matured in Hungarian White Oak barrels, and filtered for exceptional smoothness and clarity.