March 2024 132
Exploring 9 Must-Try Whiskey Brands Owned by Black Entrepreneurs
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Exploring a new liquor brand can evoke a rollercoaster of feelings. Fear – due to high expectations, excitement for the possibilities, and upon success, satisfaction. While tequila or vodka are often the first alcohol types for many, whiskey and bourbon have been gaining popularity amongst modern consumers. For those adventurous in spirits, Black-owned whiskey brands are marking their territory in the market.
Celebrating Black History Month is an ideal time to unearth brands operated by Black creators. What’s thrilling is when these discoveries become your favorites throughout the year. If you are scouting for a unique whiskey brand to gift or enrich your own collection, these nine Black-owned whiskey brands are undoubtedly worth your consideration.
Related: Top Black-Owned Food & Beverage Brands
Created to celebrate the modern whiskey drinker, Absiola Whiskey is one that “drinks well above its age.” Featuring a blend of Malt and Bourbon whiskey, each sip of this 40-percent ABV drink will bring about notes of vanilla and waffle cone as well as a rich aroma of apricot and almond cream.
Available in straight bourbon whiskey, ginger-vanilla flavored whiskey and chocolate flavored whiskey, Den of Thieves promises to erase the guilt of ultimate pleasure with every sip.
Offering up a variety of non-chilled, filtered bourbon whiskey products, Old Hillside is a veteran-owned company that infuses history, heritage and homage all in one. Its Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey option offers up 48.5-percent ABV, both cinnamon and nutmeg on the nose and brown sugar, oak, vanilla and caramel on the palate.
Related: How to Celebrate Black History Month, According to Black Chefs
This premium, handcrafted whiskey was named after the Historic Greenwood District neighborhood in Tulsa, Oklahoma. While there are three options in their brand, the flagship flavor—Greenwood Whiskey—has rich smokey caramel and vanilla aromas with hints of butterscotch, sweet cherry wood and a touch of citrus bolster in its taste. And with a 42-percent ABV, this is one bold whiskey you’ll want to add to your collection.
Perhaps one of the most talked about Black-owned whiskey brands, Duke & Dame is a hot topic for many reasons. Featuring 100-percent natural salted caramel and only 1-gram of sugar per serving, this guiltless 35-percent ABV sip is tasty enough to be had neat or in a cocktail.
When the topic of Black-owned whiskey brands come up, Uncle Nearest is the brand at the top of the list. So, if you haven’t had the chance to give it a try, this is your sign. Touted as the most awarded bourbon and American whiskey brand, there are plenty of options to choose from when you’re perusing this brand.
Related: All About James Hemings, One of America’s First Celebrity Chefs
Fans of spiced whiskey, rejoice. Red Hazel has the sip that you’ve been yearning for. Founded by a brother-sister duo, this 35-percent ABV rye whiskey delivers an experience worth reliving time and time again.
If you needed a reason to give flavored whiskey a try, Frisky Whiskey might be just that. Crafted in small batches in Charleston, South Carolina, this award-winning 35-percent ABV sip uses pure caramel and natural vanilla to complement the natural and unforgettable notes of whiskey.
Looking for a bourbon whiskey with an incredible story? Eric LeGrand is it. Created by and named after former Rutgers University football star Eric LeGrand, this whiskey was brought to life after LeGrand sustained a spinal cord injury that left him paralyzed. Now, the 44-percent ABV sip is the poster child for dispelling the misconception that those living with paralysis can’t enjoy the finer things in life.
Exploring the Origins of Ginger Beer: Beloved in North America, Born in the UK
North Americans are known for their fondness for ginger beer. This drink, with its unique spicy tang, is a main ingredient in popular cocktails such as the Dark and Stormy and the Moscow Mule. Unlike ginger ale, ginger beer is often brewed from ginger root, offering a stronger spicy taste. According to Future Market Insights, North Americans consume more ginger beer than any other continent. However, the origin of this beverage is traced back to Britain.
Ginger beer consumption is generally believed to have started in 18th-century England. The English had an advantage in manufacturing this beverage due to their access to ginger and sugar; two key ingredients in ginger beer. England’s involvement in the colonization of the Caribbean enabled them to import sugar and substantial quantities of ginger, cultivated by enslaved individuals in Jamaica. By the 1700s, the once rare spice had become common, and with their knowledge of mead and beer brewing, the English could easily create ginger beer.
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Ginger has been added to mead and ale mixtures since it was first introduced to the British Isles. This was likely for medicinal purposes, or to introduce new flavors to the beverages. Although these were not genuine ginger beers, they likely evolved into them. True ginger beers, brewed by fermenting ginger with yeast and bacteria, came later, though the precise details of this discovery remain unclear.
We do know, however, that these early ginger beers contained a low alcohol content due to the fermentation process, similar to the “small beers” the British had been drinking since the Middle Ages in place of unclean drinking water. These small beers were often brewed at home from spent mash that had already been used to brew more powerful beers. Ginger beer was likely brewed at home in a similar fashion, and because of its low alcohol content, it would’ve provided the same hydrating benefits as small beers. Ginger beer contained the added bonus of the spice’s medicinal qualities.
Ginger beer grew in popularity across England, eventually being mass-produced in stoneware bottles. The sturdy thickness of these bottles allowed them to be shipped across the Atlantic to a growing North American market as colonization settled in. The love of ginger beer followed the colonists to the Americas, where it would grow into the biggest market for the beverage in the world a few centuries later.
Read the original article on Mashed.