“That really ruffled some feathers down in Kentucky, that a New York distillery could walk home with the gold,” Barrett said.įor those involved in the local distilling world, Black Button’s success is just one indication that the New York spirits industry is poised for greatness.īrian Facquet chairs the New York State Distillers Guild and is the founder of Do Good Spirits in Roscoe. For example, in 2021, Black Button’s single-barrel straight bourbon tied with Kentucky’s Casey Jones Distilling for Best in Class bourbon whiskey. New York now leads the nation in sheer number of distilleries, and they’re starting to gain prestige. In the time that bourbon has been quietly stewing in oak, much has changed in regards to New York’s standing as a center of distilling.
“There’s a lot that happens in those additional couple summers to the complexity, and the sugars, and the sweetness…for all of the quality ingredients and care we put in, it’s hard to match a 10-year Kentucky bourbon with a one-year New York bourbon.” “Just this week actually, we finally cleared our pre-tanks of any whiskey that had two years in it, and so now every drop of Black Button bourbon has a minimum of three years, but the average is closer to four and a half,” Barrett said. Every new batch that runs through the still pipes and is pumped into barrels will be bottled some time in the 2030s. That six-year-old whiskey, the first round of which will be released in 100 commemorative decanters on June 2, marks a milestone for Black Button as the distillery shifts its focus to older and more distinct bourbons.Īlready, Black Button is done distilling bourbon that will be released in the 2020s. Jimmy Russell, the revered master distiller for Wild Turkey, has famously said he thinks the sweet spot for aging bourbon is 6 to 12 years.
“Without the consumers asking for our products at stores and coming to our tasting room, I’d be a very lonely guy.”īlack Button will celebrate its 10th anniversary in June with the release of its longest-aged bourbon to date, a six-year-old offering that marks the distillery’s first release in 53-gallon barrels, the traditional size used in producing bourbon.
“I think the local support is everything,” Barrett said, in a backroom of the distillery adorned with dozens of test bottles and accolades from around the nation.