About Hirsch Selection Special Reserve 20 Year Old American Whiskey
The use of wooden barrels to store and transport liquids dates back to 2690 B.C., when ancient Egyptians during the Early Dynastic Period began replacing clay vessels with wooden casks in order to meet the demands of their sprawling civilization. The advantages of wooden barrels were evident — not only were they less fragile than clay vessels, but their cylindrical shape allowed them to be rolled rather than carried across short distances. As settlers along the Nile quickly realized, however, barrels made from wooden staves were rather porous — any liquids stored in the barrel slowly evaporated as the barrel "breathed."
As whiskey ages in wooden casks, it evaporates through the pores of the wood. On average, approximately 2% of aging whiskey is lost to evaporation each year — this 2% is commonly referred to as the angel's share.
Hirsch Selection Special Reserve Limited Edition 20 Year Old American Whiskey has been aged for a minimum of 20 years in charred oak barrels and is bottled at 96 proof. Needless to say, the angels got their fair share. Hirsch Selection American Whiskey is made from a bourbon mash, but since the whiskey was aged in used barrels rather than new barrels, it does not meet the technical definitions of a bourbon.
Named after Adolf Hirsch, a former executive of Schenley Co. who bought some aging barrels of bourbon from the famed Michter's Distillery distillery before it closed in 1988, Hirsch American Whiskey was awarded four stars by F. Paul Pacult's
Spirit Journal. Production of the whiskey totaled just 120 casks, too few to support a standard bottling.
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About American Whiskey
There are two main representatives of the American whiskey family, bourbon, and rye, but some other spirits don't fall into those two strictly regulated categories.
There's equally strictly regulated American single malt, made from 100% malted barley, Tennessee whiskey, essentially bourbon filtered through maple charcoal and aged in new charred oak barrels.
And then there's moonshine, a high proof (150- 170 proof) distilled spirit mainly made out of corn which gained popularity during the prohibition.
Check out our impressive selection of American single malts, or find your new favorite in our rich whisk(e)y selection, and get familiarized with what the world has to offer.
