What’s happening in wine and whiskey this week:

Drink This

🇳🇿 Check out these under-the-radar New Zealand wines.

🥃 Love Sazerac Rye? Check out these bottles.

🍊 Actress Regina King launched a new orange wine.

Get Out There

🤠 You can go to Wine Camp in Texas this fall.

💰 This Napa winery charges $250 for tastings.

🍹 Garrison Brothers’ Hye Fashioned takeover hits bars around the country.

The Business

📈 RTDs continue their upward trend.

👍 Diageo launches new ad campaign for Bulleit Bourbon.

🇲🇽 Patron introduces new design for its tequila.

Boooo

🍎 Red wine might not have the health benefits some people think it does.

👎 European wine and spirits aren’t getting a tariff exemption.

🇨🇦 Crown Royal is recalling some bottles because of possible glass contamination.

Woooo!

🍾 Here are some tips on how to deal with anxiety about opening special bottles of wine.

🇫🇷 Cotes de Provence has a new cru.

🔥 Ten years after a fire, Louisville’s Whiskey Row businesses are thriving.

New Bottle Releases

Michter’s US*1 Toasted Barrel Finish Sour Mash Whiskey
Originally released in 2019, Michter’s just launched the 2025 edition of its Toasted Barrel Finish Sour Mash Whiskey. This whiskey, which does not qualify as a bourbon or rye because of the mashbill, was initially aged in new charred oak barrels before being finished in toasted, un-charred barrels. It’s bottled at 86 proof and has notes of honey, burnt sugar, and citrus spice on the palate.

Four Roses Limited Edition Small Batch
This annual release is a highly collectible bottle from Kentucky’s Four Roses distillery. The details change this year, but the 2025 expression is a blend of three 13-year-old bourbons and one 19-year-old that are pulled from three of the distillery’s ten different recipes—Four Roses uses two mashbills and five different yeast strains to make its bourbon. Look for notes of vanilla custard, pomegranate, pepper, and orange on the palate, along with a nice hit of spice.

Old Forester Birthday Bourbon
This is another annual release, meant to celebrate Old Forester founder George Garvin Brown’s birthday. This year marks a change for the bourbon—it was produced using the sweet mash process instead of the usual sour mash, meaning no setback from a previous fermentation was added to the mash. The 2025 Birthday Bourbon is 12 years old and bottled at 92 proof, and has notes of vanilla, maple, honey, and oak on the palate.