About the product: We are thrilled to release our very first Single Farm Bottled In Bond Jimmy Red Bourbon Whiskey in a commemorative 10th Anniversary package showcasing the return of our beloved stoneware bottles. This Bottled In Bond bourbon was made from Jimmy Red corn grown at Plumfield farm in Darlington, SC by Campbell Coxe in a single harvest and distilled within one distilling season.
About Jimmy Red: Our flagship spirit, this bourbon is made from 100% Jimmy Red corn, a magenta-hued landrace grain grown for decades on James Island and nearly lost forever. For 10 years, we’ve worked with a team of researchers and farmers to rebuild a secure seed supply for the most flavorful whiskey corn we’ve ever tasted.
There were only 2 cobs of Jimmy Red corn left after the last man known to grow it passed away. His family gave the seeds to Ted Chewning and he was able to bring it back to life. From two ears in 2013 to an estimated 250,000 lbs in 2017 the production on Jimmy Red corn has exploded.
High Wire Distilling in Charleston, SC began playing around with this corn in 2014. This bourbon is an incredible example of how heritage/heirloom grains are changing craft spirits. Craft distillers are using them to redefine the spirits we love.
Tasting Notes:
Really nice notes of underripe pineapple, caramel, vanilla extract, cornbread, dried soil, and hints of hot chocolate powder.
The palate is tart cherry, dark chocolate, and leather but the chocolate is prominent. An undercurrent of coffee bean, barrel char, smokey vanilla, and ground cinnamon being the most prominent spice but still a plethora of baking spices.
The finish is tart cherry skin, dried cacao, leather, and ground cinnamon.
It's been a wild ride these past 10 years, and like any milestone, it's a good time to reflect, assess, and celebrate. Entering this industry as complete outsiders, we believe the fresh perspective and ingredients-driven, culinary approach that we took early on has really forged a unique path for High Wire. Turning 10 also carries important weight for us as whiskey makers. We contract-grow, ferment, distill, and age everything that we bottle, and that takes a lot of time and patience. Time to learn the craft, time to hone our skill, and patience to age. Hitting 10 means we’ve had some time to do those things. We certainly feel accomplishment, but we also feel like we’re just hitting our stride which is exciting!
In considering the best way to celebrate turning 10, we immediately knew we would center our achievement on our flagship whiskey, Jimmy Red. In order to make the release reflect our unique agricultural ethos, we decided to bottle our very first Bottled in Bond Jimmy Red expression and celebrate our farm partners by selecting from our single estate barrels produced with Jimmy Red corn from a single farm and a single growing season. As it turned out, the barrels we selected from were produced from corn rescued from Hurricane Florence in late summer 2018 (which you can read all about in this special package).
The history of this stoneware bottle dates back to 2016 when we released our very first Jimmy Red Straight Bourbon Whiskey. A local stoneware company was so excited about our efforts, they offered to make us a custom crockery bottle to celebrate our achievement in helping resurrect this beautiful landrace corn. Our initial release sold out in 10 minutes! Re-introducing this beautiful stoneware bottle to celebrate our 10th Anniversary was the obvious thing to do. We decided to go one step further and develop this beautiful gift box highlighting Jimmy Red corn on each side and containing a booklet about the release and an “easter egg” of a special film about our work with Jimmy Red corn. This gift box is truly reflective of the last 10 years of perseverance, patience, and dedication to our craft. Cheers!
