Y’all are focusing too much on the single brand here. Yes, Brown Forman owns Jack Daniels, and yes, JD is not very good (and far worse than other American whiskeys in the same price range, whether we’re talking the black label or their fancier offerings).
But Brown Forman also owns Woodford Reserve and Old Forester, which have good bourbons in their respective lineups. And, it should be noted, they also own the Scotch Whisky brands Glendronach, Benriach, and Glenglassaugh.
And what non-Canadians might not realize is that the Liquor Control Board of Ontario pretty much has a monopoly on spirits sold in Ontario, whose 15 million people account for about 40% of the Canadian population. If LCBO chooses not to purchase American spirits, that means it will basically be impossible to legally buy American spirits in Ontario, whether in a retail store, a bar, or a restaurant.
And as additional context, the American bourbon industry is facing down a bit of a contraction/recession/downturn in the coming years. Demand is softening up for most whiskeys, especially high end bourbons, compared to where they were a few years ago. Expect to see layoffs, fire sales, and bankruptcies.
I’ve been coming to the understanding that “bourbon” is like champagne in that it doesn’t describe a type of alcohol so much as alcohol of that type produced in a specific region (though with the caveat that there might be factors about that region that also means boubon is a distinct type of alcohol due to those factors). If that’s accurate, wouldn’t it mean that “the American bourbon industry” is redundant like “the French champagne industry” would be? All Bourbon is American.
Y’all are focusing too much on the single brand here. Yes, Brown Forman owns Jack Daniels, and yes, JD is not very good (and far worse than other American whiskeys in the same price range, whether we’re talking the black label or their fancier offerings).
But Brown Forman also owns Woodford Reserve and Old Forester, which have good bourbons in their respective lineups. And, it should be noted, they also own the Scotch Whisky brands Glendronach, Benriach, and Glenglassaugh.
And what non-Canadians might not realize is that the Liquor Control Board of Ontario pretty much has a monopoly on spirits sold in Ontario, whose 15 million people account for about 40% of the Canadian population. If LCBO chooses not to purchase American spirits, that means it will basically be impossible to legally buy American spirits in Ontario, whether in a retail store, a bar, or a restaurant.
And as additional context, the American bourbon industry is facing down a bit of a contraction/recession/downturn in the coming years. Demand is softening up for most whiskeys, especially high end bourbons, compared to where they were a few years ago. Expect to see layoffs, fire sales, and bankruptcies.
I’ve been coming to the understanding that “bourbon” is like champagne in that it doesn’t describe a type of alcohol so much as alcohol of that type produced in a specific region (though with the caveat that there might be factors about that region that also means boubon is a distinct type of alcohol due to those factors). If that’s accurate, wouldn’t it mean that “the American bourbon industry” is redundant like “the French champagne industry” would be? All Bourbon is American.