Tucson Distillery Whiskey Del Bac Celebrates 10 Years With a Smoky Single-Malt

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Fans of western films tend to romanticize whiskey. You imagine walking face down to a bar in an old saloon and asking for the brownish-gold schnapps from a sullen bartender, who then dutifully grabs a bottle and puts it in front of him. The stuff looks like hair is growing on your chest and inflaming your throat.

These days you don’t tend to feel that dusty romance browsing the liquor aisle. One exception, however, is the Tucson-based whiskey Del Bac. In recent years, the national and global whiskey scene has become aware. With attributions in magazines like Forbes and Whiskey Advocate, Whiskey Del Bac puts a copper-colored star on the map for a state that is not really known for its distilleries. The whiskey that emerges from it may be what you will ever drink, which is the closest thing to your western movie fantasies. It miraculously seeps into Arizona and warms the stomach with a nice fire.

Whiskey Del Bac is celebrating its 10th anniversary with a party on October 23rd from 1pm to 7pm at the Arizona Wilderness Brewing Co., 201 East Roosevelt Street. The party is the first opportunity for fans to sample the 10th Anniversary Release of Whiskey Del Bac, a smoky single malt that has matured in Calvados and Muscat barrels.

According to founder Steven Paul (his daughter Amanda is the other founder), the taste of the calvados and muscatel barrels is comparable to “a warm, slightly spicy pancake with hot butter and maple syrup that dances on your tongue”.

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Only 250 bottles of the anniversary distiller are available for sale, 30 of which will be available at the event on October 23rd. Another 30 bottles are reserved for a second celebration on November 13th at Westbound, 267 West Avenida del Convento, Tucson. The remaining bottles will be available from the distillery, 2106 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 106, in Tucson.

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Amanda and Stephen Paul, founders of Whiskey Del Bac.

Whiskey Del Bac

The Phoenix celebrations begin on October 23 at 1:00 p.m. with a cocktail class in the outdoor bar led by Tom Jonovich, Arizona Distillery Sales Director. He will share some of the best combinations and highlight some of the local partners working with Whiskey Del Bac and Arizona Wilderness Brewing Co., such as Shrubwell Mixers, Blue Clover Distillery, Agritopia Farm and Iconic Cocktail Co.

At 2 p.m. there is a farmers market where guests can browse, taste and buy various products for the house bar. Blue Clover Distillery is making special bitters for the event, which will be revealed after 5pm

Paul says it was a journey for him and his team to land on their signature flavors.

“The first whiskey was our classic,” he says. “There was no mesquite smoke. It’s modeled on a Speyside Scotch. ”

Speyside Scotch is named after a region in Scotland where little or no peat is used to dry the malt. Think of brands like Macallan or Glenlivet for reference, says Paul.

The Dorado label is the most intriguing of all whiskeys produced, says Paul. The mesquite smoke is softer on the palate than a traditional Islay Scotch, which is heavily peated and has an almost iodine-like taste and smell on the nose.

Whiskey Del Bac also has an unaged whiskey, Old Pueblo. It was not in a barrel, which is why it is clear in color. Jonovich points out that the Mesquite is much clearer in the Old Pueblo.

“It’s a pure expression of what barley does when it’s distilled and ground,” says Jonovich.

Whiskey Del Bac paints its own barley and creates flavors nowhere else outside of the Arizona desert, often using the mesquite wood from which Paul made furniture.

“We’re not just a Tucson brand, we’re an Arizona brand,” says Jonovich. “This is the culmination of 10 years of making sure our actions are sustainable enough to take them to a wider market. We hereby announce that we are representing Arizona in one room [the whiskey market] that doesn’t have a lot of offices in Arizona. ”

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