After a decade plus of extreme brewing, consumer palates seem to have began to fatigue even as the desire for lifestyle alignment and elevated experience have remained strong. While total beer sales in the US saw a 3% drop in the last year, the "Domestic Super Premium" segment is one of the few categories seeing consistent growth. Consumers seem to be returning to "beer flavored beer" while still wanting to feel connected to the brand, setting the stage for a new wave of storytellers and celebrity marketers to move brews in huge quantities. Not to be left behind, the heritage brewers are crafting new offerings or updating marketing on premium favorites like Michelob Ultra, Heineken Silver, and Corona Premier which set the blueprint for the category. In general these beers have similar characteristics: Calories : 90-110, traditionally within the light beer segment. This seems to be the consumer's mental best fit range, comfortably below that of sodas and RTDs, a...
Released in September of 2025, Batch A925 (A for the first batch of the year, 9 for September, and 25 for 2025) is the first mass market release for Elijah Craig Barrel Proof Rye. There had been a previous distillery exclusive bottling of the Rye Barrel Proof (Y725 - 132 proof NAS) which was much higher alcohol and closer to the 2026 A batch that has just started rolling out. I had the pleasure to try Y725 which was good, but I ended up taking home the ECBP Bourbon . Heaven Hill plans to roll out three batches of ECBP rye each year alongside the bourbon releases. In the months since its launch, Whiskey Advocate has named Batch A925 its "2025 Whiskey of the Year". “As Whiskey fans know, barrel proof is kind of like that famous box of chocolates, in not knowing what you’re going to get until the barrel dumps. In this instance, we got a 108 proof treat that drinks bolder than its number would suggest.” - Conor O'Driscoll, Master Distiller, Elijah Craig Bourbon Whi...