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Bob Dylan to launch American whiskey

Singer-songwriter Bob Dylan is set to launch a new range of American whiskeys, created in collaboration with Angel’s Envy Bourbon founder Marc Bushala.

American singer Bob Dylan has made his first foray into American whiskey

The new range, called Heaven’s Door, has been created by Ryan Perry of Heaven’s Door Spirits and master distiller Jordan Via.

The trilogy consists of Tennessee Straight Bourbon Whiskey, Double Barrel Whiskey and Straight Rye Whiskey.

Tennessee Bourbon is made from a “unique” mash bill from Tennessee and uses 30% small grains to “complement the character imparted from spending six and a half years in American oak barrels”.

Bottled at 100 proof, Double Barrel Whiskey is a blend of three different whiskeys and is secondary aged in new American oak barrels.

Straight Rye Whiskey is finished in toasted oak cigar barrels, which are air-dried in the Vosges – a range of low mountains in eastern France.

The bottle designs feature iron gates created by Dylan at his metalworking shop, Black Buffalo Ironworks. The gates are comprised of found objects collected from farms and scrap yards across the US.

In 2019, Heaven’s Door will open its distillery and brand experience centre in a 140-year-old church in Nashville, Tennessee.“Rather than make a single whiskey or work with one master distiller, we thought it would be far more interesting to work with various master distillers and blenders to make whiskeys that would each have their own unique signature,” said Bushala.

“By working with different whiskey artisans for each new expression, the portfolio would be more diverse and eclectic.”
Dylan added: “We both wanted to create a collection of American whiskeys that, in their own way, tell a story.

“I’ve been traveling for decades, and I’ve been able to try some of the best spirits that the world of whiskey has to offer. This is great whiskey.

“I am happy to be partnering with Marc and our entire team as we bring Heaven’s Door to the public.”

The Heaven’s Door range is available for pre-order on the Heaven’s Door website. Orders will begin shipping on 21 May and will be released to stores in select US states from mid-May.

Heaven’s Door Tennessee Bourbon and Double Barrel Whiskey are both priced at US$59.99. Heaven’s Door Straight Rye Whiskey is priced at US$89.99.

According to the Distilled Spirits Council, sales of American whiskey were up 8.1% to US$3.4bn last year. Rye whiskey was the fastest growing spirit category of 2017, with growth of 16.2% to US$175m, and 900,000 cases.

A veteran in the spirits industry, Marc Bushala sold his Louisville-based Angel’s Share Brands to international drinks firm Bacardi in 2015 for an undisclosed sum.

MAB Capital Management, led by Bushala, launched LAB Innovation Fund I, which pledged to make equity investments of US$3m-US$10m in early stage beverage businesses.

Through the fund, Bushala and Spirits Investment Partners invested US$14 million for a majority stake in Stolen Spirits to take the “world’s first smoked rum” to the US.

The Heaven’s Door range consists of Tennessee Straight Bourbon Whiskey, Double Barrel Whiskey and Straight Rye Whiskey

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