Jefferson’s Chef’s Collaboration Whiskey New Release

Jefferson’s Bourbon tells BourbonBlog.com they have released the second iteration of Jefferson’s Chef’s Collaboration, a small-batch marriage of Bourbon and rye whiskeys. The blend is specifically created to pair with food,
in partnership with award-winning chef Edward Lee. Jefferson’s Chef’s Collaboration is priced at $39.99 for a 750ml bottle.

Jefferson’s describes this as a bold Bourbon-rye blend, aged up to 14-years and bottled at a robust 90 proof (45% ABV). Chef’s Collaboration was developed for over a year by Trey Zoeller, founder and whiskey maker of
Jefferson’s Bourbon, and Lee, owner of 610 Magnolia and MilkWood in Louisville, KY, and Succotash in Washington, D.C.

What began as a dinner discussion between longtime friends turned into a mission to develop a well-balanced bourbon that would pair well with all modern cuisines that use bold flavors and spices.

“This started out as an excuse to eat delicious food and drink exceptional bourbon with a friend, but evolved into a unique bourbon-rye blend, with a nuanced flavor profile, that pairs excellently with a variety
of dishes, both neat, on the rocks and in cocktails,”  Trey Zoeller tells us.

The duo took a number of bourbon samples with fruit-forward notes;  oranges, nuts, and toffee to 610 Magnolia, to blend as they simultaneously paired the bourbon with signature dishes from Edward’s recently launched Smoke & Pickles: Recipes and Stories from a New Southern Kitchen cookbook.

After several months of tweaking the whiskey, the pair decided that more spice was needed to create an ideal pairing with a variety of dishes, so they added Jefferson’s 10 year- old Straight Rye Whiskey for a spicier flavor that makes the Chef’s Collaboration a bourbon-rye blend and lends to its mature, full-mouth feel.

“Bourbon is a long, slow process and our collaboration was no different. In the end, I think we have a libation worth bragging about,” Lee tells us.

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