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Whiskey purists will probably spend years debating whether bourbon that isn't solely aged in charred oak barrels can truly be called "bourbon", which should make you really happy you're not one and can just enjoy delicious Hooker's House, a brand-new 100-proof whiskey that's CA's (and possibly, the world's) first to be finished in actual Sonoma wine casks.

After procuring a sizable shipment of small batch bourbon (already aged 4yrs in white oak) that didn't match their original Kentucky distiller's intended "flavor profile", the two Sonomans behind HHB finished the stuff for nine months in double-barreled Carneros Pinot Noir casks; they then named it for General Joseph Hooker, the Civil Warrior whose unit attracted a band of prostitutes nicknamed "Hooker's Brigade", and who is thus credited with the term "hooker" (an attribution that seems above reproach, but like any guy who secretly sleeps with hookers, is not). Anywho, the throat-sexing result is a softened whiskey with notes of dried apricot, cherry, violet, vanilla and even dark fruit (like plums and cherries) that all balances nicely thanks to a 54% corn/46% rye "mash bill", which's also what Jordan used to say to Wennington when asked what the greatest show in the history of television was.

They've got enough to make 40 barrels for now, and they're also working on a top-secret second project that they'll only say will be an "American spirit", so right there, you know it's going to involve lots of argument.

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You better click here before Eliot Spitzer buys up all the Hooker's