Trillium Brewing Company, a New England brewery known for its popular craft beers, has ventured into the world of spirits. Founded just over a decade ago, Trillium now boasts multiple locations in Boston, a restaurant and taproom in Canton, Mass., and a farm in North Stonington, Conn. A few years ago, they began releasing spirits, and recently added a trio of new whiskeys to their lineup. Trillium's approach to whiskey making differs from traditional distilleries.
Instead of making their own whiskey, they source aged barrels from other distilleries and blend them together, a common practice among non-distilling producers (the sources are not revealed). In late fall, Trillium launched three new expressions: Wake Robin, Wake Robin Small Batch Bourbon, and Wake Robin Small Batch Rye, all blended by head distiller Kyle Wortz (formerly of Utah's Distillery). The core bourbon is a blend of two mashbills that were aged from two to six years: 75 percent corn, 21 percent rye, 4 percent malted barley; and 78 percent corn, 10 percent rye, 12 percent malted barley. This is a tasty bourbon, with classic notes of vanilla, brown sugar, and stone fruit on the palate, and a touch of heat that comes from it being bottled at 90 proof. The Small Batch bourbon is older, combining whiskey aged from four to seven years, and uses the same two mashbills as the core bourbon along with one more high-rye recipe (60 percent corn, 36 percent rye, 4 percent malted barley). This is also a good bourbon, with similar tasting notes buttressed by a bit more spice and some heat that comes from it being bottled at a higher 92 proof