FEBRUARY 7, 2023— After a successful first collaboration between Pinhook and André Hueston Mack, the founder and award-winning winemaker of Maison Noir Wines, the team decided a second edition of the series was in order. After years of planning, distilling, and tasting, the day is finally here. Welcome to the release of Pinhook’s Collaboration Series #2, a limited edition bourbon in which only 3,500 bottles were made.

“The Collaboration Series is one of my favorite projects to work on,” says Sean Josephs, Pinhook’s Master Blender. “It allows me to work with my friends from my years in hospitality; to learn how they see bourbon and distilling; to make some unique liquid; and, of course, have a little bit of fun. It is important for us to stay curious, and that is one of the pillars our brand is built on. This is a great way to invite curiosity.”

For Pinhook’s Collaboration Series, the brand invites luminaries in other sensory-rich fields to team up with our master blender in sourcing great barrels of whiskey and meticulously crafting the blend and proof that best brings out their finest characteristics. For Collaboration Series #2, Josephs teamed up with Garrett Oliver, brewmaster of Brooklyn Brewing and a 2014 James Beard Award Winner. Oliver, with his 30 years of brewing expertise, brings an intriguing sensory perspective to Pinhook’s innovative approach: sourcing great barrels of whiskey and blending and proofing them into exceptional bourbons and ryes.

Distilled at Still Austin, located in Austin, TX, this high-proof, high-rye bourbon was aged for four years in the Texas heat. This results in a whiskey with maturity that far exceeds its years in the barrel. Tropical fruit, spice and chocolate on the nose gives way to deep gingerbread, caramel and dark cherry flavors on the palate, topped off with a surprising hint of licorice.

A bourbon lover’s dream, this sipper also supports a good cause. Proceeds from the sale of Collaboration Series #2 supports The Michael J. Jackson Foundation for Brewing and Distilling (The MJF), which awards scholarships in brewing and distilling education to people of color in the United States, and of which Oliver is the founder and chair. The total donation will allow for the award of 20 scholarships, which will double the amount of what has been previously awarded.

"The MJF has now awarded more than 20 technical education scholarships for distilling and brewing," stated Garrett Oliver, founder and chair of The MJF. "This donation will mean that 20 more lives will be changed through the generosity of our partners like Pinhook. But more than just generosity, it's a shared belief that we need a more equitable and diverse future. Big thanks to Pinhook for partnering with The MJF on this special collaboration so that our work to change the face of brewing and distilling is sustainable into the future."

This bottle retails for $99.99. It will be available on Breeze, Pinhook’s text-to-buy service; on Flaviar; and at limited specialty stores nationwide.

About the Pinhook Collaboration Series
In Pinhook’s Collaboration Series, it partners with luminaries working in other sensory-rich fields in a venture that epitomizes the curiosity Pinhook was founded on: Sourcing great barrels of whiskey and meticulously crafting the blend and proof that best brings out their finest characteristics. By exploring the possibilities of whiskey from varied perspectives, the Series’ collaborators invariably hit on something new and exciting. With this very limited release, Pinhook expands the possibilities of American whiskey, and pasy tribute to the distillers and palates that are most admired.

About The Michael James Jackson Foundation for Brewing & Distilling
The Michael James Jackson Foundation for Brewing & Distilling (The MJF), formed in 2020, is a grant-making organization that funds technical education scholarship awards to Black, Indigenous, and People of Color within the brewing and distilling trades. To learn more about The MJF, visit www.themjf.org.