Bourbon and Distillery News for September 25, 2026

12 Bourbon Industry News Stories You Need to Know!

In this week’s Bourbon and Distillery News, we focus on Bourbon Industry News. If you want to find out about new releases instead, our latest New Bourbon Releases Newsletter can be found here. To receive my weekly newsletters in your email inbox, subscribe here.

Contents

Evan Williams — Kentucky Bourbon Festival — Eastern Light Distilling — Jefferson’s — Willett — Canadian Alcohol Ban — Toasts Not Tariffs — Jameson — Irish Whiskey Tariff — English Whisky — Nigeria Methanol Poisoning — Southern Glazer’s

Bourbon and Distillery News For September 25, 2026

But First, Here’s what’s new on BourbonObsessed.com!

• Bardstown Bourbon Company 2026 Discovery Review Bardstown Bourbon Company’s Discovery Series moves from numbered to annual releases with 2026 Discovery, a blend of three bourbons finished in Garryana oak barrels. New packaging features original artwork by Louisville artist Margaret Archambault, inspired by the whiskey itself. Read my review to find out all about it!
• Garrison Brothers Laguna Madre 2026 Review The 2026 Garrison Brothers Laguna Madre is an eight-year Texas Straight Bourbon Whiskey matured for four years in American oak and another four in French Limousin oak. Is this limited 101-proof release worth its $349.99 price? Read my full review to find out!
• Ass Pocket Whiskey Lot No. 6 11-Year Bourbon Review Ass Pocket Whiskey Lot No. 6 11-Year Bourbon packs an 11-year-old Kentucky straight bourbon into APW’s signature 200mL flask. Is it worth seeking out? Read my review to find out!

OK, now let’s move on to the news!

Bourbon and Distillery News For September 25, 2026

Evan Williams Adds Snapback Sports Partnership and Brings Back Collegiate Edition Bottles

Evan Williams Bourbon is adding a partnership with Snapback Sports to its Bourbon Nation college football program for the 2026 season, while bringing back its Single Barrel Collegiate Edition bottles and continuing its collaboration with ESPN broadcaster Molly McGrath. Evan Williams will be the presenting sponsor of Snapback Saturdays, with Snapback Sports also scheduled to attend Bourbon Nation tailgates at the University of Alabama on October 10 and the University of Oklahoma on November 14.

The brand says its Learfield program will operate across six schools this season, bringing together official university partnerships, on-campus activations, limited-edition collectibles and memorable game day experiences that celebrate the traditions and spirit of college football. School include: Alabama, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina and Syracuse. That is two fewer than the eight-school roster announced for 2025, which also included Florida and TCU. Separately, Evan Williams was named the Official Bourbon Partner of the Kentucky Wildcats in a multiyear UK Athletics agreement announced September 3 and developed by JMI Sports. Kentucky is not included in the six-school Learfield roster or the Collegiate Edition bottle list in this release. Each 750mL Collegiate Edition bottle contains a 2018 vintage of Evan Williams Single Barrel Bourbon and features school-specific labels, wax and a commemorative tag. The bottles are allocated to each participating school’s market, with select editions also available at the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience in Louisville. Sources: Heaven Hill’s 2025 Bourbon Nation announcement and the 2026 UK Athletics partnership announcement. Learn more at evanwilliams.com.

Kentucky Bourbon Festival Announces September 16-19, 2027 Dates

The Kentucky Bourbon Festival will return to Bardstown, KY, September 16-19, 2027, after all tickets to the 2026 festival sold out for the fifth consecutive year. The festival said 85% of its ticketed guests visit from outside Kentucky. An on-sale date for 2027 tickets will be announced later, with e-newsletter subscribers receiving advance notice of ticket sales and other announcements. Learn more and subscribe at kybourbonfestival.com.

Eastern Light Distilling Secures Financing for Morehead Contract Distillery

Eastern Light Distilling has secured $23.1 million in private investment, enabling the company to obtain USDA-backed financing through Magnolia Bank and Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy funding through Avrio CleanFund. The combined financing exceeds the company’s $60 million capital-stack goal and will accelerate construction of its 50,000-square-foot contract distillery in Morehead, Kentucky. Founded in 2024 by Cordell Lawrence and Caleb Kilburn, Eastern Light says the facility will be capable of producing more than 125,000 barrels annually and is expected to begin distilling by late 2027. The company says the project is intended to become Kentucky’s largest dedicated contract distillery. Learn more at easternlight.com.

Bourbon and Distillery News For September 25, 2026

Jefferson’s Refreshes Portfolio and Adds Eight-Year Age Statement to Reserve

Jefferson’s Bourbon is introducing redesigned packaging across its core portfolio along with changes to two of its bourbons. Jefferson’s Reserve now carries an eight-year age statement and has increased to 96 proof from 90.2 proof. Jefferson’s Very Small Batch Bourbon has also increased its proof to 88 proof from 82.3 proof.

The refreshed 750mL bottles are rolling out nationally at spirits retailers, restaurants and bars, with 375mL, 1-liter and 1.75-liter formats expected later in 2026. The redesigned core lineup includes Jefferson’s Very Small Batch Bourbon, Jefferson’s Triple-Rye, Jefferson’s Reserve 8-Year-Old and Jefferson’s Ocean Aged at Sea. Learn more at jeffersonsbourbon.com.

Willett Introduces Cask Strength Pot Still Reserve

Willett Distillery is introducing Willett Pot Still Reserve Cask Strength, a higher proof version of its small-batch Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey. The wheated bourbon uses a mash bill of 65% corn, 20% wheat and 15% barley, enters the barrel at 115 proof and will be bottled at its natural cask strength. The final proof will vary by batch and will be printed on each bottle.

Willett plans two releases annually, timed to the Spring and Fall Equinox. The bourbon retains the brand’s distinctive pot still-shaped bottle, designed by the late Even Kulsveen as a replica of Willett’s patented Vendome Copper and Brass pot still. Willett Pot Still Reserve Cask Strength will begin rolling out nationally at $67. Learn more at willettdistillery.com.

United States to Ban Imports of Certain Canadian Alcoholic Beverages

President Trump issued a September 8 proclamation excluding certain Canadian alcoholic beverages from importation into the United States beginning at 12:01 a.m. Eastern time on September 29, 2026. The proclamation says the action follows Canada’s continued restrictions on U.S. alcoholic beverages and replaces the 50% duty on products covered by the new ban. Canadian goods covered by the ban that were imported but had not yet been entered for consumption or withdrawn from a warehouse before September 29 will remain subject to that 50% duty. Products left under the earlier duty action and not moved to the ban remain subject to the additional duties. Source: White House proclamation and its annex.

Editor’s note: The detailed list of excluded products is contained in the proclamation’s Annex I. The annex generally targets consumer containers holding four liters or less, not bulk shipments. In fact, the number one selling Canadian Whisky in the US, Crown Royal, is imported in bulk and bottled domestically. Diageo also recently opened a multi-brand manufacturing and bottling facility in Montgomery, Alabama, which serves that purpose and we covered it in May. Also, Sazerac’s Canadian Mist has long been bulk-shipped for U.S. bottling. The ban may therefore affect less Canadian whisky than its broad product list suggests. Sources: Diageo, Sazerac and Whisky.com.

Toasts Not Tariffs Coalition Urges President Trump to Resolve U.S.-Canada Alcohol Dispute

The Toasts Not Tariffs Coalition, representing 59 national and state organizations across the U.S. beverage alcohol supply chain, sent a September 21 letter to President Trump urging a permanent resolution to the U.S.-Canada alcohol trade dispute. The coalition thanked the President for seeking to address Canadian restrictions while asking that U.S. wine and spirits regain access to Canadian shelves and that additional product bans be prevented. It said the U.S. wine and spirits sectors generate more than $573 billion in economic activity and support approximately 3.5 million jobs. According to the coalition, U.S. spirits exports to Canada fell 70%, from $232 million to $72 million, and wine exports fell 87%, from $456 million to $60 million, after Canadian provinces removed U.S. products from stores in 2025.

The coalition also warned that U.S. restrictions on Canadian alcohol could affect American importers, distributors, retailers, restaurants and bars. The letter stated: “As the U.S. hospitality sector enters the critical holiday planning and purchasing season, businesses are making inventory decisions that will shape their operations for months. Additional trade restrictions would create uncertainty, disrupt supply chains, reduce consumer choice, and raise costs at a time when many businesses already face economic headwinds.” Sources: the coalition’s letter to President Trump and the Toasts Not Tariffs Coalition.

Jameson Launches Up to $5 Million Football-Season Bar Tab

Jameson Irish Whiskey, the official spirits sponsor of the NFL, has partnered with two-time Super Bowl champion Eli Manning for “America’s Biggest Round,” a football-season promotion offering up to $5 million in consumer rebates and sweepstakes prizes. In rebate-eligible states, consumers age 21 or older who purchase at least one Jameson cocktail, drink or shot from a bar or restaurant between September 9 and November 30 can upload their receipt to receive up to $20 through PayPal or Venmo. The rebate cannot exceed the cost of one qualifying drink and is limited to one per person or household.

The drink rebate is not available to residents of Arizona, Hawaii, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah or Virginia. Residents of those 16 states can instead enter an instant-win sweepstakes for a chance to receive $20 through PayPal or Venmo toward a future round; no purchase is necessary, and purchasing a product does not improve the odds of winning. Jameson is also offering a sports bar locator, prizes, giveaways, special offers and game-day experiences under its new “Sláinte to Showing Up” campaign. Learn more at jamesonwhiskey.com.

Bourbon and Distillery News For September 25, 2026

President Trump Says United States Will Remove Tariff on Irish Whiskey

President Trump said during a September 13 visit to Ireland that the United States will remove the 10% tariff on Irish whiskey. President Trump made the announcement at a golf tournament held at a course owned by his family after meeting Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin in Dublin. Wine and spirits exports had been included in the tariff applied to most European Union goods under the EU-U.S. trade agreement, with Reuters reporting that the rate had been reduced to 10% following subsequent U.S. tariff changes in July. The Irish Whiskey Association welcomed the announcement and said it would continue working with EU and U.S. counterparts for a return to zero-for-zero tariffs on all drinks exports. Source: Reuters.

English Whisky Geographical Indication Application Approved as Single Malt Definition Draws Objections

The application to register English Whisky and English Whiskey as a protected Geographical Indication has been approved, although the U.K. government’s register still lists the status as “In consultation.” Defra (Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs) has posted the approved decision notice and product specification and says the name will be entered on the register on October 1, 2026, after a 20-day notice period, with legal protection taking effect on that date. The specification requires English Whisky to be made from U.K. cereal grain and English water, with mashing, fermentation, distillation and maturation taking place in England. It must be distilled below 94.8% ABV, matured for at least three years in wooden casks no larger than 700 liters and bottled at a minimum of 40% ABV. Only water and plain caramel coloring may be added. Source: the official U.K. GI register, decision notice and approved product specification.

The definition of English single malt has drawn objections because the approved specification requires mashing and fermentation to occur in England but not necessarily at the distillery, while “single” means the whisky was distilled at one distillery site. The Scotch Whisky Association said it does not oppose an English Whisky GI but is “profoundly concerned” that the approved text undermines the established single malt definition and may confuse consumers. The single malt definition as applied to most other GI whiskeys requires that the whiskey be mashed, fermented and distilled at the same distillery, not just distilled. Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State Stephen Morgan responded that Scotch Whisky’s protected status and production requirements remain unchanged and that the English definition does not affect how single malt is made in Scotland. Source: the approved product specification and The Spirits Business.

Methanol-Contaminated Drinks Kill at Least 48 in Nigeria

At least 48 people have died and 182 people were affected in Nigeria’s Ondo State after consuming locally prepared alcoholic and herbal drinks contaminated with methanol. The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, or NAFDAC, said laboratory testing confirmed high methanol concentrations in samples collected from affected communities. In addition to the deaths, seven people suffered complete or partial blindness, and 15 people were arrested in connection with the suspected production, sale and distribution of the drinks. NAFDAC said additional testing was continuing. Sources: Channels Television and The Associated Press.

Editor’s note: This was an especially severe incident, but methanol poisoning from informal and illicit alcohol is a recurring international public-health problem. Locally produced alcohol is not inherently dangerous; outbreaks typically arise when drinks are deliberately adulterated with cheap methanol or when home or illicit distillation is performed incorrectly. Methanol can cause blindness and death, and many outbreaks likely go unidentified or unreported. Sources: the World Health Organization, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Médecins Sans Frontières.

Southern Glazer’s Agrees to Pay $12.5 Million to Resolve Bribery Investigation

Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits has entered into a 24-month non-prosecution agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California and agreed to pay $12.5 million to the U.S. Treasury to resolve a federal investigation into bribery and false-invoicing practices. Southern Glazer’s admitted and accepted responsibility for employee conduct involving years of improper payments and benefits to employees of alcohol retailers in connection with the promotion, purchase, maintenance and placement of certain products. According to the Justice Department, the conduct included cash payments, prepaid gift cards, flights, golf trips, resort stays and luxury goods, and was concealed through third-party vendors and false invoices. Several California-based executives, including multiple vice presidents, were directly involved. The company also agreed to enhance its compliance program and continue cooperating with related criminal prosecutions. Source: Southern Glazer’s non-prosecution agreement and U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California.

Southern Glazer’s said the investigation primarily concerned conduct from many years ago involving former employees who circumvented company controls and policies. The company said it cooperated fully, accepts responsibility for the conduct and lapses acknowledged in the agreement, and has added staff, procedures, monitoring, auditing and internal enforcement to strengthen its compliance program. The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau agreed to take no action against the company for the conduct covered by the resolution. Source: Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits.

Bourbon and Distillery News For September 25, 2026

Well, that’s it! I hope you have enjoyed reading this week’s Bourbon and Distillery News! If you would like our newsletters delivered directly to your inbox, please sign up here. Our next New Bourbon Releases News will be published in a few weeks, since we are going on a little hiatus. In addition, the podcast and YouTube versions of this newsletter will go live on Monday, September 28, 2026. If you enjoy our content, I would greatly appreciate it if you would follow us on Instagram and Facebook. I hope you have a great weekend! See you next time! Cheers!🥃

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