Whisky Watch: Dewar's Champion's Edition, Little Book's 10th Release, New Riff Single Malt & More

Mother's Day is this Sunday, and we've got both bottle recommendations for the moms in your life, as well as some thoughtful insights from whisky makers who also happen to be mothers. There are also some exciting new releases to explore, kicking off with the 10th edition of Little Book from master distiller Freddie Noe. While we have yet to taste it, Little Book as a brand has impressed us time and again, and highlighted how capable a steward Noe is of carrying on the distilling legacy launched by his grandfather Booker. Elsewhere in American whiskey, New Riff has debuted the 5th edition of its American single malt, Seattle-based Copperworks has a new single cask single malt rolling out, Wight & Co. Distillers has unveiled its second bourbon, and Stitzel-Weller has a highly collectible 31 year old bourbon. In scotch, Dewar's is back with the latest release of its Champion's Edition, which commemorates the U.S. Open golf championship, while The Last Drop has a 60 year old single grain scotch whisky from the long-shuttered Carsebridge Distillery.

Dewar’s 19 year old The Champion’s Edition Blended Scotch (2026 Release)

ABV: 43%
SRP: $80
Availability: Nationwide

Dewar’s is positioned as the official scotch brand of the U.S. Open, which will mark its 126th tournament on June 15th. Each year since 2021, Dewar’s has commemorated the event with Champion’s Edition—a series of 19 year olds that are set apart by their cask finishes. This year, Dewar’s is tapping cabernet franc red wine casks from Wölffer Estate Vineyard in the Hamptons. Previous editions have included finishes in Napa Valley red wine, bourbon, rye, virgin American oak, and calvados French apple brandy casks.

Little Book Chapter 10: “All the Wiser” Blend of Straight Bourbons

ABV: 61.3%
SRP: $160
Availability: Limited

Master distiller Freddie Noe released Little Book Chapter 1: “The Easy” back in 2017. That whiskey, a blend of 4 year old bourbon, 13 year old corn whiskey, 5 year old 100% malt, and 5 year old rye, marked an impressive and unconventional debut from Noe, who had some big shoes to fill as the son of Beam master distiller Fred Noe and grandson of the legendary Booker Noe. Now, he’s reached a new milestone with Little Book—its 10th release.

“All the Wiser” draws from a variety of aged Beam bourbons, including 14 year old Basil Hayden, 11 year old Knob Creek, 10 year old Booker’s, 9 year old Knob Creek, 9 year old Baker’s, and 4 year old Jim Beam that was finished in sherry and toasted bourbon casks. According to Noe, the release demonstrates his evolution as a blender, as he let the whiskey take the lead as opposed to approaching the blend with a road map in place. Little Book Chapter 10 is available nationwide, albeit in limited amounts.

New Riff American Single Malt (2026 Release)

ABV: 55.85%
SRP: $70
Availability: Nationwide

For the fifth edition of its American single malt, New Riff blended six mashbills aged in five different cask types. The malt breakdown is 11.7% marris otter, 14.1% golden promise, 27.7% barleywine, 16.5% Belgian quadrupel, 18% Scottish peated, and 12% chevallier, a British heirloom barley from the 19th century that the distillery had never before incorporated into its single malt. Among the five casks the malt whiskeys aged in are new charred oak, toasted oak, bourbon, and oloroso and Pedro Ximénez sherry. While it’s labeled as a 7 year old, there is whiskey as old as 11, coming from the distillery’s initial batches of malt whiskey made back in 2014. It will be available at retailers nationwide, online, and at the distillery gift shop in Newport, Kentucky, beginning May 15th.

Copperworks Single Cask No. 160-2 American Single Malt

ABV: 61.6%
SRP: $90
Availability: Limited

Seattle-based Copperworks Distilling’s first American single malt is made from 100% lyon malt barley sourced from Horlacher Farm in Latah, Washington. The barley, a two-row varietal, was developed specifically for eastern Washington growing conditions by Washington State University’s Agricultural Research Center. The resulting whiskey was aged for 5 years in refill American oak that previously held Copperworks’ own peated American single malt. Single Cask No. 160-2 is available at Copperworks’ Seattle and Kenmore tasting rooms and online.

Wight's Old Reserve Cask Strength Bourbon (Batch No. 002)

ABV: 56.7%
SRP: $70
Availability: NY retailers and online

Wight & Co. Distillers, a New York City-based blender and bottler, has unveiled its second bourbon in its Old Reserve label. It’s a cask strength version of Batch No. 1. Created using a blend of wheated bourbon and a high-rye bourbon, it's aged between 5 and 7 years.

Founded in 2025, Wight & Co. Distillers (not to be confused with Isle of Wight-based Wight Whisky) Wight's bills itself as a modern whiskey company focused on blending small batch whiskey, usually only 2 to 4 barrels. Owner Christopher Wight sources liquid exclusively from Kentucky, working with four undisclosed producers, with hopes to expand his sources. Future plans include age-statement and single barrel releases.

Collectible

Stitzel-Weller 1992 31 year old Bourbon

ABV: 81.6%
SRP: $3,000
Availability: Distillery exclusive

Stitzel-Weller is out with a new bourbon that pushes the boundaries of both age and proof. It leads with a 31-year age statement, representing a selection of 13 barrels that were distilled in 1992 and emptied in 2024. It has an eye-watering bottling strength of 81.6% ABV (163.2 proof), likely making it one of the strongest bourbons currently on the market. The batch comprises 176 bottles, available exclusively at the distillery. Visitors can also taste it at Stitzel-Weller’s Garden & Gun Club for $350 a person.

The Last Drop 60 year old Carsebridge Distillery Single Grain Scotch

ABV: 42.4%
SRP: $5,000
Availability: 140 bottles

The Last Drop Distillers has unveiled its 2026 Collection, showcasing two rare spirits from closed distilleries. Among them is a 60 year old Carsebridge single grain, distilled in November 1965 and drawn from bourbon cask No. 160237. Once one of Scotland’s largest Lowland grain distilleries Carsebridge was shuttered in 1983 by the Distillers Company Ltd, a forerunner of Diageo. Carsebridge bottlings are scarce, with most releases coming from independent bottlers other than one notable exception, a 95-point Carsebridge 48 year old released as part of the 2018 Diageo Special Releases. Each bottle from The Last Drop 2026 Collection is individually numbered and includes a 50-ml miniature. This is the first Carsebridge bottling from The Last Drop Distillers, and the oldest single grain whisky it has released to date.

The other new release is a Trinidadian rum from Caroni distillery, a marriage of two bourbon casks distilled in 1997 and 1999, which were fully matured on the Caribbean island. The Last Drop Caroni 25 year old is bottled at 65.2%, and is priced at $2,400. There are 261 bottles available. Caroni, which closed in 2003, is now one of the most collectible names in rum.