Memphis restaurateur launches a new coffee-infused bourbon
With the tagline “perfect anytime,” AM-PM Coffee Bourbon hits Memphisarea liquor store shelves Friday.
This new specialty bourbon is the brainchild of Memphis restaurateur Jeff Johnson. Johnson is the owner of Local Gastropub and the soon-to-open Parish Grocery.
His newest project is a coffee-infused bourbon he created in collaboration with Big River Distilling and J.
Brooks Coffee Roasters.
“For years, I considered opening a brewery,” Johnson said. “But there was something about coffee and bourbon — plus the desire to create something that could be nationwide.”
The new bourbon has the perfect balance of bourbon and coffee.
“Neither overpowers the other,” Johnson said. “It's a smooth bourbon, with no bitterness.”
Enjoy it neat, on the rocks or in your favorite cocktail. Johnson said it has about the same amount of caffeine as a cup of coffee.
The process
Johnson tasted several bourbons, ryes and blends at Big River Distilling until he found just the right base.
“I chose a 31⁄2-year-old Tennessee bourbon,” Johnson said. For the first run of AM-PM, he purchased six barrels.
“It was important for me to able to use a Tennessee product as the base,” he added.
The mash bill of the bourbon was 80% corn, 10% rye and 10% malted bar
ley.
Johnson used two different coffee beans to achieve the curated flavor he was looking for.
“We started with a medium roast Brazilian coffee bean,” Johnson said. “We allowed the coffee beans and Madagascar vanilla to seep in the bourbon for 20 hours.”
To extract the maximum amount of flavor, Johnson used coarse-ground coffee beans and split the vanilla beans. The beans and vanilla were placed in straining bags before being added to the barrels of bourbon.
A darker roast Guatemalan coffee bean was then added to the bourbon for one hour. It was the finishing touch to add a deeper coffee flavor. Cane sugar was added to round out the flavor.
Johnson had the bourbon blended down to 86 proof before bottling.
How to get a bottle
This week, 1,800 bottles will be released.
AM-PM will be available in most