I.W. Harper bourbon was developed by Isaac and Bernard Bernheim in 1879. Thought it doesn’t have the Bernheim name, the I.W. part stood for Isaac Woolf and the Harper part of the name was lifted from the newspaper. According to Filson Bourbon Historian Michael Veach, the brothers wanted a more Anglicized name for their product, which they found in the newspaper in a story about the owner of a winning Derby horse.
After the brothers retired they sold their whiskey business, but the bourbon stuck around. During bourbon’s decline it became a questionable product with a steadily declining rye content, though it was hugely popular in Japan. According to Chuck Cowdery, the prices I.W. Harper bourbon brought in Japan were substantially higher than those in the United States, so illegal exporting became a real problem. The solution was to stop producing the brand for the U.S. market, focusing instead on exports.
Because of the bourbon boom and the demand for new and interesting products, Diageo is bringing I.W. Harper back to the U.S. market. It is expected to be in stores by the end of the month. While it probably won’t be exactly like the historic brand, at least one of the products will be distilled from a similar low-rye mash bill as the original. What’s interesting about this release is that the two offerings have two different mash bills; the younger offering with 18% rye and the older offering with 6% rye. The MSRP is expected to fall at $40 for the younger bottle and $70-80 for the older offering, which will be extremely limited.
The historic bourbon brand will be available in stores by the end of the month.
Photos Courtesy of Maggie Kimberl
