Who Makes This Classy Looking Bourbon? Beer Drinkers Might Recognize the Name

Last year, one of the biggest names in American beer announced it was throwing its hat into the bourbon arena. The bottle? Barmen 1873. The company behind it? None other than Molson Coors.

Barmen 1873 launched in only 13 states, making this Coors bourbon a little hard to come by … but no less intriguing.

One thing that immediately caught our attention was the modern and elevated look of the bottle itself, perhaps because of the packaging’s similarities to other premium bourbons like Willet Family Estate, Eagle Rare and even the coveted Buffalo Trace Antique Collection.

But does the “banquet bourbon” pack a premium flavor profile to back its premium aesthetic? Here’s everything you need to know about it.

Coors Whiskey Co.

It’s not actually Coors’s first whiskey

Coors Whiskey Co., a spinoff of the beer company and fellow subsidiary of Molson Coors, actually debuted back in 2021 with a whiskey called Five Trail. That particular hooch is a blend of four different whiskeys: two Kentucky bourbons, an Indiana wheated bourbon and a single malt from Colorado, and is cut with Rocky Mountain spring water (naturally).

With an SRP of $60, Five Trail is a premium spirit and comes in three additional expressions that are even pricier — Cask Finish, Small Batch and Barrel Proof. The whisky has drawn a fair amount of acclaim, including earning Double Gold at the 2022 San Francisco World Spirits Competition.

Coors Whiskey Co.

Barmen 1873 is Coors’s first bourbon

A whiskey has to meet several criteria to be classified as a bourbon. It needs to be produced in America from a mash bill that’s at least 51 percent corn, it needs to be aged in new charred oak barrels at no more than 125 proof and it needs to be bottled at 80 proof, minimum. And while Five Trail contains some bourbons in its blend, the whiskey itself does not meet those criteria. Barmen 1873, on the other hand, does.

Barmen 1873 is a blend of two bourbons and bottled at 92 proof. According to Coors, the whiskey has tasting notes of caramel, vanilla, toffee, grilled peach, dark chocolate and coffee, with a long spicy finish of cinnamon, ginger and baking spice.

The name connects to Coors’s long history

The bourbon’s name draws on the familial connection to Coors: Barmen is the name of the Coors family’s hometown in Germany, and 1873 is the year the company was founded.

That connection to Coors Banquet Beer was intended to be played up more with this bourbon than it was with Five Trail, as there’s a push to pair “Banquet and Barmen” in bars.

Coors Whiskey Co.

So how does it taste?

We haven’t got our hands on a bottle yet, but according to spirit reviewer Drew Beard at Drinkhacker, Barmen 1873 isn’t particularly special.

“The palate is straightforward and approachable, if not a little bland, with a big toffee sweetness at the outset that gives way to more muted vanilla and baking spice,” Beard says. “The finish is warming with fading notes of cinnamon sugar and grated nutmeg. This is even more easygoing than Five Trail, but it certainly doesn’t have the same complexity or depth.” 

Robb Report writer Jonah Flicker drew similar conclusions. “Indeed, approachable is the right word,” Flicker says, “this isn’t a whiskey that will change the way you look at whiskey forever, but it is one that will make you come back for seconds.”

In fairness, Coors Whiskey Co. hasn’t tried to sell its first foray into bourbon as anything else than an easy-drinking bourbon that happens to pair well with Coors beer.

Last year, the whiskey took home silver awards at both the 2023 San Francisco World Spirits Competition and 2023 Bartender Spirits Awards.

Where to buy Barmen 1873 bourbon

The bourbon is available in 13 states: Colorado, Kansa, Oklahoma, Missouri, Texas, Illinois, Kentucky, Wisconsin, New York, Pennsylvania, Nevada, Georgia and Tennessee, with supposedly more states and markets to follow. It’s also available online at Total Wine.

Barmen 1873 has an SRP of $40 – $43.

Coors Whiskey Co.

Coors Whiskey Company Barmen 1873

• $35.99 at Total Wine

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