I Tried Three Unique Small-Batch Whiskeys. Here's My Honest Review

Celebrity spirits are all the rage these days, particularly in the world of tequila. But FEW Spirits, a craft distillery located just outside of Chicago in the suburb of Evanston, IL, has its own take on the celebrity-backed spirits category. This small whiskey maker is doing something very different from bigger brands backed by The Rock, Kendall Jenner, and George Clooney.

FEW, which was acquired by Kentucky distillery Heaven Hill a few years ago, has three major rock band whiskey collaboration releases in its lineup, along with bourbon, rye, single malt, and a new cherrywood smoked grain whiskey called Chicago Smokeworks. 

The bands that FEW collaborated with all gained popularity 1990s and early 2000s and are still widely recognized names: Alice in Chains, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, and The Smashing Pumpkins. All three bottles were just released as a set called Icons of Rock, each produced entirely in-house—and given a very interesting twist.

I had a chance to visit FEW Spirits last summer and talked to founder and master distiller Paul Hletko about the inspiration behind each whiskey and how he decides to work with a particular band. 

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The first release is called All Secrets Known, a collaboration with Alice in Chains named after the title track from their fourth album. The whiskey is the distillery’s core bourbon that was finished for six months in tequila barrels and bottled at a stronger 101 proof. 

The second release is Motor Oil, a collaboration with Black Rebel Motorcycle Club. This is a blend of bourbon finished in rum barrels, bourbon finished in vermouth barrels, and mesquite-smoked wheat whiskey which is also bottled at 101 proof.

The last and newest release is called, appropriately, The Smashing Pumpkins Bourbon, which was cut to proof with tea instead of water. That tea is Midnight Rose from Madame Zuzu’s Emporium, a tea shop run by Billy Corgan and his wife, Chloe Mendel Corgan.

Before making whiskey, Hletko played in bands, ran a small record label, and even made guitar pedals, so he certainly has a background in rock music, although obviously nowhere near as expansive as these bands. Some of the musicians involved in these whiskeys are actually sober now, while others still enjoy a drink of whiskey. But it doesn’t really matter whether the band drinks or not, because Hletko sees certain parallels between making music and making bourbon or rye. 

“At its core, there's no difference between the art of writing a song or playing music and creating whiskey–although they're different arts, to be sure,” Hletko said.

For Hletko, there has to be a real connection and interest for a collaboration to happen, and not just the desire to make some money. He said that he initially approached the Smashing Pumpkins about five years ago and they were not interested, but later they came back to him and were open to the idea. 

“If your primary motivation is money, let's shake hands and be friends because this isn't going to work out,” he said. “We're never going to be able to write a big enough check to make you happy. And if we could write that check, I don't want to. It’s not fun, it’s not creative, that's not why I do this.”

All three of these whiskeys are certainly creative, fun, and unlike any other whiskey you’ve tried. The Smashing Pumpkins Bourbon is probably the most different, as the Midnight Rose tea really does give it a rose flavor along with notes of incense, vanilla, and spice. The Alice in Chains collab has some earthy agave notes underneath the bourbon’s sweetness, and Motor Oil combines vanilla and spice with a bit of mesquite smoke underneath. You can find all three of these whiskeys individually online and at stores around the country, and now as the Icons of Rock Collection for $150.

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