Ah, the infamous old-time favourite Chicken Cock Whiskey!
Nope, me neither. It’s a thing though.
Established in 1856, this Kentucky whiskey had to move its production to Canada during the dark days of Prohibition – smuggled into the country in tins, Chicken Cock was still being served in speakeasies such as the legendary Cotton Club thanks to the well-developed bootlegging network.
“…all this talk of bootlegging – what is bootlegging? On a boat, it’s bootlegging. On Lake Shore Drive, it’s hospitality. I’m a businessman!”
Fast-forward to 2013 and Matti Anttila has relaunched the long-defunct brand with a new range of products produced by the Terressentia Corporation in North Charleston.
The only problem is, 884 cases were stolen last week en route to Texas in a daring truck heist – that’s more than 10,000 bottles of Chicken Cock with a retail value of $200,000 or up to $1.4 million if sold by the measure! That’s a lot of Chicken Cock.
It seems then, that the brand has come full circle – a classic brand best known for its association with illegal drinking has become the victim of crime almost immediately upon its return. Shipments of Chicken Cock have probably failed to reach their destinations in the past but on those occasions it would have been the law that captured them!
“I appreciate the irony in this situation” says Matti Anttila.
“Hmmm…. It’s like rain on your wedding day.”
Erm, no Alanis – that would just be inconvenient, coincidental at most. Silly person.
Chicken Cock Whiskey are now offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to the safe return of the American whiskey. What the heist has also done however, is made an awful lot of people across America talk about the brand – so, a classic whiskey with ‘Untouchable’ heritage? Sounds interesting…
A pint of ‘medicinal’ whiskey. That.
There are three flavours available in the new range: Southern Spice(d), Cinnamon and Root Beer but sadly not one that tastes of whiskey. Hey – at least they come in metal bottles though as a nod to those crafty tins mentioned above, that’s kind of cool, right?
Supposedly this also serves the purpose of allowing you to cool it down nice and quick for the pouring of those yummy ice cold shots… Umm…
Some ‘classic’ whiskey being prepared.
You could always mix it though… Why not try a Cockstar, a Cock & Balls, a Cockmeister… or a Jim Morrison. (This is all true by the way, you couldn’t make this stuff up!)
The Jim Morrison:
“Pour equal parts Chicken Cock Root Beer Whiskey, Jaeger & Coke in a cocktail shaker over ice. Shake and pour into shot glasses. Find a friend, make eye contact and take the shot! Repeat as desired…”
…
Hmm… A ‘near’ miss then perhaps? Oh well, it was quite amusing for a moment or two wasn’t it? Time to move on to more serious products I suppose, how about that rum – what’s it called again? Yes, that’s the one: Big Black Dick… (Still not making this up.)
The Music of the Prohibition: Charleston, 1925 Gramophone Recording
Jake
Nick Ridout