An attributed, plausible inference, not established batch provenance: 'bottled by' does not itself prove outside distillation, and Johnson did not witness the Chessmen filling. Original transfer and bottling records remain missing.
The passage revises Minnick's own long-held assumption about the provenance of his favorite vintage Old Crow.
Using the Chessmen label's 'bottled by' wording and interviews with the later distillery owner and a former Old Crow superintendent, Minnick concludes that the celebrated Old Crow Chessmen were filled with whiskey transferred from Old Taylor rather than distilled at Old Crow.
PDF sheet 215
PDF sheet 211
New Age
Fresh full-source review, 2026-09-29. An attributed, plausible inference, not established batch provenance: 'bottled by' does not itself prove outside distillation, and Johnson did not witness the Chessmen filling. Original transfer and bottling records remain missing.
Evidence
Using the Chessmen label's 'bottled by' wording and interviews with the later distillery owner and a former Old Crow superintendent, Minnick concludes that the celebrated Old Crow Chessmen were filled with whiskey transferred from Old Taylor rather than distilled at Old Crow.
Location and context
PDF sheet 211 through PDF sheet 215; New Age.
The passage revises Minnick's own long-held assumption about the provenance of his favorite vintage Old Crow.
Interpretation and verification
An attributed, plausible inference, not established batch provenance: 'bottled by' does not itself prove outside distillation, and Johnson did not witness the Chessmen filling. Original transfer and bottling records remain missing.
Verified means fidelity to the supplied source, not independent proof of every reported event. Canonical Source, Literature Note and Citation relations retained.