I make regular visits to 'my' liquor store. I like the guys and gals there, their prices are fair for the most part, and it is, for Georgia, a very well stocked store.
But, Mein Gott, every visit (at least a couple of times a month) reveals more and more whiskies that are new to me. What gives? These new entries are not cheap, most costing around $35 on up.
I will make a couple of observations and maybe others who are better informed than me can take it from there.
(1) these seem to be young whiskies - it would be too costly to build a new distillery and warehouse the product for more than a couple of years. Some seem to be distilling their own spirits, and after starting out with vodka and flavored spirits (often Gin) move to whiskey (sometimes corn whiskey, aged in used bourbon barrels).
(2) various methods are sometimes used to hasten the aging process........... mostly wood chips or slats in the barrels
(3) some are probably buying their whiskey from major producers and then either blending it with other whiskies they bought, or aging it themselves
(4) there is often some kind of, shall I risk calling it a gimmick, that is used to differentiate their whiskey (e.g. Jesse James Whiskey)
(5) a few of these whiskies that I have tried are quite good (and some are malt whikies) and some are not, but it is unlikely that I am going to try many of them (e.g. Jesse James Whiskey)
(6) in general, I suppose this is a good thing, keeping the big guys on their toes much as the micro brewing industry has forced the big brewers to expand their offerings