The life of Maria Izabella Magdolna Horonyāalso known as Catherine Elder, and later feared and revered throughout the rough and tumble Old West as the inimitable, one and only Big Nose Kateāis a story for the ages.
āNo better friend, no worse enemyā is how Kate was known throughout the danger-crossed byways and rowdy saloons back then. But she never really got her due. We have created an extraordinary whiskey to honor and celebrate Kateās extraordinary life, and that of unsung heroes and heroines everywhere.
A Hungarian aristocratās daughter turned immigrant and orphan, she was drawn to the wild American West through chance, rebellion, opportunity, and a deep curiosity in people, places, and ideas. A strong, industrious, and fiercely independent self-made woman generations ahead of her time, Kate ran with Doc Holliday, butted horns with Wyatt Earp and his posse, stole horses, ran gambling rackets, presided over watering holes of all kinds, kicked ass, and took names.
An entrepreneur to the core, āYour business is my businessā was one of Kateās many catch phrases (now memorialized for auld lang syne on our label). Some historians argue that her nickname āBig Noseā was sparked by her constantly āsticking her noseā in other peopleās needs and wants, exploring opportunity.
Kateās life fabric was colorful and complex, and any account of her life is incomplete without mention of her time as a āsporting galā (both as a madame and a provider). Kate, like many women of the era, was often confronted with difficult decisions to make in order to remain self-sufficient. Most accounts of her trysts in the trade begin in 1869 and end in 1877, when she joins Doc Holliday in Tombstone, and appears to never work as a nymph du pave again. Kate guarded her reputation for her full 90 years of life, never waning in her earnestness to present as her true self, encompassing all of her experiences.
Rest assured, Kate was much more than a mere supporting actor to the Docs and the Wyatts and the cowboys and the rangers on the mainstage back then, as a number of historians unfairly suggest. She may have been more interesting and compelling than all of āem. And also more formidable.
The life of Maria Izabella Magdolna Horonyāalso known as Catherine Elder, and later feared and revered throughout the rough and tumble Old West as the inimitable, one and only Big Nose Kateāis a story for the ages.
āNo better friend, no worse enemyā is how Kate was known throughout the danger-crossed byways and rowdy saloons back then. But she never really got her due. We have created an extraordinary whiskey to honor and celebrate Kateās extraordinary life, and that of unsung heroes and heroines everywhere.
A Hungarian aristocratās daughter turned immigrant and orphan, she was drawn to the wild American West through chance, rebellion, opportunity, and a deep curiosity in people, places, and ideas. A strong, industrious, and fiercely independent self-made woman generations ahead of her time, Kate ran with Doc Holliday, butted horns with Wyatt Earp and his posse, stole horses, ran gambling rackets, presided over watering holes of all kinds, kicked ass, and took names.
An entrepreneur to the core, āYour business is my businessā was one of Kateās many catch phrases (now memorialized for auld lang syne on our label). Some historians argue that her nickname āBig Noseā was sparked by her constantly āsticking her noseā in other peopleās needs and wants, exploring opportunity.
Kateās life fabric was colorful and complex, and any account of her life is incomplete without mention of her time as a āsporting galā (both as a madame and a provider). Kate, like many women of the era, was often confronted with difficult decisions to make in order to remain self-sufficient. Most accounts of her trysts in the trade begin in 1869 and end in 1877, when she joins Doc Holliday in Tombstone, and appears to never work as a nymph du pave again. Kate guarded her reputation for her full 90 years of life, never waning in her earnestness to present as her true self, encompassing all of her experiences.
Rest assured, Kate was much more than a mere supporting actor to the Docs and the Wyatts and the cowboys and the rangers on the mainstage back then, as a number of historians unfairly suggest. She may have been more interesting and compelling than all of āem. And also more formidable.
Kateās indomitable spirit is awakened in our whiskey today: a brave and adventurous blend just like our protagonist herself. Perhaps her time is now. At long last.