MARKETING: Whiskey: Let There Be Light

WITH nearly as much impatience as their fathers sweated out the final months before repeal, U.S. whiskey executives have long been counting the days till July 1, 1972. On that day last week, having aged the required four years, the first batch of light whiskey—a new kind of spirit that goes down more smoothly and has less flavor than bourbon or rye—could legally be brought out of the barrel and bottled for sale. Distillers passed the years of waiting by copywriting names and dreaming up different recipes for some 50 new brands. Yet...