Bourbon

Wilderness Trail 6 Year Single Barrel Wheated
Family Reserve Cask Strength Kentucky Straight Bourbon

Barrel # 765288; ISC Classic #4
Rickhouse: E-N12-9-15; Yeast Strain: 927

55.2% ABV
$70
Website

We would like to thank Wilderness Trail Distillery and Allison Worldwide for sending us a sample to review.

What the Distillery Says

Wilderness Trail, the award-winning Kentucky Distillery known for using modern science to optimize old-world distilling traditions, is proud to announce the launch of 6-Year-Old Private Barrel offerings in their single barrel lineup. This marks a notable milestone for the young craft distillery, which was founded only 13 years ago.

The collection features three distinct 6-year-old, single-barrel, cask-strength, non-chill filtered expressions including a Wheated Bourbon, a High-Rye Bourbon, and a Rye Whiskey. Each is meticulously crafted using Wilderness Trail’s Sweet Mash process, proprietary yeast strains, and a Level 4 Alligator Char barrel profile to deliver elevated flavor definition and barrel complexity.

Hand-selected for its distinct character and complexity, each single barrel is a testament to the combination of employing modern fermentation science with traditional Kentucky maturation techniques. Wilderness Trail’s unconventional approach to traditional bourbon-making is crafted for the true whiskey enthusiast looking to explore alternative styles and is best enjoyed neat or on the rocks.

“At six years, our single barrels hit the sweet spot where our sweet mash fermentation and proprietary yeast strains deliver layered complexity without sacrificing balance,” said Dr. Pat Heist, Co-Owner and Chief Scientific Officer of Wilderness Trail Distillery. “The Wheated, High-Rye bourbon, and Rye Whiskey selections let enthusiasts choose between softer high-wheat elegance and the vibrant spice and herbal nuance of rye, each barrel a distinct expression of science meeting tradition.”

Crafted for true whiskey enthusiasts. Each single barrel is hand-selected, bottled at cask strength, and features a high-wheat mashbill for a uniquely soft, rich flavor.

Aged for 6 years, it features a mashbill of 64% corn, 24% wheat, and 12% malted barley using proprietary yeast strains. Aged in a #4 char barrel and entered at 110 proof.

FLAVOR PROFILE
Color: Rich, unfiltered deep amber
Nose: Sweet and nutty.
Taste: Notes of vanilla, caramel, butterscotch, and stone fruit.
Finish: Hints of baking spice, oak, and barrel char.
HOW TO SIP IT
All our whiskeys are best enjoyed neat or on the rocks in a classic sipping glass.
If you’re inclined, you can add a few water droplets to open up their rich aromas. We’ll leave that up to you.

What Gary Says

Nose: Coffee cake with vanilla icing, caramel, cinnamon, oak and a hint of cloves.
Palate: Creamy mouthfeel, caramel, butterscotch, cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg, pepper spice approaching chili oil.
Finish: Short to moderate in length with oak and pepper spice.
Comments: For the ABV this one drinks a tad hot to me (if I had to guess, I would have put it north of 60%) but a bit of water doesn’t hurt it. In fact a few drops brings out fruit notes on the nose (apples and pears) and tamps down the pepper on the palate, taking the butterscotch over to more of a toffee note. Tried this in an Old Fashioned and it did really well (where I tend to prefer rye-bourbons).

Rating: Stands Out

Holladay Soft Red Wheat Bottled in Bond 6 Year Bourbon
Missouri Straight Bourbon Whiskey

50% ABV
$55-60
Website

What the Distillery Says

Mash Bill: Corn 73% | Wheat 15% | Barley 12%
The finest bourbon results from an ideal combination of climate and geology that is rare outside of Kentucky but is found in the rolling hills of Weston, Missouri at the Holladay Distillery.

It is remarkable how one ingredient in a recipe can change the entire taste profile of a spirit. Holladay Soft Red Wheat is crafted with the original Holladay recipe with one substitute: wheat for the rye. Holladay Soft Red is made in the original stillhouse, barreled in Missouri white oak barrels, aged onsite in iron-clad rickhouses, and bottled at 100 proof.

Using wheat in a bourbon mash bill often results in a softer and sweeter taste profile than a bourbon made with rye, which typically adds spice to the palate. Soft Red Wheat has lower protein levels, red bran, and minimal gluten compared to other classes of wheat. Bourbons crafted with Soft Red Wheat offer a soft, smooth finish just as the name suggests.

Holladay Soft Red Wheat Bourbon is one of the very few bottled-in-bond wheat bourbons on the market aged 6+ years and it was worth the wait. To meet the rare and prestigious requirements to be classified as Bottled-in-Bond, a product must be distilled, aged, and bottled in the same location to assure a mark of authenticity.

It is also classified as a Real Missouri Bourbon under a 2019 law requiring that any whiskey labeled as Missouri bourbon must not only meet the federal standards for bourbon, but also be mashed, fermented, distilled, aged, and bottled in the state; aged in oak barrels manufactured in the state; and—beginning January 1, 2020—made with corn exclusively grown in the state.

The Holladay Distillery was founded in 1856, making it both the oldest distillery in the state of Missouri and the oldest distillery west of the Mississippi still operating on its original site. The property sits on active limestone springs that were first charted by Lewis and Clark in 1804, more than fifty years before Ben Holladay purchased the land that would later become his legacy.

What Gary Says

Nose: Vanilla wafers, caramel, honey, oak, hint of cinnamon and dried fruits.
Palate: Creamy mouthfeel, caramel, butterscotch, cinnamon, cloves, vanilla and honey.
Finish: Moderate in length, damp with vanilla, honey and oak spices.
Comments: This is a very soft and gentle bourbon, which isn’t too surprising for a wheater (and I’ve had some wheated bourbons that, for whatever reason, had a bit more spice kick that might try to trick you – this isn’t one of those!) Drinks nicely neat, but adding a couple of drops of water reveals notes of marshmallow on the nose, and the palate transitions into an old-fashioned caramel creme candy.

Rating: Stands Out

Oaklore Story Series: Oloroso Sherry Cask Finished Four Grain Bourbon

47.5% ABV
$100
Website

We would like to thank Oaklore Distilling Co. and Raptor Communications for sending us a sample to review.

What the Distillery Says

For this Story Series release, we start with Oaklore’s traditional four grain bourbon, which is crafted by our sister distilleries in North Carolina. Distilled on 24-inch Vendome all-copper column stills, the Four Grain Bourbon uses “the big four” American Whiskey grains (corn, wheat, barley & rye). The whiskey combines the best five- to six-year-old barrels of wheated bourbon and rye bourbon mash bills, which are aged separately, hand-selected, and then batched together – producing a final mash bill of 70% corn, 10% rye, 10% wheat, and 10% malted barley. Then, our master blender transferred the whiskey into Spanish Oloroso Sherry Barrels where it rested for 12 to 18 months – picking up the gorgeous Mediterranean flavors and influence inherent to Oloroso Sherry Casks.

NOSE: Dried Fig, Raisin, Vintage Wine
PALATE: Cherry Bark, Cocoa, Apricot
FINISH: Medium Dry Sherry Finish

What Gary Says

Nose: Caramel, sherried fruit with raisins and figs, oak, and chocolate-covered cherries.
Palate: Cherries, raisins, chocolate, honey and cinnamon.
Finish: Moderate in length, drying with honey, cherry and chocolate notes.
Comments: The sherry finish is fairly pronounced here; not what I’d call overbearing but definitely on the heavier side. Good news for me is I like sherry maturation and finishing, but the downside for me is the underlying bourbon doesn’t get to shine through. The nuance of the wheated and rye mashbill bourbons mingling, with a respectable amount of time in the barrel, is unfortunately covered up. Although if you’re a fan of sherry, this likely won’t miss.

Rating: Stands Out