Hazmat bourbon is a very niche category of whiskey. You have to really want something unique to even try to get into this stuff. The whole idea of the category is about the hottest highest-proof bourbon you can get into a bottle. It’s so high-proof that it’s volatile. Legally speaking, bourbon bottled at or over 70% ABV (140 proof) is labeled “hazmat” due to the real danger it poses as an accelerant and possible explosion risk when flying.
Yes, people seek this stuff out to drink. Kinda crazy, right?
This begs the question — are there any hazmat bourbons that taste good? And in my professional opinion (insert long sigh here), yes and no. You’ll rarely find a hazmat bourbon bottling that isn’t meant to be poured over ice or proofed with water at home. Still, some legit bottles do sneak through that are drinkable neat. It’s rare… but it happens.
Below, I’m calling out 10 hazmat bourbons that are truly worth trying. I had to dig deep for this list though and these bottles are not for the faint of heart or penny pinchers. Hazmat bourbon is not a category for populists — these expressions are often only dropped in limited edition releases. That’s especially true if you want this whiskey to be drinkable in any real way.
Translation: nothing is cheap in this category. Even the lower-ranked bottles.
Below, I’ve chosen 10 hazmat bourbons that I’ve tried and loved. These are hazmat bourbons that are drinkable, offer a seriously delicious flavor profile, and (most importantly) balance that amazing heat with the profile successfully. Huge Disclaimer: If you’re not into drinking higher-proof bourbon, these whiskeys are going to taste like they’re burning (sometimes painfully so). Period. You have to attune your senses and palate to find the forest by getting past the trees with these. And it is 100% okay to do that by adding water or ice. No one in their right mind is going to belittle you for proofing these whiskeys down to enjoy them.
10. Lost Lantern Single Cask Series Boulder Spirits Colorado Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 71.3%
Average Price: $120
The Whiskey:
This Colorado bourbon is a very low-corn whiskey. The mash bill has only 51% corn, which is the legal minimum, supported by 44% malted barley and a mere 5% rye. That whiskey rested in a single barrel up in the Rockies for six years before Lost Lantern bottled it as-is at cask strength, yielding only 151 bottles.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Huge chocolate brownie notes drive the nose toward chili-chocolate tobacco hot chocolate with marshmallows before bold apple pie filling arrives with plenty of winter spice.
Palate: The ABVs instantly numb my whole mouth on the smallest of first sips — seriously, even my lips and outer cheeks are numb this is so hot. Once the bombastic warmth fades slightly, there are notes of rich apple crumble, Cherry Coke, spiced pipe tobacco, and soft vanilla with the chocolate returning and almost cooling my mouth.
Finish: Those notes fade as the finish just gets hotter and more buzzing on the senses until everything is muted and you’re left with a deep sense of numbness.
Bottom Line:
The throughline here is that chocolate chili vibe that just builds and builds toward this explosion of heat. It’s barely drinkable neat. Poured over a nice big rock, it’s amazingly creamy and well-spiced with a sense of a chocolate brownie cut with vanilla, nuts, and creamy choco nibs with a nice Cherry Coke on the side.
And all of that is why we’re starting here. You really need to proof this one down to get the full picture. Once you have a little water or ice involved, this is actually a very nice and dessert-forward sipper.
9. A. Smith Bowman Cask Strength Bourbon Batch #2
ABV: 72.25%
Average Price: $2,999
The Whiskey:
This hot batch from Sazerac’s Virginia distillery is all about upping the ante on the last bold ABV release. Batch #2 takes the ABVs even higher in this cask-strength bourbon bomb thanks to the careful selection of old barrels that are batched and left completely uncut and non-chill-filtered.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: There’s a leathery nature on the nose with classic bourbon deep flourishes of very black cherry, salted caramel, cinnamon toast with cream butter and old vanilla pods, a touch of orange oil, and woody spice berries and barks.
Palate: Apple orchards and cherry pies open the sweet palate toward a massive heat from the ABVs that eventually fades towards creamy Nutella and maybe some cherry tobacco.
Finish: The heat comes roaring back on the finish with brash woody winter spice and burnt orange with a touch of vanilla trying to find a counterbalance to all the heat.
Bottom Line:
This is another one that builds a massive amount of heat from the jump. By the mid-palate, your mouth will be numb. But then a magic trick happens and that numbness fades toward spiced orange and soft vanilla with a touch of cooling chocolate nuttiness. By the end, you’re left with just as much of the flavor profile as you are with warming heat.
I’d still 100% pour this over ice, but there is some fun to be had with a neat pour too.
8. Garrison Brothers Cowboy Bourbon Texas Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 70.45%
Average Price: $319
The Whiskey:
Last year’s Cowboy Bourbon from Garrison Brothers is a blend of only 118 barrels of six-year-old Texas bourbon. 1,000 bottles of the crafty Texas whiskey were available in mid-September at the distillery last fall. The rest — 8,600 bottles — are now in the wild and available nationally.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose opens with a rush of sharp cinnamon bark wrapped up with old saddle leather, freshly fried apple fritters, walnuts, old cedar bark braids twisted up with dried wild sage, and a hint of dried yellow mustard flowers with an underlying sense of maple syrup over pecan waffles.
Palate: The palate leans into the spice with a hint of allspice and ginger next to apple pie filling with walnuts, brandy-soaked raisins, and plenty of brown sugar next to spiced Christmas cake dipped in dark chocolate sauce.
Finish: The end takes its time and meanders through salted caramel, stewed plums with star anise and sharp cinnamon, a hint of vanilla Dr. Pepper, and a mild sense of chocolate-cinnamon-spiced chewing tobacco buzziness with a warming Texas hug that’s part Hot Tamales and part chili-spiced green tea.
Bottom Line:
This is always a bold release from Garrison. The key here is that heat really helps accentuate every flavor note by sort of turning them up to MAX volume without washing them out. It’s a great balance of flavor, warmth, and deep Texas bourbon vibes.
7. Binder’s Stash Straight Bourbon Whiskey Aged 14 Years
ABV: 72.45%
Average Price: $750
The Whiskey:
This bottle from bespoke bottlers Binder’s Stash in Louisville is a hell of a find. The whiskey is a classic 75% corn, 21% rye, and 4% malted barley mash bill that was left to age for 14 long years. Then the Binder’s Stash team bottled that barrel at cask strength, 100% as-is.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Corn husks and toasted vanilla pods drive the nose toward rich nutmeg-heavy nog, singed black tea leaves, and a whisper of menthol tobacco loaded into an old pine humidor.
Palate: The palate is warm from the jump but countered by raw sugar rock candy, lush vanilla oils, salted caramel, and almost sweet and fresh roasting herbs with a hint of nasturtium leading to raw red chili pepper flakes and hot woody spice notes.
Finish: That woody spice amps up on the finish toward rich vanilla-laced pipe tobacco, singed marshmallow, and almost burnt salted caramel with a hint of dried red ancho chilis swimming in dark chocolate.
Bottom Line:
Okay, this is where we get into the real sippers on the list. This has so much going on that it’s easy to almost forget it’s a hazmat bourbon. Yes, the warmth is there but it’s always in service to the flavor profile. Try this one neat and really take your time with it. Add water, re-nose, and taste, and find those beautiful nuances built into the profile. You’ll be pleasantly rewarded with greatness.
6. Augusta Distillery Buckner’s Aged 13 Years Single Barrel Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 70%
Average Price: $399
The Whiskey:
This is a very niche brand out in rural Kentucky that’s sourcing old barrels of the good stuff. The whiskey in the bottle is a Kentucky straight bourbon that rested for 13 years before it was bottled completely as-is both unfiltered and at cask strength.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose opens with a sense of old barrel houses full of sweet and spice bourbon next to a gentle moment of creamy vanilla honey with old corn husks stuffed in the honey which is poured over spiced winter nut breads with a hint of butteriness and earthy nutshells.
Palate: The clove, allspice, and anise of the nut bread amp up the buttery palate with a sense of Earl Grey tea leaves, salted caramel, and mocha-heavy espresso beans next to a light marzipan moistness and hints of burnt orange next to old dry black cherry bark.
Finish: The end lingers for a while as the marzipan and orchard barks fade toward sharp eggnog spices and soft creaminess before the vanilla creamed honey slathers old oak staves with a good dose of earthy fall vibes kind of like a forest floor on a frosty day.
Bottom Line:
This never betrays any obscene heat at any point in the flavor profile. It’s delectable and warming but the profile is so nuanced and delicate that you can sip this one neat all day.
5. Elijah Craig Barrel Proof Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Batch no. C914
ABV: 70.1%
Average Price: $1,500
The Whiskey:
This is the legendary “Hazmat Bottling” of Elijah Craig Barrel Proof from late 2014. This is the sort of whiskey that you still here real whiskey nerds talking about to this day with reverence. The actual whiskey in the bottle is classic Heaven Hill bourbon — made with 75% corn, 13% rye, and 12% malted barley — that was left for 12 years before bottling.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Black currants and spiced cherry open the nose with a deep sense of woody clove, star anise, cinnamon bark, and soft orange zest next to a deep and creamy vanilla that’s warmed by the sun next to cacao beans rubbed into old boot leather.
Palate: Dark and spiced oak open the palate with a sense of blackberries, black currants, and cranberries that have just started to dry and were dipped in salted dark chocolate with a touch of vanilla oils, orange oils, and dried spearmint before a hint of toasted marshmallow and fudge arrives.
Finish: That fudge slowly fades into peanut brittle with a hint of Pecan Sandie next to a flourish of old corn husks, blackberry pie, and cinnamon bark dipped in cherry-laved apple cider with a layer of oaky tobacco cut with clove and cedar on the very end.
Bottom Line:
This is one of those pours where you might miss the heat altogether. It’s so well-balanced that it’s mesmerizing. It’s delicious Kentucky brown sauce that takes you on a journey through an old rickhouse with a thick and darkly fruity pour in your hand.
Look, this is a vintage bottle. It’ll be hard to find and very expensive. But I can tell you that this is a dusty worth hunting down. It lives up to the hype (and beyond it really) as a truly iconic pour of bourbon. Once you taste, you’ll “get” hazmat bourbons finally.
4. Jack Daniel’s 2021 Single Barrel Special Release Coy Hill High Proof
ABV: 74.15%
Average Price: $899
The Whiskey:
The whiskey in the bottle is the classic Jack Daniel’s mash of 80% corn, 12% malted barley, and 8% rye. The Tennessee whiskey was filtered through Jack’s drip-drop sugar maple charcoal system before barreling and aging at the very top — where the air is dry and warm — of rickhouses number eight and number 13. The whiskey is bottled straight from the barrel with no other fussing.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose is soft with a whiff of classic Jack Daniel’s dark fruit that feels very much like a deep and dark cherry cordial with a dry woody cinnamon stick dipped inside with a touch of worn library leather, dry pecan shells, and rich — almost smoked — butterfat.
Palate: The taste embraces the sweetness with a wet brown sugar vibe that’s married to a touch of dried apple cores next to a holiday cake full of dark spices, brandied fruits, and fatty nuts that’s all then soaked with fiery whiskey.
Finish: That butter returns as the mid-palate sweetness ebbs toward salted burnt toffee and a soft but old leather pouch full of sticky tobacco before the slow fade leaves you warmed and happy with dark fruit, spice barks, and creamy toffee.
Bottom Line:
This is another one that’s so delectable that you almost miss the heat. It sings on the palate with those fruits and creamy notes while the heat gently warms your senses and chest. Ultimately, you’re left with a creamy — almost fatty — pour of fruity whiskey that’s comforting. And “comfort” is a rarity in the hazmat realm.
3. George T. Stagg Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey BTAC 2010
ABV: 71.5%
Average Price: $3,995
The Whiskey:
The 2010 Buffalo Trace Antique Collection George T. Stagg is another legendary bottle of whiskey. The juice was distilled back in 1993 and rested in prime locations across four warehouses in Frankfort, Kentucky. Then after 17 years of mellowing, 142 barrels were selected for blending and bottling at full cask strength.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: This incredibly deep and lush chocolate opens the nose toward rich and oily vanilla beans soaking up the sun, fermenting coffee beans, a twinge of orange pith, and this earthy sense of cottonwood trees swaying on a warm sunny day with fresh sweet black dirt and old brick barrel houses in the distance with a thin line of wafting pipe tobacco smoke floating by. What a nose.
Palate: The palate leans into a deep and creamy sense of espresso cut with bitter salted dark chocolate, orange oils, rich vanilla oils, and a cut of nutmeg, clove, and allspice that melds into a mulled wine-infused fruitcake with brandied cherries, candied citrus, and soft fatty almonds.
Finish: The finish leans into the nuttiness and winter spice cake vibes before building a soft warmth with sharp tobacco leaf, smudging sage, and cedar bark layered with spearmint, cinnamon bark, and star anise with a hint of old world absinth.
Bottom Line:
This is a “F*ck, that’s delicious!” pour of whiskey. On the nose alone, you instantly understand why whiskey lovers lost their shit over Stagg bottlings back in the day (and are still chasing that dragon). This pour makes it really hard to enjoy the later bottlings once you know how amazing this used to be. Though, I’d argue that the 2023 George T. Stagg BTAC was close to getting back to these amazing heights.
And again, this is a vintage pour. It’s not impossible to find, you’ll simply have to pay for it. But, my lord, is this worth the cost.
2. Rare Character Presents “Obliteration” Selected by Pablo Moix Single Barrel Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 71.9%
Average Price: $599
The Whiskey:
This whiskey is a very rare release from 2023. The whiskey in the bottle is a 14-year-old bourbon made from a classic mash bill of 75% corn, 21% rye, and 4% malted barley. The barrel was stored out at a winery in California that then burnt down during recent wildfires — but this barrel survived the firestorm. There was actually whiskey left in the barrel and it was still delicious. The barrel was then bottled 100% as-is, yielding only 36 and a half bottles.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose draws you in with a deep sense of dark chocolate powder next to hazelnut wafers with a dash of bright orange oils before a dark and sharp sense of Szechuan peppercorn arrives to spice things up.
Palate: The taste leans into the sharp red peppercorns with an earthy underbelly before deeply salted and lush caramel leads to roasted almonds and buttery walnut cake cut with vanilla, allspice, and dried red berries dashes with brandy and apple cider cut with more butter.
Finish: The end leans into sharp winter spice barks and more whole red peppercorns with a deep warmth that gives way to luxurious salted toffee, vanilla buttercream, and tobacco kissed with spearmint, smudging sage, and almost fatty roasting herbs.
Bottom Line:
This is probably the only modern release that hits those high notes of the mid-aughts to early 2010s in the same way. This is an amazing pour of whiskey, hazmat or not. The heat is there but it never overpowers anything. The profile is front and center and runs so goddamn deep. It’s delightful, rewarding, and an instant legend.
It’s going to be very hard to find, but worth the hunt as there are few whiskeys out there this good.
1. Willett Family Estate Single Barrel Straight Kentucky Bourbon Whiskey Aged 8 Years
ABV: 70.4%
Average Price: $424
The Whiskey:
Willett is probably the best-known distillery that nails the hazmat bottling. This whiskey is a very rare bottling (barrel no. 5284) of bourbon that rested for eight years and eight months on the top floor of their famed Warehouse G. When bottled, it only yielded 117 bottles, making this one fleeting.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The oak warms on the nose with a sense of creamy banana smothered creamy caramel with a hint of malted cracker, vanilla oils, and soft buttermilk that slowly leads you to caraway seeds and a whisper of cardamom with a flicker of dry wild rice.
Palate: That rich and creamy caramel drives the palate toward more spice — cardamom, clove, star anise, sassafras — before leaning into vanilla cream, chinotto leaf, and rich pipe tobacco cut with apple cider, mulled wine, and dark chocolate cut with espresso cream and dried ancho chili.
Finish: The end dries out and warms up as the caraway makes another appearance with a hint of black licorice, star anise, cardamom, and absinth next to toffee cream over marzipan covered in soft dark chocolate and just kissed with rose water and cedar essence.
Bottom Line:
This is a “woah…” pour of whiskey. It stops you in your tracks. The warmth is certainly there but it never feels “hot” or numbing. It’s just this build of warmth in your mouth and chest that amplifies the flavor notes toward this melange of everything you could want from a quintessential corn-forward Kentucky bourbon.
Again, this is going to be hard to find. But go forward with confidence knowing that Willett Hazmat bourbon bottlings are going to be amazing when you do find one.
