Bourbon is getting stronger and stronger these days. The drive from consumers (mostly a small sect of hardcore whiskey fans) for ever higher proof versions of their favorite bourbons is real and marketing teams are listening. Those marketing teams push distillers and bottlers for high-proof and cask-strength bourbon releases to make fans happy and, let’s be honest, put more SKUs on the shelf.
The thing is, higher proof does not mean better. It just means that there are more ABVs in the whiskey in the bottle (which gets you drunk a lot faster). That can be a detriment just as much as it can be a benefit. And too much heat can push an expression from delectable to intolerable.
This begs the question, which high-proof bourbons are actually worth it? To answer that, I’m going to call out 25 bourbons that all clock in above 120-proof (60% ABV) and taste great. To be clear, this isn’t about single-barrel bourbon — that can have any proof above 80 (40% ABV). It’s also not about cask-strength bourbon either (cask strength can also be anything 80 proof and above). This is specifically about bourbons that hit 120-proof and above on the Richter scale.
These whiskeys might also be cask-strength, single-barrel, or small-batch bourbons. The unifying factor is their hot proof points.
For the ranking, I’m looking at taste above all else. Still, the key component to a high-proof whiskey is whether or not the whiskey’s profile is washed out by heat or whether your senses are muted by burning warmth, buzzing, or numbing. Too many ABVs and you can completely lose the beauty of whiskey beneath all that heat (it’s why proofing exists in the first place, folks). So taste and balance are the twin lodestars of this ranking.
Sound good? Let’s dive in!
25. Rebel Cask Strength Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Single Barrel
ABV: 60%
Average Price: $49
The Whiskey:
This is Lux Row’s classic wheated bourbon recipe from 1849. The mash is made with 68% corn, 20% wheat, and 12% malted barley before it’s distilled and then left to mature for at least four years. Once aged, the whiskey barrels are batched and then bottled as-is at cask strength (mostly for retailers or bars).
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Pecan waffles, pancake syrup, and blueberries drive the nose with a hint of toasted marshmallow and old oak.
Palate: Those blueberries drive the palate toward honeyed Graham Crackers with a sense of almost floral honey, wet brown sugar, and old boot leather.
Finish: That honey amps up through the finish with the leather as cedar kindling and dry tobacco round out the hot finish with a sense of chili peppers stewed in brown sugar syrup with cinnamon and clove.
Bottom Line:
Rebel Bourbon is a great place to start in general. The whiskey is affordable, findable, and very drinkable. Their “cask strength” version clocks in right at 120 proof, providing a nice ease into the sub-category of 60%-and-above whiskeys. This is very easy drinking for such a bold proof. The profile is classic and understandable. Overall, this is a nice table whiskey to have on hand for everyday sipping or mixing into your favorite cocktails.
24. Ezra Brooks Cask Strength Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Single Barrel
ABV: 60%
Average Price: $69
The Whiskey:
This new(ish) limited edition single-barrel Ezra Brooks is a classic bourbon. The whiskey is aged for at least five years before it’s charcoal filtered, batched, and then bottled at cask strength.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Orange creamsicles and nut cake drive the nose with a soft vanilla malt shake, honey cookies, and touches of cinnamon powder.
Palate: The cinnamon and nut cake pop on the palate as dark chocolate oranges and gingerbread drive the taste toward spiced cake and hot chocolate.
Finish: The spice starts to mount on the finish with a hot end that’s very woody and spicy with an almost bitter dark chocolate vibe.
Bottom Line:
That layer of charcoal filtering after aging helps this whiskey calm down considerably. You’re greeted with a nice creamy bourbon with honeyed classic notes. This is another great ease-into-it option that works just as well as an on-the-rocks sipper as it does in a great whiskey-forward cocktail.
23. Three Chord “Goodbye June” A Blend of Straight & Cherry Bounce Barrel-Finished Bourbon Whiskeys
ABV: 61%
Average Price: $69
The Whiskey:
This new limited edition “Backstage” expression from Three Chords is a blend of four bourbons. A Tennessee bourbon is blended with two Indiana bourbons and one Kentucky bourbon — all five years old. One of the Indiana bourbons was finished in cherry bounce barrels to add a little extra depth to the final product for the band, Goodbye Jane.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose opens with a clear sense of Cherry Dr. Pepper with plenty of spice, vanilla, and sasparilla that leads to soft cedar with old leather and tobacco.
Palate: The cherry really pops on the palate with a rich Black Forest cake vibe giving way to cherry cola and a sharp sense of winter spices.
Finish: The end is all cherry all day with spiced cherry syrup leading to cherry cobbler with a tart yet buttery edge, plenty of wet brown sugar, and tons of winter spice to make things nice.
Bottom Line:
This is a nice cherry-bomb bourbon. It layers in chocolate and spices nicely with just the right amount of warmth. It’s a “wow” pour of whiskey but it is a very sippable one, especially if you’re a classic Kentucky spiced cherry bourbon fan.
22. Heaven’s Door Cask Strength “Homesick Blues” Minnesota Wheated Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 61.35%
Average Price: $79
The Whiskey:
This whiskey from Bob Dylan’s brand celebrates the singer’s home, Minnesota. The whiskey is a Minnesota bourbon made with Minnesota grains and distilled in the Land of 10,000 Lakes. The massive temperature swings — up to 116F in the summer and -80F in the winter — make for a very unique aging experience. Still, this whiskey was ready after seven years of rest and bottled in a small batch as cask strength.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Creamed honey and salted caramel draw you in on the nose with a sense of prunes and dates mixed with rum raisin and brandy-soaked pears kissed with rich vanilla and freshly ground nutmeg.
Palate: That creamy vibe remains on the palate as creamy vanilla buttercream cut with equally creamy honey dances with soft sweetgrass and smudging sage next to a hint of old oak staves soaked in brandy and just touched with old cellars.
Finish: The musty old cellar vibe accents the sweetgrass and sage with rich pipe tobacco laced with marmalade and brandied pears before the lush vanilla takes back over on the very end.
Bottom Line:
This whiskey warms slowly and evenly on the palate and leaves you with a nice balance of deep bourbon notes, sweetness, creaminess, and warmth. It’s never “hot” though, which is a nice touch for a whiskey that sneaks north of 120 proof. Pour it over a big rock and you’ll be in for a treat.
21. 291 Bad Guy Colorado Bourbon Whiskey 10th Anniversary
ABV: 61.6%
Average Price: $107
The Whiskey:
This Colorado whiskey is made from a mix of local corn, malted wheat, malted rye, and beech-smoked malted barley. As per 291’s classic aging methods, the whiskey is aged for about two years with aspen wood staves in the barrel to accelerate the aging process. Finally, this is batched and bottled as-is.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose on this is a wonderful medley of winter spices — clove, allspice, nutmeg, cinnamon — rolled into a leathery tobacco pouch with a deep sense of green tea leaves marmalade, and buttery salted toffee.
Palate: The taste leans into stewed apple and pear candy while the spice really starts to kick up with a deep heat of the ABVs buzzing on all of your senses as old leather, oak, and tobacco sneak in under the heat.
Finish: Dried peach and apricot tie to the tobacco and oak as the spice starts to burn and numb your tongue on the finish with a dark sense of old marmalade tobacco and winter spice barks.
Bottom Line:
This is a lush and bold spice bomb. You feel the warmth of the stills and hot summers in Colorado highlands on your palate. It does get very warm with a slight buzz on the finish. But an ice cube will calm that right down, allowing you to find deep nuance in this pour. This also makes bold whiskey cocktails.
20. New England Barrel Company Single Barrel Select 5-Year Bourbon
ABV: 61.9%
Average Price: $59
The Whiskey:
These single barrel selections come from Green River Distilling down in Owensboro, Kentucky. Great barrels are selected by the New England Barrel Company team and bottled 100% as-is.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Soft dried red fruits, old spice barks, and lush vanilla lead on the nose with a sense of wet brown sugar and spiked cider with a fleeting sense of old oak and fall leaves.
Palate: The fruitiness gets leathery on the palate as the vanilla leads to eggnog spice and creaminess with a light sense of minced meat pies, winter spice cakes, and almond paste dipped in pear brandy with a touch of cherry lurking underneath.
Finish: That dark cherry attaches to the tobacco and spice barks on the finish as warmth builds towards a long Kentucky hug.
Bottom Line:
This is a balanced whiskey that really hides its proof. You feel a touch of warmth on the mid-palate and you’re left with a mild buzz on the finish, but it’s all overshadowed by a killer profile of great Kentucky brown sauce. This is also a great candidate for mixing into your favorite whiskey-forward cocktail.
19. Lost Lantern Single Distillery Series Brooklyn Bakery Kings County Distillery Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 66.5%
Average Price: $99
The Whiskey:
Lost Lantern closed out 2023 with a release of some truly outstanding whiskeys. This single distillery release is a very small batch from New York’s iconic Kings County Distillery. The whiskey in the bottles is batched from five and six-year-old small barrels (15 gallons) made from a New York-grown mash bill of 80% corn and 20% malted barley. Once batched, the whiskey went into the bottle 100% as-is at cask strength.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Caramel malts and dark chocolate shavings drive the nose toward pecan pie with a dollop of fresh cream next to hints of blackberry brambles and soft sweet oak.
Palate: The palate leans into the blackberry in a crumble fashioned with a big scoop of malted vanilla ice cream next to a slice of warm cherry pie, wintry oak spices, and a touch of that dark chocolate sneaking in late.
Finish: The finish dips honey Graham Crackers in that dark chocolate as the stewed cherry and blackberry lead to buttery spiced crumble and a final bow from the lush malted vanilla ice cream.
Bottom Line:
This is just a great bourbon. Yes, it has a nice warm vibe throughout the whole profile (you feel the warmth on the nose). But again, the proof never overpowers all the wonderful dark fruit, spice, and creaminess of the bourbon.
This is a good one to take your time with by nosing and tasting with water and going back and forth a few times. You’ll always find something new and fun in the glass.
18. Hirsch The Cask Strength Kentucky Straight Bourbon Finished In Cognac Casks
ABV: 63.5%
Average Price: $210
The Whiskey:
This cask-strength version of Hirsch is made from a classic bourbon mash of 72% corn, 13% rye, and 15% malted barley. That hot juice then rests for six years in new American oak. Those barrels are batched and then re-filled into 30-year-old Hine XO fine cognac casks for another year-and-a-half of resting. Finally, the whiskey is batched and bottled as-is.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose feels lush and oaky with a sense of Christmas cookies, mincemeat pies, and sticky toffee pudding next to stewed plums over fresh scones with a hint of brandy butter.
Palate: Old leather boots filled with cinnamon bark and a medley of dates, figs, and prunes lead to chocolate cut with red chili and vanilla and kissed with salt and dry cedar.
Finish: That cinnamon bark intensifies with dark red fruit, light chili pepperiness, and a sense of old malted cookies dipped in vanilla toffee on the very end.
Bottom Line:
It’s almost shocking how well this whiskey hides its proof. There’s a warmth throughout, but it’s never more than a soft buzz that travels from your tongue to your chest as you enjoy the deeper nuances of the profile. Pour this one neat and then have fun with it.
17. Blanton’s Straight From The Barrel Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 66.85%
Average Price: $240
The Whiskey:
This expression is the purest form of Blanton’s Single Barrel Bourbon. The whiskey in these bottles is from the same Blanton’s barrels, but they’re perfect just the way they are. This whiskey goes into the bottle straight from the barrel with no proofing water whatsoever.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose is full of very bespoke dark chocolate-covered salted hard caramel toffees encrusted with almonds and pecans — the kind you get from a chocolate shop that imports their goodies from somewhere like Belgium — next to full fall leaves falling on wet grass outside musty old warehouses with a hint of well-worn boot leather lurking beneath it all.
Palate: The nutty toffee carries through into the taste as oily vanilla pods mingle with cedar boxes of dried tobacco leaves and a touch of floral honey jars with old wooden spoons and more of that old boot leather before sharp winter spices and dried red chili pop on the mid-palate.
Finish: The end is very long and lingers in your senses with a hot buzzing thanks to the barky spices and dry chili that subtly fades through all that sweetness before ending up in an old cedar box full of choco-chili tobacco layered with old dark fruit leather sheets.
Bottom Line:
Look, if you’re going to buy a bottle of Blanton’s, it’d better be the best one. And these cask-strength versions are stellar. This is rich and creamy with a deep earthy spiced vibe that just works. When it comes to the proof, it’s there as a nice warming hug that accents the profile instead of overwhelming it. Pour this one neat, over a rock, or into your favorite cocktail.
16. Thirteenth Colony Distillery Cask Strength Double Oaked Bourbon
ABV: 68.4%
Average Price: $199
The Whiskey:
This new batch from indy-darling Thirteenth Colony is a batch of whiskey that’s finished with toasted maple wood. Once batched, the whiskey was bottled 100% as-is at cask strength.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The sense of an old rickhouse (cobwebs and all) draws you in on the nose with a hint of cherry cream soda, orange florals, and pecan waffles soaked in butter and real maple syrup with a hint of pepperiness.
Palate: That pepperiness pops on the palate with a warming ABV buzz on the tongue next to salted caramel rolled with more pecan waffle, orange creaminess, and a whisper of peppery yet sweet bacon.
Finish: The end has a sense of orange tobacco rolled with cherry leather and old oak stave, smudging sage, and caramel candied pecans touched with a flake of salt.
Bottom Line:
This deeply classic profile is amped up by a warming proof point. You feel the warmth but it’s never hot. That said, this is best served over a single big ice cube for long-lasting sipping.
15. Knob Creek Single Barrel Select Bourbon Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 60%
Average Price: $71
The Whiskey:
This single-barrel bourbon is from Beam’s private barrel pick program for retailers. That means your local retailer goes out to Clermont, Kentucky, and picks a single barrel for their store — or you’ll see these at the distillery for sale. Beam then cuts the bourbon to 120 proof (if needed), bottles it, and delivers it to the store. That also means these will vary from store to store ever so slightly.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: This opens with a nose full of vanilla oils, salted caramel, and a hint of old oak with a clear sense of Cherry Cola, grassy notes, and maybe even a little barrelhouse must.
Palate: That barrel must pop early on the palate with a bitter and almost smoky feel before dark chocolate-covered almonds and cherry root beer sweeten things up on most of these.
Finish: The finish leans into a creamy mocha espresso vibe before dry cedar planks and cherry tobacco lead to a Red Hot sharp/sweet on most ends.
Bottom Line:
This is another deeply classic profile that’s warming from top to bottom. I’d use this for excellent bourbon-forward cocktails but you can sip this slowly any ol’ day of the week. It has the essential Kentucky hug that’s soft and warming.
14. Frey Ranch Cask Strength Straight Bourbon Whiskey Farm Strength Uncut
ABV: 62.15%
Average Price: $79
The Whiskey:
This new release from Nevada craft farm distillery, Frey Ranch, is a true grain-to-glass experience. The mash is Frey Ranch’s classic four-grain mash of 66% non-GMO corn, 12% Two-Row malted barley, 11.4% Winter rye, and 10% Soft White Winter wheat — all grown on the ranch. After almost five years of aging in the mountains of Nevada, the whiskey was batched and bottled 100% as-is.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose bursts forth on this one with deep cinnamon candy, nutmeg-heavy eggnog, creme bruleé, salted caramel, and buttery croissant next to old cedar kindling, dark boot leather, and a hint of dusty old wine cellar.
Palate: There’s a Black Forest cake vibe on the front of the palate that leads to clove-studded oranges, leathery apricots, black-tea-soaked dates, and rich and moist pound cake just kissed with poppy seeds and vanilla oils.
Finish: The end leans into black cherry with a flake of smoked salt, dark orange, and fresh cacao with a return of that cedar kindling and old boot leather next to this faint note of old rickhouses full of well-aged barrels of whiskey.
Bottom Line:
This is such a varied and delicious whiskey that the proof is secondary to the taste. Yes, the warmth is there, but you barely feel it until the very end when it manifests as a soft buzzing akin to chewing tobacco. Take your time with this one and dig into the nooks and crannies. You’ll be rewarded with endless nuance and depth.
13. Larceny Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Barrel Proof A124
ABV: 62.1%
Average Price: $69
The Whiskey:
The first Larceny Barrel Proof release of 2024 is an instant classic. The whiskey in the bottle is a blend of six- to eight-year-old bourbons from the wheated bourbon barrels at Heaven Hill. Those barrels were batched and then went into the bottle 100% as-is.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: This feels warm on the nose with a sense of cinnamon toast, pecan waffles covered in maple syrup, and buttery vanilla paste with a hint of prune and maybe some dates swimming in mulled wine with a whisper of dark fruity brandy.
Palate: Rummy syrup with a deep sense of Nutella spread over a toasted brioche drives the palate toward fig jam, sticky toffee pudding, and a dark caramel cut with burnt orange and salt flakes on the mid-palate.
Finish: That caramel gets so dark that it turns into cinnamon-laced dark chocolate with a touch of allspice and clove before a dry sense of old oak staves wrapped in tobacco round out the hot and dry end.
Bottom Line:
This is just good bourbon. It’s warm and dry at the end with just a little punch of heat to remind you that you’re alive. The overall profile is so classic that you’ll want to dive right back in. And then you’ll want to make your favorite cocktail with this one. It’ll slap.
12. Wild Turkey Generations Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 60.4%
Average Price: $449
The Whiskey:
This brand-new release from Wild Turkey is the first time Bruce Russell’s name has appeared on a bottle. Bruce teamed up with with dad (Master Distiller Eddie Russell) and his granddad (Master Distiller and legend Jimmy Russell) to create a bourbon that spoke to all three of their whiskey palates. The whiskey in the bottles ended up being a blend of 9-, 12-, 14-, and 15-year-old bourbon that all three of the Russells selected together. Once batched, that bourbon was bottled 100% as-is without filtering or proofing to highlight the beauty of the whiskey being made at Wild Turkey.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Lush vanilla oils are cut with salted caramel and dark cherry root beer made with real sasparilla next to warming winter spices (clove, anise, and allspice) that lean toward mulled wine, cherry-laced tobacco, and hints of dry smudging sage braided with sweetgrass.
Palate: That woodiness leads on the palate before a rush of vanilla buttercream and toffee rolled in roasted almond and dusted with dark chocolate powder shifts the taste toward warm apple pie filling cut with more cloves and allspice and washed down with cherry cola.
Finish: That dark cherry is just kissed with floral honey on the backend as the spices take on a woody bark vibe and the toffee makes a buttery and lush return with a near marzipan feel before old oak staves from a musty rickhouse lead to another braid of sage, cedar, and tobacco on the chewy and silky end.
Bottom Line:
This is a “take your time with it” whiskey. There’s a lot of great stuff layered into this profile. The best part is that the proof never overpowers the profile. The warmth is there like a long and nostalgic Kentucky hug on a cool day when you need one.
11. Elijah Craig Barrel Proof Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Batch No. B523
ABV: 62.1%
Average Price: $69
The Whiskey:
The 2023 spring edition of Elijah Craig Barrel Proof was a banger. This edition is a batch of bourbons that are a minimum of 11.5 years old (down from the usual 12-year age statements). The batch is bottled completely as is without cutting with water or chill filtration.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: There’s a nice sense of funk and fruit on the nose — think standing by a barn in an apple orchard — that leads to salted caramel, cherry tobacco, and rich dark chocolate cut with red chili pepper flakes with a lush vanilla foundation of almond cakes and powdered sugar icing.
Palate: Rich winter spice cakes with a hint of rum raisin drive the taste toward dark cherry spiced tobacco with a rush of ABVs that cause a deep buzz before old cellar dirt floors and oak arrive with a dark sense of chocolate and espresso all kissed with salt.
Finish: Cherry Coke and gingerbread drive the finish with a lush and vibrant sense of red chili pepper spice, black pepper woodiness, and cinnamon bark softness before stewed apple and buttery pie crust lead back toward a vanilla almond cake vibe with a lingering warming sensation.
Bottom Line:
This is another whiskey that’s just excellent. The warmth is even-keeled and adds to the depth of the iconic Kentucky bourbon profile. This is a “no notes” whiskey.
10. Booker’s “Charlie’s Batch” 2023-01 Small Batch Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 63.3%
Average Price: $199
The Whiskey:
This first Booker’s release of 2023 was an hommage to Charlie Hutchens — the woodworker who makes Booker’s boxes the whiskey comes in and a long-time family friend to the Noe family who makes Beam whiskeys. The whiskey is a blend of mid to high-floor barrels from five warehouses. Those whiskeys were batched and bottled 100% as-is at cask strength after just north of seven years of aging.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Toasted almonds and walnuts lead the way on the nose with a deep and rich vanilla cake lightly dusted with cacao, dry cherry, and cinnamon with a touch of old oak cellars and black-mold-encrusted old deck furniture.
Palate: The soft caramel and vanilla open the palate before a rush of woody and sharp spices — clove, anise, allspice, red chili pepper — arrive with a sense of old wood chips on a workshop floor leads to salted toffee dipped in roasted almonds and dark salted chocolate with a whisper of cherry cordial backing it all up.
Finish: That soft sweetness counters the hot spices for a while on the slow finish as the spices take on an orange/cherry/vanilla Christmas cake vibe with plenty of nuts and ABV heat.
Bottom Line:
Booker’s is almost always above 120-proof. Sometimes it’s brilliant. Sometimes it’s a lot. For this batch, it was just right with a deft balance of warmth and soft bourbon vibes. This is an essential slow sipper to have on your shelf for after big meals or celebrations.
9. Frank August Single Barrel Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Cask Strength Barrel No. 0015
ABV: 60.9%
Average Price: $139
The Whiskey:
The latest single-barrel release from Frank August is from a small collection of only 15 barrels. One barrel was chosen for bottling and then bottled 100% as-is to highlight the beauty of the whiskey in that barrel. That means this whiskey ended up being 6.1 years old.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Rich winter spices draw you in on the nose as deep and sweet oak staves lead to red fruit leather, dark chocolate-dipped cherries, and a layer of vanilla sheet cake.
Palate: Cinnamon cake and peppery citrus drive the palate toward salted caramel over that vanilla sheet cake before more of those chocolate cherries arrive to tie everything into a rich and moist Black Forest cake spiked with allspice and clove.
Finish: The end circles around the chocolate cherry cake as the spices mount on the finish with a warming sense of cinnamon sharpness and red chili heat that’s just tempered by oak wrapped in cherry tobacco.
Bottom Line:
If you’re looking for a warming bourbon experience, look no further. The proof builds with the profile to a crescendo of flavors and textures with a warming sense of comfort. It can’t be beat as a slow sipper on a cold day — this is a pure, delectable Kentucky hug in a bottle.
8. Starlight Family Reserve 2023 Release Indiana Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 63.3%
Average Price: $99
The Whiskey:
This late 2023 drop from Starlight Distillery up in Indiana highlights the work that the whole Huber family is doing in their distillery and barrelhouses. The whiskey is a small-batch blend of their seven-year-old bourbon that’s bottled at cask strength, highlighting the beauty of their whiskey on the profile.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose opens with a deep sense of caramel sauce over a berry cobbler with a dollop of malted vanilla ice cream next to toasted marshmallow, old oak staves, and a hint of old-school toffee hard candies.
Palate: That toffee sweetness and butteriness opens the palate toward almost dark vanilla mocha coffee with a cut of tart red berries and stewed stonefruit before a rich butterscotch vibe takes over.
Finish: The creamy and rich caramel/toffee vibe leads to a spiced oak feel with a winter spice sharpness that’s countered by rich vanilla bean and soft stewed red berries, pears, and apricots with a dash of date and prune-laced tobacco.
Bottom Line:
This true craft whiskey from Indiana is a showcase of how beautifully the team at Starlight is building their whiskeys. It’s so meticulously built but you never see a seam or gap in the blend. It’s ultra-luscious with a sense of warmth that builds like melting into a bed dressed with sheets fresh from the clothesline. Sip it slowly and let it warm your senses with comforting nostalgic notes of whiskey greatness.
7. Very Olde St. Nick Antique Cask Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Aged 9 Years “Straight Outta Bardstown”
ABV: 65%
Average Price: $150
The Whiskey:
This late 2023 release from Preservations Distillery is all about the old and forgotten barrels sitting in Bardstown warehouses. The whiskey is a nine-year-old blend of Kentucky bourbons that highlights the beauty of Bardstown whiskey from top to bottom.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose opens with a sense of dates and prunes dipped in floral yet creamy honey and then rolled in roasted and crushed almonds before old libraries full of leather-bound books and deeply rich tobacco arrive.
Palate: That musty leather gives way to old barrel houses full of 1800s wood pillars and used barrels before winter spices add a little warmth that’s countered by deep vanilla creamy eggnog, soft date cake cut with black tea, and a fleeting sense of dried cherries soaked in brandy and dipped in dark chocolate cut with espresso.
Finish: The end builds a warmth based around sharp winter spice barks and berries with a nice counterpoint of vanilla buttercream and lush eggnog over pound cake with a hint of poppy seed and soft pipe tobacco that’s just smoldering.
Bottom Line:
This is another one that “hides” its proof so well. The warmth is there but the profile, mouthfeel, and deep flavor notes are front and center. This is another sipper that’s worth taking a little extra time to enjoy. It’ll always reward you for your efforts.
6. Garrison Brothers Cowboy Bourbon Texas Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 70.45%
Average Price: $249
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:
Okay, this is a hot whiskey. I’m not going to downplay that. But the heat here is a part of the overall profile that warms the flavor notes, elevating them to something more than their base selves. You’re left with a big sense of the warming Texas sun and big bourbon flavor notes that are unlike anything else out there. However, you may need a big rock to calm this one down a tad if you’re not attuned to higher-proof whiskey yet.
5. George T. Stagg Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Barrel Proof (BTAC 2023)
ABV: 67.5%
Average Price: $1,599
The Whiskey:
2023’s batch of George T. Stagg was distilled in the spring of 2008 and left to rest in warehouses C, I, K, L, and M around the Frankfort Buffalo Trace campus. After 15 long years of rest, the barrels were batched and bottled 100% as-is at cask strength.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose opens with a classic sense of Cherry Coke, old leather tobacco pouches, and rich buttercream made with real vanilla next to fall leaves in an orchard and then this sense of Neoplotian ice cream creeps in that leans toward the strawberry and chocolate ice cream part.
Palate: The palate opens with a deep sense of an apple orchard on a cold fall day with leaves underfoot next to deeply-seeded dark cherry, cinnamon bark, clove buds, and allspice berries with a sense of the Neopolitan ice cream popping up again late.
Finish: The creamy vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry drive the finish back toward the old orchards, fall leaves, rickhouse floors, and soft cherry-spiced tobacco leaves rolled with cedar and smudging sage with a nice warming Kentucky hug on the very end.
Bottom Line:
You cannot talk about bourbons with a proof north of 120 and not talk about Stagg. And while I’m in love with Stagg 22A and 23B, they don’t hold a candle to the current Stagg BTAC. This is just great whiskey, folks (I just re-tasted it last night and believe that statement even more). Yes, there’s warmth here but it’s in service to the overall profile every step of the way.
4. King of Kentucky Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Single Barrel Sixth Edition
ABV: 62.9%
Average Price: $299
The Whiskey:
2023’s King of Kentucky from Brown-Forman in Louisville, Kentucky is a 16-year-old masterpiece. The batch was pulled from 51 barrels all filled on July 19th, 2007. Those barrels were left alone all these years in Warehouse G in the Louisville Brown-Forman Distillery. Once batched, the whiskey went into the bottle 100% as-is at cask strength, yielding only 3,800 bottles.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Toasted coconut and brandy-soaked dates lead the way on the nose with a rich sense of good salted dark chocolate, vanilla buttercream, and honeyed Graham Crackers sandwiching toasted marshmallow.
Palate: That dark chocolate takes on a creaminess (kind of like a small espresso mocha) with a sense of sticky toffee pudding cut with black tea, those brandy-soaked dates, a twist of orange, and plenty of nutmeg and cinnamon before leathery notes of old boots and dry tobacco arrive with an ever-warming heat from the ABVs.
Finish: The ABVs buzz to a warmth that peaks before it gets hot as the finish rides a wave toward orchard barks, mince meat pies, mulled wine, and whispers of pear marzipan.
Bottom Line:
This is another one that I just re-tasted very recently and it freaking slaps. The warmth is so vibrant but never overplays the cherried Kentucky bourbon profile. It’s nuanced and deep in all the right ways and will reward returning to it again and again.
3. Heaven Hill Heritage Collection Aged 18 Years Small Batch Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey 2024 Release
ABV: 60%
Average Price: Coming Soon
The Whiskey:
The 2024 Heaven Hill Heritage Collection was just announced. This year Master Distiller Conor O’Driscoll chose 133 barrels from a prime spot in a prime rickhouse. The whiskey is classic Heaven Hill bourbon made with a mash of 78% corn, 10% rye, and 12% malted barley. All 133 barrels were laid down back in December 2005 and left alone until bathing and bottling as-is.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Iconic bourbon notes of spiced cherry syrup, pecan waffles soaked in butter and maple syrup, oaky spices, old tobacco in leather pouches, and soft caramel swirled with creamy vanilla dance on the nose.
Palate: The caramel gets salty on the palate as the oaky spices dial in toward clove, cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg before high-syrup Cherry Coke from a dispenser collides with rich pipe tobacco dipped in dark chocolate with a hint of espresso cream.
Finish: The finish leans into more dark and spicy cherry with a touch of Cherry Dr. Pepper next to creamy eggnog with plenty of nutmeg, salted caramel, and more of that soft and almost chewy pipe tobacco leading to a dry sense of cedar bark braided with dry sweetgrass and smudging sage on the very end.
Bottom Line:
This one hasn’t quite hit shelves yet (next month) but it’s going to be a huge contender for bourbon and whiskey of the year. It’s fantastic. It’s so damn good that you almost don’t even notice the 120 proof, which is one hell of a magic trick by Master Distiller Conor O’Driscoll.
2. Willett Barrel #1614 19-Year-Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
ABV: 60%
Average Price: $899
The Whiskey:
Every year, Willett releases amazing barrels that are going to blow you away. In early 2023, they released this short barrel that yielded only 62 bottles. That made this a distillery-only release of last year — that also means that this was a very fleeting bottle that came and went very quickly.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Rich and oily coffee beans mingle with dark chocolate creaminess on the nose next to wet brown sugar, buttermilk biscuits fresh from the oven, salted caramel chews, and this fleeting sense of rye bread with a caraway seed crust covered with fresh and almost sour butter smeared over it.
Palate: That chocolate and coffee bean meld on the front of the palate for a rich and very dark mocha latte vibe before leaning into clove, anise, and sasparilla with a smoldering sense of smudging sage and marshmallow next to lush vanilla buttercream and pear compote cut with saffron.
Finish: Ginger coins dusted in raw sugar drive the finish toward spiced mulled wine and holiday nut cakes brimming with dried rum raisin, candied orange, and brandied cherry before eggnog-laced tobacco layered into an old cedar humidor leads to a rich yet sweet black dirt from a cellar that held hams and funky rind cheeses for centuries.
Bottom Line:
This list would almost be moot without a Willett single barrel. Willett has this innate ability to bottle massively high-proof whiskeys (bourbons and ryes) that defy their proofs with a magical sense of deep and beautiful flavor profiles. This is a whiskey worth hunting for.
1. William Larue Weller Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Barrel Proof (BTAC 2023)
ABV: 66.8%
Average Price: $1,975
The Whiskey:
This is Buffalo Trace’s classic wheated bourbon. 2023’s Weller BTAC was distilled back in the spring of 2011 and left to rest in warehouses C, L, M, and N for 12 long years. Those barrels were batched and this whiskey was bottled 100% as-is at cask strength.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Deep and dark candied black cherry mingles with dry cedar bark, molasses, real vanilla beans, nutty brown butter, and old leather rolled in pipe tobacco and just kissed with smoldering sage and dry chili pepper flakes.
Palate: The palate opens with a full blast of ABVs, making the front of your tongue tingle, as floral honey, cherry cobbler topped with vanilla ice cream, and brown butter streusel cut with nutmeg, cinnamon, and clove lead to a hint of dry orange tobacco.
Finish: Cinnamon sticks and clove buds floating in maple syrup arrive on the finish with a sense of old leather boots, the oak in an old rickhouse, orchard barks, and soft notes of vanilla and cherry cake.
Bottom Line:
This is another one that I just re-tasted last night and it’s glorious. The warmth is perfectly balanced with the deep flavor profile of truly extraordinary whiskey.
