Tasting notes

nose

toffee, sultana and maraschino cherry, then coconut, milk chocolate, orange zest and a little varnish

palate

creamy, with milk chocolate and cocoa, baked peach and stone fruit, runny honey, custard and golden syrup

finish

long, woody and nutty, with cocoa powder, citrus and sweet spice lingering before it dries to oak and tobacco

Mash bill

68% corn, 20% wheat, 12% malted barley. The distillery uses Kentucky-grown corn and wheat bought locally, and wheat takes the place of rye at about half the share in the house's High Wheat.

Why it's craft

As a bottled-in-bond bourbon, this comes from one distilling season at Bardstown Bourbon Co.'s own distillery and was aged under federal bond before bottling at exactly 100 proof; the distillery gives it six years, two more than the law asks. The company was founded in 2016, has been owned by Pritzker Private Capital since 2022 and since 2025 has run under the Lofted Spirits name, alongside Green River Distilling and a contract-distilling arm that makes whiskey for other brands.