Tasting notes

nose

Fresh-cut flowers, ripe berries and sweet toaster-pastry jam

palate

Cherry pastry and wild berries with sweet oak and a savory, meaty depth

finish

Bold at first, then lingering rose petal and a touch of star anise

Mash bill

78% corn, 10% rye and 12% malted barley from Bardstown Bourbon Co.; 80% corn, 10% rye and 10% malted barley from a Tennessee distillery; and 70% corn, 20% wheat and 10% malted barley from Finger Lakes Distilling. That is two low-rye bourbons and one wheated one, so the blend carries rye spice and a softer wheat sweetness together. Pursuit prints all three recipes on the label.

Why it's craft

The finishing barrels are made from Japanese cherry wood, the end of a year of research and development at Pursuit, and the founders suggest a few drops of water to open the floral notes. The bourbon underneath is the same three-state blend as the rest of the United line. Pursuit Spirits is a Louisville house founded by the hosts of the Bourbon Pursuit podcast and does not distill its own whiskey, and the label says so.