A few weeks in the past I used to be in Bardstown, Kentucky, for the annual Kentucky Bourbon Competition. To be sincere, I’ll take just about any excuse to go to Kentucky. I get to test in with pals, go to a number of favourite bars, and, in fact, compensate for my bourbon data. Lately, there’s loads of catching as much as do. The older, established distilleries hold discovering methods to interact with whiskey followers through the ongoing bourbon growth, whereas smaller corporations are pushing at bourbon’s inventive boundaries. Amongst these main the inventive cost is Louisville-based Barrell Craft Spirits. And we’re closing out Bourbon Heritage Month with one in every of their latest releases: Barrell Vantage Straight Bourbon.
First issues first: Barrell isn’t a distillery. Quite, they supply whiskeys (rums, too) from completely different producers and make a unique form of magic occur. Leaning into the inventive alternatives that exist in maturing, cask-finishing, and mixing whiskies, Barrell is opening up new vistas for bourbon exploration.
Vantage is a mix of three straight bourbons distilled in Kentucky, Indiana, and Tennessee. The whiskies are completed individually in casks manufactured from three various kinds of oak: French oak, extra generally utilized in winemaking and a few European spirits; Mizunara oak, typically used to age Japanese whiskies; and toasted American oak. The whiskies are then blended and bottled at cask power (114.44 proof).
With such a course of, the fragile interaction between bourbon and barrel shines by. The aroma is heat with dried spices and vivid with tropical fruit and has a creamy, chocolatey undertone. On the palate, Vantage comes by wealthy and daring. Its full-bodied texture and savory points of espresso and pumpernickel be a part of the sweeter tones of darkish chocolate and crimson fruit.
Vantage is the most recent of Barrell’s ongoing releases. And with paradigm-shifting practices like these, I’m glad to understand it’ll be sticking round. $89.99, barrellbourbon.com
