At 118.8 proof, there’s gorgeous oomph in each sip - full bodied and oily, it easily carries its viscous notes of milk chocolate, candied oranges, toffee and short bread biscuits. A first wave of confectionary flavors gives way to a much more complex mélange of autumnal notes. Plums, cranberries, spiced almonds, strong white tea, and vanilla custard with a touch of cinnamon spice - which brings to mind a warming Thanksgiving spread. A few drops of water reign things in a touch, revealing a more gentle and playful dram, mellowing into classic apple pie flavors with zings of cranberry, orange zest and pralines. A slight cereal note also appears, evoking a sweet wheated bourbon (despite having no wheat in the mash bill!) The finish is confident and long: apple preserves, caramel, and light smoke with worn leather and wisps of tobacco. This is a jolly fun ride, and we’re thrilled to kick off the journey with such a great single barrel.

This Pinhook bourbon was bottled at 6 years, one of the rare single barrel selections being done as part of their vertical series bottling. The vertical series is a multi-year project that follows a single set of MGP distilled bourbon as it ages. It kicked off with a 4 Year Small Batch release, and will continue on until a final bottling at 12 years. While Pinhook will batch a general release each year, we will be receiving Northern California's only single barrel from the series, starting with this 6 year bottling, and ending with a 12 year single barrel. We hope that a lucky, and patient few, will be able to successfully collect them all! Distilled from a 75% corn/20.5% rye/4.5% malted barley mash bill, and aged at the Castle & Key rick houses in Frankfort, KY.