Non-distilling producers are extraordinarily widespread within the present American whiskey panorama. Only some years in the past, it was comparatively simple to make use of deductive reasoning to find out the origin of sourced whiskey. However with the bloom of contract distillation applications, copycat mashbills, and distillers producing whiskey with distinctive mashbills for brokers, it’s all of the sudden rather more troublesome and even unimaginable for many shoppers to determine the place a bottle was distilled. Merely offering the state of distillation and mashbill is now not a transparent indicator of the purpose of origin. Some distillers who promote barrels to the sourcing market don’t have any problem with prospects telling shoppers the place the whiskey was distilled, whereas many others disguise their involvement with non-disclosure agreements. Inexperienced River Distilling is one distiller that doesn’t thoughts sourced manufacturers proudly proclaiming their Owensboro origin. And so, enter Wheel Horse Whiskey. Wheel Horse was one of many earliest NDPs to brazenly bottle high quality Inexperienced River they usually’re again at it once more with Wheel Horse Double Oak Kentucky Straight Bourbon 5 Years Outdated.
The most recent Wheel Horse Double Oak comes with simply over 5 years of complete maturation and serves as essentially the most well-aged whiskey in its portfolio but. Double Oak begins with commonplace Inexperienced River bourbon sporting a mashbill constructed from 70% corn, 21% winter rye, and 9% malted 6-row barley that has been aged for 4.5 years in barrels with a #4 char. After a decent preliminary maturation, the bourbon is transferred to new oak casks with prolonged open-air seasoned staves and a #1 char for a bit over 6 months, taking the overall time in new charred barrels to simply over 5 years. Wheel Horse produced 2100 bottles of Double Oak Bourbon bottled at its signature 101 proof with out chill-filtration.
I spoke with Bardstown Bourbon Firm’s Dan Callaway on the 2024 Kentucky Bourbon Pageant in Bardstown and was informed that the present imaginative and prescient for Inexperienced River Distilling doesn’t contain secondary maturation. The itinerary for Inexperienced River is solely to supply as a lot high-quality straight whiskey with good age as doable. Seeing as Inexperienced River isn’t going to be releasing finishing-cask whiskey any time quickly, Wheel Horse is filling that void. Wheel Horse’s most up-to-date Cigar Mix undoubtedly labored, however how did Double Oaked prove? Let’s dig in!
Double Oak’s nostril debuts with milk chocolate and heat vanilla. Subdued lemon zest shortly provides steadiness to the sweetness as toasted almonds tie all of it collectively. Total, that is an inviting and well-rounded bouquet. The balanced sweetness discovered on the nostril is equally current on the palate as molasses and Boston cream soar to the forefront. Raisinettes and toasted coconut notes properly add earthiness to the richness. The ending cask provides elevated sweetness with out taking it to extra. The end brings the return of molasses, however the sweetness shortly passes because the spice of German-roasted pecans and tannins of e book leather-based add a memorable distinction.-
As an Owensboro resident, I’m grateful for manufacturers like Wheel Horse that provide new takes on my native distillery. I totally help Inexperienced River’s deal with cranking out incredible straight whiskey with good age, however I’m additionally curious to expertise it with varied finishes. Wheel Horse releases Owensboro whiskey with high quality finishes, a superb proof level that Inexperienced River at present doesn’t provide, and at particularly reasonable costs.
101 proof.
B+ / $38 / wheelhorsewhiskey.com
Wheel Horse Double Oak Bourbon 5 Years Outdated
$38
