Barrell Bourbon owner Joe Beatrice had a midas touch for choosing barrels for Barrell bourbon batches 005 and 006.  Both came from Tennessee.  Both were aged around eight and a half years.  Both were OUTSTANDING bourbon releases. I brought my bottle of batch 005 to a tasting, and it didn’t last long.  The selfish side of me is tightly holding my bottle of batch 006.

So what does Joe and company have in store for the next batch?  Distilled in Tennessee, batch 007 comes to market at five years old.  As always, Barrell Bourbon is bottled at cask strength.  In this case it’s 122.4 proof.  The mashbill is 70% corn, 25% rye, and 5% malted barley.

The nose here is fantastic.  Buttered corn grits, Red Hots, maple syrup and a slight touch of dill swarm out of the glass.  The entry is sweet and spicy, almost like a spiced syrup.  That high proof shows itself, adding some bite.  From there, a vibrant citrus note gives way to toasted cereal grain, honey and some oak.  As expected, the finish here is long and warm, leaving behind a sweet maple note.

Barrell Bourbon batch 007 is going to be another hit.  At five years of age, this bourbon is more complex than whiskies twice its age.  To my tastes, however, this one is just a notch less “there” than batch 006, which is still my favorite release to date.  However, this bourbon is no slouch.  Pick up a bottle and find out why Barrell Bourbon will soon be a household name.