As the winter holidays approach, there is also an opportunity to find bottles of unique American whiskey. Here are 10 great options.
With respect
As the winter holidays approach, so does the opportunity to find bottles of unique American whiskey, many of which will be on sale this time of year. Here, we highlight 10 great bourbons, ryes, and single malts that might make you agree with the words of that timeless Andy Williams song — it’s the best time of the year.
William Larue Weller Bourbon
Every year at this time, Buffalo Trace releases its Vintage Collection – a collection of up to five whiskey labels, each of which has a large limitation, often with a significant age, and which always represents the most prestigious stock of the Kentucky distillery. For years, William Larue Weller’s label ($150) shines as the top bourbon of the bunch, and this year is no different. Using its signature wheated mashbill and bottled at 125.8 proof, the whiskey aged over 12 years presents a faint tobacco and ripe fruit sweetness on the nose, but drinks like liquid honey. Exceptionally, it marries caramel and toffee on the palate and chases those flavors with a bright spice that represents more than ten years of aging in charred oak.
Thomas H. Handy Sazerac Rye
In recent years, when Buffalo Trace’s Antique Collection includes releases from both rye labels, the Sazerac-Year has firmly turned heads. About the list’s Thomas H. Handy Sazerac ($150), … as they say, always the bride, never the bride. However, this year, Thomas H. Handy is the one wearing white. Created in honor of the New Orleans bartender who first created the Sazerac cocktail, this cask-strength rye (127.2 proof) has a prominent note of black pepper on the nose but features smooth flavors of baking spices on the palate – very soft cinnamon notes and Hints the highlights of all spices and cloves. Thanks to the incredibly sticky viscosity, all those flavors last longer in the end, too.
With respect
Booker’s ‘The Reserves’ 2024 Bourbon
Until recently, Booker’s Bourbon has only focused on creating four different batches that are released throughout the year. In 2024, however, the new brand took a new approach, creating ‘The Reserves,’ a special annual release produced in limited quantities and involving a select number of old barrels aging in the many warehouses of the brand’s parent company, James. B. Beam Distilling. The first release of that series, Bookers’ 2024 ‘The Reserves’ ($130) is a blend of eight bourbons aged between eight and 14 years, and together they create a thick and complex spirit. Reserves brings notes of baking spices, vanilla, and cherry cola, and while those flavors and aromas are traditional bourbon, they are rich and deep in this bottle. That is a sign of special aging.
Four Roses 2024 Limited Edition Bourbon
Known for making special blends of many bourbons created from as many as 10 recipes, Four Roses has linked with a handful of those to create its 2024 Limited Bourbon ($220). This special whiskey, composed of four very mature bourbons ranging from 12 to 20 years old, presents a sweet aroma of caramel and candied apples, however, in an interesting way, the flavor that this spirit brings enters the category of tropical fruits, mainly giving character hard mango. Even better, there’s an herbal undertone that adds a touch of sweet character to this whiskey, which is also slightly dry. Those last two components inject this limited edition with staying power, turning a potential sugar bomb into a meditation drink.
With respect
Founder’s Collection Rabbit Hole Boxergrail Rye
The latest release in Rabbit Hole Distillery’s limited-edition, cask powerhouse lineup, the Boxergrail Founder’s Collection ($300) offers a testament to what a few more years can do. While the Boxergrail 6 year old whiskey (the first release of the Founder’s collection in 2020) showed a nose of butterscotch, citrus, and mint, all that changed was flavors of caramel, vanilla, black pepper, and herbal spices on the palate; here, the 8-year-old Boxergrail smells richly of cinnamon, anise, and brown sugar, and delivers a complex flavor profile defined by balanced notes of ginger, tobacco, and blood orange.
Westland Garryana 9th Edition Single Malt
Located just outside of Seattle, Westland has dedicated all of its 10 years of distillation to single malt whiskey because, as Master Distiller Matt Hofmann explains, the region is the best place in the world – except for the United Kingdom – to grow barley. For most of that existence, the distillery also experimented with cask maturation and finishing using wood species native to the Pacific Northwest. Recently, Westland released its ninth edition Garryana American Single Malt ($150), which marries American single malts matured in three different types of casks: ex-bourbon, ex-Oloroso sherry, and Garryana oak. There is a cream in the mouth of the whiskey, accompanied by aromas and flavors of burnt marshmallow, mocha, ground cloves, and fresh cinnamon.
With respect
Castle & Key Experimental Series Vino de Naranja Rye
For those who don’t know, Castle & Key is a newly acquired distillery that started out of a renovated (and, in some places, restored) historic Kentucky building outside of Lexington that was once owned by one of bourbon’s forefathers, the Colonel. Edmund Haynes (EH) Taylor, Jr. While the label focuses on traditional bourbons and marries (with an equal line of sweet gin), the distillery team is equally dedicated to experimentation. So, the label just released the Castle & Key Experimental Series Vino de Naranja Rye ($70). Bottled at cask strength (115.8 proof), this classic rye is aged for 11 months in barrels that once held the sweet, strong Spanish wine. The result is a whiskey that offers aromas of cocoa, burnt orange peel, and thyme; then delivers bold flavors that move between orange blossoms, ripe cherries, rich honey and baking spices.
Bhakta 2014 Bourbon
In the years since WhistlePig’s founder, Raj Bhakta, sold the Vermont whiskey brand, he has created a new namesake label, which plays heavily on aged Armagnac. Most recently, Bhakta partnered with master mixologist WhistlePig to create a decidedly American spirit. Born from those efforts, Bhakta 2014 Bourbon ($149) is a 9-year-old, cask-strength bourbon (105.4 proof), benefiting from a second cask finish in the French Oak barrels that held the award-winning 1973 vintage. Armagnac. The result is a smooth, complex American whiskey that offers notes of spice cake, red berries, and maple syrup, all combined with the subtle presence of charred oak.
With respect
Lost Lantern Westland Peated American Single Malt
In recent years, Lost Lantern has caught the attention of the whiskey industry. As the first independent bottler dedicated to American whiskey on a national scale, the label has balanced its efforts between creating unique blends and acquiring and infusing attractive barrels from craft distilleries located across the country. One of its latest releases in the latter category, the Lost Lantern Westland Peated American Single Malt ($150) features a Pacific Northwest whiskey made from heavily malted barley and aged for 9.99 years. (Lost Lantern chose to bottle this whiskey one day before the liquid’s 10th year in cask, because Westland, itself, has not yet released a single 10-year-old whiskey. Despite such respectful restraint, this bottle of Lost Lantern still represents Old Westland malt released so far.) As for what it tastes like, the very limited whiskey (only 185 bottles were produced) offers a sweet treat. aromas of smoke and charred apples and drinks like fire-fresh marshmallow s’mores.
Old Father 16 Year Old Bourbon
If the distillery’s marketing is to be believed, 2024 represents the only time whiskey enthusiasts will find Old Grand-Dad 16 Year ($195) on store shelves. The brand’s history dates back to 1882 and is a tribute to distiller Basil Hayden Sr., who was given the Old Grand-Dad moniker by subsequent generations of whiskey makers. Fast forward to the modern era, and the brand’s popularity so far has been largely based on cocktails, as the distillery’s flagship, Old Grand-Dad 114, brings a strong backbone to whiskey drinking. At 16 years old, bottled at 100 proof, bourbon enthusiasts who prefer a clean uncomplicated pour now have something to be excited about. Predictably full-bodied, this mature whiskey pours a deep copper color and delivers aromas and flavors ranging from leather and tobacco to caramel, vanilla, and lingering baking spices.
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