On Tuesday, Barrell Craft Spirits announced the launch of two new expressions: Barrell Bourbon Batch 035 and Rye Batch 004. Barrell Bourbon Batch 035 won a Double Gold medal at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition. Rye Batch 004 is Barrell Craft Spirits’ first rye batch since 2020. The rye batch will debut a new back label that will share the rye components in the blend.
Barrell Bourbon Batch 035 is a blend that consists of 6- and 7-year-old high-rye and high-proof bourbons. Barrell Craft Spirits said the more oak-forward expressions are mingled with 8-year-old subtler, lower-proof expressions for two months. Thirteen-year-old barrels with a more “dominant fruit” profile were layered into the final blend, which was bottled at a cask strength of 116.24 proof.
Rye Batch 004 consists of a blend of straight rye whiskeys from Tennessee, Kentucky, Indiana and Canada. The Indiana rye barrels were 10 years of age and blended with 14-year-old Canadian rye barrels, which BCS says were chosen for their herbaceous qualities. The mashbill consists of 89% rye, 7% corn and 4% malted barley. The expression was bottled at a cask strength of 115.7 proof.
“It’s incredible to think we’ve launched 35 unique bourbon batches over the past 10 years, which truly speaks to our passion for pushing the creative envelope every day,” Barrell Craft Spirits founder Joe Beatrice said in a news release. “We’re also thrilled to launch our first rye batch since 2020 which marks the debut of our new back labels that will become a staple of nearly all our future releases. As longtime champions of transparency, this further underscores our commitment to informing consumers about what’s in their glass of whiskey.”
Barrell Craft Spirits is no stranger to producing critically acclaimed expressions of rye. Its 16-Year Gray Label Seagrass received a perfect score on Whiskey Raiders
Barrell Bourbon Batch 035
Nose: Lemon curd, cherry, and banana bread intermingled with olive and thyme.
Taste: Mexican hot chocolate, cinnamon and dried chili peppers.
Finish: Lime zest and amaretto.
Barrell Rye Batch 004
Nose: Copper tones, pumpkin highlights.
Taste: Blackberry, dried apricot and concord grape.
Finish: Burnt marshmallow, rich espresso, black licorice and umami.
For more information please visit https://www.barrellbourbon.com/