Hardin's Creek "From Warehouse R" Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey 700ml

Hardin's Creek comes from the James B. Beam Distilling Co., the Beam family operation that traces its lineage back to Jacob Beam's original 1795 distillery, and it exists specifically as a showcase for experimental, small scale releases. The brand debuted in 2022, and its newest Warehouse Series pushes that experimental spirit further by isolating a single variable, the exact building where the whiskey rested.

This bottling, nicknamed The Mushroom, came from Warehouse R on Beam's Clermont campus, a low, single story rickhouse with no windows that stays unusually cool and dark year round. The same mash bill was laid down at the same time in two other warehouses nearby, so any differences among the three releases trace back entirely to where each barrel sat rather than to the whiskey itself. This particular liquid matured for more than eleven years before bottling, emerging at a robust 55 percent alcohol by volume, or 110 proof.

The nose carries charry, earthy notes reminiscent of turned soil and dried tea leaves. On the palate the whiskey turns notably sweet, with light brown sugar, spearmint, and a touch of candied licorice, before those earthy, mushroomy tones return late. It finishes long, savory, and lightly anise laden.