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Johnny Drum Private Stock Bourbon 101 Whiskey 750ml
Johnny Drum
SKU 58740

Johnny Drum Private Stock Bourbon 101 Whiskey 750ml

$35.99 - $35.99
$35.99
$35.99 - $35.99
$35.99
Availability:
Only 4 left!

Johnny Drum is produced by Willett Distillery in Bardstown, Kentucky, a family operation founded by Thompson Willett and now led by his grandson, Drew Kulsveen, as master distiller. For much of its history the brand was sourced from other Kentucky producers, but in recent years Willett has shifted much of its portfolio, Johnny Drum included, to whiskey distilled entirely in-house, giving the current releases a more distinctive character shaped by the family's own methods.

Private Stock is the flagship expression in the Johnny Drum lineup, bottled at cask strength, 101 proof. It follows an old-fashioned sour mash process that the Kulsveen family has kept largely unchanged across generations, and it is produced in limited quantities rather than large commercial runs. The bourbon carries no disclosed age statement today, though earlier releases were labeled at fifteen years old.

The nose offers vanilla custard, red berries, caramel, ripe apple, and white chocolate, with a botanical edge of cinnamon and ginger that hints at a high rye content. On the palate, an oily texture carries almond, apple dumpling, cardamom, and roasted peanut alongside honey and oak. The finish lingers with sweet mint, baked apple, and tobacco leaf.

"Johnny Drum is an obscure label that gets lost easily on any liquor store shelf. I passed by it numerous times until one day I picked up a bottle of it because I saw nothing else that interested me that day. In its heyday, a bottle of Johnny Drum carried a 15 year old age statement and by all accounts, still kinda sat on the shelves.

But these days, Kentucky Bourbon Distillers (i.e. Willett) has dropped the age statement has reportedly started to use its own distillate to fill this bottle. I think a main issue with why this bottle doesn't move too much is that it is priced and proofed at that magical price point, somewhere between $30 and $40, that it's going to get passed over in favor of cheaper options at that same proof (Wild Turkey 101) or more expensive bottles that carry an age statement and a pedigree (Henry McKenna BiB).

Nose: A lovely scented nose of vanilla custard, red berries, caramel drizzled French toast, ripe apples, melted white chocolate. Despite the big wave of sweets, the nose is very botanical overall, making me think it has a high rye content.

Palate: A nice oily mouthfeel and some interesting flavors of almond meal, apple dumplings, cinnamon, cardamom and fresh oak wood swirl around. It's pleasing and I can still detect rye notes here and there. It's almost like a young, high-rye MGP bourbon mashbill.

Finish: Sweet mint, pine, baked apples, cinnamon and tobacco leaf all leave a pleasant aftertaste that is never bitter, but continues to remind me of a rye whiskey rather than a bourbon."
Region: Kentucky
Country: USA
Bottle Size: 750ml
Producer: Johnny Drum
Proof: 101
Johnny Drum

Johnny Drum is produced by Willett Distillery in Bardstown, Kentucky, a family operation founded by Thompson Willett and now led by his grandson, Drew Kulsveen, as master distiller. For much of its history the brand was sourced from other Kentucky producers, but in recent years Willett has shifted much of its portfolio, Johnny Drum included, to whiskey distilled entirely in-house, giving the current releases a more distinctive character shaped by the family's own methods.

Private Stock is the flagship expression in the Johnny Drum lineup, bottled at cask strength, 101 proof. It follows an old-fashioned sour mash process that the Kulsveen family has kept largely unchanged across generations, and it is produced in limited quantities rather than large commercial runs. The bourbon carries no disclosed age statement today, though earlier releases were labeled at fifteen years old.

The nose offers vanilla custard, red berries, caramel, ripe apple, and white chocolate, with a botanical edge of cinnamon and ginger that hints at a high rye content. On the palate, an oily texture carries almond, apple dumpling, cardamom, and roasted peanut alongside honey and oak. The finish lingers with sweet mint, baked apple, and tobacco leaf.

"Johnny Drum is an obscure label that gets lost easily on any liquor store shelf. I passed by it numerous times until one day I picked up a bottle of it because I saw nothing else that interested me that day. In its heyday, a bottle of Johnny Drum carried a 15 year old age statement and by all accounts, still kinda sat on the shelves.

But these days, Kentucky Bourbon Distillers (i.e. Willett) has dropped the age statement has reportedly started to use its own distillate to fill this bottle. I think a main issue with why this bottle doesn't move too much is that it is priced and proofed at that magical price point, somewhere between $30 and $40, that it's going to get passed over in favor of cheaper options at that same proof (Wild Turkey 101) or more expensive bottles that carry an age statement and a pedigree (Henry McKenna BiB).

Nose: A lovely scented nose of vanilla custard, red berries, caramel drizzled French toast, ripe apples, melted white chocolate. Despite the big wave of sweets, the nose is very botanical overall, making me think it has a high rye content.

Palate: A nice oily mouthfeel and some interesting flavors of almond meal, apple dumplings, cinnamon, cardamom and fresh oak wood swirl around. It's pleasing and I can still detect rye notes here and there. It's almost like a young, high-rye MGP bourbon mashbill.

Finish: Sweet mint, pine, baked apples, cinnamon and tobacco leaf all leave a pleasant aftertaste that is never bitter, but continues to remind me of a rye whiskey rather than a bourbon."
Region: Kentucky
Country: USA
Bottle Size: 750ml
Producer: Johnny Drum
Proof: 101