Woodinville Port Cask Finish Straight Bourbon 750ml

Woodinville Whiskey Co. was founded in 2010 by childhood friends Orlin Sorensen and Brett Carlile, who set out to prove that world-class whiskey could come from Washington State rather than Kentucky or Scotland. Neither had a distilling background, so they enlisted Dave Pickerell, the retired longtime master distiller at Maker's Mark, who spent months mentoring them on fermentation, distillation, and maturation. Unlike many craft brands, Woodinville has distilled everything itself since day one, sourcing local grain from the Omlin family farm and aging its whiskey in a warehouse in Quincy, Washington, whose climate mimics Kentucky's. Moët Hennessy acquired the company in 2016, though Sorensen and Carlile have continued to run its day-to-day operations.

Port Cask Finished Straight Bourbon started as a 2017 special release built from the distillery's flagship straight bourbon, made from a mash bill of 72 percent corn, 22 percent rye, and roughly 6 to 7 percent malted barley. It proved popular enough that Woodinville made it a permanent member of the lineup. The whiskey fully matures for around five years in new charred oak before being transferred into ruby port barrels sourced from Portugal's Douro Valley for an additional six months, and it's bottled at 90 proof, or 45 percent ABV.

The nose brings dried fruit, honey, vanilla, and a touch of oak tannin. On the palate, dried fruit and spice carry clove and black pepper alongside apricot, plum, vanilla, and brown sugar, with a rich, almost viscous mouthfeel from the port cask influence. The finish runs long and slightly tart, closing on lingering fruit and a dry, wine-like edge that sets it apart from the distillery's standard bourbon.