Kings County Single Barrel Straight Bourbon Whiskey S1B25

From their limited and ever-evolving inventory, Kings County Distillery selects superlative small-format single barrels that are particularly noteworthy for their complexity and maturity. Kings County's picks have become truly rare and highly sought after, with some barrels commanding double and triple prices on the secondary market, something very unusual for a house-distilled craft spirit.

Brian Schmidt, Topflight Panel Member: 

I've been drinking high-proof whiskey for a long time and have loved seeing the explosion of cask strength options come onto the market. It's also one of my favorite things about single barrel programs which are often the only place you can get a cask strength version of certain expressions. This Kings County pour clocks in at an epic 147.6 proof, but it somehow maintains all of its flavors the whole way through. It's robust and complex, and visually this is one of the darkest whiskies of any type I've seen. I'm attributing that to the fact that this liquid spent over seven years in a 30-gallon barrel (char #3), giving it much more interaction with the char and oak. The high proof and small barrel also lead to just 65 bottles. This nose jumps out of the glass with notes of cherry wood, roasted nuts, oak, and caramel candy popcorn. On the palate, this is absolutely mouthwatering due to the proof, but it's not as hot as you'd expect, and blind, I'd probably guess it is in the 125-130 range. The flavor is robust, with dominant oak and wood notes surrounded by cherry, brown sugar, roasted peanuts, and candied pecans. It has a relatively short finish reminiscent of a smoked Manhattan cocktail. Don't get me wrong; this whiskey is a heater at this proof point. For the cask strength enthusiast, this is a magnificent pour from this upstart distillery from Brooklyn.

PROOF: 147.6

AGE: 7 Years

MASHBILL: 80% NY Corn, 20% English Malted Barley, aged 7 years

BARREL: 30 gallon, new, white oak barrel

CHAR: #3

Bottle Size: 750ml