Last fall, Old Overholt debuted two new whiskeys to celebrate its storied past, but both were limited in scale and scope. Now, one of those whiskeys—Old Overholt 114 Proof—is available nationwide, so American rye lovers, rejoice! It’s also a great week for fans of American whiskey in general, as the eight bottlings on our menu are all U.S. born and bred—including releases from Angel’s Envy, W.L. Weller, and George Dickel. Read on for full details.
Angel’s Envy Madeira Finished Straight Bourbon
Style: Finished bourbon
Origin: Kentucky
Age: Not stated
ABV: 50%
Price: $230
Release: June 2021
Availability: 3,360 bottles, available at the distillery and in select markets: CA, FL, IL, KY, NY, TN, and TX.
Need to know:
Angel’s Envy’s third release from its Cellar Collection is a blend of whiskeys finished for one year in Madeira casks. Starting May 21, members of Angel’s Envy’s 500 Main club can enter a lottery for a chance to buy a bottle ahead of its June 6 release. A total of 600 bottles will be reserved for the lottery.
Whisky Advocate says:
Angel’s Envy made its name with finished bourbons, and this madeira-finished expression from the Cellar Collection follows an oloroso finish in 2019 (93 points) and a Tawny port finish in 2020 (93 points). The Louisville distillery, founded by Wes Henderson and his late father Lincoln, is operated by Wes and his sons, and this Father’s Day-timed release is an homage to the company’s familial roots. We spoke to Wes about working with his dad and releasing cask-finished bourbons on our Instagram Live series #TasteWithSpace back in October. You can catch the full conversation on IGTV.
George Dickel Bottled in Bond
Style: Straight Tennessee whiskey
Origin: Tennessee
Age: 13 year old
ABV: 50%
Price: $45
Release: May 2021
Availability: Limited
Need to know:
Dickel returns this year with another 13 year old bottled in bond whiskey, following on the heels of last year’s 11 year old bottled in bond release and its 13 year old in 2019. This whiskey was distilled in 2007, and, while similar to its predecessors, carries more pronounced notes of cherry, according to head distiller Nicole Austin.
Whisky Advocate says:
George Dickel Bottled in Bond’s debut in 2019 made a splash when it scored 94 points and was named our Whisky of the Year. Last year’s release scored even higher, coming in at 95 points. We recently caught up with Austin to explore the methods of making this sought-after bottled in bond expression from Tennessee.
Templeton 10 year old Single Barrel Reserve Rye
Style: Rye
Origin: Indiana
Age: 10 year old
ABV: 52%
Price: $85
Release: May 2021
Availability: Nationwide, in limited quantities
Need to know:
This rye release was aged for 10 years in new charred American oak barrels. It also has gotten a packaging revamp, along with Templeton’s 4 year old rye and 6 year old rye expressions.
Whisky Advocate says:
Templeton, which has offered sourced whiskey from MGP since 2006, began producing at its own distillery in Templeton, Iowa in 2018. The Templeton distillery has a capacity of 500,000 proof gallons, and a warehouse that can store up to 51,500 53-gallon barrels. Templeton’s own-make whiskeys are slated for release next year.
Weller Full Proof
Style: Straight bourbon
Origin: Kentucky
Age: Not stated
ABV: 57%
Price: $50
Release: June 2021
Availability: Limited
Need to know:
W.L. Weller is much beloved by wheated bourbon fans, and Buffalo Trace added this annual release to the range in 2019. “Full proof” is not a technical term, but here it means that the proof in the bottle is the same as when the whiskey went into the barrel. That’s likely achieved by mingling barrels at various proof levels.
Weller C.Y.P.B.
Style: Straight bourbon
Origin: Kentucky
Age: 8 year old
ABV: 47.5%
Price: $50
Release: June 2021
Availability: Limited
Need to know:
C.Y.P.B. stands for Create Your Perfect Bourbon. This crowd-sourced whiskey was first introduced in 2018 after Buffalo Trace launched the effort in 2015 by asking drinkers to design their own custom bourbon and choose characteristics like mashbill, proof, age, and warehouse location.
Whisky Advocate says:
Both Weller Full Proof (93 points) and Weller C.Y.P.B. (90 points) have scored favorably with our tasting panel, so it is exciting to see them back. If you can possibly find them at the recommended retail price of $50, you’d be wise to act. We’ve previously covered the trend of distillers turning to chefs, bartenders, and even whisky drinkers for inspiration and detailed the thought process behind C.Y.P.B.
Belfour Spirits Small Batch Straight Bourbon
Style: Straight bourbon
Origin: North Carolina
Age: 3 year old
ABV: 50.25%
Price: $99
Release: June 2021
Availability: 19,200 bottles
Need to know:
A one-time release, this straight bourbon has a mashbill of 60% corn, 30% wheat, and 10% malted barley, and came from a collection of 95 barrels. It was aged for three years in new American white oak barrels. Available in 12 states: Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, Michigan, New York, New Jersey, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, and Tennessee, with expansion planned.
Whisky Advocate says:
Belfour Spirits released a special edition straight rye back in November after releasing its first whiskey in late 2019. It now adds to its stable of releases with this straight bourbon, distilled at Southern Distilling in Statesville, North Carolina. We caught up with founder and NHL Hall of Fame goalie Ed Belfour on Instagram Live in December and discussed his entry into the whiskey world.
Wonderland Distilling Cask Strength
Style: Blend of straight whiskeys
Origin: MI and IN
Age: Not stated
ABV: 58.5%-61.5%
Price: $61
Release: May 2021
Availability: Limited edition—only 144 bottles available, exclusive to MI
Need to know:
Despite the fact that Wonderland started distilling its own whiskey in 2020, this release includes individually aged, straight rye and wheat whiskeys that were made at partnering distilleries across Michigan, as well as straight corn whiskey distilled in Indiana.
Whisky Advocate says:
Wonderland’s second whiskey release continues the adherence to Canadian tradition by using batches that were distilled and matured separately prior to blending. With Wonderland now in its own facility, fans can expect more regular releases, albeit in very limited amounts.
Oak & Eden Four Grain & Spire
Style: Bourbon
Origin: Indiana
Age: Not stated
ABV: 45%
Price: $50
Release: May 2021
Availability: Widely available
Need to know:
Most bourbons are made with three grains: corn, rye, and barley. With this new bottling Oak & Eden adds wheat as a fourth grain.
Whisky Advocate says:
Texas-based Oak & Eden sources its whiskey from MGP, and its hallmark is a patented “in-bottle finishing” process, wherein various oak spires are placed into every bottle with the goal of imparting additional flavor. While Four Grain & Spire uses a torched American oak spire, other Oak & Eden whiskeys use spires of toasted American oak and cabernet sauvignon-soaked French oak.
