Double Eagle Very Rare 20 year old (2021 Release)

Style: Straight bourbon
Origin: Kentucky
Age: 20 years old
Proof: 50.5% ABV
Price: $2,000
Release: February 2021
Availability: 199 bottles

Need to know:

The third release of this super-aged version of Eagle Rare, this bourbon is matured for 20 years. This year, the proof has gone up from 45% to 50.5% ABV (101 proof).

Whisky Advocate says:

Regular Eagle Rare is 10 years old, while the Buffalo Trace Antique Collection includes Eagle Rare 17 year old. That bourbon is hard enough to find—and afford, usually, since most retailers charge well above the suggested price of $99. But even a bourbon like Double Eagle Very Rare, with a suggested price 20 times its slightly younger sibling, won’t have trouble selling. This is made for collectors and bragging rights, regardless of how the whiskey in the bottle may actually taste.

Egan's Legacy Reserve III

Style: Single malt
Origin: Ireland
Age: 17 years old
Proof: 46% ABV
Price: $200
Release: February 2021
Availability: 1,000 bottles

Need to know:

Matured for 17 years in bourbon barrels, this single malt was finished in Cadillac AOC casks.

Whisky Advocate says:

Cadillac is a sweet white wine made in the Entre-Deux-Mers subregion of Bordeaux from sémillon, sauvignon blanc, sauvignon gris, and muscadelle. Like its more famous cousin sauternes, some of the grapes for cadillac have been infected with botrytis cinerea, the so-called “noble rot” that produces more concentrated sugars and flavors. So expect this whisky to bear some resemblance to sauternes-finished single malts.

Berkshire Mountain Distillers Craft Brewers Whiskey Project

Style: Whiskey
Origin: Massachusetts
Age: 5 years old
Proof: 43% ABV
Price: $65
Release: Starting in February 2021
Availability: Limited edition

Need to know:

Five years ago, Berkshire Mountain Distillers distilled popular beers from 12 well-known craft brewers, aging the spirit in new charred oak barrels until founder and proprietor Chris Weld deemed it mature. The whiskeys are now being bottled, with the first three debuting this month: Mass. Bay Brewing Co.’s UFO White Ale whiskey, Spencer’s Trappist Ale whiskey, and Big Elm Brewing 413 Farmhouse Ale whiskey.

Whisky Advocate says:

There will be nine more releases from this collaboration coming out later in the year, including whiskeys distilled from beers from Samuel Adams, Berkshire Brewing Co., Jack’s Abby Craft Lagers, Brewery Ommegang, Captain Lawrence Brewing, Smuttynose Brewing, Long Trail Brewing Co., Two Roads Brewing, and Chatham Brewing. Bottle counts are limited and will initially be available at the distillery before rolling out to stores and restaurants in the breweries’ home states.

This is a big undertaking, but it’s not the first time a distillery has made whiskey from fully finished craft beers; learn more about others doing the same in this article.

New Riff 15 year old A Very Old Straight Bourbon

Style: Straight bourbon
Origin: Indiana
Age: 15 years old
Proof: 50% ABV
Price: $200
Release: Spring 2021
Availability: Around 900 bottles

Need to know:

Distilled at MGP, this bourbon was purchased and bottled by New Riff to raise money in support of restaurant, bar, and service industry workers. All profits will be donated to the Ohio Restaurant Employee Relief Fund and the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce.

Whisky Advocate says:

Before its own whiskeys came of age, New Riff bottled MGP-sourced whiskeys under the OKI label, which stood for “Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana”—as the distillery is located in Kentucky, just across the river from Ohio, and was bottling Indiana whiskey. New Riff sold the OKI brand last year, but apparently still has some barrels of MGP stock in its warehouses. This one must be very special to have aged for 15 years, and even with a $200 price, the distillery should have no trouble reaching its goal of raising $120,000.

Catoctin Creek Rabble Rouser (2021 Release)

Style: Straight rye
Origin: Virginia
Age: 4 years old
Proof: 50% ABV
Price: $99
Release: February 2021
Availability: 600 bottles

Need to know:

Distilled on pot stills to a lower proof than normal to capture a wider array of flavors, this rye was aged for 4 years and bottled in bond.

Whisky Advocate says:

Rabble Rouser is available annually, always in limited amounts, though this year there’s about double what came out in 2020. Every state where Catoctin Creek is distributed will get an allocation, and it’s for sale at the distillery as well. In fact, Virginia residents can get the whiskey shipped directly, which has been a boon to the distillery as sales have slowed during the pandemic.

Kilchoman ImpEx Cask Evolution Calvados Cask-Finished (No. 277/2012)

Style: Single malt
Origin: Scotland (Islay)
Age: 8 years old
Proof: 56.6% ABV
Price: $150
Release: February 2021
Availability: 238 bottles for the U.S. only

Need to know:

The newest single-cask bottling brought in by Kilchoman importer ImpEx Beverages, this whisky was distilled on May 17, 2012. It matured for 8 years in a bourbon cask and then was finished for 8 months in a calvados cask.

Whisky Advocate says:

ImpEx’s Cask Evolution series has given Kilchoman fans the opportunity to taste a variety of unique finishes that aren’t available otherwise, and the whiskies are always bottled at cask strength. Whisky Advocate’s tasting panel has been unanimously impressed by these offerings, with previous releases scoring 94 points, 93 points, and 92 points.

Rogue 8 year old Single Barrel Project Oregon Rye Malt

Style: Finished malted rye
Origin: Oregon
Age: 8 years old
Proof: 50% ABV
Price: $80
Release: February 2021
Availability: Limited edition

Need to know:

This malted rye whiskey matured for most of its life in new charred oak, then was finished in a second-fill zinfandel barrel.

Whisky Advocate says:

Rogue’s Single Barrel Project is meant to showcase unique finishes of the distillery’s whiskeys. The first release, a 6 and a half year old single malt finished in cabernet sauvignon casks, debuted last fall.