Copper & Cask is new to me; apparently they put out very limited edition American whiskies that are sourced and aged from all over. Copper & Cask is a project of Latitude Beverage, which is primarily in the wine business but also has some different spirits, including Wheel Horse bourbon and rye made at the Green River Distillery in Owensboro, Kentucky. The particular bottle I purchased at Hokus Pokus was selected by the Wine & Spirits Guild, an organization of independent retailers and intra-state small chain wine and spirits businesses, with Hokus Pokus being a member. In other words, you aren’t going to be able to get this at Total Wine; you will need to shop at a non-big box store listed on their website to find it. The bottling has been dubbed Straight Bourbon Whiskey Limited Small Batch No. 1, and is comprised of 7 year old MGP bourbons that were aged in Kentucky, with the bulk of the bourbon containing 21 percent rye but with a small amount of high rye (36%) bourbon in the mix. This bourbon is non-chill filtered and bottled at cask strength of 122.6 proof. The bottle cost me $60, which is great for seven year old MGP bourbon, and is roughly the same price as Stellum and less than Red Line which is a year younger than this bourbon.

The color on this is a delightful deep amber, big and brown. Thin film but big thick legs on the swirl. Very traditional bourbon nose but with cherry notes; really nice. On the palate, there are tons of cherries but with black pepper, baking spices, and cloves. On the finish, the cherries become candied the the pepper notes become solid clove. Really nice medium mouthfeel on this with great flavors on the palate.

This bourbon is at the same level as various Nashville Barrel Company releases I have tried and reviewed. I also confirmed by text with the owner of Hokus Pokus that there will be future Wine & Spirits Guild releases from Copper & Cask, which is exciting news.