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Woodford Reserve announced the release of its latest whiskey line in the Distillery Series, which will be available for purchase at the Woodford Reserve Distillery beginning in late July.
The Woodford County, Kentucky-based distillery will release up to three expressions of the Distillery Series concurrently at various times throughout the year. The inaugural two offerings, Double Double Oaked and Sweet Mash Redux, will be available for purchase at the Woodford Reserve Distillery in Versailles, KY, with a suggested retail price of $49.99 for a 375ml bottle.
These small-batch offerings will range from finished whiskeys to straight bourbons and other unique spirits. Master Distiller Chris Morris has spent the last several years developing and perfecting the individual expressions within the Distillery Series which, in true Woodford Reserve form, offer consumers a first-hand look into the brand’s creative dexterity. Made with the same approach as other Woodford Reserve products that focus on adjusting one or more of the five sources of flavor, Distillery Series expressions represent alterations across four of the five sources: grain, fermentation, distillation, and maturation.
“With the Woodford Reserve Distillery Series, we used our industry and sensory knowledge to create an eclectic line of one-of-a-kind expressions,” said Woodford Reserve Master Distiller Chris Morris. “By pushing the creative boundaries of whiskeys even further, we are inviting our customers who visit our distillery to experience extreme variations of whiskey.”
Double Double Oaked and Sweet Mash Redux are currently the only Distillery Series expressions to be considered straight bourbons. Double Double Oaked is the result of finishing mature Woodford Reserve Double Oaked for an additional year in its second, heavily toasted lightly charred new oak barrel. The extra year in the barrel creates a bourbon that is distinctly spicier than its original counterpart, known for its sweeter taste and finish.
Sweet Mash Redux, with prominent fruit and herbal flavor notes, is not new to Woodford Reserve, who in 2008 released Sweet Mash Finish as part of its Master’s Collection series. While traditional Woodford Reserve Distiller’s Select is a sour mash bourbon, modifying the fermentation process to include a non-soured mash creates a bourbon of higher pH effect and heightened fruit notes throughout.
