Autumn 2022 Whiskey Release Top Picks

By Richard Thomas

The beer and the whiskey behind Stranahan’s The Osopher 11 Year Old
(Credit: Proximo/Stranahan’s)

My approach to doing a review of the hot autumnal releases this year differs from previous years, and in more than just my blunt, to-the-point title. Fall is the season for those engaged in bottle-hunting for bourbon. Most of the well-established, annual, limited edition series see their new expressions come out at this time.

However, I don’t see a point in discussing the finer details of this year’s Buffalo Trace Antique Collection (BTAC) or what the best way to score Pappy Van Winkle. The market value for these bottles sees the grossest distortion in all American Whiskey against their official pricing, which is why they have become true unicorns. It’s an old story, hardly anyone reading these words will score a bottle, so why dwell on the truly unobtainable.

Instead, I want to spend some time with the new and most interesting whiskeys coming out this autumn. These are the things you may actually be able to get without too much trouble, or else the things you should go to some extra trouble and expense to acquire.

My advice is to skip Pappy and BTAC. Is the clout of having one of those bottles worth the effort and price tag pain? Spend your efforts with these worthies instead:

Barrell Vantage ($89.99): Barrell Craft Spirits is introducing a new series in the early part of the season. Dubbed Barrell Vantage, it takes their house shtick of blending bourbons sourced from Kentucky, Indiana and Tennessee, and adds a layer of finishing in three different styles of new oak: Mizunara, French and toasted American white oak. Also in keeping with their house style, the bourbon is uncut and unfiltered, coming out at 114.44 proof in the bottle. Keeping all that in mind, even the pricing follows in typical fashion of Barrell Craft Spirits, as this is in keeping with recent releases of Barrell Bourbon.

Four Roses Small Batch Limited Editon 2022
(Credit: Kirin/Four Roses)

Four Roses Small. Batch LE 2022 ($179.99): This year’s batch is drawn from four middle-aged or ultra-aged bourbons: 14 year–old bourbon from the OESF recipe, a 14 year–old OESV, a 15 year–old OESK, and a 20 year–old OBSV. Bottled at 109 proof, the run yielded 14,100 bottles. That greatly increases your chances of actually securing a bottle, as does the fact that the prevailing market value for a bottle is often below $300.

King of Kentucky 15 Year Old: There were two King of Kentucky’s released in September: the normal, annual installment and a special 5th anniversary edition. This is about the more obtainable, normal release, which is excellent all the same: a 15 year old, cask strength Brown-Forman bourbon that will surely prove as good as any other bourbon in its class released this year, if not better.

Stranahan’s The Osopher 11 Year Old: The story behind this expression is founded on how so many craft distilleries are started by people with experience in brewing. In this case, namesake George Stranahan started a Colorado craft brewery, Flying Dog, a decade and a half before he joined forces with Jess Graber to start Stranahan’s. The original Stranahan’s malt whiskey used the same wort as Flying Dog’s Road Dog porter. Flying Dog now operates out of Frederick, Maryland.

For this expression, Stranahan’s sent three barrels from their 10 year old whiskey to Flying Dog, which were then used to make The Osopher, an imperial version of Road Dog. The barrels were then sent back to Colorado, and used to age a new batch of whiskey. That whiskey was barreled 11 years ago. You read that correctly: this isn’t a beer barrel finish, but a whiskey aged entirely in those barrels for more than a decade!

That makes The Osopher single malt whiskey the oldest whiskey released by Stranahan’s to date, but also something more. That whiskey to beer to whiskey cycle is a well-established cycle now; the best known applications are from Jameson. Yet this might just be the first known application of the method, since the decision to start the cycle was made 12 years ago, with the initial shipment of casks to Flying Dog. For fans of American single malts or the even more niche brewstilling concept, this is a must-have, historic bottle.

Mythbusting: There has been buzz circulating with some usually excellent sources that a George Dickel 17 Year Old was due out this autumn. I contacted representatives about information, so I could include it in this round-up, and they insisted it would not be out during Fall 2022.