Atlanta-based craft spirits brand Shortbarrel has launched Sapsquatch Bourbon, a limited-edition blend of Kentucky and Indiana whiskeys finished with sugar maple. The 110-proof expression is priced at $89.99 and is available online at shortbarrelbourbon.com and at select retailers.
The release marks the first Sapsquatch batch to feature a broader blend of 20 to 30 barrels, building on single-barrel finishes that debuted in May 2025. The six-to-eight-year-old bourbons were sourced from Jim Beam, Barton, Bardstown Bourbon Company, Green River, and MGP.
Mashbills vary by blend but are typically 70% corn, 21% rye, and 9% malted barley or 75% corn, 21% rye, and 4% malted barley, using primarily Kentucky-grown grains.
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READ THE STORY"Any great finished bourbon starts with great whiskeys," said co-founder and master blender Clinton Dugan. "We chose barrels with a higher rye content to give us that spicy flavor that goes so well with the sweetness of the maple, making it reminiscent of the great southern cooking you can find here in our hometown of Atlanta."
The finishing process uses a two-stage approach. The blended, non-chill-filtered whiskey first conditions for six to eight weeks in stainless steel tanks with sugar maple infusion spirals. It then transfers into Kelvin-toasted barrels that previously aged maple syrup from producers including Barred Woods Maple in Vermont and Seldom Seen Farm in Ohio.
"We found that simply finishing our bourbon in former maple syrup barrels wasn’t the right approach, it lacked consistency and missed the balance and depth we were looking for," said Dugan. "Our goal was never sugary sweetness. Maple here is a structural component, contributing to mouthfeel, mid-palate density, and a perception of roundness without pushing the whiskey into dessert territory."
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Official tasting notes from the brand describe toasted oak, dense caramel, vanilla bean, and layered baking spice on the nose. The palate is bold and structured with dark caramel, burnt sugar, clove, cinnamon, and roasted nut. The finish is long and drying with lingering toasted wood and persistent spice.
Shortbarrel was founded in 2020 by Adam Dorfman, Clinton Dugan, and Patrick Lemmond. The company acquired Old Fourth Distillery in 2023 and distributes products in 48 states through e-commerce and on retail shelves in Georgia, Kentucky, Florida, Tennessee, and Texas.
