Kentucky Whiskey Brand Using Toasted/Charred Barrels Showcases New Barrel Strength Rye

The new Buzzard’s Roost Barrel Strength Rye emerges out of Kentucky as a cask strength rye whiskey expression finished in customized, toasted/charred new American oak barrels.
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Buzzard’s Roost Sippin’ Whiskeys is one of those interesting regional whiskey brands started by someone with great knowledge of the workings of the industry. In this case we reference one Jason Brauner out of Kentucky who, in 2005, opened Bourbons Bistro in Louisville. It has gone on to become one of the places in the area to have a whiskey, and it is from this experience and years interacting with distillers that Brauner desired to go “from just selling whiskey to making whiskey.”

Enter thus in recent times Buzzard’s Roost, in which Brauner sources aged whiskey and finishes it for a spell in custom created, new “53-gallon white oak barrels that are carefully toasted and very lightly charred” to deliver the flavor profile he seeks. He has a few expressions already to date, and now has apparently debuted a barrel strength rye.

Buzzard’s Roost Barrel Strength Rye
Buzzard’s Roost Barrel Strength Rye (image via Buzzard’s Roost)

The new Buzzard’s Roost Barrel Strength Rye, according to those behind it, is “aged in proprietary barrels” and bottled at a hearty 113 to 116 proof. Uncut, unfiltered – it isn’t Booker’s, but instead something a bit different that’s bottled from a single barrel that meet select criteria.

“Whenever I am tasting and selecting barrels for a new release, it’s always at barrel proof,” said Brauner in a prepared statement. “This experience is something that I have always been passionate about sharing. Our proprietary barrels deliver a lot of complexity to the whiskeys at an early age. Keeping the whiskey at barrel proof pushes that complexity to the next level.”

Plans call for the first release of this rye whiskey to price around $80 per 750 ml bottle. Availability is limited to liquor stores in Kentucky.

Nino Kilgore-Marchetti

Nino Kilgore-Marchetti is the founder of The Whiskey Wash, an award-winning whiskey lifestyle website dedicated to informing and entertaining consumers about whisk(e)y globally. As a whisk(e)y journalist, expert, and judge, he has written extensively about the subject, been interviewed in various media outlets, and provided tasting input on many whiskeys at competitions.

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