Woodinville Releases A Moscatel Finished Straight Bourbon Whiskey

Woodinville Whiskey, based in Washington State, has announced the release of its Moscatel Finished Straight Bourbon in 23 markets.

The new Woodinville Moscatel Finished Straight Bourbon, according to those behind it, takes the distillery’s fully mature, flagship straight bourbon and finishes it in 10-year-old, 200-gallon Moscatel de Setúbal barrels. Moscatel de Setúbal is described as a rare, fortified wine produced on the Setúbal Peninsula of Portugal, a region known for its ideal climate for producing these wines.

This finishing process, the distillery noted in a prepared statement, “adds notes of dried apricot and orange peel, with a honey and toffee sweetness. Candied nuts and a hint of fennel greet you for a lingering finish.”

Historically this whiskey first debuted as a distillery only offering last year, being noted at the time as being the first Moscatel Finished Straight Bourbon in the American Whiskey category. It was named one of the “Best New American Double-Barrel Whiskies of 2021” by Nicolas Stecher in Maxim.

For Uproxx‘s “Best Bourbon Whiskey Blind Taste Test” in February, Zach Johnston of Uproxx wrote, “Tasting Notes: There’s a mix of chocolate powder, apricots, and orange that’s tempered by five spice and a hint of wet reeds. Sweet and floral honey opens the palate up to Almond Roca (gotcha!) and peach pits. Ripe plums with more of those wet reeds drive the finish towards soft leather, more stone fruit, and a slightly spicy tobacco chew. My Guess: This is a Woodinville bourbon… that Almond Roca flavor note is very Seattle and gives it away instantly.”

The Woodinville Moscatel Finished Straight Bourbon is pricing around $100 per 750 ml bottle.

For those unfamiliar with Woodinville, it was founded by two longtime friends under the mentorship of an industry icon, the late David Pickerell, former Master Distiller for Maker’s Mark. It is said to be Washington state’s largest craft distillery, handcrafting all of its products from 100% locally sourced grains from the Omlin Family Farm in Quincy, Washington. It was acquired by Moët Hennessy in 2017.