Kings County Distillery Barrel Strength Peated Bourbon

Kings County has become known for barrel-proof spirits, especially bourbon, as high proof tends to show the advantages of an uncompromising, traditional process. One of the more obvious distinctions of Kings County is narrow cuts on traditional pot stills, which gives all their whiskeys more viscosity and heft, which articulates especially nicely at high proof.

Now that barrel strength whiskeys from Kings County have become quite collectible, they're helping articulate their barrel strength line with a new a new silver-type label. The first in this new series is a never-before released Barrel Strength Peated Bourbon. While a few lightly peated single barrel black labels have seen special releases, this is their first (and maybe not especially frequent) introduction of a barrel strength version of their peated bourbon. It's also the oldest batched release, with a blend of barrels 5-8 years old.

With stocks aged as much as decade of this mashbill, they have a long view of this recipe's potential. Peated Bourbon presents a dance between oak and smoke throughout its maturation. Over time, the oak has a diminishing effect on the smoke's intensity and heft, morphing the peat presence into a lighter, earthier profile as compared to their existing release at 90-proof, which has more prominent BBQ sweetness. If peated bourbon was once a novelty, this bottle argues for its place in the canon of American whiskey.