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Please read and drink responsibly.
The 2026 Kentucky Bourbon Festival will take place from Friday, September 11 - Sunday, September 13 in Bardstown, Kentucky, on the historic grounds of Spalding Hall. The unofficial “Bourbon Capital of the World,” Bardstown is home to numerous distilleries and is located just 45 minutes from Louisville. Tracing its roots back to 1992, 2026 marks the 35th anniversary of the festival. What started as a relatively small bourbon tasting and dinner for about 250 people has grown into a major industry event that draws tens of thousands of visitors, features more than 70 distilleries, and over 200 bourbon and whiskey brands for tastings, educational events, master distiller appearances, along with limited and festival exclusive bottle releases. If you’re attending the event, you can find all the information you need to know here.
One of the most exciting aspects of the Kentucky Bourbon Festival is the exclusive and first-access limited releases brands are bringing to the table…and that list is a long one. We had the opportunity to taste a handful of these bottles in a pre-release preview. While we can’t write about them all here, below are three brands' bottle details, tasting notes, and hot takes on which bottles might be worth pushing your way through the crowd to get your hands on.
Located in Lexington, Kentucky, Dark Arts Whiskey House & Alchemy Lab is a blending house led by Chief Alchemist Macaulay Minton and CEO David Peet. The company has its own core whiskey lineup, but also experiments with limited releases and partners with others to create custom blends and bottle unique single barrels. Dark Arts went big on special releases for the Kentucky Bourbon Festival this year, rolling out a lineup of six bottles that are sure to get any bourbon enthusiast’s attention. Releases range in age from 9 to 21 years and include bourbons, a rye, and a light whiskey along with a range of finishes. Three of the six releases exceed 140 in proof, putting them in HAZMAT territory.
Tasting Notes
The aroma is surprisingly gentle for the proof, with classic notes of leather, aged oak, caramel, and brown sugar accented by a hint of cinnamon. Toasted almond meets caramel cream pull candy, peanut brittle, raisin, and aged oak on the rich, warming midpoint. The finish brings a wave of baking spices up front with leather, graham cracker, and brown sugar underneath. Baking spices reemerge on the backend with more force and linger.
Hot Take
Flight of Icarus 11.5 Year HAZMAT Kentucky Straight Bourbon delivers a classic Kentucky bourbon flavor profile with deeply satisfying results. I call it dangerously good because it drinks well below its proof point, and I never thought, “that’s really high proof,” instead I thought, “that’s a lot of flavor.” It’s my favorite of the group, with Chief Alchemist Reserve Cuvée not far behind.
Tasting Notes
Buttercream frosting, vanilla custard, and caramelized sugar dance out of the glass. The sip brings caramel custard, brown butter, and sweet vanilla frosting with a pleasing, intense richness. Concentrated sugars linger with hints of toasted nut and cinnamon on the backend. Really quite delicious.
Hot Take
Supernova 21 Year HAZMAT Indiana Light Whiskey is a delicious aged light whiskey that leans sweet and bold. It has quintessential light whiskey dessert-sweetness notes, and its HAZMAT proof doesn’t overshadow the richness of the flavor. It’s one of the better high aged light whiskeys I’ve had, though, to be fair, they tend to be from the same source and the range is relatively tight, as light whiskeys aged that long are often an enjoyable pour.
Tasting Notes
A spicy rye pop up front gives way to sweet caramel and a hint of gingerbread on the nose. On the palate, a wave of rye spice mingles with caramelized brown sugar and a hint of aged oak, creating a pleasant sweet-spice balance. Baking spices and brown sugar define the long finish.
Hot Take
Très Vieux Quintessence 15 Year Indiana Straight Rye strikes a nice balance between spicy and sweet notes despite its 95% rye mashbill. The range of high aged rye whiskeys is much more modest than high aged bourbons, so whenever I see one it tends to draw my attention. That said, while Très Vieux Quintessence is a quality pour, I found it less remarkable than other whiskeys in this lineup.
Tasting Notes
The aroma is rich and inviting with dense caramel, a layer of aged oak, and crème brûlée peeking out in the background. The palate is fantastic and impeccably balanced, with sweet brown sugar and caramel joining aged, seasoned oak and sandalwood. Cinnamon bun and brown sugar, along with hints of toasted oak and nutmeg, linger on the finish. Surprisingly not over-oaked.
Hot Take
Chief Alchemist Reserve Cuvée 19 Year Kentucky Straight Bourbon Finished in Mizunara Casks may go down as Dark Arts’ most talked about Kentucky Bourbon Festival release. It was finished for 7 years in Mizunara barrels, but doesn’t show signs of being overoaked, instead showing off its Mizunara finish extraordinarily well. My initial reaction on the first sip was “Damn that’s good!” and then I saw the price tag and thought, “Damn that’s expensive!” That said, though the price is steep, Chief Alchemist Reserve Cuvée is easily one of the best Mizunara finished bourbons I’ve ever had.
Tasting Notes
The aroma is striking, with green apple and tropical fruit up front, accented by an undercurrent of toasted nuts and cherry. Brown sugar, caramel, and toffee join peppery toasted oak to form a rich, beautifully balanced sweet-savory midpoint. The finish is delicious, with a light wave of rye spice and white pepper that quickly gives way to tobacco, leather, and brown sugar. Dark chocolate lingers in the background.
Hot Take
Despite its 6 years finishing in French oak casks, 13 Year Double Oaked French Oak Kentucky Straight Bourbon avoids going tannic, instead layering rich, complex flavors for an excellent pour. It’s in the top three of Dark Arts releases for me, joining Chief Alchemist Reserve Cuvée and Flight of Icarus as another excellent pour.
Tasting Notes
Light tobacco and cherry cola mingle with toasted oak and baking spices to form a bright, lively nose. Toasted oak, graham cracker, and caramel covered apple join in the midpoint, with cherry at the center. Clove and pretzel dough combine with lingering allspice on the finish.
Hot Take
Dark Arts’ KBF Single Barrel 9 Year Kentucky Straight Bourbon Finished in Oloroso Sherry Casks is a fascinating whiskey that will find a lot of love for its widely appealing flavor profile. It comes with the lowest price and yield of the bottles in Dark Arts’ lineup, and isn’t one to sleep on.
More from Dark Arts Whiskey House
Pursuit United Bourbon is produced by Pursuit Spirits, whose two co-founders got their start in the world of American whiskey as part of the podcast team at Bourbon Pursuit. The duo is known to collaborate with other brands, and this year’s lineup features a range of bottles including Pursuit United Sakura Bloom Bourbon, Pursuit x Meet Church Honey Hog Bourbon, and Joint Operations. We had the opportunity to preview a few of their KBF releases, which include a fascinating collaboration with Shortbarrel and a KBF exclusive single barrel.
Tasting Notes
The combined maple syrup, toasted oak, and French oak finishing barrels show through immediately, with maple syrup drizzled pancakes, toasted oak, and toffee on the nose. A delicious root beer/cream soda note pops at the midpoint, with rock candy, kettle corn, and dark chocolate adding depth. Toasted almond with hints of tobacco, light oak, cinnamon, and maple sugar candy linger on the finish.
Hot Take
Found Footage is an unusual release, combining the bold richness of Shortbarrel’s Sapsquatch with the spicy oak and overall balance of Pursuit’s Double Oaked Rye. The resulting blend finds balance between the wide range of components, but most notable is the root beer/cream soda note that emerges at the midpoint and really got my attention. Pursuit x Shortbarrel Found Footage is a really fun release that’s priced to move. I’ll be clear on this: Run, don’t walk, to get your bottle of this unique collaboration release.
Tasting Notes
Classic notes of vanilla, caramel, and lightly toasted oak are accented by pear, apricot, and cherry on the nose. The sip is surprisingly delicate for the proof and brings stone fruit, vanilla custard, and cedar together atop a sweet, caramelized sugar base. Baking spices and sweet raw sugar linger on the finish.
Hot Take
Pursuit Series Single Barrel Select “2026 KY Bourbon Festival” leans classic and fruity with a flavor profile just about anyone will enjoy. The bourbon drinks under its 124+ proof point, making it a dangerously drinkable Kentucky Bourbon Festival exclusive release. At $80, it’s an easy buy for festival-goers.
Larrikin Bourbon Company is located in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky, and began as Lawrenceburg Bourbon Company. The company was founded by LCDR Greg Keeley, which stands for Lieutenant Commander and hints towards the founder’s background. The term “Larrikin” is Australian slang, meaning “a person who disregards convention; a maverick.” Larrikin’s Kentucky Bourbon Festival lineup is focused – three cask strength releases formulated from a set of sourced 11 year Old Elk barrels that were then finished in unique “Aussie barrels” and rightly dubbed the Australia Series.
Tasting Notes
The aroma is gentle with hints of honeycomb accenting a bright floral base. Rich honey intertwines with caramel and seasoned oak on the palate, leaning sweet but balanced nonetheless. Tapering honey and toffee are accented by nutmeg on the finish, ending with lingering sweetness.
Hot Take
Manuka honey is honey made by bees that pollinate the manuka tree, which grows natively in Australia and New Zealand. Manuka honey is pretty amazing because of its unique antibacterial compound, methylglyoxal (MGO); it’s used for sore throats, skin health, burn care, and more, in addition to normal food consumption, which is why Australia refers to it as “liquid gold.” Honey barrel finishes range quite a bit in terms of how much honey influence there is, and Larrikin goes a little right of center with a slightly more prominent yet still balanced finish here. Australian Series Manuka Honey Barrel Finish scratches the honey itch, and exploring more about the cultural significance of manuka honey reveals how important this regional byproduct of bees and trees really is.
Tasting Notes
This fascinating whiskey starts with a dessert-like aroma featuring gingerbread and Christmas cookie scents, which are reminiscent of an amburana finish. The palate is dessert-like and has a velvety mouthfeel, with coffee cake, cinnamon roll, and brown sugar joined by a hint of maple sugar candy. Baking spices, cinnamon stick, and brown sugar linger with hints of gingerbread and clove in the background.
Hot Take
Golden wattle is a tree that grows natively in southern Australia. It has large, round, golden flowers and has been the floral emblem of Australia for many years. The barrels used to finish this bourbon previously aged gin featuring golden wattle as a botanical, which is said to add rich, nutty flavors with notes of chocolate, hazelnut, and vanilla. The resulting finished bourbon is unique and complex, and reminded me of an amburana finish at times due to its gingerbread and clove notes. I didn’t pick up any particular flavors reminiscent of gin, which were likely overpowered by other flavors. Australian Series Golden Wattle Barrel Finish is an unusual sip and will be met with mixed opinions as a result.
Tasting Notes
Rum cake is joined by dark cherry and caramelized brown sugar up front. The sip leans into the whiskey’s sweet side, featuring maple sugar candy and crème brûlée over a graham cracker and toasted marshmallow base. Caramel-drizzled sugar cookie with hints of allspice and white pepper linger on the finish.
Hot Take
Sugar cane rum is rum made directly from fresh-pressed sugar cane juice, or “rhum agricole,” as opposed to molasses, which is the concentrated byproduct left after sugar is crystallized from cane juice. The rum finish is dialed in really well, starting with a delightful rum cake scent on the nose. The flavors from the rum finish layer nicely into the rest of the sip, clearly showing their influence throughout. Of the three in the series, Australian Series Sugar Cane Rum Barrel Finish is my favorite.
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