Cinnamon stick | Nutmeg | Toasted marshmallow | Charred oak | Faint dried tobacco leaf | Nougat | Vanilla

Charred oak | Vanilla syrup | Black peppercorn | Leather | Burnt butterscotch | Baking spices | Mexican chocolate

Burnt marshmallow | Leather | Aged oak | Faint nougat | Light vanilla | Green peppercorn spice | Lingering faint toasted marshmallow & heat

It’s been 20 years since Heaven Hill launched their Bernheim Original Wheat Whiskey brand. The whiskey is named in honor of the Bernheim Distillery in Louisville, Kentucky. Bernheim Distillery was founded in 1992 by United Distillers (which became Diageo in 1997) and was sold to Heaven Hill, which renamed the Heaven Hill Bernheim Distillery in 1999. Bernheim Original Wheat Whiskey was first released in 2005, and according to Heaven Hill, is “the first new style of American Whiskey to be introduced since Prohibition.”

To commemorate the moment, the company released this limited edition Bernheim Original 20th Anniversary. The whiskey is crafted from the same mashbill as other Bernheim whiskeys. Unlike the brand's standard release, which uses 7 year old barrels, and its Barrel Proof line, which uses 7-9 year old barrels, the 20th Anniversary release introduces a double-digit age statement by using barrels aged for 10 years.

The whiskey opens with an intriguing and balanced aroma that oscillates between gentle sweet scents and more grounded ones. Both of these flavor profiles continue throughout the sip, in various fashions. As the midpoint kicks off, charred oak, black peppercorn, leather, and a notable burnt butterscotch note act as the aggressors. Fighting back are sweeter notes of vanilla syrup and Mexican chocolate. Try as it might, the sweeter side of faint nougat and light vanilla are no match for burnt marshmallow, leather, and aged oak in the finish. The sip ends with lingering heat and a faint marshmallow note.

Even though Heaven Hill isn’t calling Bernheim Original 20th Anniversary a barrel proof whiskey, compared to the other Barrel Proof batches released to date for the brand, it’s very close in proof and arguably close enough to make a fair comparison. When the brand first released Batch A223, the whiskey’s proof was less than 4 proof points higher. While future batches have climbed in proof, the results haven’t brought an elevated sip that consumers may have expected. The brand often sees itself languishing a bit compared to Heaven Hill’s other barrel proof whiskeys. Bernheim Original 20th Anniversary changes all that, delivering a well-aged high proof whiskey that wheated whiskey lovers will readily enjoy, and it’s the best high proof release for the brand yet. Hopefully, Heaven Hill takes note and incorporates their learnings from this 20th Anniversary release to increase the age of their Barrel Proof line while also fine-tuning the proof. In the meantime, this is a whiskey that finally elevates the brand to a great wheat whiskey for consumers.