Roasted marshmallow | Hint of berries | Burnt oak | Touch of caramel | Earthy undertone | Surprisingly light for the proof

Graham cracker | Vanilla | Caramel | Baking spices | Burnt oak | Traditional flavors with a nice body & mouthfeel

Rush of spice | Black pepper | Hot pepper spice | Long with lingering spicy heat

High n’ Wicked describes itself as “an importer and specialty bottler of exceptional whiskies.” The company was founded by L. Lyons Brown, III and Kevin E. Sachs in 2019, both of whom were former Brown-Forman senior executives. The company is extremely transparent in the fact that they source their whiskey, but also in listing many of the details a consumer would be interested in knowing about the whiskey they are purchasing, down to the style of mash, barrel char, and type of still that was used to distill the whiskey.

This cask strength version complements High n’ Wicked Straight Bourbon, which is the company’s standard version, and is similar in technical details with the exception of the whiskey’s lower 104 proof. Both variations are distilled using sweet mash and with a copper column still, aged in char #4 barrels, and non-chill filtered for bottling. Vanilla, caramel, baking spices, and burnt oak form the base. Surprisingly, it offers a tepid nose for the proof, but makes up for it and then some with a long, spicy finish. Undoubtedly, the cask strength version will please bourbon purists who enjoy a spicy bourbon and is only slightly more expensive than the standard version.