Bold baking spices | Charred cinnamon | Burnt caramel | Charred oak | Raisins | Orange rind | Billowing ethanol

Leather | Dry oak | Raisins | Hints of syrup | Rye spice | Cinnamon spice | Prominent dry notes

Syrup-soaked raisins | Aged oak | Rye spice | Leather | Brown sugar | Bold lingering heat

Nashtucky Distilling is a spin-off product line from Nashville Barrel Company. The name derives from the fact that Tennessee and Kentucky share a border, and that the spirits were partially aged, bottled, and blended in Nashville. The back of the bottle states that the “product pays homage to the complexity of our shared history and is made with the utmost pursuit of whiskey perfection. It also asks the question “Does the complexity come from the distillation in KY or the barrel aging in TN?” It’s an interesting statement seeing that Nashville Barrel Company didn’t buy its first batch of barrels until 2018 so who knows how long this barrel spent aging in Kentucky versus Tennessee.

The backstory of the brand aside, this bottle is still an 8 year old single barrel of Kentucky distilled bourbon. This particular barrel displays traits of much older bourbon, with prominent dry and spice notes being noticeable throughout. The nose is quick to reveal its high proof and the rest of the sip embraces this fact. Priced at $130, the price of admission feels steep considering that you can get a bottle of Elijah Craig Barrel Proof for almost half the price. However, at the end of the day this particular barrel will please those looking for a bold sip that hones in on dry spicier notes. It’s a nice inaugural release by Nashtucky, and even if the backstory may be a little contrived, I look forward to seeing what future releases the brand brings to market.

The bourbon being reviewed comes from barrel number KY-2801 with the designation of “Crushable” on the label.