Oak | Vanilla | Honey | Black tea leaf | Very faint

Tannic oak | Black peppercorn spice | Powdered vanilla | Proof shines through

Dry tannic oak | Coating black peppercorn | Mouth suckingly dry | Hot

West Fork Whiskey Co. was established in 2014 in Indianapolis, Indiana, by three Indiana natives, brothers Blake and Julian Jones, and childhood best friend David McIntyre. The company produces a number of bourbons and ryes under the West Fork Whiskey Co. name, including the Old Hamer line of bourbon. The whiskey lines are differentiated by mashbill, with Old Hamer containing a 99% corn and 1% malted barley mashbill versus a more traditional mashbill in their West Fork Whiskey Co line.

The bourbon starts the sip on an interesting journey, mainly due to how light the initial aroma is considering the proof. For a 115.4 proof bourbon, you’d expect bold scents, instead, you’re greeted with basic bourbon notes and a touch of black tea leaf, which are all delivered very lightly. The midpoint reveals the bourbon's true colors as the proof shines through, delivering tannic oak, black peppercorn spice, and powdered vanilla. The tannic oak and black pepper carry over to the finish, combining forces to deliver a mouth suckingly dry finish and heat that continue to build and end things on a note you’d soon rather forget. I wasn’t completely surprised by Old Hammer sip considering I’ve found the company’s standard West Fork Whiskey products to deliver a more run-of-the-mill sip. However, due to the proof’s influence in the palate and the mouth-suckingly dry finish, Old Hamer Cask Strength Bourbon delivers a sip that many will not be going back for seconds.

The bottle in review comes from batch Dec33.