Stone fruit | Yellow cake | Banana chips | Light creamy vanilla | Nutmeg

Caramel | Honey | Brown sugar | Rye spice | Vanilla frosting | Charred oak | Summer fruits

Rye spice | White pepper corn | Brown butter | Vanilla | Tannic oak | Faint tobacco leaf

Starlight Distillery is located on the grounds of the Huber estate. Housing Huber’s Orchard & Winery, according to the company, they “began farming back in 1843 when our ancestors settled in Starlight, Indiana, from Baden-Baden, Germany. Growing primarily fruit, our farm began to diversify in 1978 when we opened the doors of our winery.” Now on its 7th generation, Huber estate produces a variety of crops that are grown alongside the onsite distillery that produces an assortment of brandies and whiskeys. They began distilling bourbon in 2013.

Unlike the company’s standard Bottled in Bond Bourbon, Dana Huber Reserve Bottled in Bond Bourbon was crafted by Dana Huber, who, for years, has worked alongside her husband and sons. Starlight states that “the final composition of this Bottled in Bond bourbon was shaped during an intensive six-month selection period. Dana personally evaluated and hand-selected just ten barrels, each chosen for its unique character and contribution to the final blend.”

Letting Dana Huber have a crack at creating the company’s latest Bottled in Bond Bourbon produces an interesting result. It's clear her palate leaned towards sweet, creamy notes that are accentuated by oak for this release. The bourbon starts off with an inviting aroma that pulls out scents of stone fruit, creamy vanilla, and yellow cake. The midpoint focuses on sweet flavors and adds a pleasing rye spice and charred oak component, which adds balance to the composition. While the rye spice carries through to the finish, the charred oak morphs to more of a tannic oak note. Brown butter and vanilla add additional contrast.

A standard bottle of Starlight Bottled in Bond bourbon is adorned with Master Distiller Ted Huber’s signature. It usually presents as a consistently good bourbon that highlights a grain-to-glass distillery, with the majority of the grains used grown on the Huber Farm. For this edition of Starlight Distillery Dana Huber Reserve Bottled in Bond Bourbon, the bottle is adorned with Master Blender Dana Huber’s signature. There might be a little friendly ribbing at the dinner table, as Dana’s take on the company’s bottled-in-bond bourbon is great and stands a hair above her husband’s releases. Hopefully, the company leans into this husband-and-wife dynamic more often, as it’s fun to see two people so close to a product interpret what they feel is the best foot forward for the brand.