Dark cherry | Caramel | Toffee | Sandalwood | Rich

Raisin | Dense seasoned oak | Toasted nut | Caramel | Creamy mouthfeel | Rich & full-flavored

Baking spices | Raisin | Aged oak | Rich & long

Located on the grounds of the Huber estate in Starlight, Indiana, this family-run distillery has roots that date back to 1843. The location is a tourist attraction, and they produce everything from wine to brandy and whiskeys. Starlight Distillery began distilling bourbon in 2013 and is one of the most ambitious producers when it comes to finishing whiskey, from being one of the early experimenters with Amburana finishing to apple brandy, Triple Sec, and even champagne.

While Mizunara is gaining popularity as a finishing barrel in the American whiskey space, the cost and scarcity of barrels remains the bottleneck for widespread adoption compared to more common finishing barrels. Moreover, Mizunara provides less additional flavor, compared with finishing barrels such as Amburana, rum, or various red wine barrels, instead acting more as an enhancer of the flavors that are already present with some commonly found attributes, albeit subtle, such as coconut, sandalwood, tropical fruits, and various spices.

This is Starlight Distillery’s third Mizunara-finished batch, and shares similar traits with their previous batch, though it is not the same whiskey. It is again made from an 8-barrel batch, is composed of an undisclosed base blend of the same two mashbills, has an 8 year age statement, and is proofed similarly at 110 (compared to 112 for the previous batch). However, Batch #0003 is a richer bourbon compared to Batch #0002’s more delicate delivery.

It leads with dark cherry, caramel, toffee, and sandalwood on the nose, delivered with depth and richness that’s noticeable right away. The palate brings raisin, dense seasoned oak, toasted nut, and caramel, all of which are offered with a creamy mouthfeel and rich, full-flavored intensity. Baking spices, raisin, and aged oak round out the long, equally rich finish.

I can’t remember a Mizunara-finished bourbon I didn’t like, and the third batch of Starlight Distillery Mizunara Finished Bourbon is no exception. This might be due in part to the fact that Mizunara barrels are so valuable, incentivizing producers to give extra attention to these particular releases because of the additional financial risk involved and the general premium the finishing style has so far been able to command. Regardless, this year’s release of Starlight Distillery Mizunara Finished Bourbon is a rich, delicious finished whiskey that’s worth its $150 price tag.

‍The bourbon in review is from Batch #0003.