Breaking Bourbon Award Winning Single Barrel Club picks are selected by Breaking Bourbon, and whenever possible with the help of Patreon supporters. The bottles are made available to Patreon supporters first by pledge tier. If any bottles remain after all supporters have had an opportunity to purchase, they are made available to the public on a first come, first served basis. Each barrel is sponsored by a retailer partner, who sells the bottles directly to end purchasers.

Retailer Partner: Grain & Vine

Name: Kings County Barrel Strength Straight Bourbon

Company: Kings County Distillery

Distillery: Kings County Distillery

Age: 4 Years

Proof: 131.4

Mashbill: 80% New York Organic Corn, 20% English Malt

Yield: 51 Bottles

Release Date: November 2020

Single Barrel Club Rollout Schedule

$25 - Wednesday 11/4/2020 @ 2PM ET

$14 - Friday 11/6/2020 @ 2PM ET

$7 - Monday 11/9/2020 @ 2PM ET

$3, $2, $1 - Wednesday 11/11/2020 @ 2PM ET

This is our second pick with Grain & Vine which is located in Brooklyn, NY. Incidentally, Kings County Distillery is located nearby in the 121-year-old Paymaster Building in the Brooklyn Navy Yard. Kings County Distillery was founded in 2010, making it New York City's oldest whiskey distillery.

Kings County distills all of the whiskey they bottle, and was once the smallest commercial distillery in the country operating out of a 325 square foot room in East Williamsburg. In 2012 the distillery moved operations to their now current location in the Brooklyn Navy Yard, an area known for the legendary Whiskey Wars starting in 1869 and ultimately wreaking havoc on Brooklyn.

Kings County creates their whiskey using Scotting copper pot stills and open fermentation, with single barrel selections being relatively rare. In this case the selection included five barrels to choose from. Each of the five barrels was 15 gallons, however they ranged in age from 3 years and 6 months to 4 years and 7 months. The selection was done blind, as noted only by the letter on the sample. Consistent across each was a “how did they do this?” element, surprising us relative to their age and fact that the whiskeys were aged in 15 gallon barrels - two elements we would not have guessed on taste.

Two barrels emerged from the set of five, both offering a delicious black licorice note and an oily mouthfeel. However setting those two aside for direct comparison, the winner became more obvious with much deeper complexity and more rounded delivery of flavors. Sample H - the oldest at 4 years and 7 months, reigned supreme.

For the sticker concept we wanted to keep this one simple. With the distillery located in our home state of New York, a kind of “New York Strong” theme developed. Further, Kings County’s very simple black and white labels inspired a black and white theme (with a few pops of color), and the “I Love NY Bourbon!” name showcasing the iconic Statue of Liberty emerged.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Dark fruit | Caramel | Raisins | Rich and robust

Palate: Black licorice | Vanilla | Caramel | Developing spice | Light aged oak | Oily mouthfeel | Well rounded

Finish: Brown sugar sweetness up front | Graham cracker | Lingering spice

Distillers, Producers, and Retailers: If you would like to be a part of this program and get your name in front of millions of bourbon enthusiasts, contact us.

‍Please note these bottles will not be sold by Breaking Bourbon, but will be sold by retailers we partner with in order to fulfill the orders and ship the bottles directly to Patreon supporters. Breaking Bourbon will receive no compensation from our partner retailers under these agreements (with the exception of a bottle from each barrel for editorial purposes). If you represent a retailer and ship to consumers and you’re interested in partnering just let us know!