Bardstown Bourbon The Prisoner Whiskey Review

Today’s whiskey specialty review, the Bardstown Bourbon The Prisoner Whiskey, comes from one of the most exciting new distilleries in America. However, this contains none of their own whiskey… yet. The base is a 9-year-old bourbon from Tennessee (Dickel?) which is finished in The Prisoner French Oak red wine barrels for at least 18 months.

Bardstown Bourbon The Prisoner Whiskey

To be clear, this isn’t a bourbon. It’s just a whiskey due to the use of the wine barrels. Thankfully the BBCo isn’t marketing as a bourbon, unlike Jim Beam and the Legent. They’re listing this under their Collaboration Series and marketing it as such. Good job folks.

Bardstown Bourbon The Prisoner Whiskey Review: Details and Tasting Notes

In Bardstown Bourbon Company’s Words:

Bardstown Bourbon Company & The Prisoner Wine Collaboration is the latest addition to the Bardstown Bourbon Company’s Collaborative Series, a line of innovative finished bourbons, which saw new products finished in brandy and Muscat Mistelle barrels in 2019.

Bardstown Bourbon The Prisoner Whiskey Details

Details (price, mash bill, cask type, ABV, etc.)

Region: USA, TN

Distiller: Undisclosed (likely Dickel)
Finisher/Bottler: Bardstown Bourbon Company
Mash Bill: At least 51% corn + rye + malted barley
Cask: New Charred Oak, ex-Red Wine barrels (French Oak)
Age: 9 years
ABV: 50%

Non-Chill Filtered | Natural Color

Price: $125

Tasting Notes

EYE
Ruby

NOSE
Oak, strawberry Necco, wine, sticky dried fruit, brown sugar, char and touches of leather and citrus.

PALATE
Oak, dark fruit, olde candy, orchard fruit, hazelnuts and bits of wine, spice and leather.

FINISH
Long -> Oak, wine sweetness and tart candy.

BALANCE, BODY & FEEL
Great sense of balance, full body and a softly dry feel.

Sweet and rustic with wine and Tennessee bourbon notes coming through in equal complimenting waves. A lovely whiskey.

Bardstown Bourbon The Prisoner Whiskey Review: Overall and Score

I like it. Aroma carries a warm sweet and rustic profile with the wine notes pairing nicely with the bourbon notes; Palate is also sweet and rustic withe some tartness – it carries a nice complexity; Finish is lively and heavy and goes on and on. The wine and whiskey notes come through on equal footing.

This is a really nice whiskey. I don’t often like bourbon finished in wine casks but this one is very well done. Though I think it helps that Bardstown Bourbon The Prisoner Whiskey uses a “Tennessee Bourbon” (Dickel?) instead of a KY bourbon. The lighter corn-forward nature of the whiskey works incredibly well with the red wine. Water brings out a bit of cocoa and syrupy dark fruit on aroma and on the palate, the wine really explodes but stays balanced and delightful.

SCORE: 4/5

*Disclosure: The sample for this whiskey review was graciously sent to me by the company without obligation. The views, opinions, and tasting notes are 100% my own.

Bardstown Bourbon The Prisoner Whiskey Review