Starlight Distillery Honey Reserve Bourbon Whiskey is produced in Indiana and bottled at 53% ABV. It blends 5- to 7-year-old bourbons from two mashbills: 60% corn, 20% rye and 20% malted barley; and 51% corn, 9% wheat, 20% rye and 20% malted barley. Double pot distilled, the whiskey is first aged in new American oak before finishing 4 to 12 months in charred and toasted barrels that previously held Starlight’s estate-harvested honey. It is priced at around $64.99.
This is easily among the best honey-finished bourbons I’ve tasted. For those who have found others in this style too sugary or one-note, Honey Reserve offers a convincing reason to take another look at what honey-cask whiskey can deliver.