White Corn Meets Winter Wheat in Castle & Key’s Oldest Age-Stated Bourbon to Date

At the end of September, Kentucky-based Castle & Key Distillery expanded upon its wheated bourbon catalogue with a cask-strength bottling.

The oldest age-stated product from the distillery, the 7-year bourbon is composed of 73% locally grown white corn, 10% winter wheat and 17% malted barley. The unusual mix of white corn and winter wheat sits at the center of the spirit’s profile, said to imbue flavors of pastry dough, red apple and black pepper.

“Our Cask Strength Wheated Bourbon gives the most genuine and pure representation of its mashbill,” lead blender Brett Connors remarked in a news release. “White winter wheat differs from the traditional red wheat usually used in bourbon in color, protein content and gluten development, which has the ability to affect flavor. The result is a ‘wheater’ that highlights a depth and maturity of seven years in the barrel, while retaining the sweet roundness imparted by the white winter wheat.”

Castle & Key Cask Strength Wheated Bourbon is bottled at 52.9% ABV. Fans of the distiller can pick it up at a suggested retail price of $65 in Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas City, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine,  Massachusetts, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Washington State, and Wisconsin.

The project is intended as an ode to the Castle & Key Distillery, previously known as the Old Taylor Distillery when it was purchased and renovated in 2014. The grounds — which vaguely resemble the exterior of a Medieval Times — were constructed in 1887 by Colonel Edmund Haynes Taylor Jr.

The historic distillery was shuffled between different owners in the decades after Prohibition, leading to its eventual abandonment sometime in the mid-2000s. In the hands of Castle & Key, it has been born anew. In addition to its lineup of rye and bourbon whiskeys, we’d be remiss without shouting out the brand’s excellent catalog of gins. Our personal favorite would have to be Castle & Key’s Roots of Ruin expression.

“In 2014 when we began restoring The Old Taylor Distillery — which had fallen to ruin after decades of neglect — we were forward thinking about developing products that fit our broader vision,” co-founder Will Arvin added. “The new Cask Strength Wheated Bourbon is already a favorite of our distillers, warehouse teams, and ownership alike. We invite you to enjoy this coveted blend to mark the tenth anniversary of the restoration of a bourbon icon and continued celebration of our unique Kentucky spirits.”

If you’re interested in picking up the brand’s latest cask strength release, find more information here.