Our Favorite Bourbons So Far This Year

Town Branch is named after the waterway running through downtown Lexington, Kentucky. The mash bill for this bourbon is 72% corn, 13% rye and 15% malted barley. Released in 2012, it's the third spirit launched by Alltech Lexington Brewing and Distilling Co.

Secrecy surrounds this NAS/NDP bourbon. Here's what we DO know: Wathen’s Kentucky Bourbon — created by eight generations of distillers from Owensboro, KY – is made with a mashbill of 77% corn, 10% rye and 13% malt. This single barrel bourbon is smooth and easy drinking, but still offers a bit of bite at 94 proof.

The name Old Forester was allegedly chosen in honor of a doctor named Forrester, who regularly prescribed the bourbon to his patients at a time when it was still sold in pharmacies "for medicinal purposes." However, the signature for which this bourbon gets its name and which is displayed on each bottle, is the founder of the brand, George Garvin Brown. This is made in both 86 and 100 proof versions.

W.L. Weller — named after William Larue Weller — is a wheated bourbon brand now owned by the Sazerac Company which acquired it in 1999. Made at the Buffalo Trace Distillery, Weller Special Reserve is the entry bottling to the Weller portfolio which features wheat instead of rye as the flavoring grain in the bourbon. It is a no-age statement release which is bottled at 90 proof.

A three-grain bourbon distilled from a mash of corn, rye, and barley in Loveland, Colorado. Aged in new, American white oak barrels this bourbon is bottled at 88 proof.

Wild Turkey Kentucky Spirit is a single barrel bourbon bottled at 101 proof. As with all single barrel releases, there will be slightly different characteristics from one barrel to another. The Kentucky straight bourbon is aged around 8 to 9 years. Each bottle displays the bottling date, warehouse information, barrel number and the signatures of both Jimmy and Eddie Russell, Wild Turkey master distillers. Updated packaging as of fall 2018.

The former George T. Stagg Distillery was renamed Buffalo Trace when Sazerac took over ownership in 1999. Master Distiller Elmer T. Lee came out of retirement for the creation of Buffalo Trace Bourbon which was released later that same year. This is the flagship bourbon from the distillery and is comprised of a low-rye traditional mash bill. It is bottled without an age statement at 90 proof.

Distilled at its namesake Woodford Reserve Distillery located in Versailles, Ky. (formerly called Labrot & Graham Distillery), this Kentucky straight bourbon was first introduced in 1996. It is also known as "Distiller's Select". This high-rye bourbon has a mash bill containing 18% rye. It is made from a combination of pot still and column still whiskey. The bourbon is aged between 6-7 years and carries no age statement. Bottled at 45.2% ABV.

Maker's Mark Bourbon is a wheated bourbon made with a mash bill recipe of 70% locally-grown corn, 16% red winter wheat, and 14% malted barley. This recipe was created by Bill Samuels, Sr. who baked bread with different grains to settle on his mash bill rather than trial and error with distillation. His wife, Margie Samuels, is responsible for the shape of the bottle, the signature label, and the red wax topper. Maker's Mark is aged in char #3 new American oak barrels for 6-7 years. It is bottled at 90 proof.

Launched in 2010, Maker's Mark 46 is made by taking fully matured Maker's Mark Bourbon at cask strength and inserting specially seared French oak staves into the barrels. The bourbon finishes aging for a few months before bottling. The French oak staves selected from the Independent Stave Company, Maker's Mark long time cooperage, were named "Stave Profile No. 46." This is the first brand extension from the distillery since it started production in 1953 and is the first in its Wood Finishing Series. Note: As of March 2022 the brand has updated the packaging for its bottle and label to highlight the French oak staves.