Wilderness Trail Bottled in Bond Single Barrel Bourbon (Wheated Bourbon)

This hasn't been an easy review to write. I find this to be a perfectly adequate bourbon. It's soft, sweet, the proof is good, the packaging and transparency are all up to snuff for any bourbon geek, and I can tell that these guys are going to be big players in the coming years. BUT. Despite all that, I have some notes for these guys on the highly unlikely chance any of them are patrolling Distiller reviews (though I know that happens occasionally around here). 1. Hire a blender. As I look through reviews of Wilderness Trail products, they're all over the place. At this stage, the single barrel program isn't doing any favors for your brand. Hit and miss isn't good marketing. I feel like they have enough ageing stock now that they can start to create a batched product as their flagship. Keep the proof and/or the Bottled in Bond, but shoot for more consistency. 2. Start using older stock as the flagship rather than the special edition. I'd wager my bottle is right around 4 years old given the BiB statement, and that there's a 6 year old "special edition" out there. I'd say 6-8 years should be the average age of a batched flagship product. 3. Tinker with your cask management a bit. This is a perfectly lovely sip, but it tips in the astringent direction in the finish, and some of those youngish craft notes start threatening to overtake. 4. When you do come up with a batched flagship line, make it more affordable, say in the $30 range so it can play against Four Roses Small Batch, Makers 101, Buffalo Trace, etc. The $50 price tag, while understandable given the novelty of the distillery, is a bit too much for what you get. I'll be keeping my eyes on this distillery as the years slide on. They're definitely on to something and I love their science-based sweet mash approach. If they work on the aforementioned things, they'll be hanging with the big dogs soon enough.

Caramel, vanilla, smooooth

Oak, fruity, spice

very nice. vanilla custard nose. smooth sweet caramel with a light oak.

3/20/21 - +Williams and Munro

Barrel 16A21J, bottle 76 of 250. Sweet nose of honeyed biscuits and fresh baked wheat bread. Notes of creme brulee with a hint of citrus pith. More butter toffee sweetness in the tongue, but the proof definitely shines through. Buttered popcorn and nuttiness as it finishes. Medium finish. Solid wheated bourbon. $43 @ Costco, have seen for $55-60+ elsewhere.