For this release, Bardstown sourced a 12 year old MGP bourbon then collaborated with Chateau de Laubade to acquire some of their Gascon oak Armagnac barrels to finish the bourbon for 18 months before it was deemed ready and bottled at 59.2%. The nose starts with musty grapes, dusty leather-bound books and cavernous minerality then cocoa powder dusted prunes, cigar wrappers and candied pecans followed by caramelized pears, dehydrated figs and cherry pie filling that transitions to spearmint, cloves, ginger and freshly lacquered antique furniture with medium ethanol burn. The taste is a rich oily mouthfeel starting creamy sweet orange that fades to musty grapes, dusty leather-bound books and cavernous minerality before a mild spice that quickly fades to cocoa powder dusted prunes, freshly lit cigar and pecan pie followed by caramelized pears, fig jam and cherries jubilee that transitions to spearmint, cloves, ginger and freshly lacquered antique furniture with medium ethanol burn. The finish is long with freshly lit sweet pipe tobacco, flinty minerality, caramelized pears, Morello cherry jam, musty grapes, spearmint, cloves, dusty leather-bound books and freshly lacquered antique furniture. This is a stunningly complex and rich bourbon that the combination of old MGP with those Armagnac casks has created a musty, earthy and cavernous forward dram that the traditional bourbon notes of creamy citrus, roasted nuts and mild rye are secondary but all the flavors work in near perfect balance to create a unique experience of earthy, sweet, savory and spice that finishes long and lingers for minutes after each sip. For me, this is the best bourbon that Bardstown has ever created and was a bargain at the price of $125 when I bought it. Unfortunately the secondary seems to have gone nuts over this one and isn’t worth the mark up, but I did see this in a few bars in Kentucky for a reasonable price and would recommend anyone to give it a try if they can find it for a justifiable price.