Wilderness Trail Distillery is the distillery that grew out of the Ferm-Solutions company in Danville, Kentucky. Ferm-Solutions is a biotech company that grows yeast strains for distilleries, wineries and breweries as well as helps them when they have problems with their yeast and fermentation process. It was only natural that they expanded into distilling their own spirits. They have been doing so for over four years now and they have released their first Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon.

This Bourbon is the newest Bourbon in the wheat recipe category. It is also the first sweet mash wheat recipe Bourbon on the market since prohibition. The mash bill is 64% corn, 24% wheat and 12% barley malt. They source their grains other than barley from local farmers.  The barrel entry proof is 110 and that is good. I would like to see it lower. I consider Roy Hawes the master of the wheat recipe Bourbon since he was the distiller at Stitzel-Weller for over 20 years and made all of the 1950s and 60s Bourbon that everyone covets. Hawes put his Bourbon in the barrel at 107 proof. I believe the wheat recipe shines best at the lower barrel entry proofs. The 110 entry proof is good but 107 would be better.

Wilderness Trail Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon

Proof: 100

Age: NAS – four years old

Nose: Caramel and vanilla with some corn sweetness. There are some ripe apple and pear notes with a hint of hazelnuts.

Taste: Caramel apple and pecans with some baking spices and oak. Tasted with a dried cranberry brings forward the baking spices and the oak. Tasted with a pecan brings out a creamy vanilla and apple note.

Finish: Dry oak and pepper spice. The dried cranberries make the finish very spicy but less pepper and more baking spices. The pecan makes the finish very dry with lots of oak and less spice.

This is a very good Bourbon. I look forward to getting this every time they release a new vintage. I am pairing it today with an All Out Kings, Give me Your Lunch Money cigar. The smoke brings out the fruity sweetness of the Bourbon while the Bourbon sweetens the smoke with some vanilla notes. A nice pairing and my first of 2018 on my front porch.

Photos Courtesy of Rosemary Miller