Westport Whiskey & Wine has done another private select barrel from Limestone Branch Distillery. Matt & I tasted a previous selection from 2021 and we both enjoyed it quite a lot. Just as before, Limestone Branch has used a special label for the private selection barrels of Yellowstone. They include a bottle design that reflects back to the bottle used by Yellowstone, starting in the 1930s when they opened the distillery in Shively. The label also pays homage to the label used before Prohibition with the Yellowstone waterfall front and center.  It is an attractive package.

This selection was bottled at a proof of 109 and was barreled on July 6, 2018. There is no age statement on the bottle. Matt and I sat down and tasted this Bourbon and here are our tasting notes.

Yellowstone Kentucky Straight Bourbon Hand Picked Collection, Selected by Westport Whiskey & Wine

Proof: 109

Age: NAS

Nose:

  • Mike: Vanilla, blackberry, hint of brown sugar, baking spice and oak.
  • Matt: Vanilla, raisin, orange, floral and oak.

Taste:

  • Mike: Vanilla, corn, blackberries, cinnamon and oak. Tasting a dried cranberry brings out a cornbread dough and nutmeg. Tasted with a pecan brings out the vanilla and a touch of citrus.
  • Matt: Vanilla, raisin, and ginger. The dried cranberry brought out salted caramel, sweet cherry and ginger root. The pecan brought out ginger root, caramel and coffee with cream and sugar.

Finish:

  • Mike: Medium long with oak, cinnamon and lingering blackberries. The dried cranberry brought out more cinnamon, nutmeg and oak. The pecan made the finish longer with oak, spice and lingering citrus.
  • Matt: Oak, ginger and lemongrass. The dried cranberry brought out oak, brown sugar and floral notes. The pecan brought out oak and black coffee notes.

I would pair this Bourbon with an Opus X cigar from Arturo Fuente, just as I did with the previous Yellowstone selection from Westport Whiskey & Wine. For me, the smoke from the Opus X is full of cedar spiciness that pairs well with the spiciness of the Bourbon.

Photos Courtesy of Rosemary Miller