Journeyman W.R. Whiskey

Youthful and strong, but surprisingly soft and floral.

Three Oaks, Michigan is a small town of about fifteen-hundred at the most southwestern tip of the state. If it were a mile or two further south it would be in Indiana. Journeyman Distillery is located there and bills itself as a working-man’s shop. The building was a buggy whip and corset manufacturer back in the 1800s, and it is this history that influences the names of their nineteen products — from Featherbone Bourbon to Buggy Whip Wheat and beyond.

Journeyman W.R. Organic Whiskey is a new make spirit — not quite White Lightning, but darned close to it. After distillation it is placed into new white oak barrels for less than a day. Why do that, you ask? Believe it or not, even marginal contact with wood and air allow some of the more volatile compounds to dissipate and shave off the rougher edges. The mash bill is mostly rye, but there is a healthy dose of wheat as well — the same as their Last Feather Rye Whiskey. Rye brings the spice and wheat smoothes things out, so there is a good balance. Their point is to showcase the flavors of their pure, organic spirit without the influence of the wood. And at 45% ABV, there is strength to spare.