Pinhook High Proof Bohemian Bourbon

The first Bourbon made here in fifty years is a splendid inaugural effort.

The story of Pinhook Whiskey starts in 2014 with its first release. You see, each fall the folks in the newly restored Castle & Key Distillery in Frankfort, Kentucky, create a single batch of Bourbon and a single batch of Rye. Each release is named after a thoroughbred racehorse coming up in the Bourbon Lane Stables — the horse’s stats are even printed on the labels. So each issuance is a bit different, just like each racehorse is different. It’s a great story and they sell out every year. In 2016 they refurbished the Old Taylor Distillery (mothballed in 1972) and are now bottling their first completely in-house Spirits.

Pinhook High Proof Bohemian Bourbon is special in several ways. The first is that this particular dram was the first Bourbon in more than fifty years to be produced at the refurbished Castle & Key Distillery. The second special thing is that it is bottled at an impressive 57.25% ABV. The third special thing is that there were only one hundred barrels of this inaugural release, and we managed to get our hands on a few cases.

The mash bill is definitely high-corn at 75% with 15% rye and 10% malted barley and it’s aged for 34 months in new oak.