Kings County Bottled in Bond Bourbon Spring 2022

Kings County Bottled in Bond Bourbon Spring is a six-and-a-half-year-old bonded bourbon bottled at 100 proof.

Bottled in Bond is arguably the highest class of American whiskey, a federal designation covering spirits distilled, aged and bottled entirely at one distillery from barrels filled in a single season, aged at least four years and bottled at precisely 100 proof. Kings County was one of the very first craft distillers to put one out. The autumn 2015 distilling season yielded 23 bourbon barrels of 53 gallons each, and just eight of them made the cut for Batch 11, which went into bottle in the spring of 2022. At six and a half years old it was the distillery's oldest bonded blend to that point, and the first to use standard-format barrels exclusively.

Layered and composed, with toffee, spiced apple, dried stone fruit and sustained oak, the 100 proof holding it all together. Neat in a small glass, with water on the side. An Old Fashioned made with this needs very little sugar.