The Last Call

     Smoke Wagon has built a reputation on bold presentation and even bolder sourced whiskey, and their “Triple 7” release leans right into that identity. A blend of three 7-year-old MGP whiskeys, this limited batch (1,600 bottles) plays on symmetry and selection rather than age statements or barrel proofs.      After sourcing from MGP, Smoke Wagon brings the barrels to Nevada, allowing the desert climate to influence the whiskey before blending and bottling it. It’s not barrel proof or single barrel, but rather a carefully selected multi-barrel blend designed to highlight balance across mash bills. What makes this one interesting isn’t just the concept, but the pricing chaos around it. Depending on where you look, this bottle can swing wildly from reasonable to downright ridiculous. So the real question becomes: is what’s in the glass worth the hunt? For the full video review visit the link here:  https://youtu.be/QHqdG2uYk3g . Age Statement: 7 years...

     Old Elk has become one of those instantly recognizable bottles on the shelf, from the unique shape to that signature antler topper. While the brand is known for sourcing and experimenting with different finishes, they’ve carved out a solid reputation for picking quality barrels. This particular bottle came as a bit of a lucky find, scored on clearance, which always makes a review a little more exciting.           Old Elk’s Straight Rye uses the well-known Indiana mash bill of 95% rye and 5% malted barley, distilled by MGP. Rather than finishing or altering the whiskey, this release leans into a more traditional approach, letting the base distillate and barrel selection do the talking. Given Old Elk’s track record, the real question becomes how well they’ve selected and blended these barrels to stand out in a crowded rye category. For the full video review visit the link here:  https://youtu.be/3_GjX985gfI . Age Statement: 5 years. ...

     American Light Whiskey has quietly been having a moment, and bottles like this are exactly why. Once overlooked, this category is finally getting the attention it deserves thanks to strong releases from brands sourcing well-aged stock and letting it shine. Circle City Whiskey Company steps into that spotlight with their first American Light Whiskey release, a 20-year single barrel pick coming in at a hazmat-level 72.5% ABV. Sourced from MGP and selected as a store pick, this is one of those bottles that immediately grabs your attention both on paper and in the glass.      This expression is a single barrel American Light Whiskey distilled at a high proof, above 160 proof, and aged in used or uncharred oak barrels. That aging method sets it apart from bourbon, allowing for a more subtle oak influence even after extended maturation. At 20 years old and hazmat, this whiskey leans heavily on time and barrel interaction to develop character. With a mash bil...

     Penelope has been one of those brands that continues to surprise me in the best way possible, especially since they started showing up more consistently here in Indiana. Their barrel selections, finishing work, and overall consistency have all been incredibly solid, so when I came across this 18-year American Light Whiskey sitting on the shelf, it was an instant buy. It’s not often you see a light whiskey at this age, and it’s even rarer to see one sitting just above the hazmat line.      What really drew me in here wasn’t just the proof or the age. It was the idea of what Penelope could do with older light whiskey stock. Light whiskey is usually known for being softer and more subtle compared to bourbon, but when you add serious age and keep it at hazmat proof, you start wondering just how much flavor they managed to pull out of it. For the full video review visit the link here:  https://youtu.be/Gci5ozlpZ9s . Age Statement: 18 years. ABV: 70.1...

     Circle City Whiskey Company is one of those brands that has slowly earned more and more space on my shelves. Every time a new release drops, it feels like they push the envelope just a little further while still keeping that transparency we all want to see in modern whiskey. Tonight’s pour is their newest release for 2026, the Robusto Blend, and this one immediately caught my attention because it was designed as a cigar-style batch.      I am not a cigar smoker myself, but I have always enjoyed cigar-style bourbons because they tend to lean richer, darker, and more layered while still bringing a higher proof to the table. This one checks all of those boxes before the bottle is even opened.       The Robusto Blend is a four-barrel blend built around both transparency and creativity. Three of the barrels come from Heaven Hill, all at least eight years old, and each one was finished differently. One was placed in a toasted cask, a...

          Rare Saint, based in the Indianapolis area and connected to well-known establishments like  St. Elmo Steak House ,  1933 Lounge , and  Harry & Izzy’s , has been steadily releasing sourced MGP whiskey over the past few years. After being underwhelmed by one of their previous rye releases, I admittedly stepped away for a bit. But I am a sucker for port cask finishes, and this one pulled me right back in.      The Trinity of Port is an ambitious concept: a blend of four MGP mash bills, each at least five years old, finished separately in ruby, tawny, and white port barrels before being blended back together. Limited to just 834 bottles, this release swings for the fences on paper. After blending and resting, the whiskey was divided and finished in ruby, tawny, and white port barrels. Those three components were then blended back together to create the final product.      The transparency here is apprec...

     West Fork Whiskey Company out of Westfield, Indiana continues to be one of the most interesting producers in the state, especially when it comes to creative finishes. This Hugh Hamer Street Bourbon is part of their sourced Old Hamer/Hugh Hamer lineup, pulling from MGP and finished with intention rather than gimmick. This particular bottle was a single barrel pick for the Brownsburg Bourbon Society, finished in grape brandy barrels.      Grape brandy finishes are not something you see often in bourbon, and that alone made this bottle intriguing. After tasting it at the distillery, revisiting it later with a fresh palate felt like the right way to really see if that grape brandy influence held up. For the full video review visit the link here:  https://youtu.be/dtLtdu2OnQg . Age Statement: +7 years. (Single barrel). ABV: 61.81% (Cask strength). Mash bill: 99% corn, 1% malted barley. Area of Distillation:  Lawrenceburg, Indiana. Appearance: ...

     Smoke Wagon is one of those brands that immediately draws attention, partly because of its striking bottle design with wax seals and etched glass, and partly because of the mystery surrounding its sourcing and blending philosophy. Based out of Nevada, Smoke Wagon has built a reputation around curated blends, often utilizing MGP distillate while being unusually transparent about what goes into the bottle. Unfortunately, distribution is limited, and for me that means a drive to Ohio just to pick one up, but curiosity finally got the better of me.      This release is a blend of two distinct rye mash bills. The first consists of 51% rye, 45% corn, and 4% malted barley. The second is one of MGP’s newer recipes, made up of 51% rye and 49% malted barley. These components are blended together and released at a robust proof without clear indication of whether it is true cask strength. The bottle reviewed here was bottled on September 30th, 2023, and is labeled...

     Penelope has been on a real tear lately, and 2025 feels like the year they simply refused to miss. Their track record with MGP distillate has been impressive, but this collaboration with T8ke immediately stood out. Take has long been a respected reviewer and a guiding hand in the r/bourbon community, so hearing he was teaming up with Penelope made this an instant “must buy.”      The bottle itself looks regal, with a noble blue label that feels elevated without trying too hard. And once I learned this was a blend of five to seven-year-old bourbon finished in Sauternes casks at barrel proof, I knew this was going to be something different. Sauternes is a French dessert wine known for its sweetness and expensive barrel costs, so expectations were set high before the cork even moved. Amusingly, this is listed as a “single barrel” despite yielding 900 bottles. Whether that’s a massive cask or loose interpretation, the end result is what matters, and T8ke r...

     West Fork Whiskey Company has been quietly building one of Indiana’s most respected whiskey programs through in-house distilling, aging, and bottling, and now they’re adding another layer with a brand-new label: Tailored Barrel. This release represents their vision of finding truly unique barrels outside of their core lineup and releasing them in their purest form. When I got the opportunity to attend the release event and pick up one of the very first bottles, saying no wasn’t an option.      This particular bottling immediately catches your eye with its elegant presentation and refreshingly honest label. Every detail is there, mash bill, age statement, proof, and source. Transparency like this is still scarse in whiskey, and it’s something I’ll always champion when a brand gets it right.      This bottle is sourced directly from MGP and uses their well-known 95% rye and 5% malted barley mash bill. What makes it exceptional, though, is ...

        Penelope has been on a roll lately, especially since settling under the MGP umbrella, and their recent limited releases have been grabbing attention for good reason. Marshmallow Toast debuted in late 2024 alongside the Cream Brûlée Architect in 2025, and each showcases Penelope’s knack for pulling highly specific flavor profiles from single barrels. I missed the excitement of batch one, but batch two found me at the right moment during my travels, and at a reasonable price. As a longtime Penelope fan and a lover of toasted bourbons, this release had me genuinely excited.      Batch one appears to have been closer to four years old, making batch two a slight age upgrade. The whiskey is then finished in heavily charred No. 3 casks, designed to coax out toasted sweetness, vanilla creaminess, and the “marshmallow toast” character they’re aiming for. The transparency behind this release only adds to its charm, Penelope lets you know exactly how...

     Penelope has become a household name in the bourbon world, and for good reason. Their transparency around sourcing and blending, especially with access to MGP stocks since their acquisition, has led to some exciting releases. With the Weeded Bourbon, Penelope is offering something approachable and shelf-stable, an everyday pour that doesn’t break the bank.      This release is a four-grain bourbon and is only 1% different compared to their standard four-grain. It shifts slightly, boosting the wheat while trimming the barley, a subtle but interesting tweak. The whiskey is aged four to six years, with a blend that includes some older barrels for added depth. At its price point it aims squarely at the budget-friendly market while offering a higher proof than their standard four-grain expression. For the full video review visit the link here:  https://youtu.be/XWegRGLxu3g . Age Statement: 4 years. ABV: 47.5%. Mash bill:  74% corn, 16% wheat, 7% ...

     Rare Saint is a newer brand on the Indiana whiskey scene, with its operations based in Indianapolis. Early indications suggest they do a lot of sourcing from MGP, which is far from a bad thing, MGP makes some excellent whiskey. That said, there’s a bit of marketing questions here, with the bottle labeled as a “limited release” and “rare spirit.” I picked this one up out of curiosity and a desire to support a local brand, hoping to see how they handle barrel selection.      The labeling suggests a two-barrel blend and an official age statement is nowhere to be found on the bottle. Their website mentions a 5-year age, but without that detail on the packaging, it’s left as an assumption. For the full video review visit the link here:  https://youtu.be/DZdKGnv-FUs . Age Statement: 5 years (according to the website). ABV:  57.65%. Mash bill: 95% rye, 5% malted barley. Area of Distillation: Indiana. Appearance: Dark honey. On the nose:  ...

            Penelope has long been a name to watch in the whiskey world, and with their 2025 release of  Cigar Series Chapter One , they’re pushing the boundaries again. This bottle, which I stumbled upon in mid-July, had been out for about a month and a half, but there it was, sitting on a shelf like it was waiting for me. It felt like one of those “last one left” moments, maybe even a bottle someone stashed in the back hoping to grab later. Regardless, it came home with me.      Now, I’m not a cigar smoker myself, but I’ve always had a soft spot for cigar blends. There’s something about the sweeter, often multi-finished profiles that tend to hit my palate just right. This particular entry from Penelope doesn’t rely on multiple barrel finishes the way others in the space do. Instead, they’ve opted for a more blend-forward approach, and honestly, that’s what made me so curious. It’s a bold swing in a genre that’s often dominated by ...

     There’s something oddly charming about Old Hammer. It’s like the quiet cousin of West Fork Whiskey Company—same bloodline, just a little more rough around the edges, and a lot more likely to knock your socks off with cask strength heat. This particular bottle is a single barrel pick selected by the in-house whiskey club over at West Fork, and while I wasn’t lucky enough to be on the tasting panel for the pick, I  was  there on release day. One pour in, and I knew it deserved a closer look.      Here’s the deal: Old Hammer leans hard into the MGP pipeline, and this bottle is built on the classic 99% corn, 1% malted barley mash bill. That’s the sort of recipe that usually doesn't see much love, so to see it dressed up in an 8-year-old cask strength expression is great. Due to the mash bill you highly rely on the barrel, age, and proof to do the lifting scene there's really no other grains BUT corn to bring complexity. It felt like someone hande...

          Three Floyds Distilling, based in Munster Indiana, has long been a powerhouse in the craft beer world with legendary brews like Zombie Dust and Gumball Head. Over the last several years, they’ve been steadily building their spirits portfolio, distilling, aging, and bottling everything in-house, often experimenting with unique grains like oats and beer malt. Their label art is as wild and unapologetic as their recipes, and when I stopped by in May 2025 to pick up their Dark Lord Straight Malt, something else caught my eye: their first rye whiskey release.      While the distillery offered a 7-year version at the time, I stumbled upon this 4-year bottling on store shelves. At first, I thought I had the 7-year in my hands, only to later learn this was the younger sibling. Adding another twist, the liquid inside was sourced from MGP, nothing wrong with that, as they make fantastic whiskey, but not distilled by Three Floyds themselves. W...

     Let me be honest up front, I had written this one off. Penelope’s “Crème Brûlée” finish in their Architect Series sounded like a gimmick, another novelty bottling destined to get dusty on a shelf. But curiosity got the better of me when I heard a nearby shop had just one bottle left. A quick phone call and a gracious store clerk later, I found myself making the hour-long drive to secure it. Now, I’ve always liked what Penelope puts out. While I haven’t had every single expression, the ones I’ve tried hit that sweet spot. And with Penelope now officially under the MGP umbrella, they’ve been churning out some seriously strong offerings.       Penelope uses a three-grain mash bill here. The whiskey is aged at least five years and finished using French oak staves, specifically selected in collaboration with a French cooperage using what they call “oak stave technology.” These staves are chosen to emphasize the flavors of a classic crème brûlée, think ...

     Three Cord has been on my radar for a while now, they’ve put out some fun finished bourbons, and the toasted/honey combo they released before was downright phenomenal. So when I spotted this six-year, cask strength, single barrel double oak pick from Lake Liquors, I knew it was coming home with me. Double oaks are a personal weakness, and this one had that “buy it now or regret it later” kind of look. At $50, it was an easy decision.      This one’s sourced from Indiana, yep, we’re talking MGP. It was barreled January 18, 2016, and bottled May 22, 2023, then given the double oak treatment in a fresh new charred barrel for extra depth and sweetness. That six-year age puts it right in MGP’s sweet spot, where the bourbon still has some liveliness but has built up enough oak character to really shine. The proof sits at 55.4%, giving you all the richness you want without tipping into palate fatigue territory. For the full video review visit the link here: ...