Bardstown Bourbon Company Cathedral French Oak Barrel Finish Bourbon Review

Bardstown Bourbon Company
Distillery Reserve
Cathedral French Oak Barrel Finish
Blend of Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskeys
Finished for 14 Months in 300 Year Old French Oak Barrels
110.1 Proof
MSRP: $99.99 / 375ml bottle
Review

Please enjoy our Bardstown Bourbon Company Cathedral French Oak Barrel Finish Bourbon Review!

“It’s Like Notre Dame in a Glass”

The Distillery Reserve Series

Bardstown Bourbon Company has announced their latest collection of whiskeys, Distillery Reserve. As the name would suggest, these whiskeys will only be available at their tasting rooms in Bardstown and Louisville, Kentucky. The inaugural release of the series is Cathedral French Oak Barrel Finish Bourbon, a very unique whiskey which “marries revered tradition with experimentation.”

Details

Bardstown Bourbon Company’s Distillery Reserve whiskeys will be produced on a small scale. They will be blends created with from two to nine barrels of whiskey. We are not told at which end of the spectrum Cathedral French Oak Barrel Finish Bourbon lies. However, it is a blend of Kentucky Straight Bourbons aged between 9 to 18 years, and subsequently finished for 14 months in barrels crafted from 300-year-old French Oak from the legendary Bercé Forest in the Loire Valley. The trees used for these barrels were originally harvested to restore the iconic Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, following the fire of 2019.

If you are interested in the specific bourbons used in this blend, here they are. Note that 85% of the component bourbons are aged 14 years or greater!

Tasting Notes – Bardstown Bourbon Company Distillery Reserve Cathedral French Oak Barrel Finish Bourbon Review

Let’s taste it:

🛏 Rested for 15 minutes in a Glencairn

👉🏻Nose: Brown sugar, vanilla, & sweet dry oak; subtle tart orange peel; sweet toffee; hints of sweet cherry candies and rich milk chocolate; alcohol vapor appropriate for the proof
👉🏻Taste: Syrupy brown sugar, dark caramel, hints of dark cherries; spicy dry oak
👉🏻Finish: Crescendoing and lingering capsaicin spice, tart orange peel, dry oak, dark caramel syrup, tannins, increasingly dry; exceptionally long; deep warmth

The nose of Bardstown Bourbon Company Cathedral French Oak Barrel Finish Bourbon is rich and thick, with brown sugar, vanilla and toffee, as well as hints of sweet cherry candies and rich milk chocolate. Those confectionary-like flavors are all on a background of sweet dry oak. To add some additional complexity, there is also tart orange peel, which becomes more noticeable as time goes on.

The taste begins with a moderate amount of sweetness, with syrupy brown sugar and dark caramel on a background of dark cherries. However, fairly rapidly, spicy dry oak, crescendoing capsaicin spice, and tart orange peel rise up, and last throughout the long finish. In addition, thick caramel syrup lingers in my mouth; however, there are quite a bit of tannins, and an increasing dryness, as well. Also, the oak becomes even more dry, while the finish lasts an eternity. Deep warmth and spice fill my chest.

A Very Complex Bourbon

Bardstown Bourbon Company Cathedral French Oak is a very complex bourbon. From the very beginning, with its confectionary like flavors, hints of sweet cherry candy and sweet dry oak, this bourbon stands out. Those flavors continue into the taste, but fairly rapidly transition, with increasing spice, dryness and tannins. Yet, there is lingering dark caramel, as well. The constant throughout the sip is dry oak; however, its character changes throughout it, as well.

Conclusion

Bardstown Bourbon Company Cathedral French Oak Barrel Finish Bourbon is one of the most unique bourbons that Bardstown Bourbon Company has ever released. That is no small statement, given the creativity behind the wide range of whiskeys that this distillery has in its repertoire. Nevertheless, from the heritage of the oak used for the finishing barrels, to the high average age of the Kentucky bourbons in this blend, combined with the full complex flavors supporting the dry oak background, this bourbon is truly one of a kind.

Does this bourbon really taste like Notre Dame Cathedral in a glass? That’s tough to say, since I have never tasted Notre Dame, let alone in a glass. Regardless, this bourbon should be on the short list for anyone who enjoys a bourbon packed with rich confectionary flavors combined with a healthy dose of dry oak. Is that you? It’s definitely me. Have you tried Bardstown Bourbon Company Distillery Reserve Cathedral French Oak Barrel Finish Bourbon? What did you think? I’d like to know! Cheers!🥃

But Wait, There’s More

We hope you have enjoyed our Bardstown Bourbon Company Distillery Reserve Cathedral French Oak Barrel Finish Bourbon Review! If you would like to learn more about the distillery, check out our Bardstown Bourbon Company Tour Review. Better still, read about the second release in the Distillery Reserve Series in our Bardstown Bourbon Company Hokkaido Mizunara Oak Barrel Finish Review. Or, learn more about other bourbons from BBC in our Bardstown Bourbon Company Origin Series Bourbon Review, our Bardstown Bourbon Company Origin Series Bottled In Bond Bourbon Review, our Bardstown Bourbon Company Discovery Series 13 Review and Bardstown Bourbon Company Distillery Reserve Mars Single Malt Japanese Blend Announced.

Note: This bottle was graciously provided by the brand for my review. Thank you!

Would you like to learn more about distilleries and bourbon? Are you planning a trip to Kentucky Distilleries? Maybe you would like to live the bourbon life vicariously through us? If any of these are true, then check out BourbonObsessed.com today!