Founded in 1935 just as prohibition ended and known as “Old Heavenhill Springs” distillery by a group of investors from the Bardstown-area as well as the five Shapira brothers, David, Ed, Gary, George and Mose.

December 13, 1935 was the date the first barrel was filled and in 1942 the distillery was shut down by the Government and ordered to produce Alcohol for the war effort, shortly after the war ended the distillery was back in production and on the 30th September 1955 the 500,000th barrel is filled..

In 2018 the 8 million barrel mark is reached and the 1000th barrel is filled for the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience.. The brand today is responsible for expressions such as – Bernheim Original Kentucky Straight Wheat Whiskey, Elijah Craig, Evan Williams and Rittenhouse to name just a few..

That Boutique-y Whisky Company

TBWC goes international once again with batch 1 from Heaven Hill Distillery, although it might not be the first Heaven Hill liquid to be bottled by them !! If you read my review for the 24 year old Bourbon Whiskey then there was a discussion to the origins of the liquid and Heaven Hill was one of the possibilities ( find it HERE )

The trend to bottle liquid from the states just shows that Bourbon is starting to become loved by a larger audience here in the UK and Europe with many believing the liquid was just too sweet for the palate of most whisky drinkers but with the shifting market and rising prices of ” Scotch ” the we are all looking for an alternative liquid and Bourbon is certainly one of the markets we are turning to ! Don’t get me wrong the Bourbon market has always been strong but it certainly has not had the effect it is having right now..

The laws in America are slightly different than the laws governing Scotch as they only have to have 51% of the named ingredients as in 51% corn, 51% wheat or 51% Rye instead of the 100% barley needed to produce Scotch and of course if its Bourbon then it has to be matured in Virgin Oak..

As with all the labels adorning the TBWC bottles giving us an insight into the contents this label offers some very typical American things like Jeans, Hot dogs and eagles feet, a baseball and of course a rocket !!

Batch 1 – 9 year old Heaven Hill

Distillery.. Heaven Hill

Region.. USA

Age.. 9 years

Abv.. 48.4%

Casks.. Virgin American Oak

Batch.. 1

Outturn.. 1177 bottles

Bottler.. That Boutique-y Whisky Company

Nose.. Butterkist popcorn, corn on the cob and American cream soda jump out of the glass with gingerbread, icing sugar and candied orange and a soft earthy note having a little say in the aroma stakes..

Palate.. Spices liven this up with Ginger giving most of the initial heat, oak is evident with a touch of rye notes coming into play. Vanilla and caramel lead into subtle tropical fruit notes and a slap of manuka honey balances it all out nicely..

Finish.. More oak and a little citrus bitterness

Thoughts.. This is a long way off those very sweet offerings we are used to, the maturation and mashbill have offered us a more spicy liquid and with the sweet side being a little more subdued this should certainly appeal to a wider audience.. The palate certainly swings between some sweetness and spice which gives it a more rounded and balance feel in my opinion..

American whiskey / Bourbon is getting more popular and with the high end offerings commanding quite a high price tag then this does seem like a good price ( £45 ) for a 9 year old.. Don’t let the 9 year old age statement scare you either as maturation in the states is totally different to Scotland and 9 years is actually getting towards the older end of the typical bourbon age tag..

As the big day approaches fast and the number of windows on the Advent Calendar decreases I have to say it has been great fun again this year enjoying the drams and sharing my thoughts with you all.. My thanks go out to That Boutiquey Whisky Company for once again giving me the opportunity to review the calendar although I had also bought one this year to do the countdown!!

If you fancy a bottle of Todays dram then you can find it HERE