A Smith Bowman launches latest cask strength Bourbon

Sazerac’s microdistillery A Smith Bowman has released the third batch of its annual cask strength Bourbon whiskey.

This year’s release was hand-selected by A Smith Bowman’s distiller David Bock and aged for a minimum of nine years. The 67.55% ABV whisky is uncut and non-chill-filtered.

Bock said: “When tasting through our barrel inventory, the nine-year-old barrels had a wonderful complexity and sweetness that I wanted to incorporate in this blend.

“We believe our Cask Strength [range] is about crafting the best possible cask strength whiskey we can provide from our stocks. I’m excited for fans to try this year’s release.”

The Bourbon is said to have aromas of ‘candy apple and a strong maple’ while, on the palate, ‘sweet raisin and vanilla’ flavours can be found, followed by ‘toasted toffee’.

The finish is described as ‘strong’ and ‘crispy’, which is typical for a higher-proof Bourbon.

The Bourbon will be available for purchase in select US markets. There will also be an online lottery where winners must pay for and collect the bottles in person at the A Smith Bowman gift shop in Fredericksburg, Virginia, within three weeks of winning.

The lottery opens at midday on 3 January 2024 with the winner announced on 12 January. Entrants can put their names in the hat on the A Smith Bowman website.

The A Smith Bowman Cask Strength Bourbon Batch #3 will retail for $99 (£79) per 750ml bottle.

The range’s previous release won a Gold Medal in our 2023 American Whiskey Masters blind tasting competition, in the Bourbon aged over eight years category.