04/30/24
By Rebecca Herman McBrayer
If you have spoken with us about our bourbon journey and favorite distilleries, you have certainly heard us talk about the Neeley Family Distillery in Sparta, KY. Our first visit was very planned as part of the Kentucky Bourbon Trail; however, we almost always “stop by” when traveling to or from the Cincinnati, OH area! We are HUGE fans of their spirits and ensure that we have a good amount to tide us over to our next visit. Thus, it was well past time for Wayne and I to do a formal tasting of the goodness that Royce Neeley puts into a barrel! Last weekend, we did a two-day tasting, and we hope to inspire you to give them a try if you haven’t already!
Selected for this Tasting
Day 1: Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey – wheated (barrel 635), Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey – wheated, specially aged barrel (barrel 85), Sweet Thumped Rye Kentucky Straight Rye Whiskey (barrel 754).
Day 2: PawPaw’s Birthday Barrel Bottled-in-Bond, Hidden Barn Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey finished in Madeira casks, The Old Jett Brothers Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey French Cognac Finish
Please be sure to read our approach to Tasting Whiskey if you haven’t already.
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey – Wheated (barrel 635)
Mashbill – 76% Corn, 19% Wheat, 5% Malted Barley
Age – 46 months
Proof – 112.7
Other – Single barrel, triple pot distilled, non chill filtered, sweet mash, barrel char 2, barrel size 25 gal, yeast strand A-1.
Price Paid – $41.39 (375ml)
Color – Medium amber
Aroma – Sweet corn, wheat, vanilla, brown sugar, and a bit of smokiness.
Taste – Barley, brown sugar, butterscotch, vanilla cream, almost a crème brûlée.
Tasted with dried cranberry – It brightened the taste to almost an effervescence, less sweetness, but lot of cinnamon.
Tasted with a pecan – A hint of chocolate, oak, brown sugar, with black pepper on the finish.
Tasted with dark chocolate – Creamy caramel, chocolate covered nut, with a sweet finish of toasted brown sugar.
Neeley’s wheated bourbon is always a favorite of ours. Perhaps it is the triple pot still approach or the way they treat the grains, but always fantastic.
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey – Wheated (barrel 85)
Mashbill – 76% Corn, 19% Wheat, 5% Malted Barley
Age – 52 months
Proof – 111
Other – Single barrel, triple pot distilled, non chill filtered, sweet mash, barrel char 3, barrel size 30 gal, eight-year air seasoned barrel, yeast strand A-1.
Price Paid – $51.74 (375ml)
Color – Medium amber
Aroma – The nose is complex with caramel, fruit, baking spices, some vanilla malt, brown sugar or even a bit of molasses, a very mature nose.
Taste – Wheat, barley, caramel, dark fruit notes, and a really nice finish of black pepper that goes well with the sweet notes.
Tasted with dried cranberry – A hint of chocolate but there is cinnamon on the front and more of a sweet finish. Great mouth feel – feels creamy … almost buttery.
Tasted with a pecan – This muted some of the flavor and brought some spices forward; somewhat of a spicy chocolate caramel.
Tasted with dark chocolate – This brought the chocolate, like a chocolate covered caramel with sea salt on it. Maybe a little bit of cherry in the middle.
We are very pleased that we purchased several of these bottles because it was a very limited barrel treatment. As noted on the tag, the barrel was aged outdoors for EIGHT years. While the treatment of the oak barrel is quite present in the taste profile, it doesn’t dominate in a negative way. Instead, it brings out a cornucopia of flavors.
Sweet Thumped Rye – Kentucky Straight Rye Whiskey (barrel 754)
Mashbill – 65% Rye
Age – 28 months
Proof – 108.9
Other – Single barrel, triple pot distilled, non chill filtered, sweet mash, barrel char 3, barrel size 25 gal.
Price Paid – $42.39 (375ml)
Color – Medium to dark amber.
Aroma – Rye sweetness dominates, mint, herbal tea, a light baking spice, floral notes, very fresh, very natural, and inviting.
Taste – Mint, rye grass, floral, tea, light spice, pleasant rye bread and white pepper finish.
Tasted with dried cranberry – Very floral with a white pepper finish, very nice.
Tasted with a pecan – Mellow and it brings it all together sweetness and it is just really good.
Tasted with dark chocolate – Chocolate, caramel, mint chocolate chip ice cream.
Neeley’s rye is outstanding. One of the most pleasant and enjoyable ryes to drink. As we were tasting, we kept wondering why we didn’t pull it off the shelf more often. Answer – we do not have a back-up bottle. On our next trip, we will remedy that!
PawPaw’s Birthday Barrel Bottled-in-Bond
Mashbill – Uncertain
Age – at least 4 years
Proof – 100
Other – Bottled-in-Bond
Price Paid – $106
Color – light to med amber
Aroma – Stone fruit, nuttiness, orange zest, floral notes, and light baking spices.
Taste – Caramel, toasted brown sugar, orange zest and cinnamon on the finish.
Tasted with dried cranberry – The cranberry is bringing a fruitiness forward, more citrus, and less cinnamon.
Tasted with a pecan – Chocolate malt – very nice with the pecan.
Tasted with dark chocolate – A great creaminess, a bit less chocolate than the pecan brought but the finish is more like a warm cinnamon roll.
Overall, it’s a fantastic bottled-in-bond as it is rich in flavor and a lot of complexity. It is damn good. This bottle will forever be incredibly special to us. We purchased it at the 2023 Kentucky Bourbon Festival and we got Bottle #1. Most importantly, PawPaw was there – he signed the bottle and we got a picture with him.
We really hope (pretty please) that an annual release of a Birthday Barrel in honor of PawPaw’s birthday will continue.
Hidden Barn Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey finished in Madeira Casks
Mashbill – 70% Corn, 20% Rye, 10% Malted Barley
Age – at least 4 years
Proof – 100
Other – Finished in Madeira Casks
Price Paid – $103.49
Color – dark amber
Aroma – The wine really comes forward on the nose as well as a creamy vanilla and some baking spices.
Taste – Honey, brown sugar, cherry, chocolate, light undertones of the madeira cask and a light yet warm finish. Very nice taste and overall experience.
Tasted with dried cranberry – This did nothing to enhance it and it made it oddly bitter with a stronger cinnamon on the finish.
Tasted with a pecan – This moved the focus to the spicy side and any hint of the Madeira is gone.
Tasted with dark chocolate – Much better with the dark chocolate as it added a creamy sweetness and the taste of chocolate dipped grapes with a nice warm finish.
This was our first time to taste a Hidden Barn bourbon. It was very good, and we liked it neat the best as that focused on the spirit and the finishing with the Madeira.
The Old Jett Brothers Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey French Cognac Finish
Mashbill – High Rye Bourbon
Age – At least 4 years
Proof – 109.9
Other – Finished in French Oak Cognac Barrels for 7 Months
Price Paid – $123.41
Color – golden
Aroma – The cognac is there and the French Oak is bringing a strong vanilla note forward. Also, sweet corn, raisins, and toasted marshmallows.
Taste – Vanilla, vanilla cream pie with a nice pastry note, buttered raisin toast, the cognac is complementing it very well and there is also a lovely finish of baking spices, pepper, and oak.
Tasted with dried cranberry – With the cranberry, it lost the delicate notes and shifted to stronger fruits and french vanilla.
Tasted with a pecan – The pecan brought some French Oak notes forward as well as chocolate and caramel.
Tasted with dark chocolate – This is different and in a good way. Almost like chocolate covered grapes. This makes me want to have a pour of this with a dessert or instead of dessert.
The cognac and French Oak play very well together. In addition to being a good option after dinner, it might also pair well with a cigar.
Discussion and Final Notes
We have wanted to do this tasting for some time; however, we have a substantial “shelf” of Neeley’s spirits and selecting a few for a tasting can be a challenge. Thus, we decided on six and completed the tasting over two days.
Bottom line – they are all fantastic. You really cannot go wrong with a nice pour of a Neeley Family Distillery bourbon or rye. Perhaps it is the family tradition, using sweet mash, being triple pot distilled, or non-chill filtered, or a fine combination of everything they do. We only know that we personally enjoy each one.
Royce Neeley is truly a Master Distiller and continually produces some terrific spirits at Neeley Family Distillery. Give them a try!
Cheers – and always drink responsibly!
Rebecca & Wayne
Photos by Rebecca Herman McBrayer
Sweet Mash, Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey, Rye Whiskey, Bottled-in-Bond
Sweet Mash: Sweet mash is a process in distillation that does not use the sour mash as a starter for fermentation. Instead, only fresh yeast is used. Using sweet mash has the benefit of more control over specific ingredients and the ability to use lower temperatures for fermentation. However, it does require more maintenance and extreme cleanliness to avoid contamination. For more information, please read this post – Four Stages of Making Spirits.
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey: Such whiskeys have all the requirements of bourbon: Made in the U.S, distilled at <= 160 proof, barreled at <= 125 proof, aged in new, charred oak containers, bottled at >= 80 proof. Straight bourbon means it is aged at least 2 years (and must have an age statement if less than 4). In addition, to be Kentucky Straight Bourbon, it has the additional requirement that it must be produced and aged at least 1 year in the state of Kentucky. For additional information on bourbon requirements, please read this post – Bourbon Whiskey.
Rye Whiskey Basic Requirements: Rye whiskey must be made from at least 51% rye. It must be distilled at 160 proof or less. It then must be placed into a new, charred oak container at a proof of 125 or below. Straight rye whiskey is a subcategory of rye whiskey that has been aged for at least two years in new, charred oak barrels and doesn’t contain any additives. If aged less than four years, the label must include an age statement. For additional information on bourbon requirements, please read this post – Rye Whiskey.
Bottled-in-Bond: must be produced in a single distillation season by a single distillery; must mature in a U.S. bonded warehouse for a minimum of four years; and the aged spirit must be bottled at 50% ABV (100 proof). For additional information on Bottled-in-Bond requirements, please read this post – Bottled in Bond.
NOTE: The spirits in this review were purchased by us. We were not compensated by the spirit producers for this review. This is simply our opinion based on what we tasted on this day. Please drink responsibly.
Your Bourbon Journey 