Welcome back to Your Bourbon Journey! 🥃

It’s that time of the month again! With the “Road to the Sweet 16” in full swing, we have curated an absolute powerhouse lineup for our April Whiskey of the Month. This month, we went bold—tasting five unique expressions that span the entire spectrum of flavor and finish. From Finished Rye and Wheat whiskeys to high-proof American Light Whiskey and Kentucky Straight Bourbon, we are all over the map!

We put these contenders to the ultimate test in a blind tasting format to see which bottle has what it takes to advance toward our Whiskey of the Year title. The competition was fierce, the legs were luscious, and the results? Let’s just say we were genuinely stunned.

In this episode: We dive into five distinct expressions, evaluating them on the nose, palate, and finish. We break down the unique profiles, discuss the impact of finishing casks (Armagnac, Madeira, Port/Sherry), and score them live to see who reigns supreme this month.

Featured Candidates:

• Dark Arts Cask Strength Bourbon (Armagnac Finish)
• Dark Arts Blunt Blend (Batch 3)
• Knob Creek Blender’s Edition 1
• Penelope American Light Whiskey (18 Year)
• Remus Master Distiller Experimental Series 2

Stay tuned until the end for the Big Reveal! We break down the math, discuss the “Sweet Sixteen” leaderboard implications, and find out which of these bottles are destined for our Whiskey of the Year tournament.

If you enjoy our blind tasting series, hit that SUBSCRIBE button and join us on our journey! 🔔 Don’t forget to like and comment: Which of these bottles would be your top pick? Are you a fan of the finishes in this lineup?

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📊 SEE THE LIVE LEADERBOARD: Want to see where these bottles rank against the rest of the field? Check out our real-time leaderboard here: 👉 https://yourbourbonjourney.com/2026/02/27/the-live-leaderboard-road-to-the-sweet-sixteen/

🥃 OUR NEW SCORING PROCESS: We’ve revamped our scoring to be more transparent than ever. Read the full breakdown of our new rubric and the “Sweet Sixteen” bracket process on our website: 👉 https://yourbourbonjourney.com/2026/02/27/decoding-the-pour-the-new-your-bourbon-journey-scoring-woty-process/

❌YOUR BOURBON JOURNEY DOES NOT SELL ALCOHOL❌

Dark Arts Cask Strength Bourbon (Armagnac Finish)

• Classification:  Straight Bourbon Whiskey
• Distilled: Sourced from MGP in Indiana  
• Produced by: Dark Arts Whiskey House LLC
• Mash Bill: 60% Corn, 36% Rye, 4% Malted Barley
• Age: 10 Years
• Proof: 113 (Cask Strength)
• Released: Early 2026
• Other: Finished in Armagnac Cask; Batch AT2; Bottle 132
• Original Review:

Dark Arts Blunt Blend (Batch 3) Dank Arts

• Classification: Rye Bourbon Whiskey
• Company: Dark Arts Whiskey House
• Distillery: Distilled in Indiana; Blended/Bottled in Sparta, KY
• Mash Bill: 95% Rye, 5% Malted Barley
• Age: 8 Years
• Finished: Madeira Cask and Armagnac Cask
• Proof: 113.8
• Released: Late March 2026
• Other: Bottle 3370
• Original Review:

Knob Creek Blender’s Edition 1

• Classification: Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
• Company: Beam Suntory
• Distillery: James B. Beam Distilling Co. (Clermont/Beam, KY)
• Mash Bill: 77% Corn, 13% Rye, 10% Malted Barley
• Age: 10 years
• Proof: 106
• MSRP: $44.99
• Released: March 2026
• Original Review:

Penelope American Light Whiskey 18 Year Limited Release

• Classification:  American Light Whiskey
• Company: Penelope Bourbon (A subsidiary of MGP/Luxco)
• Distillery: MGP (Lawrenceburg, IN)
• Mash Bill: 99% Corn, 1% Malted Barley
• Age: 18 Years
• Proof: 140.2
• Released: 2026
• Original Review:

Remus Master Distiller Experimental Series 2

• Classification: Straight Wheat Whiskey
• Distillery: Ross & Squibb Distillery
• Mash Bill: 95% Wheat, 5% Malted Barley (LKSV formula/rare)
• Age: Distilled in 2017 – Approximately 9 years
• Quattro-Finish: (separately) Tawny Port, White Port, Oloroso Sherry and Ruby Port Casks (then blended)
• Proof: 113
• Released:  March 2026
• Original Review:

❌YOUR BOURBON JOURNEY DOES NOT SELL ALCOHOL❌

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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.

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