Shenk's Bourbon Homestead - 2024 (750ml)

The Shenk’s series is named for the original founder of the distillery that would go on to be called Michter’s, one John Shenk who founded the Shenk’s Distillery in Pennsylvania in 1753. This bottle tends to be the more rye-forward of the two, given that the company does reveal there is rye whiskey rather than simply Kentucky bourbon in this blend. The company notes that the 2024 release of Shenk’s uses rye, malted rye, “and for the first time caramel malt, which offers a nice creaminess to complement the whiskey’s herbaceous qualities and notes of spice.” Caramel or crystal malted barley is a more common ingredient in the U.S. craft brewing world, where various shades of this malt can yield flavors that range from light honey to darker caramels and dried fruit. This 2024 Shenk’s also makes use of at least some virgin, toasted French oak from the Vosges region of France.

On the nose, Shenk’s 2024 is sweet and roasty, displaying a lot of barrel char, French roast coffee, dark chocolate and sweet nougat. There are also layers of quite dark fruit here, suggesting blackberry, along with toasted grain evoking both sweeter cornbread and rye spice, with pepper. On the palate, the seasoned oaky tones really pop here, with layers of baking spice and sweet oak char, leading to significant tannin that leads to a drier finish than it initially feels like it will be in the first rush of sweetness. I’m getting nutty coffee and loads of rye, but with flashes of that dark/dried fruit, suggesting dates and honey. This is a pretty complex profile and quite a wood heavy one–I’d recommend the 2024 Shenk’s to lovers of oak spice who don’t mind some supporting tannin and a slightly dry finish. It’s a rather elegant expression, though some may find the French oak is expressing itself a little loudly.