NOSE: Dry oak | Corn | Faint Cocoa
TASTE: Smoke | Corn Barley | Honey
FINISH: It’s a slow burn that isn’t a Kentucky hug.
SHARE WITH: Folks who like young whiskey or basic Irish whiskey drinkers looking for something different.
WORTH THE PRICE: No, not yet. Maybe once 2bar’s stocks get to be 4+ years old.
BOTTLE, BAR OR BUST: Try it at a bar first; I cannot recommend you buy a bottle without tasting it first.
OVERALL: As with many young releases, the grains are prevalent. The corn is dominant, but the barleys take this bourbon in an interestingly different direction. Even though it’s technically a wheated bourbon (Editors’ Notes: Malted barley makes up the majority of the grains after corn therefore it’s not going to be like a traditional wheated bourbon.), I wouldn’t compare it to standards like Weller or Maker’s Mark. The high barley content makes this drink more like an Irish whiskey.
2bar’s local, grain-to-glass ethos is admirable, and they are mashing their own grain which I like to see in a craft distillery. Unfortunately, I think this just too young. I look forward to trying future bourbon releases from 2bar to see how additional time in the barrel smooths out some of the rough edges and adds more of the caramel and vanilla notes one expects. Hopefully, they’ll release a bottled-in-bond bourbon in a couple of years so we can see how a few extra years affects the whiskey.
Learn more about Thomas’ whiskey preferences and check out more of his reviews…
Over a century ago the 2bar ranch was founded in Texas. For five generations the 2bar brand stood for quality, independence, and hard work. Those values are brought to 2bar Spirits, where Washington grain is milled, mashed, fermented, distilled, and aged in oak barrels into bourbon and moonshine.
2bar Bourbon is the first all local made in Seattle bourbon; made entirely grain-to-glass using all Northwest grains. It has a smooth and rich texture at 100 Proof with wonderful butterscotch, vanilla and honey notes with subtle hints of dark chocolate and cherry.
Our entire bourbon whiskey line is being upgraded to Straight Bourbon Whiskey. We are adding an age statement on the bottle, while other whiskies are moving away from age statements.
- Made entirely on-site using all northwest grains
- This year we are filling 240 x 30g barrels (~120 full size barrels)
- We are mashing >20,000 lbs of grain per month
- We are now the largest privately owned Craft Distillery in Seattle
