A deeply mature, surprisingly balanced blend where bourbon, rye, and Isle of Jura casks meet.
Stats
- Type: Finished Bourbon
- Age: 10-12 year
- Proof: 104 (52% ABV)
- Mashbills: 75% Corn │21% Rye │ 4% Malted Barley, 95% Rye │ 5% Malted Barley, & 75% Corn │13% Rye │ 12% Malted Barley
- Blend:
- 49% 11-year Indiana bourbon
- 30% 10-year Indiana rye
- 21% 12-year Kentucky Bourbon
- Blend Mashbill: 52.5% Corn │ 41.52% Rye │ 5.98% Malted Barley
- Origin: Ross & Squibb (MGP) — Lawrenceburg, Indiana & Kentucky (most likely Jim Beam)
- Additional Aging: Bardstown Bourbon Company — Bardstown, Kentucky
- Finishing Cask: Jura Single Malt Scotch ex-bourbon and ex-sherry barrel
- Finishing Time: 32 months
- Release: Limited release, blended, finished
- MSRP: $139.99 / 750 mL (via BBC, available in distillery, Louisville tasting room & national limited distribution)
- Awards: 99 pts at the 2026 International Wine & Spirits Competition (IWSC)
Tasting Notes
- Nose: Raspberry, coconut cream, Kentucky brown sugar, and cola lead the way, followed by hints of kiwi and cinnamon. There’s also a fascinating note of petrichor (the smell of the earth just before rain) that makes this nose particularly memorable.
- Palate: Dense and robust, with a coating mouthfeel that wraps the palate in sweetness before a bold rye spice takes over. Mature oak, fig, date, cardamom, cola, anise, and a touch of funky aged malted barley create a surprisingly complex and integrated profile.
- Finish: The rye spice crescendos into white pepper, followed by flashes of juicy grapefruit and blood orange. A long, lingering layer of mature oak, molasses, dark fruit, and the faintest suggestion of single malt and woodfire smoke rounds things out.
What happens when bourbon takes a trip to Scotland? For Bardstown Bourbon Company, the answer is Lochs of Jura, a blend of 11-year MGP bourbon, 10-year MGP rye, and 12-year Kentucky bourbon that spent an extraordinary 32 months in ex-bourbon and ex-sherry casks from the Isle of Jura. It’s a fitting expression of Bardstown’s Collaborative Series, which looks beyond traditional bourbon finishing to see what happens when Kentucky whiskey meets producers and barrels from around the world.
The result is one of the more unusual Bardstown pours I’ve encountered. There’s plenty of mature bourbon character here, deep fruit, sweetness, spice, and substantial oak, but the long Jura finish adds layers of malt, earth, subtle smoke, and sherry character without making the whiskey feel disconnected from its bourbon foundation. At 104 proof and $139.99, Lochs of Jura is asking you to pay for more than age or proof; it’s asking whether a genuinely different whiskey experience is worth the premium.
Presentation
I’m not with everyone who has been critical of Bardstown’s label redesign. Personally, I love the new labels, particularly the local artist renderings from Margaret Archambault.
The complementary orange and blue colorways of Discovery and Lochs of Jura are genuinely eye-catching. My one disappointment is the new topper: it feels noticeably lighter and less substantial than what came before, taking a little of the premium feel away from the bottle.
The media review box added some welcome style and wow factor, but ultimately it mostly amplified what was already there. The artwork deserves to do the heavy lifting.
Distinctiveness
Well-aged MGP and Kentucky whiskey aren’t exactly unusual on their own, but the combination of bourbon, rye, and Kentucky whiskey followed by 32 months in ex-bourbon and ex-sherry casks from the Isle of Jura creates something I haven’t encountered often.
I’ve reviewed plenty of bottles with unusual finishing regimens, but I can’t remember another pour where petrichor, aged malt, grapefruit, molasses, dark fruit, and woodfire smoke all showed up in a way that still felt cohesive.
It’s unusual without becoming gimmicky, which is a difficult balance to pull off.
“…well-aged, beautifully balanced, genuinely distinctive, and unlike the typical bourbon on your shelf…”
Transparency
Bardstown gives drinkers plenty to work with here. The blend is built from 11-year MGP bourbon, 10-year MGP rye, and 12-year Kentucky bourbon, with the mash bills and percentages clearly communicated.
The 32-month finishing period in Isle of Jura casks is also a meaningful part of the product’s identity rather than something hidden behind vague “cask finished” language.
You’d like to know the exact distillery of origin for the Kentucky bourbon but that’s a whiskey nerd wanting to know every ounce of info, not something hugely important to the average consumer.
For a complex blend like this, that level of disclosure matters.
Value
At $139.99, Lochs of Jura is certainly not an inexpensive bottle. Nearly 80% of the blend comes from MGP bourbon and rye, which makes the price a little harder to swallow on paper.
But this isn’t cheap, young whiskey. You’re getting 10–12-year-old whiskey, a 32-month finish in relatively uncommon Scotch casks, and a genuinely distinctive final profile.
At $140, I think it hits the mark, if not slightly exceeds it. The experience is different enough and well executed enough to justify paying a premium over the underlying components.
Buy if:
- You want well-aged whiskey with serious barrel presence
- You enjoy bold rye spice balanced by deep sweetness
- You’re looking for a distinctive pour rather than another conventional bourbon
- You appreciate creative cask finishing that remains integrated
Skip if:
- You prefer traditional bourbon profiles
- Heavy oak and spice tend to overwhelm your palate
- You’re looking for the best possible value per dollar
- Unusual notes like malt, petrichor, or smoke aren’t your thing
Verdict
Lochs of Jura surprised me. On paper, a blend of MGP bourbon, MGP rye, Kentucky bourbon, and Scotch cask finishing sounds like it could become a collection of competing ideas. Instead, Bardstown manages to make the pieces feel remarkably integrated.
There’s a deep sweetness, a huge amount of mature oak, plenty of rye spice, and enough unusual fruit, malt, and earthy character to keep pulling me back for another sip. It tastes considerably more mature than I would expect from the individual age statements, and I suspect the 32-month cask finish deserves significant credit for that transformation.
This won’t be a bottle for everyone. The oak and unusual secondary notes may push some bourbon drinkers away. But if you’re searching for something that is well-aged, beautifully balanced, genuinely distinctive, and unlike the typical bourbon on your shelf, Lochs of Jura makes a compelling case.
Bourbon Bishop Bottom Line:
A bold, beautifully integrated bourbon blend that turns unusual cask finishing into something genuinely memorable.
For those who prefer numbers, here’s the full score breakdown:
- Nose: 6.5 / 7
- Palate: 6.5 / 7
- Finish: 6.5 / 7
- Presentation: 5.5 / 7
- Distinctiveness: 6.75 / 7
- Transparency: 6.5 / 7
- Value: 6 / 7
Bourbon Bishop Rating: 6.32 / 7 – Holy Heaven
Out-of-this-world. A true unicorn.
| Score | Descriptor | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 0–1 | Hell No | Drain pour. Seriously undrinkable. |
| 1.1–2 | Purgatory | Bad, but could be worse. Only in extreme cases. |
| 2.1–3 | Only Earthly | Just okay. Best used as a mixer. |
| 3.1–4 | Bliss | Passable to Good sipper. Works well in cocktails. |
| 4.1–5 | Angelic | Good to great. Often high value for the price. |
| 5.1–6 | Divine | Top-shelf. Must-buy for fans of the style. |
| 6.1–7 | Holy Heaven | Out-of-this-world. A true unicorn. |
Disclosure: This sample was provided to me free of charge for review. All opinions are my own.
About Bardstown Bourbon Company
Bardstown Bourbon Company is a Kentucky-based whiskey producer known for its collaborative approach to blending, finishing, and innovation. Founded in 2014, the company has become recognized for producing its own Kentucky bourbon while also partnering with distilleries across the country to create unique whiskey expressions.
Through its Origin Series, Discovery Series, Collaborative Series, and experimental finishing projects, Bardstown Bourbon Company has built a reputation for exploring new approaches while respecting traditional whiskey-making techniques.
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