Tasting: 2 New Whiskeys from 15 Stars (8 & 15 Year Bourbon, First West Rye)

It’s fair to say that I can be a little bit on the cynical side, when a new independent bottler shows up on the exceedingly crowded American whiskey shelf … particularly when that bottler jumps straight into the range of ultra-premium price points. To me, this feels like territory that really needs to be earned: It’s tough to show up out of the blue one day and simply say to consumers “We’re brand new, but you should trust our blenders enough to spend $150 on this bottle you know nothing about.” I’ve seen too many instances of this that are delivering whiskey that simply isn’t worth its asking price, regardless of the specs of what is in the bottle. But when a company like 15 Stars Fine Aged Bourbon comes along, it demands a certain recalibration of my baseline suspicion. These guys (father and son team Rick and Ricky Johnson) jumped right into the deep waters of the industry, but never flailed for a moment. Instead, they’ve just put out an ongoing parade of fantastic releases, whether they’re blends of straight bourbon, finished bourbon, or blends of straight rye whiskey. Nor are they content to be non-distiller producers forever, as their own spirit is patiently aging away. But in this moment? This company has become one of the best independent bottlers in the game.

The latest two releases from the company just make that more clear to me than ever, and that’s following my sampling of several previous 15 Stars bottles, including 15 Stars Platinum and their Sherry Cask Finish Bourbon. The latest releases, on the other hand, go back to what one might consider to be flagship series for the still-young company, being second batches of two of the earlier 15 Stars products: 8 & 15 YO Private Stock Bourbon, and First West Rye Whiskey. The bourbon, I tasted and enjoyed in its first iteration, but the rye whiskey blend I’m tasting here for the first time. Both have fairly high price points, and both are now on shelves at select retailers in Kentucky, Indiana, Tennessee, Missouri, Georgia, and Louisiana, Florida, Massachusetts, Oregon, and Illinois, though the company also sells online through Seelbachs and its own website.

Suffice to say, these prove to be two more impressive releases, further cementing 15 Stars’ growing reputation in my mind. So with that said, let’s get to tasting these new expressions.

15 Stars 8&15 YO Private Stock Bourbon

ABV: 53.5% (107 proof)
MSRP: $139

The first release of Private Stock Bourbon from 15 Stars was labeled as “7 & 15 YO,” and the additional one year here makes me logically think that this release could be drawn from some of the same barrels that just hadn’t been emptied and blended yet. Like the former, it’s an all-Kentucky blend of straight bourbons, though no distilleries are cited. It weighs in at an advanced 107 proof, but ultimately reads as pretty distinctly different from the last batch of this I sampled.

On the nose, the first thing that jumps out at me is that this release is really quite rye forward, in a way I didn’t really experience with the 7 & 15 YO Private Stock. It has a herbal and minty bouquet, with complex impressions of dried herbs into dark fruit that has both juicy/fresh/dried cherry elements. I’m getting dark chocolate and lots of savory tobacco or cigar box on the nose here as well, with a profile that really highlights some of the older components in the blend, culminating in a leathery signature note.

On the palate, the 8 & 15 YO Private Stock embraces sour cherry and earthy rye, along with cocoa and molasses. The tobacco savoriness is present in a big way again, along with more herbal properties of rye, melding nicely with moderate residual sweetness. It drinks quite easily for the proof point, as the previous batch also did, but it has much greater degree of highlighting of the spirit’s maturity, with ample old oak flavors joining its herbal complexity. The result is quite elegant, and I think this will check a lot of boxes for drinkers who prefer the flavors found in particularly mature Kentucky bourbon.

15 Stars First West Rye Whiskey Batch 2

ABV: 52.5% (105 proof)
MSRP: $89

The company’s First West Rye is also in its second batch here, being a blend of straight rye whiskeys from Kentucky, Indiana and Tennessee, varying between 6, 7 and 9 years of age. That construction reminds me a bit, perhaps, of how a company like Barrell Craft Spirits has put together its rye whiskey releases in the past to significant acclaim. This one weighs in at an assertive 105 proof.

On the nose, First West Rye Batch 2 displays a whole lot of herbal and spice notes, tinged with fruit–I’m getting dried herbs, pepper and pumpernickel bread with ripe pear, tart apple, cigar wrapper, dill and a notable roasted oak char. It’s really quite a “big” nose in terms of the assertiveness of these aromatics, readily spilling from the glass. Always a welcome thing to find. As I return to it, I’m finding more unexpected traces of red berries, perhaps even strawberry?

On the palate, this reads as quite “green” in character to me; herbal and grassy and even a little bit resinous, which combines nicely with more honeyed sweetness and some sweet char that begins to suggest espresso. I’m getting baked apple and pear, along with fresh cracked pepper and a spice profile that touches on licorice and caraway. As in the bourbon, herbal complexity is a draw here, though it’s of a different dimension. Also like the bourbon, the proof is wonderfully incorporated, both approachable and with plenty of backbone. It’s a really impressive feat of blending.

I don’t want to sound like a broken record, but these are two really lovely releases from 15 Stars, which is becoming an expectation at this point. I’ll certainly be curious to see where the company pivots to next.

Jim Vorel is a Paste staff writer and resident liquor geek. You can follow him on Twitter for more drink writing.