2018 130th Anniversary Limited Edition Small Batch Bourbon Release

by Colonel Steve Akley

Bourbon Hunting season is officially off and running as we've got our second major release of the season (Birthday Bourbon just came out a few days ago) in the annual Limited Edition Small Batch offering from Four Roses. They've got a special celebration this year with the 130th anniversary of the company happening this year so you know Master Distiller Brent Elliott was going to go all out to make this one the best possible offering he could.

The make-up of this particular offering is a combination of different years and Four Roses propriety recipes. The blend contains the following:

OBSF - 13 Years

OBSV - 10 Years

OESV - 14 Years

OESK - 16 Years

The barrels of these recipes/years were mingled together and resulted in a blended barrel strength of 108.3, which is where Four Roses has left it for the release. This will come in at a suggested retail price of $140 and will start rolling out across the country after a gift shop release at both the distillery and the bottling plant on September 15 at 9:00 a.m.

Here's a look at my tasting notes on this one:

Nose: Vanilla, caramel, baking spices, rye bread

Taste: Apple (I note it as being an apple bomb) oak, high spice, roasted apricot

Finish: Long finish that starts mid-tongue and continues to heat up after swallowing the bourbon.

Final Notes: This is perhaps the best finish to a bourbon I have ever enjoyed. Amazing. The flavors are complex and layered and that fuse that lights when you drink this one is just stellar. See you in line on the 15th... I have to get a bottle of this one!

If you would like the complete details, here's a look at the press release from Four Roses regarding this bourbon:

Four Roses Celebrates 130th Anniversary
With Limited Edition Small Batch ReleaseLimited-quantity special bottling slated for September distribution

LAWRENCEBURG, Ky. (September 4, 2018) – This year, Four Roses is raising a glass and toasting its 130thAnniversary. To celebrate, the Distillery will issue the newest release in its series of limited-quantity special bottlings – the130th Anniversary Limited Edition Small Batch. This very special bottling commemorates the brand’s 130-year history of handcrafting quality Bourbon and the love story that started it all.

The bottling will launch during Bourbon Heritage Month this September. It will first be available in limited quantities at the Four Roses Distillery and Warehouse & Bottling Facility Visitor Centers on Saturday, September 15 beginning at

9 a.m. The Limited Edition Small Batch will roll out to additional select retailers in the weeks following.

Four of Four Roses’ unique Bourbon recipes were selected for the 130th Anniversary Limited Edition Small Batch. This bottle will feature a 10-year-old Bourbon from the OBSV recipe, a 13-year-old OBSF, 14-year-old OESV and 16-year-old OESK.

Four Roses is the only Bourbon distillery that combines two mashbills with five proprietary yeast strains to produce 10 distinct Bourbon recipes, each with its own unique characteristics.

In the beginning stages of handcrafting a limited edition bottling, Master Distiller Brent Elliott creates countless test batches from select barrels, in an effort to mingle the best Limited Edition offering.

“For this Limited Edition Small Batch, I wanted to create something very special to celebrate the 130th anniversary of our brand,” said Four Roses Master Distiller Brent Elliott. “From the beginning of the process, I focused on building around the unique fruit flavors in our F and V yeast strains, and these flavors shine through in the finished product. As a contrast, I also included a spicy, older batch. By mingling these different flavor profiles, I think we achieved a wonderfully balanced, complex and unique Bourbon. I could not be happier with the result and can’t wait for you to taste it.”

Bottled at barrel strength, 108.3 proof, the 130th Anniversary Limited Edition Small Batch offers rich vanilla, raspberries and ripe berries, and crème brulee on the nose. As it hits the palate, it opens into flavors of apricot, mint, cinnamon, apple and mellow oak. This Bourbon boasts a very long finish, with hints of cinnamon, more fruit and vanilla.

Four Roses will distribute approximately 13,140 hand-numbered bottles of the 130thAnniversary Limited Edition Small Batch Bourbon in the United States with a suggested retail price of $140.

To learn more about how you can join Four Roses in celebrating its 130th Anniversary, visit FourRosesBourbon.com/130th.