Disclosure: the sample for this review was provided at no cost. Our tasting notes and score are our own.
A little background
Bulleit ’87 Whiskey is a blend of bourbon and rye whiskey from Bulleit Frontier Whiskey, and it is the brand’s first new core expression since Bulleit 95 Rye debuted in 2011. It joins Bulleit Bourbon and Bulleit 95 Rye in Bulleit’s three-bottle core lineup. The bourbon is distilled, barreled, and aged in Shelbyville, Kentucky, while the rye is distilled and aged in Indiana before heading to Shelbyville. Both are aged a minimum of four years, then finished separately in their original barrels with toasted American oak and French oak staves for four to six weeks before being blended and bottled in Shelbyville. It is bottled at 90 proof (45% ABV) and has a suggested retail price of $29.99 for a 750mL bottle. The mash bills for the bourbon and rye components are undisclosed, and the blend carries no age statement.
The name honors 1987, the year Bulleit was founded, and is not an age statement. Bulleit built its name on a high-rye bourbon recipe at a time when high-rye bourbons were far less common, then followed with a 95% rye made at the request of bartenders. ’87 was designed to be sipped neat or over ice, and it comes in the brand’s signature frontier-style bottle with a bold blue label, a first for Bulleit. It is available at select retail stores nationwide beginning September 2026.
(Tasted neat from a Glencairn Glass)
Color
Gold
Nose
Caramel, brown sugar, sweet vanilla, buttered sweet corn, rye grain, baking spice, and toasted oak.
Palate
Cinnamon, used tea bag, toasted marshmallow, caramel, brown sugar, and charred oak.
Finish
Brown sugar, baking spice, cocoa dusting, caramel, and oak.
In closing
Bulleit ’87 Whiskey opens with a sweet, very pleasant nose of caramel, brown sugar, and sweet vanilla, followed by buttered sweet corn, rye grain, baking spice, and toasted oak. The palate brings cinnamon and a used tea bag note up front, then toasted marshmallow, caramel, and brown sugar before finishing on charred oak. The mouthfeel is pleasant but somewhat thin, and the finish is on the shorter side, leaving brown sugar, baking spice, cocoa, caramel, and oak.
That said, this is a killer budget bottle. Getting a toasted stave finished bourbon and rye blend at $29.99 is a great value, and it would be a fun one to throw into a blind tasting. The flavors are good enough that it leaves me dreaming about what ’87 would be like at a higher proof, but as it stands, it is an easy everyday sipper neat or over ice.
NOTE: The sample used for this review was provided at no cost courtesy of Bulleit. We thank them for the sample and for allowing us to review it with no strings attached.
Bulleit ’87 Whiskey
90 Proof
Please enjoy responsibly. Never drink and drive.
