High Bank Whiskey War Barrel Select Cabernet Sauvignon Cask

A little background

High Bank Distillery Co. has been doing some awesome things. First, they made their Whiskey War and Whiskey War Barrel Proof, along with a few other specialty products. The logical next step after creating a blended product was to keep pushing the envelope and try to source high-end, unique barrels to age it in. Barrel Select is a new program High Bank. In this program, they are aging their barrel proof product, one batch at a time, in those unique barrels. Each release will have a limited number of bottles (240 bottles in both the Cab Sauv & Sangiovese barrels) and it will never be duplicated again. Their goal is to release a few barrels of Whiskey War Barrel Select each year for the public to enjoy. Both the Cab Sauv & Sangiovese barrels were sourced from an Ohio wine maker’s home collection where he saves the best award-winning products for himself and close friends. Whiskey War Barrel Select is a passion project in and of itself. Before being a Master Distiller and Master Blender, Adam Hines was formally trained in the art of branding and design. Adam has fully submerged himself into this product from blending the whiskey that went into the barrel to the design and execution of the 3 dimensional, solid metal, pistol cap on the top of every bottle. Whiskey War Barrel Select Cabernet Sauvignon Cask will be exclusively available for purchase at the High Bank Distillery Co. gift shop for $109.99 USD.

(Tasted neat from a Halo Glass)

Color

Red Amber

Nose

The nose is outstanding. It is complex, rich, and full of notes such as wet spearmint leaves, raisins, dark red fruits, oak spice, rye spice, torched orange rind, and red wine.

Palate

The mouthfeel is medium-thick with an amazing oily consistency. I immediately get notes of wet spearmint leaf, grapes, and dark red fruit on the mid-front palate. Raisins touch the very front of the palate while torched orange rind hits the sides of the back palate. The more I “chew” on it, the more flavors come to light. I would highly recommend taking your time to chew on and dissect this one.

Finish

The finish is long and filled with notes of dark red fruits, oak spice, grapes, red wine, and raisins. The oily viscosity makes it stick to every aspect of the palate and stay there for a while.

In closing

Home run! Between this and the Sangiovese finish, I definitely prefer this one. They’re both great, but the Cabernet Sauvignon Cask just nails all of the marks with the nose, palate, and finish. If you’re able to, get a bottle when it releases, you won’t regret it!

NOTE: The sample used for this review was provided at no cost courtesy of High Bank Distillery. We thank them for the sample and for allowing us to review it with no strings attached.