I Tried Three Oak Stave-Finished Bourbons Side by Side. My Favorite Might Surprise You

Originally published on Men’s Journal
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I'm usually averse to smoke flavors. But the deep woody tones of Bardstown Small Batch Stave Finish, 291 Bourbon, and Lasso Motel Le Stave changed my mind—one more so than the others.

I list smoking as a dealbreaker on every dating app. If someone lights up at a party, I flee to the other room. I’m extremely asthmatic, and if I don’t have my inhaler in my purse, it’s going to be a bad night. 

I don’t like the taste of smoke, either. I’ve never been a fan of peaty Scotch whisky, and woe to the person who comes too close after sipping Lagavulin or Laphroaig. 

If smokey is in a bottle’s description, my M.O. is to turn the other way—but a recent trip to Kentucky inspired me to re-evaluate my aversion.

I toured several distilleries while visiting Bourbon Country, including Bardstown Distillery, which is known for its collaborative distilling program that produces custom-made mash bills and flavor profiles. This variety was evident during a tasting, which featured a high-rye bourbon distillate and maturate and number 10 of its Discovery series. While I enjoyed trying those, my clear favorite was Bardstown Small Batch Stave Finish.

Small Batch Stave Finish has a rich and sweet scent that inspires thoughts of s’mores, which can be credited to finishing with oak staves, a technique used to enhance the spirit’s flavors. The bourbon distillates are aged in a barrel, with oak staves added.

Unlike the rye distillate, a clear liquid reminiscent of tequila, and the maturate, which boasted a distinct flavor thanks to the charred flecks of the barrel in the liquid, the small batch is rich and smooth, but light enough that it’s easily sippable with a gently sweet scent and hints of fruit in the taste.

A blend of four different bourbon distillates, the Small Batch Stave Finish is made from an eight-year blend from Georgia; five-year blend from Bardstown itself; and a 12-year blend and four-year blend, both from Kentucky.

Oak staves, which are thin strips of wood, can be toasted for different times before they are added into the barrels, a process that deepens and enhances the bourbon’s color, texture, aroma and flavor. Intrigued by this technique and surprised by the small amount of smoke in the flavor, I set out to try different bourbons that were finished with oak staves.

Far from Kentucky, 291 Colorado Whiskey offered a drastically different experience. The Colorado Springs distillery’s Bourbon Whiskey Finished With Aspen Wood Staves comes from local grains and water before being triple distilled in pot stills and aged in charred white oak barrels. The whiskey is relatively young; its mash bill combines corn, malted rye, and malted barley before aging for one year in American oak barrels and finishing with charred Colorado Aspen staves. 

The relatively brief aging process doesn’t seem to have impacted the taste. Its sweet, smokey scent with hints of apricot quickly gives way to a woodsy taste with a heat that lingers after swallowing. Hints of caramel and cinnamon roll across the tongue, leaving a mouthfeel of peppery syrup. While I enjoyed its deep sweetness, 291 was too bold for my taste. It was too strong on its own, but I could see myself enjoying it in a well-balanced old fashioned or with a sweet baked good.

Although I’ll always embrace an excuse to order dessert, that wasn't necessary with Lasso Motel Le Stave bourbon. Made with a mixture of 70 percent corn, 21 percent rye, and 9 percent malted barley, this pour is delightfully light and barely tastes of smoke. 

Its gentle first scent is warm, with scents of vanilla and honeysuckle. The warm amber liquid offers a hint of apple cider at first, followed by hints of vanilla and a hint of maple. Its mouthfeel is thinner than 291, which makes it dangerously sippable. Le Stave is sweet enough that ending the night with both a nightcap and dessert may be overkill.

Colorado 291 can be ordered from the distillery’s website, and Lasso Motel is also available online, but Bardstown is only offered at the distillery and its Louisville tasting room. While a pilgrimage down south or out west may not be in my immediate future, I’m excited to try more bourbons finished with staves, and I know I won’t need to use my inhaler before opening a bottle or grabbing a seat at the bar.