Berkshire Mountain Distillers Ommegang Cask Finished Bourbon Whiskey

When Chris Weld, founder and master distiller at Berkshire Mountain Distillers, was thirteen years old, he set about building a still for his eighth grade science project. "My dad was a scotch drinker, so Id gotten it in my head that I wanted to build my very own still,"he says. When he learned that distilling spirits without a license was a federal offense, "well, that kind of put the kibosh on the whole plan." In 2007, Weld decided to try again. After purchasing some property in the shadow of the Berkshire Mountains in Sheffield, Massachusetts, Weld opened the doors to Berkshire Mountain Distillers.Berkshire Mountain Cask Aged Bourbon is a collaboration between Berkshire Mountain Distillers and the famed Ommegang Brewery, located in Cooperstown, New York. The bourbon is made from a mash of 72 percent corn, 18 percent rye and 10 percent malted barley, all of which are sourced from family farms in New England. After the grains arrive at the distillery, they are mashed and fermented before being distilled three times through Welds copper-pot still.Once the bourbon has matured in virgin, American oak casks, it is double-barreled, or finished, in casks that were previously used to mature Ommegang Adoration Ale (10 percent ABV). Adoration Ale is a Belgian winter style ale that is dark, malty and assertively spicy. In addition, Adoration Ale itself is aged in ex-bourbon casks, meaning that the extra maturation of Berkshire Bourbon is, in some sense, a return home.After Berkshire Mountain Ommegang Cask Finished Bourbon has aged for a minimum of four years in the combination of virgin American oak and ex-Adoration Ale barrels, it is brought to proof and bottled by hand.The bourbon has an aroma of caramel, sweet spices and light fruits that gives way to crisp notes of vanilla, maple syrup, rye and dark fruits. The finish is slightly spicy, and complemented by bursts of citrus and honey.Pick up a bottle today!