The 3 Bottle Set of the new Heaven Hill Grain to Glass series is an impressive beast !

Notes: An extension of the Grain to Glass line, This is one of the Heaven Hill Grain to Glass Specialty Barrel Series , in this case the Kentucky Wheated Straight Bourbon 105 Proof. The Grain to Glass series is a ongoing series using a single varietal of corn from from a seed company called Becks Hybrids , a family owned seed company in Indiana.This years varietal Becks 6225- was chosen and grown by a family owned farm called Peterson Farms in Nelson County and just across the road from Heaven Hill.

The 2025 Specialty Barrel Series is meant to showcase the artistry involved (and the results) of barrel selection and maturation. The three whiskies of this selection include the Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey, This , The Kentucky Straight Wheated Bourbon Whiskey, and The Kentucky Straight Rye Whiskey. Each are aged I( not just conditioned in) in char level 3 Chinquapin Oak barrels which are a species of American oak native to Central and Eastern North America for a period of 6 years. Chinquapin Oak has , among other characteristics, a vanillin content. This results in heightened ones of butterscotch, crème brullee , toasted nut, chocolate and coffee notes among others, and increases the complexity, layering , and boldness to the whiskies.As a side note  the whiskey was aged at Cox’s Creek in rickhouse W5 on floors 3 and 5, which slightly varies from the rickhouses and floors used for the standard edition, which were rickhouses W5 and W6 on floors 3, 4, and 5. Not sure how much this location change affects the whiskey per se, I am sure it is much more due to the wood selection than location. Assuming they were located differently more for inventory/differentiation  than any particular climate control issue. As a side note, generally speaking barrels selected for long term aging (once identified) are carefully sequestered in the center of the rickhouses in the middle of the thermal mass as it were to have as little fluctuation in temperature as possible to prolong the process of aging and get more rack time. Other barrels can end up in the other direction as each ( or at least that batch which is usually multiple barrels ) are placed for the maximum benefit for the time frame for maturation – a very complex set of calculations to get the very best result for each whiskey !

This expression, the Wheated Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey uses a mash bill of 52% Corn, Wheat 35%, and 13% malted Barley which is a fairly standard mash bill for Heaven Hill. but the cronies a very specific stain/genome the Becks 6225, which is also used in the other grain to glass series , but as stated before the additional variable in this series is the Chinquapin Oak to. add a further layer of variation to the mix as it were,

Appearance: Clear, a touch lighter in color than the other bourbon in this collection/release a lighter like first tap maple syrup color ( the light amber grade) molts old gold with suggestions of red – which is a touch unusual for a bourbon at this age. On swirling the viscosity is noticeably thinner, it does not coat the glass as thickly as the other one, leaving a thinner coating forming more tears ( rather than the rollback of the there one)

First Impression: Nice grain notes to it with less wood ( or maybe I should say a touch more muted) with a bit more lighter forms of spice from the wheat, kind of a croissant or pastry notes with some light aromatics to it.

Taste: Lighter mouthfeel/entry than the other bourbon of the series with a slightly thinner entry and a touch more sweetness. Less drying char notes with most of it on the center of the tongue rather than the edges. Overall a bit lighter density than its brother/sister bourbon with the barley playing nicely with the wheat to add complexity and depth to the corn and the barrel

Drinks: Lovely on its own with a few drops of (warm) water to open it up inn a decent glass. As to cocktails it works well for all the usual bourbon based cocktails and would also be a good crossover for some Irish or Scotch based cocktails also. One proviso I would add however is ue to the price you may want to appreciate this on its own and use another bourbon for mixing _ especially if you think your guests may not appreciate subtlety as much.

Bottle: Beautiful cylindrical and slightly broadening towards the top with a shorter thick neck that harks back to a previous age. Cork has a short T too with a real cork , Cork has a nice inset medallion with the Heaven Hill logo, Heft is wrong for a bronze medallion but it looks nice. Maybe for a few pennies more they could improve on that for a premium bottle such as this?  Label graphics are simple and tasteful. This expression is distinguished from its sibling by the dark red color of both its lower label and neck seal. Specs and narration on the contents are extensive across both labels on this bottle , relax and enjoy them

Other: Take a look at our reviews of other Heaven Hill products, such as the Elijah Craig,  Larceny, Old Fitzgerald, Heaven Hill Parker Heritage, and Evan Williams whiskies.

Final Thoughts: A very well done whiskey by Heaven Hill – Who is to be applauded for their experimentation and innovation – not to mention their charitable works through the Parker Heritage and Farm rescue programs among others. Overall an interesting, flavorful, and delicious wheated bourbon . Wheated bourbon can at times be a dice throw, this one is a winner !

Website: www.heavenhilldistillery.com/graintoglass

As usual with the Heaven Hill websites in general , they have a fair amount of information – usually a lot more than most but still IMHO lacking in certain details. ( My gold standard is the Waterford Whiskey websites for individual release) . Definietly worth looking at though!

Pour yourself a glass or two of their whiskeys and sit down and read up or listen to their podcasts, Lot of information to absorb and enjoy !