Jeffersons Wood Experiment Bourbon Whiskey Collection The inspiration behind Jeffersons Wood Experiment Collection came from Trey spending time in a wine cooperage in Missouri. Wine cooperages are different than what you find in Kentucky as they have different treating processes, which focus more on toasting, slow cooking, and searing to bring different flavors to the forefront. It was at this point we asked, "How could we change up what the final flavors of the bourbon are after we mature it in typical bourbon barrels? Trey started by putting 4 year old bourbon that had been aged in new charred white oak barrels, and finished it in 13 different environments/vessels. There were so many combinations to experiment with “ new bourbon barrels, new wine barrels, wine barrel heads on a new bourbon barrel, insert oak staves that have been seared, or oak cubes that have been slow cooked, etc. Over a period of 32 months, we charted the characteristics of each experiment monthly and analyzed how the different treatments have affected the outcome of the final whiskey. We decided to bottle them up in five 200 milliliter experiments so you can try five different experiments and see for yourself how these small changes make a vast difference. Jeffersons Wood Experiment was purportedly designed as an experimental aging program inspired by a visit to a wine barrel cooperage. Its an interesting concept. Wine barrels are almost exclusively toasted oak, and many wineries favor older used barrels for a more neutral flavor. This approach is almost diametrically opposed to bourbons pursuit of a high-oak flavor profile using charred, brand-new barrels. Heres how Jeffersons explains their experiment they took four-year-old straight bourbon whiskey and aged it in one of 13 different experimental aging environments, from toasted extra-large barrels to standard charred bourbon barrels with stave or cube inserts. Afterwards, the spirits were bottled in 200ml bottles and packaged in sets of five, with a seemingly random selection of five of the 13 different experiments in each set. For over 30 months, Jefferson's Bourbon Founder and Master Blender Trey Zoeller carried out 13 different experiments on fully matured bourbon by changing the conditions in which the bourbon was aged. Whether it was placing the already aged bourbon in new American oak casks with different char levels, changing the barrels to wine casks, or adding wood staves/cubes that have been treated, Zoeller did it. He charted the progress of these experiments every 30 days. This was developed along with the expertise of Independent Staves Company. The Jefferson's Wood Experiment Collection includes: Experiment No. 3: "Creme Brule" - Aged in New Amercian oak wine barrels with a low, deep impact toast profile which gives off a vanilla nut finish and smoky undertones Experiment No. 4: "Chocolate Caramel" - Aged in new, standard whiskey barrels with a medium char, infused with heavily charred American oak cubes that exert flavors of mocha, dark chocolate and caramel with hints of tobacco and leather Experiment No. 6: "Vanilla Smoke" - Aged in new standard whiskey barrels that have a light-medium char and infused with lightly toasted American oak cubes that emit smoky honey and vanilla flavors Experiment No. 10: "Southern Spice" - Aged in a custom French & American hybrid wine barrel with a low, deep impact toast profile that presents big, bold flavors of burnt caramel, plum, black pepper and maple Experiment No. 12: "Cinnamon Apple" - Aged in the original bourbon barrel with oak inserts that have been toasted over a long period of time to exert flavors of caramelized apples and plums with a bold cinnamon finish Bottle sizes: 5 x 200ml
