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Bulleit is the most recent prominent U.S. whiskey brand to introduce an American single malt, a category expected to get its own legal definition soon. This new whiskey is acceptable, but the most informative aspect about this launch is it gives more evidence that craft distilleries keep pioneering this potential category.

Diageo-owned Bulleit has faced some negative publicity in recent years. In 2017, founder Tom Bulleit was pushed out due to a controversy, and the brand was sued by former blender Eboni Major for discrimination in 2022 (the lawsuit was dismissed, and Major now owns her own whiskey brand named Dread River). Regarding the actual whiskey, Bulleit’s bourbon comes from an undisclosed source (Four Roses is rumored to have made it at one time, and possibly still does), and the rye is produced at MGP in Indiana. Massive success has followed the brand since it started in 1987, partly due to its vintage-looking bottles and importantly, the good quality of its reasonably priced whiskey. Bulleit might not be the first choice for serious whiskey enthusiasts, but the people prefer it and that certainly matters.

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So where was this new American single malt produced? According to a rep for the brand, not at Bulleit’s two Kentucky distilleries which haven’t been operating long enough, but contractual obligations prevent them from disclosing the source. We do have some details: The whiskey is made from a mashbill of 100 percent malted barley and aged in new charred American oak barrels for about four years. If that sounds similar to James B. Beam Distilling Co.’s Clermont Steep and Jack Daniel’s single malt, that’s because it is. It seems that legacy distilleries are choosing to age single malt in the same way they do bourbon—in new charred oak barrels—although Jack gave its expression a very long sherry cask finish.

The resulting whiskey, while obviously made from a completely different mashbill, ends up still kind of tasting like bourbon after spending years in virgin charred oak during Kentucky’s hot summers and cold winters. That is the case here. This is a decent if unremarkable whiskey, with pleasant notes of vanilla, caramel, brown sugar, oak, and a hint of malt on the palate, but it does not stand out from bourbon in the way that other American single malts do.

Perhaps this isn’t negative; it might even be the intended outcome. However, when contrasting this whiskey with the single malts aged in diverse barrel types (both new and used) emerging from distilleries such as Westland, Westward, Hood River Distillers, Charbay, and even Stranahan’s (predominantly utilizing new charred oak), it can seem like a lost chance. The legal description of American single malt will likely not prescribe the employment of new wood because the majority of distilleries do not desire this. They see this as an opportunity to establish a unique section distinctly unlike both scotch and bourbon. Yet, the established distillers in Kentucky and Tennessee appear to favor maturing American single malt in the same manner as bourbon—which is logical, considering their barrel inventory and know-how.

There isn’t a correct or incorrect response here, but Bulleit’s novel American single malt whiskey does exemplify a style, notion, and mindset that underscores the distinction between the large distilleries and the craft operations, a lot of which have been manufacturing single malt for over ten years now. It’s not a poor endeavor or shoddily crafted item, yet it simply doesn’t meet the standard other distilleries are attaining in the American single malt world.

100: Worthy of trading your first-born for

95 – 99: In the Pantheon: A trophy for the cabinet

90 – 94 Great: An excited nod from friends when you pour them a dram

85 – 89 Very Good: Delicious enough to buy, but not quite special enough to chase on the secondary market

80 – 84 Good: More of your everyday drinker, solid and reliable

Below 80 It’s alright: Honestly, we probably won’t waste your time and ours with this

Every week Jonah Flicker tastes the most buzzworthy and interesting whiskeys in the world. Check back each Friday for his latest review.

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