(Photo: Widow Jane)
On Monday, Brooklyn-based Widow Jane distillery unveiled the latest bottling in its The Vaults series. While previous releases recruited the likes of Missouri Ozark and Chinquapin oak for their cask finishes, this time around the distiller opted for the contentious addition of Amburana wood.
The Vaults 2024 is made up of a blend of straight bourbon whiskeys with an undisclosed mashbill. Under the oversight of head distiller and blender Sienna Jevremov, the expression was aged 15 years in the Widow Jane rickhouse before finishing in Amburana casks, occasionally referred to as "Brazilian oak."
The brand says that the combination brought about rich and savory flavors of rosemary, olive oil, sencha green tea and roasted yam in the whiskey. The expression — bottled at 49.5% ABV — is slated to hit shelves in October at a suggested retail price of $250.
“The 2023 Vaults release was my first big project leading the blending team,” Jevremov commented in a news release. "My first task was to create a gorgeous blend highlighting the earthy and textually robust qualities of 15- and 20-year-old whiskeys. My next imperative was to slowly introduce the Amburana to work with the whiskey’s notes in delicate harmony. I hope everyone can enjoy the dance of deeply aged whiskey and tropical spiced aromatics.”
Amburana cask finishes swept the whiskey world like wildfire throughout 2022 and 2023. Opinions on the wood type vary wildly from drinker to drinker and brand to brand.
Amburana is a South American hardwood found in the jungles of Argentina, Bolivia, Peru, Paraguay, and, most notably, Brazil, the country where it's commonly used to mature the distilled sugarcane beverage cachaça. Though well-regarded for its spicy scent and soft vanilla notes, Amburana is most famous among drinkers for its distinct, heavy wallop of cinnamon flavor.
As with all techniques in the spirits world, one enthusiast's "famous" is another's "infamous." Users across social media have opined that the flavor is overwhelming, sometimes veering toward a firebomb of sweetness that mutes out the gentler notes within whiskey and rum.
That being said, we've found a whole lot to like in both Hard Truth and Penelope's takes on the concept, which garnered a Raided Score® of 88 and 90, respectively. Big swings of honey, ginger and caramel took center stage in each bottling to great effect, handily dispelling the misconception that Amburana is always a negative.
We're eager to see what Widow Jane does with the method; for more information on the brand, find the distiller's website here.
Widow Jane The Vaults 2024 Tasting Notes, Via the Brand
