Review of Four Roses Mizunara Cask Finish Bourbon (Experimental Series No. 001)

One of the most iconic American distilleries is Four Roses Bourbon. It has two Kentucky locations: the bottling and warehouse operation in Cox’s Creek and the main campus in Lawrenceburg.

 

The facts of its beginnings are murky. According to the distillery, it was founded by Paul Jones, Jr. in 1888, but had been producing whiskey since the 1860s. Another theory is that Rufus Matthewson Rose, a druggist, created it in 1867 as the R. M. Rose Co. Distillery in Vinings, Georgia. The name Four Roses represented Rufus, his brother Origen, and the sons of Rufus and Origen. Whichever story is true, the Lawrenceburg distillery was established in 1910 as Old Prentice Distillery, owned by J.T.S. Brown.

 

In 1922, The Paul Jones Company acquired Frankfort Distilling Company and a license to sell Four Roses as medicinal whiskey during Prohibition. In 1943, Seagram purchased Frankfort Distilling Company for the sole purpose of the Four Roses name. Despite Four Roses being the best-selling Bourbon at the time, Seagram halted sales in the United States, and it became an export-only whiskey, where it enjoyed a massive following in Europe and Japan.

 

That’s when Jim Rutledge came to the scene. Many of us recognize Jim as the previous Four Roses Master Distiller. He started with Seagram and, in 1975, was transferred to its New York City headquarters. In 1992, he requested to be relocated back to his home in Lawrenceburg, and three years later, Jim replaced Ova Haney as Master Distiller. His goal was to bring Four Roses back to the United States market.

 

Then, in 2002, the Kirin Brewing Company, Ltd. purchased Four Roses from Seagram and greenlighted its return to American store shelves. Six years later, Al Young, the former pretty much everything at Four Roses, became its national brand ambassador. Jim Rutledge handed the reins to Brent Elliott in 2015, who is the current Master Distiller. And, earlier this year, E. & J. Gallo Winery purchased Four Roses from Kirin for $775 million.

 

So, while that’s a lot of change, Four Roses is a very methodical operation. It produces ten distillate recipes, blending them into its flagship Four Roses Yellow Label. There are two Small Batch expressions, and ten Single Barrel varieties. Aside from its annual Limited Edition release, the only other times Four Roses releases something different is once in about six blue moons.

 

Well, that sixth blue moon has risen, unleashing Four Roses Experimental Series No. 001. It is a Kentucky Straight Bourbon finished in rare Japanese Mizunara oak barrels.

 

Mizunara cask development was due to European and American oak shortages during World War II. The Japanese looked to their forests to create the required containers. The Japanese coopers returned to European and American oak once the supply chain issues were remedied. However, the memory of how well the whisky aged in Mizunara wood remained.

 

In more modern times, the Mizunara trees are a protected species. First, the tree must be about 200 years old to be suitable for carving staves. Secondly, the yield of usable wood is meager compared to its European and American counterparts. Thirdly, you can’t harvest a live Mizunara tree; it must be naturally felled.¹

 

“This series is an exciting new chapter for us. It allows us to take the craftsmanship that’s been at the heart of Four Roses and apply it in entirely new ways, experimenting with finishes and techniques that reveal dimensions of flavor our fans haven’t experienced before. For me, it’s about pushing boundaries while staying true to the character of Four Roses Bourbon, and giving our fans the chance to join us on that journey of discovery.” - Master Distiller Brent Elliott

 

As I said earlier, Four Roses is very methodical. Brent’s team monitored the candidate barrels chosen for Experimental Series No. 001, sampling them almost weekly to determine when each barrel was properly matured and how it might contribute to the blend. The winner turned out to be a six-year-old OBSK Bourbon packaged at 54% ABV (108°).

 

While Four Roses doesn’t state how many 375mL bottles of Experimental Series No. 001 are available, the only place to purchase one for $55.00 is at either of its campuses. The label does not suggest this is a single barrel expression.

 

Four Roses was kind enough to send me a sample of Experimental Series No. 001 in exchange for my no-strings-attached, honest review. Let’s #DrinkCurious and discover what’s inside!

 

• Whiskey Type: Bourbon
• Distiller: Four Roses Bourbon
• Age: 6 years
• Mashbill: OBSK (60% corn, 35% rye, 5% malted barley)
• Cooperage: New, charred oak barrels, then finished in Mizunara casks
• Alcohol Content: 54% ABV (108°)
• Price per 375mL: $55.00
• Distillery-only item

 

Appearance: I used a Glencairn glass to explore this Bourbon neat. It looked like liquid butterscotch. Massively thick, slow tears dropped from the medium rim it formed.

 

Nose: After allowing Experimental Series No. 001 my cursory 15 minutes to breathe, I brought the glass beneath my nostrils and took in the aroma. It was sweet, with caramel, toffee, vanilla, and blueberries, along with nutmeg, newer leather, oak, and orange zest. When I drew the air into my mouth, I tasted cinnamon and vanilla.

 

Palate: I took my first sip and encountered a rich, creamy texture and an intensifying, woody palate shock. The whiskey stuck to the inside of my mouth like glue. The second sip revealed flavors of vanilla cream, nutmeg, and orange zest on the front, while the mid-palate offered apple pie filling, cinnamon sticks, and mint. The back included sweet oak, rye spice, and leather.

 

Finish: Sweet oak, rye spice, cinnamon, vanilla, apple pie filling, and orange zest had equal time in the spotlight, while mint took a standing-room-only encore. It was sticky and wasn’t all that interested in hiding in the shadows. The duration lasted 1:24, bringing it just shy of a long finish.  

 

Bottle, Bar, or Bust: I’m a big fan of the K yeast because it imparts enough spice on the Bourbon without becoming overpowering. Sipping Experimental Series No. 001 was what you’d expect if you tried to dial up its sweet and spicy qualities. Even the mint, which is not my most cherished note in a Bourbon, was lovely and sweeter. I’ll attribute that to the Mizurana oak.

 

If you’re dinkering around trying to figure out how “expensive” Experimental Series No. 001 is, keep in mind that many of Four Roses’ barrel proof expressions tend to be on the lower side because it only uses one-story rickhouses; as such, 108° could easily fall under that category. Add to that the use of Mizunara oak, and the $110.00 conversion to 750mL isn’t out of line.

 

What Experimental Series No. 001 offers is a unique Bourbon, even for Four Roses, that balances sweet and spice and seems properly proofed. KUDOS to Brent Elliott and his team for putting in the time and energy to properly develop this whiskey.

 

Obviously, in my opinion, you’ll want to buy a Bottle. The Experimental Series has at least two more offerings planned, and I can’t wait. Cheers!   

 

 

My Simple, Easy-to-Understand Rating System

• Bottle = Buy It
• Bar = Try It
• Bust = Leave It

 

Whiskeyfellow encourages you to enjoy your whiskey as you see fit, but begs you to do so responsibly.

 

¹Brad Japhe, Bloomberg Businessweek, April 27, 2022