New Bourbon Release!

When we release a new spirit, it is always a special occasion and this next one is no exception. On Saturday, September 9th, Gate 11 Distillery will release its first-ever Bourbon Whiskey. This one, we call Larkin Bridges Straight Bourbon Whiskey, and it has been a while in the making.

Larkin Bridges Bourbon was mashed and fermented in the distillery from grains sourced from Batey Farms in Rutherford County, Tennessee. We used a mash bill consisting of 54% yellow corn, 34% malted barley and 12 % rye. The spirits were aged 2 and 1/2 years in our barrelhouse in new charred oak 30 gallon barrels with #3 char level.

We were assisted in this effort by seven participants in our Boxcar Whiskey program. These hearty souls lifted bags of grain and helped us mash and cook the mixture. They assisted in our two stage distillation process and help us store the resulting barrels for aging.

This bourbon was aged on the Gate 11 Boxcar Barrelhouse like all of our spirits. It has remarkable color and flavor for a relatively young spirit, the result of the boxcar’s robust thermal cycling.

Larking Bridges Bourbon has been named after an ancestor of distiller and botanical formulator, Wanda Lee who was an early pioneer in the Kentucky Territories. He is our personal link to the world that created bourbon!

The release for Larkin Bridges Bourbon will take place at the Bootlegger’s Bash - the newest whiskey-themed event by the Tennessee Whiskey Trail. We are very excited that Ruby Falls has agreed to host this event which will be held in their parking lot overlooking the beautiful city of Chattanooga. The event runs 3 to 6 pm and there will be whiskies from over 25 different Tennessee distillers as well as food and bluegrass music.

Cocktail Application - Larkin Bridges Bourbon can be fully enjoyed neat or over a few ice cubes but if you want to explore its potential in a cocktail, we suggest the following:

Boulevardier:

1 .5 oz Larkin Bridges Bourbon

1.0 oz Sweet Vermouth

1.0 Campari

Stir and strain over ice with orange wheel as garnish.