New Riff Kentucky Wild Gin Bourbon Barreled
New Riff Kentucky Wild Gin Bourbon Barreled (750mL, 47% ABV / 94 proof) takes the distillery’s 12-botanical Kentucky Wild Gin — wild foraged juniper and spicebush, copper pot distilled, with a dash of new-make rye — and rests it 5–7 months in dripping-fresh New Riff bourbon barrels. The barrel rounds and spices the gin without turning it into whiskey: spicebush meets vanilla oak, and the official tasting notes say it best — “the borders between gin and whiskey fade away.” Order it online at Del Mesa Liquor, San Diego, CA.
- ABV: 47% (94 proof) — 750mL; non-chill filtered
- Barrel: rests 5–7 months in freshly emptied New Riff bourbon barrels
- Base gin: same 12-botanical copper-pot recipe, incl. foraged Kentucky juniper and spicebush
- Origin: New Riff Distilling, Newport, Kentucky
- Recognition: 2024 Double Gold, Barleycorn Awards (per the distillery)
Where the Borders Between Gin and Whiskey Fade
Barreled gin is a small category; barreled gin from a great bourbon distillery is smaller still. New Riff fills its own freshly dumped barrels with its wild-botanical gin, and five to seven months later the oak has lent vanilla and tannin while the spicebush and angelica stay dry and assertive — the official palate notes call out subtle oak tannin amplifying angelica’s dryness, orange peel stepping forward, and a finish of dry angelica and continued orange peel. It is still a gin, poured at whiskey strength, built for drinkers who like both. See more from New Riff or explore barreled gin.
Tasting Notes
Nose of spicebush and vanilla oak; a palate where subtle oak tannin amplifies angelica dryness and orange peel steps forward; a finish of angelica dryness with continued orange peel — the gin-botanical character intact under a bourbon-barrel sheen.
How to Enjoy
The distillery’s own suggestion is a Martinez — “a Manhattan made with our gin in the place of whiskey.” It also drinks beautifully neat with a cube, or subbed into a Negroni for a rounder, oakier take.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Bourbon Barreled gin actually a whiskey?
No — it is a true gin, rested 5–7 months in fresh bourbon barrels. The barrel adds vanilla-oak character, but the twelve botanicals and gin distillation remain.
How long is it aged?
Five to seven months in dripping-fresh New Riff bourbon barrels — a rest, not a whiskey maturation.
What cocktails work best?
The distillery recommends a Martinez; it also elevates a Negroni or a barrel-aged-style Old Fashioned riff.
Barrel-rested gin from a bourbon house — order New Riff Kentucky Wild Gin Bourbon Barreled online at Del Mesa Liquor, San Diego, CA.