Bhakta - Brandy 50 Year Old Theobald Barrel #14

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Barrel 14 - Theobold - is a 358-bottle release containing 8 vintages from 1868, 1897, 1939, 1946, 1956, 1963, 1965, and 1970. The blend is simply delicious, but that’s where the simplicity ends. From nose to finish, complexity is the name of the game. The Islay finishing holds back on the nose before rushing the palate and rounding out the finish. Dark, raisiny sweetness and depth suffuse the palate. I find it fitting that an unmistakable effervescence flows through the palate - after all, what better way to pay homage to champagne and its progenitor, as Bhakta Spirits puts it, than to have a mouthfeel that gives a mildly bubbly, ethereal sensation. 

"Raj Bhakta, a former investment banker, Apprentice contestant and Congressional candidate, wanted to start a whiskey company. Bhakta sought the advice of the late and legendary Dave Pickerell, and in a move that helped cement the now familiar pattern of building a brand with sourced whiskey while making the capital-intensive investments to build a distillery and release in-house product, imported aged stocks of 100% rye from Canada for bottling in Vermont. Bhakta was later forced out of WhistlePig under a cloud, eventually selling his stake in the company and signing a non-compete agreement. That agreement has now expired, and so The man who started WhistlePig is back with a new, namesake company, Bhakta Spirits. " Richard Thomas, The Whiskey Reviewer

Theobold is perhaps the key figure in one of France’s most well-known wines: champagne. As ruler of the Champagne region, Theobold planted the seeds - pun intended - of the region’s eponymous vintner culture, beginning its elevation to the highest statuses of the wine world. Eight centuries later, Champagne is still the go-to for celebrations, special occasions, toasts, and otherwise connotes a sophistication other types cannot match. 

It is from this heritage that barrel 14 of Bhakta Spirits’ Bhakta 50 series comes. This series, chosen from Maison Ryst-Dupeyron armagnac barrels, contains distillate from as early as 1868 and as late as 1970. Each of the 38 barrels eventually to be released contain approximately 8-10 vintages, and each are finished in Islay whisky casks for a smoky finish that manifests differently in each batch (at least of the three I’ve tried so far!).