Larceny Small Batch Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

According to the legend, John E. Fitzgerald founded a distillery along the banks of the Kentucky River shortly after the Civil War ended. Fitzgerald began distilling bourbon and selling it to passengers aboard the trains and steamships that passed through town. Shortly thereafter, Fitzgerald sold his brand "Old Fitzgerald Bourbon" to Julian P. "Pappy" Van Winkle for $10,000, a small fortune at the time. Pappy moved production of Old Fitz to his distillery, where it became one of the most famous bourbons in the world.

But if you ask Sally Van Winkle (Pappy's granddaughter), the story of John E. Fitzgerald and Old Fitz Bourbon is slightly more complicated and certainly more interesting. In 1999, Van Winkle revealed that Fitzgerald was not the man nor the distiller he claimed to be — he was, in fact, a bonded treasury agent. At the time, the Treasury Department was tasked with collecting taxes levied on spirits and as such, bonded treasury agents were the only people legally allowed to carry the keys to barrel storage warehouses.

Larceny Small Batch is a brand extension of Heaven Hill's Old Fitzgerald line. According to their story, back in the day, John E. Fitzgerald used his privilege of holding the keys to Pappy Van Winkle's bonded warehouse, where the Old Fitzgerald bourbons were kept, to steal the best casks for himself. These became known as the "Fitzgerald Barrels." Larceny is a wheated straight bourbon made from a blend of selected barrels made in honor of this legend.

Larceny's small-batch bourbon is made using a high wheat mash bill — similar to Pappy Van Winkle — and each bottling is pulled from 200 barrels or less, according to the brand. It's a great intro to the wheated bourbon category, with an attractive butterscotch nose, leading to a rich, honeyed palate. This whiskey tastes great neat, on the rocks, or in any classic bourbon cocktail. Larceny was hand selected by the Master Distillers to have a taste profile of a six-year-old Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey.

Made with wheat instead of rye as the secondary grain, our signature Wheated Bourbon delivers a smoother taste that’s hard to resist.

Tasting Notes:

Color: Bright new copper

Aroma: Fresh bread and toffee, with a note of butterscotch. Christmas pudding rum-soaked cherries, peanut butter, sugar glazed violet flowers (from a wedding cake), Sandalwood shavings, Cinnamon bark.

Taste: Buttery caramel and honeyed notes, with a rich mouthfeel. Dulce de leche which tends towards slightly bitter burnt caramel and dark cocoa powder licked from a finger from an overzealous hot chocolate preparation spill. A creamy heavy milk note builds as the darker flavours wane with time on the palate.

Finish: Long, gently sweet and savory. It is sweet but tempered with a definite spice edge of white pepper and oak. Discover a taste worth stealing. Made with wheat instead of rye as the secondary grain, our signature Wheated Bourbon delivers a smoother taste that’s hard to resist.

Composition: 68% corn, 20% wheat, 12% malted barley

Mashbill: 68% Corn / 20% Wheat / 12% Malted Barley

Cask: New Charred Oak