Our First Chicken Cock Single Barrel in Over A Year

It’s been a little over a year since our last single barrel from Chicken Cock, but the brand has been moving fast since then.
 
If you aren't familiar with the name, Chicken Cock is one of those brands that feels newer than they truly are. The brand dates back to the mid-1800s in Kentucky where during Prohibition it was smuggled into speakeasies in tin cans, given the nickname “The Famous Old Brand.” Like many greats, it disappeared for a few decades but the revival has balanced that old-school history with some really interesting modern finishing.
 
You can see that growth in their footprint. Since our last pick at the end of 2024, they’ve opened a new tasting experience in one of my favorite underground spots just outside downtown Louisville. It’s a huge jump in a short time - the last time Dee did a pick with them, they were still operating out of their new (at the time) Bardstown tasting room.
 
We’ve had some hitters from them in the past: the vanilla-heavy Kevin Kisner collaboration, that leather-and-chocolate "Garden & Gun" barrel, and of course our own 6-year and 10-year selections.  Today we’re continuing that run with a new 7-year bourbon. 
 
The nose is spiced apricot, plum, and salted caramel frosting, with darker notes more akin to dark chocolate-covered blueberry. There’s plenty of sweetness, balanced by cozy baking spices, along with a touch of sweet mint and baked apples.
 
The palate drinks rich and spiced from the get-go. There are brown sugar and cherry cola notes, alongside a more mature oakiness than the 7-year age statement would suggest.
 
Bigger chews bring a higher level of spiced oak, but it stays clean, with cinnamon brown sugar and orange Tootsie Pop, reminding me more of Stagg Jr. than anything, before a graham cracker sweetness carries through.
The finish opens with sweet oak and dried pineapple, then moves into dried cherry and cranberry, continuing chewy and slightly drying, with a pleasant biscuity butteriness to boot.