The Colonel's Secret Bourbon Recipe

Redwood Empire Gets Wheaty

Redwood Empire, once a tiny curiosity of a whiskey brand, now oversees the largest barrel inventory on the West Coast, with over 22,000 aging barrels. They source their grains—corn, rye, wheat, and malted barley—primarily from family-owned farms in California’s Sacramento Valley. They distill in their own Vendome column stills to around 140 proof and then is slowly blended and proofed to 110 before barreling in traditional 53 galloon American white oak barrels. Unlike Kentucky’s extreme seasonal shifts, Northern California's cooler climate ensures a slower, more balanced maturation—much like the terroir that makes Sonoma and Napa world-renowned for wine.

Their new Colonel Armstrong Wheated Bourbon, named for a 1400 year old towering redwood in Sonoma County, sees them blending their own California whiskey with barrels from Indiana and Kentucky. The derived mash bill is 59% corn, 30% wheat, 6% rye, and 5% malted barley. Redwood Empire states that the blend is made of 122 barrels with some aged as long as 14 years. The nose presents light and sweet notes of wheat toast with honey, caramel, lemonade, and toasted oak. On the palate, soft notes of honey and wheat combine with butterscotch, light red fruit, and a hint of baking spice. The pleasant finish leaves one with notes of vanilla, oak, and honey. Bottled at 94 proof.

In the Shop This Week

The Colonel Armstrong Wheated Bourbon Named for a 1,400-year-old redwood in Sonoma County, this is Redwood Empire's first wheated bourbon. It's a 122-barrel blend of California distillate combined with barrels from Indiana and Kentucky, with some components aged up to 14 years. Derived mash bill: 59% corn, 30% wheat, 6% rye, 5% malted barley. The high wheat percentage softens the profile considerably — nose of wheat toast, honey, lemonade, and caramel; palate of butterscotch, soft red fruit, and baking spice; finish of vanilla, oak, and honey. Bottled at 94 proof. Shop →

Grizzly Beast Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon — Batch 5 Bottled-in-Bond means it has to meet a strict federal standard: 100 proof, minimum four years old, distilled in a single season at a single distillery. Batch 5 delivers on all counts. Made entirely in California from locally sourced grain — 67% corn, 17% rye, 10% wheat, 6% malted barley — and aged five years in Northern California's temperate climate. The nose leads with sharp rye spice, black pepper, and oak, followed by wild cherry, caramel, and a touch of leather. The rye percentage is what drives this one. Bottled at 100 proof. Shop →

Pipe Dream Bourbon — 90 Proof The flagship. A blend of whiskeys distilled in Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, and California, aged between four and fourteen years. Derived mash bill: 73% corn, 18% rye, 5% malted barley, 4% wheat. Classic high-corn bourbon profile — maple syrup, vanilla, oak, and caramel, with a touch of spiced fruit on the back end. At 90 proof it's an easy pour, and the wide sourcing gives it more complexity than you'd expect from a bottle at this price point. Shop →

Pipe Dream 101 Proof Bourbon Same concept as the flagship, but with a higher share of Redwood Empire's own California-distilled grain-to-glass whiskey and older barrels — five to fifteen years. The derived mash bill shifts slightly: 73% corn, 19% rye, 5% malted barley, 3% wheat. The extra proof and age both show. Expect rich caramel apple, citrus, vanilla wafer, and chai spice, with a warming finish of baking spice and shortbread. Noticeably more density than the 90-proof version. Shop →

Pipe Dream Cask Strength Bourbon — 115.8 proof (57.9% ABV) No dilution, no chill filtration. The nose opens with rich caramel, vanilla, and toasted oak alongside cinnamon, nutmeg, black pepper, dark fruit, leather, and hints of chocolate. On the palate it holds together well for the proof — caramel, toffee, vanilla, bold oak spice, dried cherry, and cocoa. The finish is long, persistent on caramel and warm spice. This is the version to reach for if you want to add your own water and dial it in, or to pull apart what's actually in the blend. Shop →

Emerald Giant Rye Whiskey — 90 Proof Named for a nearly 1,200-year-old, 359-foot Sonoma redwood. This is a blend of MGP-sourced rye and Redwood Empire's own California-distilled rye — derived mash bill of 92% rye, 5% malted barley, 3% wheat, aged four to seven years. At 90 proof it's one of the more approachable high-rye expressions out there: peppercorn, rye spice, green herbs, honey, and sweet oak. Works in a Manhattan, works neat. The mash bill is identical to the cask-strength version below — this one is just the more mixable entry point. Shop →

Emerald Giant Cask Strength Rye — 115.4 Proof Same blend of MGP and California rye, same 92% rye / 5% malted barley / 3% wheat mash bill, same four-to-seven-year age range — but bottled at barrel strength without chill filtration. At 115.4 proof, the flavors concentrate: Earl Grey tea, cinnamon stick, cocoa, and pronounced rye spice. The no-chill-filtration decision matters here; you keep the fatty acids and esters that would otherwise be stripped out, which translates to a thicker, more textured pour. If the 90-proof version is the everyday rye, this is the one you sit with. Shop →