Woodford Reserve Masters Collection Four Grain Bourbon Batch #1 the founding release of the Four Grain expression and the first release ever in the Woodford Reserve Masters Collection series: a Kentucky Straight Bourbon that adds wheat to the standard mash bill alongside rye, producing what was in 2005 the first four-grain bourbon in over 100 years.

In 2005, Master Distiller Chris Morris launched the Masters Collection with a premise rooted in the distillery’s guiding philosophy change one flavor source, document the result. For the first release, he changed grain: the standard Woodford mash bill of corn, rye, and malted barley became a four-grain recipe by adding wheat alongside the rye. This had not been done in American commercial bourbon production for more than a century. The addition of wheat alongside rye creates a different flavor dynamic than a pure wheated bourbon (where wheat replaces rye): both grains are present simultaneously, each contributing its own character rye’s spice and structure, wheat’s softness and sweetness rather than one replacing the other.

Batch #1 is the original Four Grain expression, released in Kentucky in 2005 and nationally in 2006, bottled at 92.4 proof and individually numbered. As the first release in a series now in its 20th year, it holds unique historical significance within the Masters Collection lineage.

Tasting Notes

• Nose: The combined grain character of four distinct sources corn sweetness, rye spice, wheat softness, and malted barley nuttiness with the triple pot still fruit complexity and caramel and vanilla from the oak
• Palate: More complex grain layering than standard Woodford the rye spice and wheat softness interact distinctly, producing a profile that sits between a standard high-rye bourbon and a wheated bourbon without fully resembling either
• Finish: Medium-long with grain complexity, gentle spice, and warm oak

Specs

• Distillery: Woodford Reserve Distillery, Versailles, Kentucky
• Style: Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey, Masters Collection (#1 founding release)
• Mash Bill: Four grains corn, wheat, rye, and malted barley
• Distillation: Triple copper pot still
• ABV: 46.2% (92.4 Proof)
• Release: 2005 Kentucky / 2006 national Batch #1
• Bottling: Individually numbered

Browse the full Woodford Reserve collection at Wooden Cork.

Frequently Asked Questions

• Why is the Four Grain historically significant? It was the first Masters Collection release (2005) and the first commercial bourbon with wheat alongside rye in the mash bill in over a century. Both distinctions make Batch #1 the founding piece of a series that has now produced 20 annual releases.
• What is the difference between a four-grain bourbon and a wheated bourbon? A wheated bourbon replaces rye with wheat entirely. Four Grain keeps both rye and wheat coexist in the mash, each contributing its own character simultaneously rather than one replacing the other.
• Is this collectible? As the founding batch of the founding Masters Collection release, Batch #1 is among the most historically significant of all Masters Collection expressions for serious collectors of the series.

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