Brown sugar | Toasted oak | Caramel | Light marshmallow | Well balanced

Corn syrup | Brown sugar | Cinnamon powder | Charred oak | Toasted marshmallow | Light molasses | Stone fruits

Rye spice | Brown sugar | Light syrup | Toasted oak | Green peppercorn spice

Chattanooga Whiskey’s Founder’s Anniversary Blend releases are meant to symbolize the company’s past, present, and future. To do this, they utilize a Solera process using three tanks of bourbon. This represents taking from the past for the present, then adding back for the future. According to Chattanooga Whiskey, this means “Each year to commemorate their anniversary, [company founder Tim] Piersant evaluates the whiskey within each solera barrel, trialing various blends to highlight the best of each recipe. After each year's blend is complete, the distilling team refills each tank with newly mature barrels, where they will quietly marry until the following year.”

This year’s blend is a mix of 77% Chattanooga-distilled whiskey and 23% bourbon distilled by Ross & Squibb Distillery. Broken down, those two percentages reveal an interesting combination of age and source. The company reveals that the 23% of Chattanooga 1816 aged bourbon is greater than 4 years old and sourced from Ross & Squibb Distillery. The rest is Chattanooga distilled whiskey, of which 58% is the brand’s Tennessee high malt Barrel 91 bourbon aged greater than 2 years, and 19% is a blend of whiskeys distilled at the company’s Experimental and Riverfront Distilleries that is aged greater than 3 years. The company states that this year’s batch size is 9-11 barrels.

Chattanooga Whiskey Founder’s Blend is a consistent whiskey year-over-year. We found last year’s version to deliver both familiar and new flavors, and the same can be said for this year’s blend. The focus is on sweet, well-balanced flavors throughout the sip. It starts with a balanced nose that focuses on traditional scents with a hint of marshmallow. These familiar flavors carry through to the palate and are joined by prominent corn syrup, brown sugar and ripe stone fruits. Ending on a more traditional spiced-filled note, the finish pulls in brown sugar again to carry through the sweet vein. Overall, this is one of the most consistent limited releases offered at an affordable price point, delivering a pour that Chattanooga fans and American whiskey fans alike will appreciate.