Wheat bread | Cookie dough | Brown sugar | Eucalyptus | Cinnamon sugar

Warm caramel | Light brown sugar | Raspberry cream | Cream soda | Sweet & light

Butterfinger candy bar | Peanut butter toffee | Corn Pops cereal | White peppercorn | Light spicy oak

Chicken Cock, the brand with the infamous name and iconic honeycomb textured bottle, is adding a new bottle to their core lineup, replacing the brand’s Small Batch release. Chicken Cock Wheated Kentucky Straight Bourbon marks the brand’s first wheated mashbill in its 168 year history. Coming in at 94 proof, it looks to provide an accessible jumping on point to the brand and, with 30% wheat in its mashbill, hopes to offer some distinction from its competition.

Wheated bourbon continues to be produced in some part thanks to Maker’s Mark and Pappy Van Winkle’s relentless allure. Wheated bourbons are often seen as producing a softer and sweeter sip compared to bourbons made with rye as their secondary grain. Though as plenty of producers have shown, there are plenty of spicy wheated bourbons on the market, and by contrast plenty of soft and sweet ryes on the market as well. Grain doesn’t always tell the whole story. Case in point, Chicken Cock Wheated Kentucky Straight Bourbon falls somewhere in between.

The bourbon's aroma is wheat bread-forward with a buttery, sweet vanilla cookie dough scent following. Brown sugar, eucalyptus, and cinnamon sugar provide additional sugary and lightly herbal background scents. The palate and finish are caramel-forward but in different ways. Warm caramel against light brown sugar, light raspberry cream, and an effervescent-like taste of cream soda. The finish dishes up Butterfinger candy bar-like flavors of caramelized sugar and crunchy peanut butter toffee. From there, corn, not wheat, draws attention in the form of Corn Pops cereal against white peppercorn and a touch of spicy oak.

Chicken Cock Wheated Kentucky Straight Bourbon isn’t as cohesive as you might expect it to be. There are caramel notes to be had, but surprisingly, a decent amount of spice on the finish. With additional flavors of cookie dough and cream soda adding a very slight amount of fun to an otherwise straightforward flavor profile, it isn’t quite enough to elevate the sip further. The whiskey’s price point is in the range of what you’d expect to pay for it in today’s market, but that doesn’t mean you have to agree with it. Chicken Cock Wheated Kentucky Straight Bourbon is an approachable and easy-drinking bourbon that is well-suited for newer drinkers, though more seasoned enthusiasts may find it lacking in enough complexity.