Brown sugar | Cherry jubilee | Fresh danish | Toasted oak | Berry popover | Faint cinnamon stick | Toasted vanilla

Brown sugar | Light rye spice | Cinnamon spice | Homemade cherry jam | Charred oak | Black forest cake

Rye spice | Cinnamon spice | Black forest cake | Cherry almond shortbread cookie | Lingering spiced cherry

New Holland Brewing Company’s toasted series continues to be highly anticipated among bourbon drinkers in the know, with bottles released at their Michigan locations followed by limited online sales as well. This is the first drop of the year, with batch designations of 2026A, 2026B, 2026C, and 2026D. While the other three initial 2026 releases were finished in two secondary barrels, 2026A is an uncut bourbon finished only in toasted barrels.

While Dragon’s Milk Origin Toasted Barrel batches can range in flavor profiles and ratings, but the batches that only see a toasted oak barrel finish seem to be consistently great. This was especially so when it came to last year’s batches of 2025A and 2025G. While batch 2026A doesn’t quite reach the same peak as those, it’s undeniably an excellent sip.

New Holland has a knack for naming their batches after the flavor profile each sip delivers, and "Baker’s Delight" is no exception. Full of delicious bakery-inspired flavors from start to finish, the bourbon starts off with scents that are reminiscent of walking into a bakery first thing in the morning, as fresh pastries are laid out. The midpoint brings about additional sweet flavors, along with a light rye spice and charred oak note that add layered balance. Finishing on gentle spice and dessert notes, the bourbon concludes its sip by lingering and letting you enjoy it for a bit more before parting ways.

New Holland Spirits manages to make these Dragon’s Milk Origin Toasted Barrel releases stand out from a crowded marketplace year after year. Part of it is their unique mashbill, but the other part of it is how well their base bourbon takes to barrel finishing. Like those that have come before it, Dragon’s Milk Origin Toasted Barrel 2026A "Baker’s Delight" not only lives up to its name, but consumers will be delighted if they’re able to get their hands on a bottle.