Corn syrup | Faint grain | Vanilla | Caramel | Light scents

Oak | Creamy caramel | Vanilla frosting | Peach | White peppercorn spice | Light creamy mouthfeel

Leather | Charred oak | Black peppercorn spice | Mouth-suckingly dry | Short

High Bank Distillery Co. is located in Grandview Heights, Ohio, and was co-founded by Adam Hines, who also serves as one of the company’s master distillers. Established in 2017, the company has been sourcing bourbon for several years and released it as part of their Whiskey War series, while they waited for their own in-house distilled whiskey to age. The result is High Bank Small Batch Bourbon, which was introduced to the market in 2025 and was aged for 6 years, according to the company.

‍High Bank Small Batch Bourbon delivers a rollercoaster of a pour. It starts with an incredibly light aroma that delivers straightforward scents of corn syrup, grain, vanilla, and caramel. The bourbon comes into its own at the midpoint, thanks to a creamy mouthfeel that emphasizes oak, caramel, sweet vanilla frosting, and a dab of peach. Just as soon as you’re enjoying where this bourbon is headed, it takes a 90 degree turn towards dryness during its finish with a focus on leather, charred oak, and black peppercorn spice. These flavors are delivered in short order, which is a good thing considering just how mouth-suckingly dry the delivery is. The bourbon shows lots of potential, and if High Bank Distillery can hone in on the finish, they’ll have a pleasant-tasting bourbon. However, in its current form, the finish derails the sip.

The bottle in review comes from Batch 02.