Toasted walnut | Burnt caramel | Molasses | Charred oak | Dark brown sugar | Chocolate

Brown sugar | Toffee | Nougat | Pecan pie | Cinnamon

Barrel char | Molasses | Aged leather | Oak tannins  

Provenance was founded by Viyas Sundaram, the mind behind reviving Washington, D.C.’s historic Fountain Inn and co-founding The Bourbon Concierge. According to Sundaram, Provenance is meant to “showcase how exceptional barrels and thoughtful blending can create whiskeys that stand with the very best.” To help with this, he brought on Jay West as principal whiskey maker, who many may know for his critical analysis on the former Whiskey Raiders website and marketing name, T8ke. The company’s sourced barrels rest in newly built rickhouses on the 121-acre historic Provenance Estate in Middleburg, Virginia. 1787 Provenance 7 Year Bourbon is the company’s flagship release. 

This 107 proof cask strength bourbon packs a lot of candy bar-like flavors. It starts with toasted walnut, burnt caramel, molasses, and chocolate that’s reminiscent of a Snickers bar. The palate replaces walnut with pecan, adding toffee and nougat, and a dash of cinnamon, which makes it taste a lot like a Snickers Pecan bar. The finish concludes with a heavy barrel influence, featuring barrel char at the start and notes of molasses, aged leather, and a pronounced presence of oak tannins to round out the sip. 

1787 Provenance 7 Year Single Barrel Straight Bourbon tastes a lot like a typical Kentucky barrel proof bourbon, such as the Heaven Hill Elijah Craig brand. However, in this case, take all that big flavor and drop the proof without sacrificing too much intensity. There are plenty of nut and brown sugar notes to go around, so there’s a chance this could be a Bardstown Bourbon Company barrel. Regardless of where it comes from, the concentration of flavors works in this bourbon’s favor. Combine it with the candy bar-like flavor profile, and many will thoroughly enjoy it at its reasonable $70 price point. 

The bottle in review is from Barrel #1.