Started in 2010 by Orlin Sorensen and Brett Carlile, Woodinville is located in Washington state. The company sources all of their staple grains exclusively from the Omlin Family farm in Quincy, Washington. The grains are transported to the distillery in Woodinville, Washington, where they are mashed and distilled. The new make whiskey is driven back over the Cascade Mountains to the company’s barrelhouse, where the company barrels it utilizing barrels that were built from wood that was seasoned outside for 18-24 months.

‍‍To make their tequila finished bourbon, co-founder and head distiller Brett Carlile waited until these barrels were almost 6 years old before “he deemed it ready for a fun project in the top-secret Warehouse 1.” The bourbon was then transferred to used Extra Anejo Tequila barrels, where it was finished for an undisclosed amount of time. The end result is a release that produced less than 2,000 bottles.

Sometimes tequila-finished whiskeys can be in your face with the initial aroma they present. Woodinville takes a more gentle approach, with its scents slowly revealing themselves. Brown sugar and intriguing orange blossom provide a sweet, fragrant opening. Inhaling deeper reveals aged oak and vanilla cream, along with faint cornmeal and rye grain. The scents work well together, however, they come across as incredibly light, forcing you to really inhale and concentrate to pull them out.

Classic bourbon notes reveal themselves, as oak, brown sugar, and thin vanilla push their way forward. Rye spice slowly becomes present along with quick dabs of vanilla bean and sweet cream. The midpoint comes across as more standard versus tasting “finished,” with the tequila finishing barrel offering little impact to the sip at this point. Much like the nose, the flavors come off without much intensity, which adds to their straightforward nature.

The rye spice ramps up the heat and is joined by oak and leather to kick off the finish. A toasted brown sugar note and light orange citrus rind appear. A light agave flavor pops before transitioning to faint dry oak and a pleasing, slightly sweet spice note. It’s the strongest part of the sip and the one that comes across as most impacted by its tequila barrel finish.

Tequila barrel finished bourbons have been one of the hottest new barrel finishes deployed in the last few years. It’s usually a love it or hate it type of finish. However, there’s no denying that a used tequila barrel usually adds an impactful difference in how a bourbon tastes. That’s why it’s so unusual that Woodinville Bourbon Finished in Tequila Barrels seems to be impacted so little by its (presumably) long time spent in finishing barrels.

The standard Woodinville Bourbon used for the base of this release actually seems to be held back by its finishing barrel. While the standard sip isn’t the most expressive pour, it does a very good job of delivering classic notes that highlight an above-average bourbon. In the case of Woodinville Bourbon Finished in Tequila Barrels, the extra time in oak doesn’t fully showcase what Woodinville is capable of, and is one of the least impacted tequila-finished bourbons found on the market.

Tequila finished bourbons run the gamut when it comes to pricing. Blood Oath’s recent Tequila finished release was $130, while Bear Fight released theirs for $35. In between, you have others like Woodinville or Chattanooga at $70. Coming in at a $15 price premium compared to the standard Woodinville Bourbon, Woodinville Bourbon Finished in Tequila Barrels carries an expectation that it delivers a differentiated and elevated sip. While parts of the sip come across as impacted, as a whole, it comes across as being held back. Compared to other tequila-finished bourbons, Woodinville has a hard time justifying its price and comes across as a less-than-average value in the current market.

Bourbon finished in tequila barrels is generally a category I gravitate towards. The interaction between the two spirits can produce an interesting, barrel-finished bourbon that usually stands out. While not for everyone, the same can be said for most barrel finishes.

That’s why Woodinville Bourbon Finished in Tequila Barrels is so perplexing. The resulting sip doesn’t move the needle far enough from the company’s standard bourbon, and when taken as a whole, it stands out as a slightly lesser product. Blame it on the type of tequila barrel used, the extended time spent in oak, or maybe the company simply wanted to make this release more accessible to those on the fence about this particular style of finishing. Compared to other barrel finished bourbons the company produces, Woodinville Bourbon Finished in Tequila Barrels has a hard time standing out.