POULTNEY, VT — BHAKTA Spirits, the world’s preeminent House of Vintages, announced today the launch of the rarest, oldest, and most storied whiskey yet offered from its spirits library, BHAKTA 2005 Bourbon (SRP $1,000). Only 555 bottles will see release.
Crowned with a gilded “hood ornament” topper of BHAKTA Spirits Founder Raj Peter Bhakta astride an elephant, this lavish single vintage bourbon solidifies the brand’s ascent into the upper echelon of the status spirits segment.
Distilled in Tennessee, BHAKTA 2005 Bourbon’s maturation journey carried it across two continents, three distinct casks, and four unique climates — the Smoky Mountains, the Green Mountains, the sweeping plains of Indiana, and the chilly climes of Glasgow. While in Scotland, it aged in a former Rolls-Royce factory famed for having once produced the “Merlin” aircraft engines that powered Allied fighter planes to victory in WWII’s Battle of Britain.
BHAKTA 2005 Bourbon completed its final aging within the BHAKTA-GRISWOLD Spirits Library of the brand’s college campus headquarters, where it was finished in a notably spectacular barrel of BHAKTA 1975 Armagnac (SRP $379).
Bottled at cask strength of 107.4 proof and offered at 19 years and 3 months of age, this rare bourbon is an unusual distillation of 84% corn, 8% rye, and 8% malted barley. It represents a major new discovery for collectors in search of specificity and decadence.
“Nineteen year-old bourbons are normally no good — like the ones many collectors currently chase,” notes Founder Raj Peter Bhakta. “But none have ever tasted quite like this. Because of its astounding odyssey of aging and elevation, and in no small part due to its final education in Armagnac, BHAKTA 2005 Bourbon sets a new benchmark for collectability. May its prophecy bring you good fortune, as it has for me.”
As a result of its triple cask maturation, Armagnac pedigree, and astonishing age, this exquisite new entry into the category offers the sort of sensory experience rare among even the world’s most sought-after high-end bourbons. BHAKTA 2005 Bourbon shows an intricate flavor profile of blood orange, oak spice, leather, Moroccan chamomile, heirloom tobacco, and antebellum molasses. And where words of superlative should fall short, the extra inches of altitude endowed by its gleaming, elephantine adornment ensure its position as a literal cut above its competitors.
The historically accurate bottle topper depicts Raj Peter Bhakta’s “Crossing of the Rio Grande” (2006), a viral Congressional campaign stunt that buoyed his longshot bid for Pennsylvania’s 13th District into the national zeitgeist. Each BHAKTA 2005 Bourbon arrives lavishly packaged in a glass-windowed wooden box handcrafted by Andrew Bosela of Wild Roots Woodworking, in partnership with the College of St. Joseph the Worker’s woodshop of Steubenville, Ohio. Honoring BHAKTA’s spirit of both tradition and innovation, these bespoke bottle boxes inspired by Gothic and Art Deco architecture have been crafted from Osage, walnut, and padauk.
BHAKTA 2005 Bourbon also symbolizes an inflection point in the life and times of Bhakta the man. As his inaugural barrel acquisition following his departure from WhistlePig, the iconic American whiskey brand he founded in 2007, this scarce vintage has long remained a closely guarded personal treasure. So closely guarded, in fact, that the cask has been granted its final years of rest within Bhakta’s personal residence. Closer still, these 555 bottles of naught-five bourbon have earned a most intimate moniker — “The Elijah Prophecy” — an homage to Bhakta’s fifth child, who was born on the fifth day of the fifth month of this year. The prophecy has revealed that all who hold these bottles will be blessed with magnificent good fortune.
While just the brand’s fifth-ever whiskey vintage, BHAKTA 2005 Bourbon is the first to break four figures upon release. It is positioned as the highest-reaching whiskey expression yet offered from the BHAKTA House of Vintages — a triumph memorialized with its opulent hood ornament topper and extravagantly handcrafted bottle box. The new release joins a distinguished competitive set of Pappy Van Winkle 20 Year Family Reserve, Michter’s 20 Year Kentucky Straight Bourbon, and Elijah Craig Single Barrel Bourbon 20 Years Old.
BHAKTA 2005 Bourbon will be available at select retailers and preferred restaurants. Private collectors will have the opportunity to acquire it through the BHAKTA Spirits Private Client Program. A highly limited number of its 555 bottles will be offered to loyal online customers through the brand’s website; ultimately, what scarce stock remains over the years to come will be available only on the secondary market.
To ensure fulfillment of “The Elijah Prophecy” — and to guarantee delivery of the magnificent blessings of good fortune offered by this landmark release — enthusiasts are advised to act quickly.
About BHAKTA 2005 Bourbon Whiskey (SRP $1,000)
Tasting Notes
About BHAKTA Spirits
BHAKTA Spirits is the world’s preeminent House of Vintages. Founded by visionary entrepreneur Raj Peter Bhakta — also the founder of WhistlePig Whiskey and Hogsworth — BHAKTA offers a luxury craft spirits portfolio of limited-release single vintage whiskeys, brandies, rums, and more, anchored by its ancient and awe-inspiring Armagnac holdings dating back to 1868. An innovator in the experiential hospitality space, BHAKTA’s destinations include historic properties in France, Vermont, and Florida. BHAKTA Spirits is headquartered on its BHAKTA-GRISWOLD Campus in Poultney, VT, the former site of Green Mountain College.
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