Michter’s just did something it’s never done before: put its Sour Mash expression out at barrel strength. The Sour Mash has always been the odd one out in the Michter’s lineup — an undisclosed mash bill of corn, rye, and malted barley that doesn’t hit the 51% threshold to be called a bourbon or a rye, leaving it in its own regulatory and flavor category. Bottling it uncut and unfiltered for the first time is a real statement about how the brand wants this one to be experienced.
The Vitals
Proof: 110.4–112.6 across the release (avg ~111.5, or 55.75% ABV)
Price: $120 SRP
Availability: limited, first release, May 2026
Mash bill: undisclosed — corn, rye, and malted barley, sour mash method
Nose
Dark caramel and toasted brown sugar right out of the gate, with vanilla rounding it out — honestly, the whole thing reminded me of a fresh Snickers bar. Not a subtle nose, but an inviting one.
Palate
Butterscotch and baked apple up front, with toasted oak running underneath. The follow-through is where it earns its stripes — sweet, spice, and oak land in genuine balance rather than any one note taking over. Mouthfeel is silky, coats the whole palate, and that’s where cocoa and brandied cherries start to show up on the back end.
Overall
Full-bodied and sweet-forward from start to finish. True to the Sour Mash’s reputation, this one refuses to slot neatly into bourbon or rye territory — it just does its own thing, and at barrel strength that identity comes through even more clearly than in the standard release.
How It Stacks Up
Comparing notes against other early reviews of this release: the caramel, brown sugar, and toasted oak show up almost everywhere, so that part of the profile seems consistent bottle to bottle. Where I landed a little differently — other reviewers pulled more cinnamon bark, clove, and dried stone fruit on the nose, and tobacco/almond notes on the palate. Mine skewed more toward the chocolate-caramel, Snickers-bar lane, with brandied cherries doing the work other reviewers got from stone fruit. Worth noting since batch variation is real, even within the same release.
Bourbon Social Rating: 81/100
Good — sits at the top of the “enjoyable but not remarkable” tier, just short of Very Good. A dependable, worthwhile pour rather than a legendary one.
Taste & Complexity (35%): 30/35
Value (20%): 19/20
Availability (10%): 5/10
Collectability (15%): 12/15
Repurchase Factor (10%): 6/10
Shelf Appeal (10%): 9/10
Bourbon Social Recommends
Buy If You Find It — Excellent bottle, worth purchasing at MSRP if you come across it. Not a bottle worth chasing above sticker price.
Quick Reference
Would I Buy Again? ⭐⭐⭐ (3/5)
Worth MSRP? ✅ Yes
Worth Secondary? ❌ Not for me — pass above SRP
Collector Score: B
Shelf Appeal: ✅ Yes — a nice piece to have as part of the collection
Bourbon Social Index
SBR Score: 81/100
MSRP Value: 9/10 — buy at MSRP without hesitation
Hunt Factor: 5/10 — limited first release, moderate hunt
Collector Index: 8/10
Buy Again: Yes
Pay Secondary? No — MSRP only
Paid: $120 — MSRP, no secondary premium.