What do you get when you bring together two best friends that love whiskey and share the same dream? You end up with a technologically advanced distillery called Woodinville Whiskey Co. and a damn good whiskey. The dream, as stated in their story, "is to make the greatest craft whiskey in the world" and they are headed in the right direction.

The Woodinville Straight Bourbon Whiskey took over 5 years for Woodinville to make. It won Craft Whiskey of the Year in 2016, and I definitely understand why it won. All of their staple grains for their whiskeys are cultivated from a local farm in Quincy, Washington, called Omlin Family Farms. The grains are then mashed, distilled and barreled in the Woodinville distillery and then trucked to their private barrel house. Once they're at the barrel house, the extreme weather of Central Washington influences the extraction of the natural flavors of the oak barrels. The finished product is a tasty award-winning handcrafted small-batch of whiskey called Woodinville Straight Bourbon Whiskey.

Kentucky has now met Washington, and I'm glad they did. I was able to add this Bourbon to my collection, and I love it. This Bourbon Whiskey has a sweet lingering finish with notes of caramel, dark chocolate, and vanilla bean. What's even more amazing is the price for the bottle, I paid around $35 for it and now has become one of my go-to whiskeys to unwind with. It is a perfect whiskey to sip and enjoy as I'm immersed in a post-apocalyptic book called The Road by Cormac McCarthy.

Here's how Woodinville Whiskey Co. describes their Straight Bourbon Whiskey:

"This truly small-batch bourbon starts with traditionally grown corn, rye and malted barley. All of our staple grains are cultivated exclusively for us on the Omlin Family farm in Quincy, Washington. The grains are mashed, distilled, and barreled in our Woodinville® distillery, then trucked back over the Cascade Mountains to our private barrel houses, where Central Washington’s extreme temperature cycles promote the extraction of natural flavors from the oak. Prior to being coopered, the barrel wood is seasoned in open air, rain, wind, sun, and snow for eighteen months, softening the wood’s harsh tannins. The barrels are then slowly toasted and heavily charred to further enrich the wood’s desirable flavors. This meticulous process yields a truly hand-crafted spirit with aromas of crème brûlée and spice cabinet, as well as notes of rich caramel, dark chocolate, and vanilla bean on the palate with a sweet, lingering finish."

Now go grab yourself a bottle.