Willett Family Estate 13 Year Single Barrel Bourbon #1418 126.8 Proof 750ml

Barrel #1418 at 126.8 proof after thirteen years — a Willett Family Estate single barrel from the sourced era, with its original Willett presentation tube.

Willett did not resume distilling at Bardstown until 2012, so thirteen-year stock bottled under the Family Estate label came from other Kentucky producers. Willett's role was selection: buying mature barrels, tasting through them, and releasing the exceptional ones one cask at a time at full strength.

At 63.4% ABV, #1418 is toward the powerful end of the sourced-era barrels. High proof on long-aged stock usually means the cask sat somewhere warm and dry enough to lose water faster than alcohol, and the result is concentration rather than dilution — deep colour, heavy oak influence, and a whiskey that takes its time opening.

The distillery of origin isn't named on the bottle. Attributing one without documentation would be guesswork, so we don't.

Tasting Profile

Dark caramel, vanilla, brown sugar and seasoned oak, followed by dark fruit, baking spice, leather and hints of tobacco; the proof brings substantial intensity, and the finish runs long on caramelized sugar, oak spice and lingering vanilla. Single-barrel whiskey varies cask to cask, so this describes what thirteen years at this strength is known for rather than notes from this bottle.

Specs

• Brand: Willett Family Estate
• Type: Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
• Release: Single barrel
• Age: 13 years
• Barrel: #1418
• Proof: 126.8 (63.4% ABV)
• Origin: Sourced Kentucky bourbon — not distilled by Willett
• Bottled by: Willett Distillery, Bardstown, Kentucky
• Packaging: Original Willett presentation tube included
• Size: 750ml

Explore the full Willett collection or browse all bourbon at Wooden Cork.

Frequently Asked Questions

• Did Willett distil barrel #1418? No. Willett's own distillation restarted in 2012, so a thirteen-year Family Estate bottling from the sourced era came from another Kentucky producer and was selected by Willett. The distillery isn't identified on the bottle and we won't attribute one without documentation.
• Is 126.8 proof unusually high for a thirteen-year barrel? It's on the strong side. Long-aged casks can move in either direction depending on where they sit — humid positions lose alcohol and drop in proof, dry ones lose water and climb. Coming out above 126 after thirteen years points to the second.
• Why are sourced-era Willett barrels collected so heavily? The supply is closed. The stock Willett was buying through that period is gone, each barrel was released individually in double-digit or low triple-digit quantities, and nothing made since can join the set. Collectors track them by barrel number for exactly that reason.