🥃 Tortured Bourbon Friday: Wheat Whiskey Face-Off

Oct 10

Star Hill Farm American Wheat vs Bernheim Full Proof

Welcome to Tortured Bourbon FRIDAY, where the pours are strong, the proof is stronger, and the banter is wildly unprofessional. It’s the end of the week — and we’re closing it out with a wheated whiskey throwdown you didn’t know you needed.

We’re tasting two wildly different takes on Kentucky wheat whiskey:

Star Hill American Wheat — a brand-new estate-grown experiment from Maker’s Mark
Bernheim Full Proof — the long-reigning barrel-proof champion from Heaven Hill

One’s soft and elegant. The other hits like a loaf of bread thrown by a powerlifter.

🌾 Star Hill Farm American Wheat Whiskey

Distillery: Maker’s Mark / Star Hill Farm

Proof: 100

Age: ~5–6 years

MSRP: $60

Mash Bill: American wheat whiskey standard — 51%+ wheat

Maker’s Mark is finally branching out — and they’re going deep into grain. Like, literally growing and studying dozens of wheat varietals right at Star Hill Farm. This bottle is part of a new wave of terroir-driven whiskey from Loretto, and it’s definitely not your usual wheater.

Tasting Notes (official):

Soft caramel
Honey
Sweet biscuit
Delicate oak spice

Tasting Notes (ours):

Cinnamon Life cereal milk
Oak dusted honey buns
French toast crusts

🔥 Bernheim Original Full Proof Wheat Whiskey

Distillery: Heaven Hill

Proof: ~119–120

Age: 7–9 years

MSRP: $70–$80

Mash Bill: 51% wheat, with corn and malted barley

Bernheim has been holding down the wheat whiskey lane for years, and this full proof version? It brings the heat. With 7+ years in oak and no dilution, this bottle isn’t for the faint of heart — but if you like baked goods and oak smoke, you’re in for a ride.

Tasting Notes (official):

Caramel
Honey
Baked bread
Subtle oak
Long, warm finish

Tasting Notes (ours):

Fire-kissed Pop-Tarts
Graham cracker crust
Toast with attitude

🎬 What Goes Down in the Episode?

B gets banned (again) from quoting Pearl Jam lyrics mid-sip
Heather tries to keep the show on the rails
Katie breaks out the Pop-Tart metaphor machine
We sip, we compare, we overanalyze—and finally, we rank both bottles on the Tortured Bourbon Scale

Catch the full video and see which bottle walks away with the wheat crown:

📺 Watch the full episode here

🍩 Katie’s Corner

“If Star Hill is your grandma’s warm honey biscuit, Bernheim is the biscuit your drunk uncle dropped in the campfire, and somehow it still tastes amazing.”

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