Joseph Magnus Triple Cask Bourbon Review: Is This 100 Proof Finished Bourbon Worth It?
There are bourbons that keep things simple.
Corn. Oak. Time. Bottle.
Then there is Joseph Magnus Triple Cask Bourbon, which apparently looked at simple and said, “No, thank you. We’re going to involve Sherry, Cognac, old bourbon, and several extra barrels.”
Naturally, we had to try it.
On this episode of Tortured Bourbon, B and Heather sit down with Joseph Magnus Bourbon, a 100 proof cask finished bourbon that has developed a loyal following among whiskey drinkers looking for something a little different from the traditional Kentucky bourbon profile.
And different it definitely is.
Joseph Magnus takes mature bourbon and finishes it in Oloroso Sherry, Pedro Ximénez Sherry, and Cognac casks. That combination can bring layers of dark fruit, sweetness, spice, oak, and richness that you simply are not going to get from a standard straight bourbon.
The question is whether all of that makes Joseph Magnus better—or just busier.
That is where the drinking begins.
What Is Joseph Magnus Triple Cask Bourbon?
Joseph Magnus Bourbon is bottled at 100 proof, or 50% ABV, putting it in a nice middle ground for bourbon drinkers.
There is enough proof to carry plenty of flavor without immediately trying to remove the enamel from your teeth.
The current Joseph Magnus flagship is built around 12-year-old bourbon before undergoing its signature triple cask finishing process.
Those finishing barrels are:
Oloroso Sherry casks
Pedro Ximénez Sherry casks
Cognac casks
And each one brings something different to the party.
Oloroso Sherry tends to contribute darker fruit, nuts, spice, and dryness.
Pedro Ximénez—or PX—Sherry is considerably sweeter and is often associated with raisin, fig, date, molasses, and other rich fruit flavors.
Cognac barrels can add another layer of fruit, oak, vanilla, spice, and brandy-like richness.
Combine all three with well-aged bourbon and you have the basic recipe behind Joseph Magnus Triple Cask Bourbon.
The Story Behind Joseph Magnus Bourbon
Part of what makes Joseph Magnus interesting is that this is not simply a new bourbon brand with an old-looking label.
Joseph A. Magnus operated a successful whiskey business before Prohibition.
More than a century later, one of Magnus's descendants discovered an unopened bottle of the original whiskey that had survived for approximately 122 years.
That old bottle became part of the inspiration for reviving the Joseph Magnus name.
Master blender Nancy “The Nose” Fraley was brought into the project, and the historic whiskey was examined in an effort to understand how the original Joseph Magnus whiskey had been produced and finished.
The modern result became the triple cask finishing process used in Joseph Magnus Bourbon today.
That history does not automatically make a bourbon taste good.
But it is considerably more interesting than somebody finding a random 1800s-sounding name and designing a label around it.
Why Finish Bourbon in Sherry and Cognac Casks?
Most bourbon begins its life the same basic way.
By law, bourbon must be aged in new charred oak containers.
That new American oak is responsible for many of the flavors bourbon drinkers recognize immediately: vanilla, caramel, brown sugar, oak, baking spice, and sometimes coconut or tobacco.
A finished bourbon gets another step.
After aging in its original barrel, the whiskey is transferred into another type of cask for additional maturation.
Those secondary barrels previously held something else—wine, rum, Cognac, Sherry, Port, or another spirit.
The remaining flavors in that wood interact with the bourbon.
Done correctly, finishing adds complexity without destroying the whiskey underneath.
Done poorly, you end up wondering where the bourbon went.
And Joseph Magnus isn't using just one finishing barrel.
They're using three.
That is what makes this bottle particularly interesting for a bourbon review.
What Does Joseph Magnus Triple Cask Taste Like?
Because of the age and finishing process, Joseph Magnus Triple Cask generally lives on the richer and darker side of the bourbon flavor spectrum.
Expect flavors and aromas that can lean toward:
Caramel
Vanilla
Dark cherry
Raisin
Fig
Plum
Baking spice
Chocolate
Oak
Leather
Toasted sugar
Dark fruit
The Sherry influence is noticeable, particularly when compared with a traditional Kentucky straight bourbon.
But underneath those finishing notes there is still an older bourbon foundation providing vanilla, oak, caramel, and spice.
That balance is really the key to Joseph Magnus.
You want to taste the finishing barrels.
Otherwise, why bother?
But you still want the whiskey to taste like bourbon.
That's the line B and Heather are looking for during our Joseph Magnus Bourbon review.
Joseph Magnus Triple Cask at 100 Proof
One thing we appreciate about this bottle is the proof.
At 100 proof, Joseph Magnus has enough horsepower to keep the whiskey from becoming overly sweet after spending time in PX Sherry and Cognac barrels.
That matters.
PX Sherry in particular can bring serious sweetness.
Putting a heavily finished whiskey at a low proof can sometimes leave everything feeling syrupy or flat.
At 100 proof, Joseph Magnus has enough structure and spice to push back.
It also places Joseph Magnus in familiar territory for bourbon drinkers accustomed to Bottled-in-Bond whiskey and other 100 proof bourbons.
Joseph Magnus vs Traditional Kentucky Bourbon
If your favorite bottles are classic Kentucky bourbons with straightforward caramel, vanilla, oak, and spice profiles, Joseph Magnus is going to feel noticeably different.
That is not necessarily good or bad.
It is simply the point.
Traditional Kentucky bourbon gets much of its character directly from the interaction between whiskey and new charred American oak.
Joseph Magnus adds those additional Sherry and Cognac influences after the initial aging process.
The result is more fruit-forward, richer, and more dessert-like than many traditional bourbons.
Some bourbon drinkers love that.
Others want their bourbon to taste like bourbon and would prefer everybody keep the wine barrels out of the building.
Heather and B may or may not agree on which camp they belong in.
Imagine that.
Is Joseph Magnus Bourbon Worth the Price?
That is ultimately the question with any premium bourbon.
Not whether it is good.
Whether it is good for the money.
Joseph Magnus brings several things to the table that help explain its premium positioning:
Mature bourbon.
A 100 proof bottling strength.
Three separate finishing casks.
A distinctive flavor profile.
And a legitimate connection to a historic American whiskey brand.
Still, bourbon shelves are crowded.
Depending on where you shop, Joseph Magnus may be competing with excellent Kentucky bourbon, barrel proof bourbon, allocated whiskey, single barrel releases, and other finished bourbons at similar prices.
That makes the buying decision considerably more interesting.
Our Joseph Magnus Bourbon Review
This is exactly why we taste these bottles on Tortured Bourbon.
B and Heather work through the nose, palate, finish, proof, oak, sweetness, balance, and those three finishing barrels before putting Joseph Magnus where it belongs on the official Tortured Bourbon scale:
Piddlin’ → Bless Your Heart → That Dog Will Hunt → Hush Your Mouth → Cock of the Walk
No 97.348-point scoring system.
No discussion about whether the whiskey reminds us of Madagascar vanilla harvested during a thunderstorm.
Just bourbon.
And occasionally an argument.
Final Thoughts on Joseph Magnus Triple Cask Bourbon
Joseph Magnus Triple Cask Bourbon occupies an interesting space in American whiskey.
It begins with older bourbon, bottles it at a respectable 100 proof, and then takes the flavor profile somewhere completely different with Oloroso Sherry, Pedro Ximénez Sherry, and Cognac cask finishing.
For bourbon drinkers who enjoy finished bourbon, cask finished bourbon, older whiskey, Sherry finished whiskey, or premium American whiskey, Joseph Magnus is absolutely a bottle worth knowing about.
Whether it deserves a permanent place on your bourbon shelf?
You'll have to watch the episode.
Because around here, we suffer through bourbon so you don't have to.
Tortured Bourbon
B. Heather. Bourbon.
What could possibly go wrong?
