Four Roses makes ten bourbon recipes using two mash bills and five yeast strains. We tasted OESO, OBSV, and OESV completely blind to see whether we could identify the recipes—and agree on a winner.

In this episode of Tortured Bourbon, we go deep into one of the most talked-about releases of the year — Four Roses 2025 Limited Edition Small Batch Barrel Strength — and put it head-to-head with a Four Roses OBSK Barrel Strength North Carolina store pick. We break down Four Roses’ unique 10-recipe system, explain why mash bills and yeast strains matter, and explore how age, proof, and intentional blending shape flavor. From dessert-leaning fruit notes to bold rye spice and mature oak, this is a true barrel-strength showdown that asks the real question: does the Limited Edition live up to the hype?

Four Roses has one of bourbon’s most dramatic comeback stories. Once America’s top-selling whiskey, then reduced to bottom-shelf swill, and finally resurrected by Master Distiller Jim Rutledge—this is bourbon history in a glass. Join Tortured Bourbon as we taste and review a Four Roses Single Barrel OBSV from Warehouse NS, Barrel 45-2N.