Our Barrel Picks
Below are all of the barrel picks that we have done to date. We have raised over $2,000 from each release to date and with your support, hope to do much more moving forward.
The Inaugural Pick
New Riff Distillery
*The first single barrel whiskey pick done in honor/for an HBCU*
(as far as we know)
For The 1886 Barrel Club's Inaugural Single Barrel Bourbon Pick, we came with an amazing keepsake. As a group of alumni from the only four year degree awarding HBCU in the state of Kentucky - the heart of Bourbon Capital of the world, the formation of our group and the events that followed was long overdue.
A few thank yous to the people that worked together since November(2020) and helped with not only the formulation of The 1886 Barrel Club but also all of the details (big and small) about this selection. At the time, The 1886 Barrel Club leadership team only consisted of Shannon Bush-Smith, the hostess with the most-ess; Jeremy Love, DJ Loveskey; Jonathan Maiden, the Bougie Bartender; and Dre Walton. This group and this bottle wouldn't have happened without them, so please show them some love if you appreciate the finished product and what the group has become.
We would also like to send a huge thank you to fellow Bred, Jeremy Goff, who brought the team's bottle design to life with his amazing hand drawn art.
Our final thank you and the biggest one of them all goes to Steven Kaiden and his team at Winfield Flynn Wine & Spirits. This single barrel pick wouldn't have been possible without him, so check out their website (they ship) and if you are ever in New York City, please stop by his store and show them some love...financially!
For our first Single Barrel Pick we went with a 4 year selection bottled at 103.8 proof from New Riff Distillery, out of Northern Kentucky. The barrel yielded roughly 180 bottles total.
Given it being the 1st edition and the amazing sticker and double wax combination, this is likely the hardest to come across release of all that we have done. But it actually taste darn good too!!!
In April of 2022 we embarked on the groups 2nd barrel pick with the goal of turning a profit in this release in which we would donate it back to Kentucky State University
We went to Penelope Bourbon in New Jersey for a tour of their facilities and to make our private barrel selection. The pick team consisted of Monique Funderburk, Michael Ghant, Justin L. Thaxton, Dre Walton, Jeremy DjLoveskey Love, & a friend of the group and a vital piece of making this all work, the Owner of Winfield-Flynn Wine & Spirits, out of NYC.
We had such a great time and truly amazing choices so we ended up picking two barrels: Our general release, Barrel 1380 and Batch 86, our more exclusive short barrel blend.
With your support we were able to raise and donate $2,000 directly to the KSU Bred Box aka The Student Food Pantry.
Sincerest thank yous to all those that helped make this pick a success and to everyone that made a purchased.
Pick #2
Penelope Bourbon
Pick #3
Four Roses
Our most anticipated release to date was our Four Roses Bourbon Single Barrel Pick.
We had the honor of being one of the few organizations to be selected to participate in their private barrel program that year. In July of 2022 the following members of the Barrel Club leadership team James Jenks, Dre Walton, Monique Funderburk, Jeremy DjLoveskey Love, & Michael Ghant were joined by Lexington based The Barrel Market owner, Brian Dickens, for an on site selection.
The team there was incredible and they really rolled out the red carpet for us. We had one barrel of each 10 recipes to choose from and ultimately selecting a 9+ year OESO in a fully blind pick, that was almost instantly unanimous.
With this being not only a Four Roses pick, but the highly covered OESO recipe, we knew these would sell out almost instantly. With this release we were able to raise and donate almost $3,000 back to KSU, directly to their Kentucky State University Athletics department.
Once again we would like to send a huge thanks to all those that helped facilitate and/or made a purchase from this release. The level of support that we've received so far is truly humbling.
Cheers💚💛🥃
For the release of 2023 we wanted to bring the group its first Rye Whiskey offering. We tasted quite a few of the brands that are on the market but once we tried a couple of the Sagamore Spirit Distillery releases, we knew this had to be the first one that we brought to the group! They have a classic rye taste to them but they tend to be far less divisive than most ryes, so even people who may not traditionally love rye’s can still really enjoy this offering.
This Sagamore Spirit Barrel Select release is a unique Maryland-style blend of 7 & 8-year-old straight rye whiskies. Each barrel of high-rye whiskey is expertly blended with a low-rye mash bill by their amazing distilling team. The Sagamore Spirit Barrel Select program showcases the uniqueness of their distillers' favorite barrels in each bottle.
This barrel pick was led in-person by five members of The 1886 Barrel Club's leadership team: Shannon Borderlon, Jeremy DjLoveskey Love, Monique Funderburk, James Jenks, and Dre Walton. Joining them were five additional KSU alumni and 1886 Barrel Club group members, all local to the DMV area: Jordan Scottt, Jerome Faulkner, Ahira Yvonne Smith, Brian Prentice, and Kev Cooke.
We had a great experience on this pick and we are sure that you all will like the pick as much as we did!!
Tasting Notes: Classic tasting notes include hints of caramel and vanilla with cinnamon and clove on the finish.
Pick #4
Sagamore Distillery
Pick #5
Elijah Craig,
Heaven Hill Distillery
THOROBRED HISTORICAL SERIES BOTTLE #1
For our fifth release, we worked with one of the oldest names in Whiskey... Elijah Craig!!
"There’s Bourbon. And then there’s the Father of Bourbon."
In early 2023 Dre Walton, Jeremy Love, and Steve Kaiden of Winfield Flynn Wine and Spirits, met and picked an amazing Elijah Craig single barrel for the group.
It is the first release in our new collector series: The THOROBRED HISTORICAL SERIES. Every release in this series will highlight a different part of KSU history including buildings, notable alumni, presidents, major events, and more. This inaugural release will has custom wax, a custom sticker, and a 6 page custom neck hang tag with KSU history that fits this releases historical theme.
For the maiden offering from the newly launched THOROBRED HISTORICAL SERIES we went with theme of, "The Dorms of Yesteryear" which pays homage to the storied dormitories of Kentucky State University that have left an indelible mark on our alma maters illustrious history.
Through this exquisite collection, we invite you to journey through time and explore the architectural heritage of KSU, spotlighting dormitories that have gracefully stood as silent witnesses to generations of students.
We enlisted the help of fellow Bred, Mario Smith, who is a wealth of K-State’s history for this project and he exceeded all expectations.
In a unique blend of nostalgia and anticipation, "The Dorms of Yesteryear" not only reminisces about the cherished dormitories of the past but also heralds the opening of the newest dormitory on campus. This release serves as a poignant reminder of the university's evolution while celebrating its enduring commitment to providing modern, comfortable living spaces for its students.
Join us as we raise a glass to commemorate the legacy of Kentucky State University and toast to the future with our upcoming THOROBRED HISTORICAL SERIES releases.
Thank You to our Partners
We owe a huge thank you and show of appreciation to many people for the successes that we have had so far.
A huge thank you to each and every person that has made a purchase or shared our posts - we literally couldn't have raised any money without you. Thank you to the KSU National Alumni Association for all that you have done to help us get the word out to the masses as well as the additional support that we have needed with vendors along the way. Thank you dearly to all of the distillery partners above that have accommodated us and allowed us to partake in their barrel picking programs,
And finally the biggest than you's go to our distillery partners that have not only walked us through the creation of this group, step by step, but they have even attending some of the barrel picks with us to help ensure that we are delivering nothing but the best to our supporters.
Please take a moment and patronize their businesses below.
