Copper & Cask Bourbon Duo: "X" 10-Year + 9-Year Double Oak Batch 018 (2 x 750ml)

Two barrel-proof MGP bourbons from Rhode Island independent bottler Copper & Cask, paired to show two different routes to depth. Copper & Cask "X" gets there through age and blending. Barrel Master Stephen Corrigan married 45 casks of 10- to 12-year-old Indiana-distilled bourbon, combining a 21% rye mashbill with a 36% rye mashbill, to create the brand's first permanent release.

Batch 018 takes the other road. A low-rye bourbon aged at least nine years in Indiana and Kentucky went north to Rhode Island, where it was moved into heavily charred ZAK Cooperage Wave Stave barrels for a second round of new oak. The extra char pulls dense caramelized sugar out of the wood without tipping into bitter tannin.

The two bottles land within one proof point of each other, 116.4 and 117.4. Heat never decides the comparison, so every difference in the glass comes from recipe and wood. X reads brighter, with milk chocolate, cherry cola and roasted almond riding on the higher-rye share of the blend. Double Oak goes darker: maple syrup, crème brûlée, burnt sugar and an espresso edge from the char.

Both are bottled uncut and non-chill filtered. The set works as a two-glass tasting flight, a gift for a bourbon drinker who already knows MGP, or a clear lesson in what double oaking does to a mature bourbon.

FAQ

What's the difference between Copper & Cask X and Double Oak Batch 018? X is a 45-barrel blend of 10- to 12-year-old bourbon from two rye mashbills. Batch 018 is a nine-year low-rye bourbon finished in a second set of heavily charred Wave Stave barrels. X tastes brighter and chocolate-led; Batch 018 tastes darker and maple-led.

Who distills Copper & Cask bourbon? MGP distills the bourbon in Indiana. Copper & Cask is an independent bottler in Rhode Island that selects, blends, finishes, and bottles it.

Are both bottles cask strength? Yes. X is 116.4 proof, and Batch 018 is 117.4 proof; both are uncut and non-chill filtered.

How should I taste them side by side? Pour both neat; start with X, then move to Double Oak, whose char is heavier. A few drops of water open both at this proof.

Copper & Cask "X" 10-Year (116.4 proof)

• Nose: Milk chocolate, salted caramel and toasted oak.
• Palate: Butterscotch and roasted almonds up front, then dark chocolate cake and fizzy cherry cola.
• Finish: Long and layered. Mocha and burnt toffee, closing on candied orange peel.

Copper & Cask 9-Year Double Oak, Batch 018 (117.4 proof)

• Nose: Demerara sugar and espresso.
• Palate: Dark maple syrup, crème brûlée, cocoa powder, burnt sugar and chocolate-covered cherries.
• Finish: Gripping and persistent. Flamed orange peel, toasted almonds and a lingering mocha bitterness.

Both bottles share a mocha-and-toasted-almond core, so one menu covers the pair. A dry-aged ribeye with a cracked-pepper crust handles the proof and brings out X's chocolate. Dark chocolate truffles suit Double Oak's burnt-sugar finish. For a cheese board, smoked Gouda stands up to both.