The Wyoming-based distillery is building upon its Cask-finished Bourbon series with this Cabernet Franc Cask-finished Straight Bourbon Whiskey from Colorado’s Carboy Winery.

Craft distillery Brush Creek, set in the Brush Creek Ranch, has announced news of its limited-edition release, Brush Creek Carboy Winery Cabernet Franc Cask-finished Straight Bourbon Whiskey.

The release marks the collaboration between Brush Creek Distillery and Colorado’s largest in-state winery, Carboy Winery. In order to create the expression multiple barrels of six-year-old straight bourbon whiskey were selected from the distillery’s on-site collection, before being blended and finished in ex-Carboy Winery Cabernet Franc wine barrels.

The whiskey then rested in the wine casks on the Distillery’s south-central location, a 30,000 acre working cattle ranch that Brush Creek Distillery calls home in Saratoga, WY.  

“After more than one year of working behind the scenes, we are ecstatic to introduce Brush Creek Distillery’s first Cabernet Franc cask-finished offering,” said Shawn Hogenmiller, director of hospitality and barrel program director at Brush Creek Distillery. 

This project was inspired by the 30,000-plus-bottle wine cellar that sits directly below the distillery in a 96-yard underground tunnel. Equally as inspiring with this collaboration is the lifelong friendship between Hogenmiller, and Kevin Webber, co-founder and CEO at Carboy Winery. This product represents a common thread with both programs.

“Whether you’re drinking a glass of wine or sipping a neat pour of bourbon, great conversation and collaboration are always the best pairing,” said Webber. “It’s been an absolute honor to tell this story alongside my best friend and watch the well-deserved success of this new release.”

In late 2021, two 59-gallon French Oak barrels were collected from Carboy Winery’s Littleton, CO facility immediately after Cabernet Franc wine was emptied, and ahead of its bottling and spring 2022 release. The empty casks were transported from Colorado to Brush Creek Distillery’s Wyoming location, idyllically positioned in the Rocky Mountain region, between the Snowy Mountain and Sierra Madre Mountain ranges, where they were filled, and further rested at over 7,800’ elevation, along Wyoming’s majestic frontier.

Brush Creek’s Carboy Winery Cabernet Franc Cask-finished Straight Bourbon Whiskey packaging is refined and elegant, much like the cabernet franc grown in Colorado’s Grand Valley, along the western slope.  

The inaugural release is limited to only 610 bottles, each sequentially numbered. The Distillery is hopeful to release future collaborations with Carboy Winery, with each release showcasing different varietals, oak casks, and maturation techniques. 

Brush Creek “Carboy Winery” Cabernet Franc Cask-finished Straight Bourbon Whiskey is currently only available in Colorado and available for purchase in numerous restaurants, bars, and retail stores including Loveland Taphouse (Loveland), Corinne Restaurant (Denver), Angelo’s Restaurant (Denver/Littleton), Logan Street Restaurant & Bar (Denver), Parker Garage (Parker), E3 Steakhouse (Steamboat Springs), Palisade Brewery (Palisade), Enzo’s (Palisade), Red Barn Liquors (Johnstown), Ponderosa Spirits (Evergreen), Fisher’s Liquors (Grand Junction), and Peachwood Liquors (Palisade), along with Carboy Winery locations (Littleton, Denver, Breckenridge, Palisade).