Master Distiller- Greg Metze with 14 years of experience at MGP (40+ total in distilling) Unique Ingredients- 45% Wheat (Adds the rich mouthfeel), 51% Corn, 4% Malted Barley Slow cut, no shortcuts- to leave the delicate flavors in the final product. Proofed down over weeks not days
WHAT MAKES US DIFFERENT? A delicious and well-balanced wheated bourbon is looked at as a staple in a whiskey lineup. For us, it’s so much more. It elevates our portfolio and shows everything our Master Distiller, Greg Metze, can do. He brought his four decades of experience into creating Old Elk’s Wheated Bourbon. The result? A smooth and premium profile. The wheat allows for the corn’s natural flavors to shine through with some sweetness and the barrel’s light vanilla notes.
MASTER DISTILLER If you know him, you know he’s the MVP of whiskey. If you don’t it’s because he’s humble in his work but a legend in the category. Old Elk’s Master Distiller, Greg Metze, has over 40 years of distilling experience, 14 of which were spent as the Master Distiller for MGP – a total tenure of 38 years under one roof. During that period the US went through a resurgence in the brown spirits category and his name is likely behind many of the whiskeys you see on your shelf today.
SLOW CUT PROOFING All bourbon is taken out of the barrel at cask strength. It’s then “proofed” with water to bring it to bottle strength. Traditionally, this process takes 24-48 hours. However, we choose to do it for significantly longer at very small increments. WHY? When you add water to alcohol, heat is generated. At a distillery scale, it’s hundreds of gallons at a time – which creates enough heat to literally boil off some of the lighter, finer flavors. Our choice is to extend the life of the proofing time by adding the same total amount of fresh Colorado mountain water over multiple weeks (instead of days) to keep the bourbon cool, allowing us to bottle every last drop of flavor.