🏆At the 2026 World Whiskies Awards, New Riff Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon was named World’s Best Kentucky Bourbon.

This is one of the most respected blind-judged competitions in the industry, and winning in the Kentucky bourbon category is a significant achievement given the level of competition.

As soon as the results were announced, we secured inventory — and it has just arrived.

New Riff, in Newport, Kentucky, built its flagship bourbon around a high-rye mash bill of 65% corn, 30% rye, and 5% malted barley. Its Bottled-in-Bond expression is non-chill-filtered and aged 4 years in 53-gallon, toasted, and charred new oak casks.

The bourbon offers aromas of butterscotch and vanilla cream on the nose, followed by oak and rye spice. It’s robust and full-bodied on the palate, with a pronounced oak backbone that highlights flavors of vanilla, clove, cinnamon, mint, and dark berries, along with a savory, grain-forward core of cooked cereal and toasted bread.

The texture is dense and mouth-filling, with a noticeable mouth weight and a slightly tannic oak grip that balances the bourbon’s residual sweetness. The finish is long and spicy, with a distinctly rye-spice-led character and lingering notes of red and black fruit, white pepper, and clove, fading into dry oak and spicy black-pepper heat.

If you’ve been looking for a proven, award-winning bourbon at 100 proof that delivers both quality and value, this is one to add to your shelf.