Not going to lie...this one hurts me a bit.  If you've followed my page/reviews for any length of time, you know how much I LOVE Starlight distillery and their products.  When this position was revealed to me, I was a bit disappointed in myself  - sorry Starlight!  Either way, the show must go on in an honest fashion.  For a "small" craft distillery, Starlight has many, many products available and all of them are above average quality, including this Double Oak variety.  Again, it's a product of tough competition on this list. 

For this offering, Starlight ages their standard bourbon for 4 years and then transports it to a second unused Seguin Moreau Vanilla Toast barrel for an additional 6 months.

Stats: 4.5 years old; 106 proof; blend of 60% corn, 20% rye, 20% malted barley (!!) and 51% corn, 20% rye, 20% malted barley (!!), and 9% wheat; $60; Limited Release

Verdict: Starlight's typical oak heavy profile already hits me right in the sweet spot for my palate.  The oak plus tobacco combo I typically get drives me wild (rawr!).  To then double oak it...heavens to betsy what a bold move!  I get, of course, lots of oak, charred oak, vanilla, and tobacco.  There's also an enhanced amount of baking spice to it too that almost takes over the palate and finish.  It's very warming with the 106 proof.  Unfortunately for this particular list, it doesn't make the top 5 primarily because of the spic over taking the rest of the flavors for me.  My palate is sensitive to spice (yes...I'm fully aware how douchey that sounds, deal with it) and this amps it up with the extra oak and baking spices coming through.  100% still a bottle I will enjoy though!