For their Double Oaked bourbon, Woodford takes their fully matured Distiller's Select bourbon and ages it in a second new, deeply toasted, lightly charred american oak barrel.  Most other distilleries seem to choose either the toasted or charred approach for their double oak but Woodford goes all in with both.  You might ask what's the difference? A charred barrel is the typical approach for standard release bourbons and that is when the inside of the barrel is heavily burned.  Imagine a large log in the fireplace that has burned for quite a while and that is what the essentially is happening to the inside of a charred barrel.  Toasted on the other hand is when the barrel is, literally, toasted rather than heavily burned.  It's a more delicate roasting of the wood.  Another analogy is when you are making s'mores - if you're the type that places the mallow way down into the fire so it, itself catches fire and becomes crispy, that is like a charred barrel.  If on the other hand you like to spend more time delicately hovering your mallow above the fire until it has a soft brown color, then that is a resemblance of the toasted barrel.  Again, Woodford does both to their second barrel.  They toast it for quite a while and develop a toast deep within the wood while the outer layer is slightly charred.  Obviously, the technique chosen by the distillery will determine the final flavoring of the product.  Speaking of that...let's check it out.

Stats: NAS (4-6 years), 90 proof; 72% corn, 18% rye, 10% malted barley; $52

Verdict: So, I'll be honest.  In the times I've tried WDO, standard edition, I didn't find anything particularly noteworthy about it.  So initially, I was reluctant to try any of the store picks.  However, I did notice there is a difference in the single barrel hand selected variety that was quite enjoyable.  So I've had a few more along the way and each has similar qualities, including this one, with a nice sweet vanilla balancing against the charred oak flavor.  I also get some honey, caramel, and sweet fruits.  You would think with the amount of toasting/charring involved there would be an abundance of oak but it is actually well tamed by the sweet flavors in the profile.  Of the ones so far on the list, this one taste most like an actual s'more.  I'd definitely recommend picking up a store pick and giving it a shot!