The Story
About the Product: Whiskey Acres Straight Bourbon Bottled-in-Bond is the flagship expression from Illinois' first estate distillery — and the one that put the farm on the map. It shares the same 75/15/10 corn-wheat-barley mashbill as the distillery's standard Straight Bourbon, but aged a minimum of 5 years and bottled at exactly 100 proof, it carries noticeably more depth and structure. All of that grain was grown right here on the Walter family's DeKalb farmland, mashed with limestone-filtered aquifer water, and aged on-site — seed to spirit, start to finish. Binny's Beverage Depot called it "a new standard for craft bourbon," and the Double Gold at the 2021 San Francisco World Spirits Competition backed that up.
About Whiskey Acres Distilling Co.: Whiskey Acres is Illinois' first estate distillery and one of only a handful in the country certified as a true farm distillery — meaning every bottle traces back to grain grown in the same fields where the distillery stands. Founded in 2013 by fifth-generation farmers Jim and Jamie Walter and co-founder Nick Nagele on the Walter family's 2,000-acre DeKalb farm, the distillery was built on a simple conviction: great whiskey isn't made, it's grown. Jamie, a former attorney turned distiller, and Nick, whose family has farmed Illinois since the 1860s, grow multiple varieties of corn, rye, wheat, and barley specifically selected for whiskey production — then distill it all with water drawn from the limestone aquifer running beneath those same fields. It's one of the most genuinely grain-to-glass operations in American craft spirits.
Bottle Info:
- Proof: 100
- Age: At Least 5 Years
- Style: Straight Bourbon Whiskey, Bottled-in-Bond
- Mashbill: 75% Estate-Grown Corn, 15% Soft Red Winter Wheat, 10% Malted Barley
- Awards: Double Gold — 2021 San Francisco World Spirits Competition
Tasting Notes:
- Nose: Vanilla caramel corn, cinnamon, nutty oak
- Palate: Caramel corn, ripe apple, lightly toasted coconut
- Finish: Long, soft, sweet red berries fading into peppery spice
What is Bottled-in-Bond?: Bottled-in-Bond is a federally defined standard established by the Bottled-in-Bond Act of 1897 — one of the oldest consumer protection laws in American history. To carry the designation, a whiskey must be the product of a single distillery, from a single distillation season, aged at least four years in a federally bonded warehouse, and bottled at exactly 100 proof. It was originally created to protect consumers from adulterated spirits, but today it's shorthand for something more: a whiskey with accountability built in. For a craft estate distillery like Whiskey Acres, meeting that standard with grain they grew themselves is a statement about exactly what's in the bottle.
Description
About the Product: Whiskey Acres Straight Bourbon Bottled-in-Bond is the flagship expression from Illinois' first estate distillery — and the one that put the farm on the map. It shares the same 75/15/10 corn-wheat-barley mashbill as the distillery's standard Straight Bourbon, but aged a minimum of 5 years and bottled at exactly 100 proof, it carries noticeably more depth and structure. All of that grain was grown right here on the Walter family's DeKalb farmland, mashed with limestone-filtered aquifer water, and aged on-site — seed to spirit, start to finish. Binny's Beverage Depot called it "a new standard for craft bourbon," and the Double Gold at the 2021 San Francisco World Spirits Competition backed that up.
About Whiskey Acres Distilling Co.: Whiskey Acres is Illinois' first estate distillery and one of only a handful in the country certified as a true farm distillery — meaning every bottle traces back to grain grown in the same fields where the distillery stands. Founded in 2013 by fifth-generation farmers Jim and Jamie Walter and co-founder Nick Nagele on the Walter family's 2,000-acre DeKalb farm, the distillery was built on a simple conviction: great whiskey isn't made, it's grown. Jamie, a former attorney turned distiller, and Nick, whose family has farmed Illinois since the 1860s, grow multiple varieties of corn, rye, wheat, and barley specifically selected for whiskey production — then distill it all with water drawn from the limestone aquifer running beneath those same fields. It's one of the most genuinely grain-to-glass operations in American craft spirits.
Bottle Info:
- Proof: 100
- Age: At Least 5 Years
- Style: Straight Bourbon Whiskey, Bottled-in-Bond
- Mashbill: 75% Estate-Grown Corn, 15% Soft Red Winter Wheat, 10% Malted Barley
- Awards: Double Gold — 2021 San Francisco World Spirits Competition
Tasting Notes:
- Nose: Vanilla caramel corn, cinnamon, nutty oak
- Palate: Caramel corn, ripe apple, lightly toasted coconut
- Finish: Long, soft, sweet red berries fading into peppery spice
What is Bottled-in-Bond?: Bottled-in-Bond is a federally defined standard established by the Bottled-in-Bond Act of 1897 — one of the oldest consumer protection laws in American history. To carry the designation, a whiskey must be the product of a single distillery, from a single distillation season, aged at least four years in a federally bonded warehouse, and bottled at exactly 100 proof. It was originally created to protect consumers from adulterated spirits, but today it's shorthand for something more: a whiskey with accountability built in. For a craft estate distillery like Whiskey Acres, meeting that standard with grain they grew themselves is a statement about exactly what's in the bottle.
