Booker's “Springfield Batch” (Batch 2024-01), 62.25%

Mellow aged oak and faint hints of barrel char, vanilla birthday cake, and tobacco leaf on the nose. The palate is beautifully soft and mellow yet powerful all at once, spicy up front with chocolate, cinnamon, chai turmeric tea, and drizzled caramel. The finish is long, with backdrops of tobacco and honeyed peanuts. This is a superb one, with great depth of flavor and an explosiveness on the finish that sets it apart. No. 6 in our Top 20 of 2024.