Spirits
Spiritless Kentucky 74
78/100 How we score
- ABV 0.5%
- Classification Dealcoholized
- Evidence Documented
- Origin United States
- Price $30+
Verdict
A dealcoholized spirit with a real still story — and a cocktail ingredient, not a neat pour for bourbon people. Oak and caramel show up; ethanol heat does not, and the thickeners are doing part of the work.
At a glance
- Flavor profile
- Caramel
- Vanilla
- Structure
- Light body
- Short finish
- Mouthfeel
- Short vanilla and a lingering tannin that reads more like wood tea than barrel heat.
- What stands out
- Caramel, vanilla, and a carpenter's-shop oak. Less grain sweetness than bourbon, more extract. No ethanol bloom when you put your nose in the glass.
- Perfect for
- Whiskey sours, ginger highballs, and halfsies pours. Not a fireside neat bottle.
Tasting notes
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01
Nose
caramel, vanilla, and a carpenter's-shop oak. Less grain sweetness than bourbon, more extract. No ethanol bloom when you put your nose in the glass.
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02
Palate
Soft, slightly syrupy, and recognizably oak-driven. Glycerine and gum are on the label; you can feel them. In an Old Fashioned the structure holds. Neat, it is a flavored tea with ambition.
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03
Finish
Short vanilla and a lingering tannin that reads more like wood tea than barrel heat.
The spirit
Spiritless Kentucky 74 is dealcoholized from Kentucky, United States. The base is High-proof neutral grain spirit infused with American oak, not a conventional barrel-aged bourbon. Reverse distillation after thermal oak extraction in high-proof neutral grain spirit.
On the nose, caramel, vanilla, and a carpenter’s-shop oak. Less grain sweetness than bourbon, more extract. No ethanol bloom when you put your nose in the glass. On the palate, Soft, slightly syrupy, and recognizably oak-driven. Glycerine and gum are on the label; you can feel them. In an Old Fashioned the structure holds. Neat, it is a flavored tea with ambition. Mouthfeel: Short vanilla and a lingering tannin that reads more like wood tea than barrel heat. The finish is Short vanilla and a lingering tannin that reads more like wood tea than barrel heat.
A dealcoholized spirit with a real still story — and a cocktail ingredient, not a neat pour for bourbon people. Oak and caramel show up; ethanol heat does not, and the thickeners are doing part of the work. Serve in a cocktail, over ice, or split 1:1 with bourbon. Chill it. Do not expect proof.
How to drink it
In a cocktail, over ice, or split 1:1 with bourbon. Chill it. Do not expect proof.
How it was made
Classification: Dealcoholized — Ethanol is removed from an oak-extracted high-proof spirit, not from finished aged bourbon
Evidence status: Documented
Method: Reverse distillation after thermal oak extraction in high-proof neutral grain spirit
Sources disagree on the following points.
- Abv: Spiritless and most US retail listings describe Kentucky 74 as 0.5% ABV or below. The brand has also published language that the bottled spirit is under 0.05% ABV.
Sources
Product facts are only as strong as their sources. Editorial tasting notes are opinion.
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Method · Classification · Base beverage · Country
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Ingredients · Calories · Sugar · Volume · Producer
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ABV
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Price · Availability · Region
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Bottle verified Bottle / can label Barcode recorded from packaging or producer listing
Barcode (EAN/GTIN)
Barcode recorded from packaging or producer listing
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Other Whisky
78/100 How we score