Bomberger’s Declaration Review (2022 Release)

With strong ties to a distilling legacy spanning over 250 years, the Michter’s Distillery in Louisville, KY, has been producing a comprehensive range of award-winning American whiskies since the brand was resurrected by Company President Joseph Magliocco in the 1990s. Now distilling in their own facilities since August of 2015, the Michter’s brand has seen a quick return to global recognition for the quality of both their own and their sourced whiskies under Master Distiller Dan McKee, Master Distiller Emeritus Pam Heilmann – the first woman to serve as a Master Distiller at a Kentucky Distiller’s Association distillery since prohibition, and Master of Maturation Andrea Wilson – the first woman to ever serve as Chair of the Kentucky Distillers Association and inductee to the Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Fame®.

The second of two legacy brands inherited with the resurrection of the Michter’s brand, Bomberger’s Declaration is a limited-release small batch Kentucky Straight bourbon. Released on an annual basis since 2015 it was created to commemorate Abraham Bomberger and his famous Bomberger’s Distillery, which later became the original Michter’s Distillery in Schaefferstown, PA. Originally Bomberger was a Pennsylvanian Dutchman who had ties to the Shenk Family and purchased the Shenk’s Distillery sometime in 1860. The Bomberger’s Distillery ran until Prohibition in 1919, after which it passed through many hands whilst producing some of the most legendary whiskies on the market.

As with their other legacy brand, Shenk’s Homestead, Bomberger’s Declaration gives Michter’s Master Distiller and their Master of Maturation the opportunity to innovate and craft truly unique whiskies that fall beyond Michter’s target flavour profile by using a variety of techniques such as special wood finishes, interesting mashbills, etc. For this year’s release Andrea Wilson and her dedicated team once again hand-picked casks of Kentucky Straight bourbon (conforming to Michter’s quality standards of ageing in naturally seasoned and air-dried wood for over 3 years) and blended these with Kentucky Straight bourbon that had been aged for a period of time in Chinquapin Oak (Quercus Muehlenbergii) casks with a custom char to accentuate the rich flavours imparted by this species of oak. Another interesting aspect of this bourbon is that it is bottled at 108 proof which is deep in the barrel-proof zone for Michter’s. This means that if you couldn’t get your hands on their KY-only barrel-proof bourbon release you still get to try their bourbon at close to barrel-proof.

Vital Stats:

Name: Bomberger’s Declaration (Batch#22G2148)
Age: NAS
Proof: 108 Proof (54% ABV)
Type: Kentucky straight bourbon
Mashbill: Not disclosed
Producer: Michter’s Distillery, KY
Website:  https://michters.com/bombergers-declaration/
Glassware: Glencairn

Review

Nose: The nose opens with complex rich notes of toffee bordering on fudge, deep cherry and stewed red fruits, a touch of candied ginger, and dark chocolate. As you nose deeper baking spices, barrel char, herbaceous notes, and toffee notes combine to give the impression of a freshly-baked toffee and spice cookie whilst an undercurrent of honeyed floral red fruit remains consistent throughout.

Palate: The palate opens with notes of deep toffee, chocolate, and strawberries stewed in brown sugar, followed closely by an earthy kick of baking spices, tannic charred oak, herbaceous barrel notes, and peppery rye. As you keep chewing the toffee, fruit, and floral notes remain the focus and continue to develop with minty charred oak and a warming spice also coming through.

Finish: The finish opens with lingering heat, caramel, a mix of tart dark and red fruits, candied ginger, dark chocolate, and charred herbaceous oak. This fades into a long aftertaste of herbaceous charred oak, dried fruits, dark chocolate, a touch of baking spices, and a lasting KY hug.

Overall

Having reviewed Bomberger’s Declaration for the past 5 years, it’s worth stating the obvious from the start – I’ve loved every single one, with each of the past 4 releases making my shortlist for Bourbon of the year for their respective years.  This shouldn’t be surprising considering that the quality of the stocks used is second to none, Michter’s have created a series of top-tier vintaged releases which are packed with complex, robust, and nuanced flavours, making them one of the worst-kept secrets in bourbon. So instead of asking are they good, the more worthwhile question when reviewing this is: how good is this year’s release? Let’s find out! This year saw the return of custom Chinquapin oak barrels being used to finish a percentage of the stocks used in the final blend, similar to the processes involved in the past 4 releases. The key difference is that each year it’s rumoured that the Michter’s team have increased the proportion of the bourbon that spent time in Chinquapin oak and last year there were even some stocks finished in heavily charred Chinquapin barrels. I’m not sure how much has been included in the 2022 release, but the end product is a stunning marriage of syrupy deep caramels, luscious red fruits, and warm baking spices in a blend that wouldn’t be out of place in a line-up of top-tier limited releases. Every sip carries the hallmarks of a great bourbon with the addition of Chinquapin cooperage not only elevating the unique attributes of this bourbon but also extracting more fruitiness from the spirit while adding a touch more tannin and imparting an incredibly rich profile. Every sip gives a luxury, high-end bourbon experience and reminds me of why nobody should ever underestimate the talent behind the Michter’s brand. In fact, I’d even go as far as to say that this is Michter’s finest Non-age stated bourbon release year after year. 

As I’ve previously said, Bomberger’s Declaration has become one of the few limited-edition whiskies that I will actively seek out and for the past 5 years, I have been lucky enough to get my hands on a bottle. As with previous years, the 2022 release is packed thick with great flavours, but when drank side by side with these, the added depth of flavour coming from the inclusion of more Chinquapin oak-aged stocks really becomes apparent. Whereas the previous releases have varying degrees of oak, grain, and fruit notes, the 2022 has plumbed these notes for further depth and achieved the perfect balance between deep maple syrup, peppery rye, concentrated fruits, minty charred oak, and warming baking spices. Whether this is a result of including a higher percentage of finished bourbon in the final blend or the quality of the base whiskey, the Michter’s team have no doubt pored over every fine detail of this release to create a finished product that is a testament to their passion for balancing on-the-pulse innovation with producing the best quality whiskies.

Try or Buy?

This whiskey carries an MRSP of $170 this year which might be further evidence of perhaps older stocks being used. Regardless, if you can get it for close to that price you have landed yourself a fantastic bourbon which, in my opinion, outcompetes many other limited releases which would set you back a lot more! This bourbon does, however, pass the $99 threshold for a recommendation to buy, but if what you’ve read had you thirsty for a bottle, take comfort that you are in for a treat this year and it’s worth every penny.