Very Olde St Nick Immaculata Bourbon Ancient Cask 2026 Release

Very Olde St Nick Immaculata Bourbon Ancient Cask 2026 Release is a cask-strength Kentucky blend built around a rare 19-year-old base, bottled unfiltered by Preservation Distillery for the collector who chases extra-aged bourbon at full proof.

Process & Profile

The 2026 Immaculata marries three components: an 8-year wheated pot-distilled bourbon, a 10-year high-rye Kentucky bourbon, and a foundation of 19-year Kentucky bourbon, all drawn together in a micro-batch of just one to three barrels that matured in the microclimate of Preservation's Bardstown warehouse. It lands unfiltered at 118.2 proof (59.10% ABV). The Very Olde St. Nick name carries real history: Marci Palatella created it in the 1980s as an export-only label for Japan, where she worked as Julian Van Winkle III's agent and fed the country's appetite for well-aged bourbon that America had all but forgotten. Since 2016 her Preservation Distillery has been the only 100% pot-distilled bourbon operation in Bardstown, a deliberately slow, small-batch method that shapes the density of this bottling.

On the nose, toasted oak and dark caramel lead into clove, tobacco leaf, and a note of dried cherry.

On the palate, the blend turns full and uncut: brown sugar and baking spice, stewed dark fruit, walnut, and an earthy thread of leather.

The finish runs exceptionally long, trailing cask-strength spice, sweet oak, and dark chocolate.

What sets this release apart within the Very Olde St. Nick range is the age at the core — a 19-year base is unusually old for a barrel-proof blend, and pot distillation gives it a weight the brand's younger rye and bourbon expressions do not carry. The Ancient Cask bottling returns as a limited holiday-season release, and each batch shifts slightly given the one-to-three barrel scale.

Serve neat in a Glencairn, then add a few drops of water to open the 118.2-proof spice and coax out the darker fruit.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is this whisky?
A cask-strength Kentucky bourbon blend from Preservation Distillery combining 8-, 10-, and 19-year-old whiskeys.

What are the specs?
Bottled unfiltered at 118.2 proof (59.10% ABV), a micro-batch of one to three barrels, 750mL.

What does it taste like?
Toasted oak, caramel, and clove on the nose; dark fruit, baking spice, and walnut on the palate; a long finish of oak, spice, and dark chocolate.

How should you enjoy it?
Neat in a Glencairn with a few drops of water to soften the cask-strength proof.

Why is this release notable?
Its 19-year base is exceptionally old for a barrel-proof blend, and it is pot-distilled by the only such bourbon producer in Bardstown.