Rhetoric is one of alcohol giant Diageo’s Orphan Barrel releases, an experiment in whiskey aging and a lesson for whiskey drinkers on the effects of wood and time. We announced this release back in April, and now we’re finally getting the opportunity to taste what 23-year old bourbon from early 90’s Bernheim Distillery stock tastes like.

These barrels were reportedly “found in the old Stitzel-Weller warehouses,” and while many of the Orphan Barrel releases tend to be one offs, the Rhetoric bottlings are released progressively to show the world what extended aging will do to a ‘control’ batch of familiar-tasting…