Inside the bottle: West Bottoms Whiskey Co.’s Kansas City-style spirit rates high

West Bottoms Whiskey Co. Kansas City Whiskey // Photo by Mike Dahlor

Everything about this pour cries out “Kansas City!” 

From the steel jaw of the brand logo, Murdock, to the content in the bottle itself, this is a whiskey steeped in Kansas City history and tradition. West Bottoms Whiskey Co. owner and operator, Alex Lindsey confesses that was his intention with the label.

Kansas City Style is a pre-prohibition style of whiskey that allows up to 2.5% sherry to be added to the blend. In the days leading up to prohibition, the demand for whiskey was so high that many producers were rushing product out the door in an attempt to meet demand. This led to a younger-aged whiskey being bottled and sold. The introduction of sherry helped to round the edges of the young whiskey and add a little color to the mix. 

In today’s market, West Bottoms Whiskey reaches back to this style, not to mask flavors, but to accentuate them and provide a more approachable whiskey for those new to the spirit. 

At 95 proof, this whiskey is exactly that, very approachable. It lends itself to the neat pour while still offering an intriguing base to your favorite whiskey cocktail. Under Murdock’s watchful monocle, this writer discovered this about West Bottoms Kansas City Whiskey. 

Nose

Initially, sweet char notes. A mingling of berries and sweet, aged oak. Reminiscent of a Fruits of the Forest pie. Blackberry, strawberry, and a little apple, all nestled nicely atop a shortbread butter crust. There are slight hints of baking spice and honeysuckle along with mild citrus notes.  

Palate 

On the tongue, it begins with sweet, charred oak notes, evolving into caramel and honey, with those lovely bright notes of rye spice. The back palate lets those baking spices begin to shine through as they partner up and dance with the sweet fruit notes carried in from the nose.

Finish

With a short to medium finish, this whiskey rounds down in a very lovely fashion. It does not overstay its welcome, nor does it exit so quickly that one wonders if it were ever there. The afterglow being the deep, rich notes of charred caramel and sweetness. Presenting a lovely array of sugar and spice as it gently winds down.

ABV 47% (94 Proof)

Style: Kansas City Whiskey

Price: $35-$40

Score: 87

Score Key:
90-100: Buy it, hoard it. Share it only with Whiskey nerds who you want to be indebted to you.
70-89: Buy it, enjoy it liberally because you can get more when you want to.
40-69: Worth it to try because you can always make a cocktail if you need to
20-39: go ahead if you want to… experience is learning.
0-19: You were warned.