Overview: Old Bardstown Bottled-in-Bond from Willett Distillery has been named Best Bourbon at the 2026 International Wine and Spirits Competition. The spirit earned 98 points and a Gold Outstanding medal in the North American straight bourbon category, beating out bottles that cost hundreds of dollars more.
The Full Story
Old Bardstown Bottled-in-Bond from Kentucky’s Willett Distillery was named Best Bourbon at the 2026 International Wine and Spirits Competition after earning 98 points and a Gold Outstanding medal. The distinction follows Old Bardstown’s 98 points and a Gold Outstanding medal in the competition’s North American straight bourbon category earlier this year. For American whiskey connoisseurs, Willett is a familiar name — as revered as Van Winkle, Weller, or Fitzgerald. Its sought-after Willett Family Estate releases are among the priciest American whiskeys on the market, making the comparatively accessible Old Bardstown an outlier in the distillery’s portfolio.
Despite its $25 price tag, the four-year-old bourbon topped competitors costing significantly more and is made entirely by Willett using the distillery’s original 1936 mash bill. The International Wine and Spirits Competition (IWSC) has exclusively revealed to Food & Wine that Old Bardstown Bottled-in-Bond from Willett Distillery in Bardstown, Kentucky, will receive the 2026 Bourbon Trophy at the organization’s annual awards ceremony in London later this fall. As a bottled-in-bond bourbon, Old Bardstown is bottled at 100 proof, aged in new oak for at least four years, and produced during a single distillation season.
Production & Profile
The four-year-old whiskey is distilled from a mash bill dating back to 1936, made with 72% corn, 15% malted barley, and 13% rye. It bears an old-timey, tan-tinted label featuring a hand-painted thoroughbred, the same logo Willett has used since reviving the brand in 2016. The bottled-in-bond expression is distinguished by its gold screw cap.
Judges praised its “bright and grain-forward aromas; balanced dry palate where marmalade and brioche meld seamlessly with a delicate floral touch,” along with a “lingering finish full of character and charm.”
Brand & Industry History
Old Bardstown has a closer connection to Willett than some of the distillery’s most coveted Family Estate releases. Many of those older whiskeys were sourced from other Kentucky distilleries during a period when Willett wasn’t producing, from the late 1970s to 2012. Old Bardstown, by comparison, is distilled by Willett using its original 1936 mash bill: 72% corn, 15% malted barley, and 13% rye.
What This Means
For a town known as the “Bourbon Capital of the World,” these two major IWSC trophies help explain why. Bardstown Bourbon Company will receive the competition’s Best American Whiskey award for its Lochs of Jura Barrel 10-Year-Old, a blend of straight whiskeys finished in single malt Scotch whisky barrels. For bourbon fans willing to make the trip, Bardstown, Kentucky, has another 2026 IWSC winner.
Consumer Takeaway
Old Bardstown’s $25 price makes it considerably more accessible than many collectible Willett releases, but availability presents a different challenge. The Bottled-in-Bond expression is officially sold only in Kentucky. For bourbon fans willing to make the trip, a case of Old Bardstown could still cost less than a single bottle of some Willett Family Estate releases.
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