Bourbon is a type of American whiskey, but not every American whiskey is a bourbon. To call a whiskey bourbon, the rules are strict: it has to be made in the United States from a mash of at least 51% corn and aged in new, charred oak barrels, that new wood is non-negotiable. American whiskey is the wider family those rules live inside: American-made, grain-based, and oak-aged, but free to take a different route to the bottle.

Liberty takes that route on purpose: It carries the same 70% corn mash bill as our bourbon, but instead of new charred oak, every barrel was matured in our own once-used Texas bourbon casks. That single choice,  seasoned wood in place of new, is what makes Liberty an American whiskey rather than a bourbon, and it's where the character comes from. With the sharp sweetness of new oak already drawn down by a first fill, the second fill leaves room for grain, maple, and the softer notes underneath. It's still a straight whiskey, aged at least five years and nine months with nothing added but time and Texas heat.