Category - Liquor
I've Tried Hundreds of Whiskeys. This Bourbon Goes Great in an Old Fashioned
Chicken Cock is a peculiar name for a bourbon brand in 2025. The name makes a little more sense once you learn that it's been floating around the whiskey world since the 1860s.
Bourbon’s surge in popularity over the past 20 years has led to an explosion of new distilleries and bottles on store shelves. While many have started from scratch with their branding, Matti Anttila, founder of Chicken Cock, took inspiration from whiskey history instead. Chicken Cock was a once highly regarded whiskey producer that survived Prohibition, only to fall victim to the volatile spirits market of the mid-20th century.
The brand relaunched in 2017 and fully leaned into its history. Everything about the packaging evokes the whiskey days of yore. The ornate bottles are covered with etchings designed to mimic the bottles of Prohibition-era medicinal whiskey.
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The story is fun and the bottles are cool, but how’s the whiskey? Chicken Cock’s flagship is a straight Kentucky bourbon. That essentially means it’s aged for a minimum of four years and is made from a recipe that uses at least 51 percent corn. Is it worth picking up a bottle? Let’s dig in and find out.
And if you're interested in more whiskey reviews, check out our deep dives into Maker's Mark No. 46, Buffalo Trace, and Woodford Reserve.
Chicken Cock Bourbon at a Glance

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- Bottom Line: Chicken Cock Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey is a well-crafted and delivers a classic flavor profile. The only downside is that it’s pricey compared to similar bourbons in its age range.
- Type: Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
- Proof: 90 (45 percent ABV)
- Age: Minimum 4 years.
- Mash Bill: 70 percent corn, 21 percent rye, 9 percent malted barley
- Appearance: Light amber with copper accents
- Nose: Caramel, vanilla wafers, cinnamon, orange zest
- Mouthfeel: Medium viscosity, not too oily or watery
- Taste: Graham crackers, raisin, caramel, red hot candies
- Finish: Caramel, vanilla, dark chocolate
- Price: $50
Chicken Cock Bourbon Pros and Cons
Pros | Cons |
---|---|
Classic bourbon flavor and aroma | Pricier than similarly aged competitors |
Unique bottle design | |
Great neat or in cocktails |
Chicken Cock Bourbon Review
Make no mistake, Chicken Cock is unquestionably Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey. Across the board, this whiskey hits every flavor and aromatic note that fans of Kentucky bourbon know and love. From the sweetness of the corn distillate to the traditional barrel notes of caramel and vanilla, everything you’d want in a bourbon is here to varying degrees. It’s clear that there’s a baseline of quality at play.
While it’s an overall satisfying pour, it’s also hard to ignore that this bourbon is on the younger end of the spectrum. The youth presents itself in a grainy, cereal-like character that's consistent from the nose through the palate. Though not at all overbearing in this instance, the flavors are a common occurrence in bourbons that skew closer to the four-year minimum necessary to be legally labeled as a straight bourbon whiskey.
As much as people obsess over age statements, youth in whiskey isn’t a bad thing. There are many bourbons without age statements that are delicious and fulfilling and available for a fair price. Many whiskeys bottled after 15 or more years in the barrel are tannic, over-oaked, and comically overpriced messes.
Chicken Cock’s bourbon is noticeably young, but not to the whiskey’s detriment; it’s still pretty tasty. The whiskey sings in cocktails, and though not the most complex, it’s pleasant to sip neat.
Related: How to Drink Whiskey Neat
The elephant in the room here is the price tag. Chicken Cock’s bourbon is available for between $50 and $60, depending on location. For comparison, Eagle Rare 10-year is commonly found for around $60. The cask-strength stalwart Wild Turkey Rare Breed is also regularly available for less than $60 a bottle.
It’s not easy for an upstart to compete against legacy behemoths like Jim Beam and Wild Turkey. Unfortunately, the current reality is that bourbon enthusiasts are becoming more and more conscious of value and therefore more discerning with how they spend their money. Whether it's fair or not, age statements definitely factor into their value judgments.
You have to wonder whether bourbon drinkers will continue to shell out $60 for a whiskey without an age statement that’s not much more than "good," like Chicken Cock.
How to Drink Chicken Cock Bourbon
Chicken Cock is a relatively straightforward, classic bourbon. It hits all of the flavor and aromatic notes that one would expect from a bourbon that age, so the classic methods of enjoying it still apply.
When encountering a new spirit, it’s standard practice to try it neat first. Sipping it without ice or mixers gives you the clearest idea of what the distillers and blenders believe is the ideal presentation of their spirit. At 90 proof, Chicken Cock bourbon is right in the sweet spot for alcohol heat so it’s pretty pleasant to sip on its own.

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If it burns a little too much for your taste, it also works well served over a big block of ice. The proof level means the bourbon stands up pretty well to the chilling and dilution that ice provides. In this case, ice mutes some of the harsher, spicier notes of the bourbon and brings out more of the caramel and vanilla notes.
Chicken Cock also works very well in cocktails. I tried it first in an old fashioned and found the spice and grain notes in the bourbon to pair very well with the bitters, simple syrup, and orange peel that I used.
I also made one of my favorite modern classics, the paper plane. Again, it performed well. The notes of caramel and vanilla and slight dryness provided a perfect counterweight to lemon juice and sweet botanical notes from Aperol and Amaro Nonino.
History of Chicken Cock Bourbon
As a resurrected brand, Chicken Cock has a unique history. The brand’s roots go back to around 1830, when original founder James A. Miller first started distilling whiskey. In 1856, Miller purchased a half-finished distillery in Paris, KY, and oversaw the completion of its construction.
Miller had a reputation for producing high-quality bourbon and found quick success at his distillery. Unfortunately, only four years after the distillery opened, Miller passed away.
Miller’s distillery continued operation after his death. In 1862, the name “Chicken Cock,” a common term for a rooster at the time, was first used to advertise the whiskey. The distillery operated normally until 1890, when a fire broke out and caused significant damage. The brand was sold shortly after and the new owners shuttered Miller’s distillery.
Like all liquor producers in the U.S., Chicken Cock was heavily affected by Prohibition. Production moved to Canada and bottles of the whiskey were smuggled into speakeasies in tin cans—an affectation that the brand became famous enough to be included in Duke Ellington’s memoir.

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After Prohibition was repealed, producers rushed to get whiskey back on the market. Chicken Cock was no different. In the period after Prohibition, Chicken Cock was bottled as a blended whiskey and the quality gradually began to drop. This decline in quality along with falling demand for bourbon led to Chicken Cock’s dissolution in the 1950s.
The Chicken Cock name sat dormant until Matti Anttila decided to resuscitate it for a new bourbon brand. In the process, he brought the Chicken Cock name back to its Kentucky roots. Anttila has since partnered with master distiller Gregg Snyder and Bardstown Bourbon Company to produce the liquid in every bottle of the revitalized Chicken Cock. The brand relaunched in 2017.
How Chicken Cock Bourbon is Made
In the bourbon world, contract distilling and sourcing are both common practices. Chicken Cock’s bourbon is contract distilled, meaning that the people behind the brand hire a distiller to produce the bourbon based on master distiller Gregg Snyder’s unique specifications.
Chicken Cock bourbon is produced by Bardstown Bourbon Company, in Bardstown, KY. Bardstown Bourbon Co. is a very modern and efficient distillery that operates multiple column stills to produce bourbon which is then barrel-aged in one of their many on-site rickhouses.
Bardstown Bourbon Co. has a robust contract distilling program and produces bourbon and rye whiskeys for many brands as well as bottling and selling their whiskey under the Bardstown Bourbon Co. brand.
If You Like Chicken Cock Bourbon, You’ll Also Like…
Bardstown Bourbon Company Origin Series Bourbon

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The distillery that crafts Chicken Cock also bottles and sells their own excellent bourbon. Known for sourcing and blending from distilleries all over the country, Bardstown Bourbon Co.’s Origin Series showcases whiskeys produced entirely at their distillery. This high-rye bourbon has a mash bill of 60 percent corn, 36 percent rye, and 4 percent malted barley so expect it to be a slightly different iteration of bourbon from the same craftspeople that make Chicken Cock.
Chicken Cock Double Oak Whiskey

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If you find yourself thinking that Chicken Cock could use a bit more time in the barrel, check out the brand's Double Oak expression. After aging in used bourbon barrels, the whiskey is then aged again in barrels made from West Virginian white oak for a total of at least 8 years. Since this whiskey is aged primarily in used barrels, it can’t legally be called a bourbon, but there’s still plenty of familiarity here for bourbon aficionados to enjoy with notes of
Wild Turkey 101

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For a more affordable bourbon with a similar flavor profile and age range, you can’t go wrong with Wild Turkey 101. It provides a similar classic bourbon flavor, with a bit more baking spice, and can usually be found for around $25. It’s one of the most popular value bourbons among aficionados for a reason — it delivers a big flavor for the price.
Why Should You Trust Me
Before I started writing about drinks, I worked in the beverage industry for over a decade, both in specialty coffee and as a bartender. Since I began writing about and reviewing distilled spirits, I’ve tasted hundreds of bottles across all categories. I've also visited distilleries throughout the United States, Mexico, Europe, and the Caribbean to see firsthand how these spirits are made.
To prepare for this review I taste Chicken Cock bourbon neat, on the rocks, and in a few cocktails. I also did comparative tastings with similarly produced bourbons and other Chicken Cock expressions to see where Chicken Cock bourbon stacked up against the competition.
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