High West’s Cult Favorite Bourye Is Back—and This Year It’s Stronger Than Ever
Twenty years ago, when High West opened in downtown Park City, it became Utah’s first legal distillery since Prohibition. A few years later it decided to do the unthinkable, it mixed sourced bourbon and rye to make its now famous Bourye expression.
Every year, High West makes its Bourye blend a little differently, but every batch has been consistently bottled at 92-proof (46 percent ABV). That is until now. The 2026 edition, clocks in at an amped-up 101 proof (50.5 percent ABV). It may not sound like a lot, but those few extra proof points have a profound impact on the whiskey’s profile.
Courtesy High West Distillery
“For this year’s Bourye release we wanted to release a whiskey that cast a slightly bigger shadow — that brought more richness and weight to the experience,” says High West’s director of distilling, Isaac Winter. “We felt that this blend, at this proof, is magic. I find that the elevated proof creates a more elegant mouthfeel and shows off a depth and silkiness we haven’t seen before.”
Although Bourye was initially an annual, nationally-distributed release, in recent years, it hasn’t been particularly easy to get a bottle. By 2021, High West was running low on its stocks of sufficiently aged whiskey, so for several years Bourye was only available in Utah. And in 2024, it was only available at the distillery. Thankfully, the 2026 edition returns as a nationally-distributed release.
This year’s blend consists of two bourbons and two ryes, all ranging between 10 and 19 years in age. Both bourbons were sourced from Indiana’s Midwest Grain Products (MGP). One was crafted with a mash bill of 75 percent corn, 21 percent rye, and 4 percent malted barley, while the other was built with a bill of 60 percent corn, 36 percent rye, and 4 percent malted barley. One of the ryes was also sourced from MGP, made with the distillery’s signature high-rye recipe of 95 percent rye and 5 percent malted barley. For the final component of the blend, High West incorporated its own rye whiskey, crafted with a mash bill of 80 percent rye and 20 percent malted rye. While the brand doesn’t disclose the specific ratios of the Bourye blend’s components, Winter tells Men’s Journal that it contains more bourbon than rye.
Bourye 2026 Tasting Notes
This year’s Bourye, according to the brand, opens up with a complex bouquet of candied lemons, caramel macarons, toasted cinnamon, and dried ginger. On the palate, the whiskey delivers warm notes of grilled peaches, brown sugar bacon, and chocolate with undercurrents of black licorice, lavender, and leather. Every sip is said to culminate in a rich, decadent finish with lingering notes of sticky toffee pudding and ginger tea. High West recommends enjoying this expression neat or with a little bit of water.
Bourye Price & Availability
Bourye 2026 is non chill-filtered and available now in limited quantities at retailers nationwide for a suggested retail price of $125 per 750 ml bottle. It is also available for purchase through the brand’s website in states where shipping spirits is legal.