The first pour of the day at any bourbon festival sets the tone for everything that follows, and mine happened to be a 122.8-proof cask strength bourbon poured into a shot glass. That’s how my morning started with Belle of Dayton Distillery’s Detrick Straight Bourbon Whiskey, a 9-year-old, five-grain bourbon out of Dayton, Ohio, and one of the more unusual mash bills you’ll run into on a festival table.
Quick Take
| Profile: Caramel and brown sugar sweetness with oak and light smoke, backed by a notably grain-forward character |
| Proof Management: Surprisingly restrained for 122.8 proof – light heat and manageable astringency rather than a punch to the face |
| Standout Feature: The rare 5-grain mash bill (corn, oats, rye, wheat, malted barley) that gives it a different textural feel than your standard bourbon |
| Best For: Ohio bourbon collectors and curious sippers who want to try something genuinely different from the usual mash bills |
| Watch Out: Short finish with a touch of bitterness, and a balance that doesn’t quite pull all the pieces together |
The Story Behind This Pour
This one came from the Grove City Bourbon and Spirits Festival, and for thirty-five bucks and eight tastings from a lineup of mostly Ohio distilleries, it was a solid way to spend an afternoon. Worth the drive, worth the money. Your ticket got you a shot glass instead of a Glencairn, which is a little like showing up to a wine tasting with a coffee mug, but you work with what you’re handed.
I probably shouldn’t have opened with a 122.8-proof pour before my palate had a chance to warm up, but that’s the order the tables were set up in, so that’s where I started. The pourer didn’t have a ton of detail to share beyond it being a 5-grain bourbon, which is unusual enough on its own to get my attention. My particular bottle was barreled back on April 8, 2017 and bottled on July 4, 2026, drawn from batch 18, bottle 30 of 190. Nine years in a barrel before it ever made it into that shot glass.
Production Background
Belle of Dayton Distillery traces its Detrick label back to a real pre-Prohibition operation. Pre-prohibition, Detrick Distilling Co. sold double copper-distilled whiskey in Dayton under Registered Distillery No. 60, 10th Ward, and founder Frank Detrick’s motto was “While we live, let’s live.” Inspired by that history, the LaSelle Brothers set out to create a bourbon whiskey of their own. The five-grain mash bill isn’t marketing spin, either: they distilled a rare 5-grain mash bill of corn, oats, rye, wheat, and malted barley, drawing water from the local aquifer system. The intricate flavor and full-bodied texture was preserved by slow pot distillation and then aged in a hand-toasted, 53-gallon white oak cask.
Each release is a single barrel bottling, and proof varies barrel to barrel – other batches from this same bourbon line have landed anywhere in the 116-124 proof range, so a 122.8-proof pour like this one sits right in the wheelhouse for this bottling.
Appearance and Color
Poured into that shot glass, the bourbon showed a deep amber color, and even in less-than-ideal glassware you could see medium, thick legs clinging to the sides. Nine years in a barrel and cask strength proof will do that – there’s some real viscosity here before you even get to the nose.
Nose
The nose is straightforward and inviting: caramel and brown sugar, the kind of smell that makes you think you’re in for a sweeter, dessert-leaning pour. No surprises, no funky grain notes poking through yet. It smells like a bourbon that’s confident in what it is.
Tasting Notes
The palate follows the nose pretty faithfully – caramel and brown sugar up front, joined by oak and a touch of smoke. Given the proof and the nine years of age on this thing, I expected a bigger, more aggressive pour. Instead it was light on the tongue, with only a light heat and a slight astringency creeping in on the back end. That’s actually where the disconnect started for me – at 122.8 proof I wanted more weight, more chew, and instead I got something that felt almost too polite for its own stats. The grain-forward character shows up here too, a reminder that this isn’t a standard corn-heavy bourbon; the oats and wheat and malted barley are doing something different to the texture that’s hard to put your finger on but easy to notice.
Finish
The finish is where it fell short for me. It wraps up relatively quickly, leaving behind slightly bitter oak and smoke notes along with a light residual heat. For a nine-year, cask-strength bourbon, I wanted the finish to stick around and tell me a longer story. Instead it said what it had to say and left the room.
Who Should Buy This
If you’re into Ohio-made spirits and want to try something with a genuinely unusual mash bill, this is worth seeking out – the five-grain approach gives it a different feel than most bourbons on the shelf, and the caramel-forward profile is easy to like even if it doesn’t wow you. It’s also a reasonable option for someone who wants to dip a toe into cask strength bourbon without getting knocked over, since the heat stays fairly light for the proof. If you’re chasing a long, complex finish or a bourbon that really leans into its high proof, this one’s probably going to leave you wanting more.
Where to Buy
Detrick Straight Bourbon is a single barrel release, so availability is going to be inconsistent by nature – each batch comes from one barrel and doesn’t last long. Bottles have been available for pickup at the Van Buren Room or at OHLQ retail outlets and the brand has also worked with retailers like Seelbach’s for select single barrel picks. Your best bet is checking directly with Belle of Dayton Distillery in Dayton, Ohio, or browsing Ohio Liquor’s online inventory for current stock, since past batches have sold out quickly through both channels.
FAQ
What makes Detrick Straight Bourbon a “5-grain” bourbon?
Most bourbons use a mash bill of corn, rye or wheat, and malted barley. Detrick’s mash bill draws naturally filtered water from the area’s Great Miami Buried Valley Aquifer and uses a less common 5-grain mash bill of corn, oats, rye, wheat, and malted barley, which adds oats into the mix – something you don’t see often in American whiskey.
What does “cask strength” mean?
Cask strength (sometimes called barrel proof) means the whiskey is bottled at or near the proof it came out of the barrel at, without dilution down to a standard 80-100 proof. That’s why you’ll see proofs like 122.8 on a bottle like this one instead of the more common 90 or 100.
How should I drink a high-proof bourbon like this?
Neat to start, so you get the full picture of what’s actually happening in the glass. If the heat or astringency is too much, a splash of water can round off the rougher edges, though I tasted this one neat and didn’t get to test how it opened up with water.
Is Detrick Straight Bourbon good for beginners?
It’s a reasonable entry point into cask strength bourbon since the heat stays fairly manageable for the proof, but the short, slightly bitter finish might not be the most exciting first impression for someone new to high-proof pours.
Where does Belle of Dayton Distillery make this bourbon?
Belle of Dayton is an award-winning craft distillery in Dayton, Ohio, offering premium small-batch vodka, gin, whiskey, and more. The Detrick bourbon line is their tribute to a pre-Prohibition Dayton-area distillery.
Final Verdict
This one’s a mixed bag for me. The nose and early palate promise a caramel-and-brown-sugar bourbon with some real depth behind it, and for a nine-year cask strength pour, the heat stays surprisingly manageable. But the balance never quite comes together, and the finish wraps up faster and more bitter than I wanted given everything else this bourbon has going for it on paper. I’m giving this one 3 out of 5 stars – a solid, sippable everyday bourbon, but not one I’d rearrange my shelf for. Maybe a second try with a warmed-up palate and a proper glass would change my mind. For now, it’s a decent festival pour.
