Age: 42-Years

Proof: 120 proof

Source: Glenmore Distilleries

Bottle Count: 150 bottles

Box Set: 750 ml Bottle, 10cl sample bottle, glass, and a section of the barrel stave.

The Story: In the early 1970’s Glenmore Distilleries was anticipating several anniversary events and thought it would be nice to have some really old Bourbon for commemorative bottling, so a few barrels of the oldest recipe were set aside to rest a while longer.

Unexpected things happened and in 1991 the Guinness Company bought Glenmore and it became a small part of a very large and successful enterprise. By then the old bourbon distillery had been dismantled and its unique configuration was destroyed, marking the end of an era and the end of a product and its tradition. Still the selected barrels that had been set aside slept on for another two decades, its contents spending more time in the barrel than any bourbon available in the market.

Buddy and his buddies tasted the aging bourbon every now and then and decided 40-plus years in the barrel is long enough. It is time! All of the barrels have lost a good portion of their contents to the Angel’s Share, but a limited and exclusive amount of the bourbon has carried through in grand fashion. The strength has grown from 107 to an average of 115-barrel proof today. Final Reserve, James Thompson & Brother Bourbon was bottled at Strong Spirits in Bardstown, KY on Wednesday, December 13^th, 2017.

James “Buddy” Thompson is the former President of Glenmore Distillery, a pilot, an inventor, and builder. He is 86-years-old. After earning an engineering degree at Yale in 1954 Thompson worked a few years at the family distillery, then graduated from U of L School of Law in 1962. He was active in community events, such as the United Way, the Airport Authority and the J Graham Brown Cancer Center. Thompson has a been flying since the age of 13, earning his pilot’s license when the law would allow, after the age of 16. He now not only fly’s airplanes, he also builds them, along with blimps and other air-born engineering marvels. In 1974 Thompson rejoined Glenmore when his brother was stricken with cancer. He remained in the management of the company until 1991, when the Guinness company bought Glenmore. Thompson stayed on until his retirement in 1996.  Final Reserve, James Thompson & Brother Bourbon, is a celebration of the Thompson family’s great name in Kentucky and Bourbon history.