Pact No. 7 is the 2021 release in Lux Row's annual Blood Oath series, and it is the one where John Rempe went looking for fruit rather than wood. The structure follows the house pattern: three Kentucky straight bourbons, all built on ryed rather than wheated mashbills, with only one component given a secondary maturation. Here that means a fourteen year old extra aged ryed bourbon supplying the oak backbone and depth, an eight year old ryed bourbon filling out the middle, and a second eight year old finished in Sauternes casks from the Bordeaux region of France. Sauternes is a sweet white dessert wine made from grapes affected by noble rot, and casks that held it behave differently from the red wine and fortified wine barrels that dominate finished whiskey. Rather than adding tannin and dark fruit, they push stone fruit and honeyed sweetness forward and noticeably thicken the texture. What that produces here is a decidedly fruit forward bourbon with enough oak underneath to keep it from tipping into cloying: caramel, oak and honey on the nose alongside orange, apricot and a bread pudding note, then cinnamon, tropical fruit, caramel and baking spice across the palate. It drinks warm, sweet and surprisingly easygoing for the proof. Bottled at 49.3 percent alcohol by volume, the 98.6 proof shared across the series as a nod to body temperature, and carrying Rempe's signature. Production ran to 51,000 bottles, with 1,400 held back for a later Trilogy Pack. Only Rempe knows the full blending recipe, and per the label it will never be made again.
ABV / Proof
| ABV |
49.3% |
| Proof |
98.6 |
| Size |
750ml |
| Country |
United States |
| Region |
Kentucky |
| Producer |
Lux Row Distillers, Bardstown, Kentucky |
| Master Distiller |
John Rempe |
| Category |
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey |
| Expression |
Blood Oath Pact No. 7 |
| Release Year |
2021 (MMXXI) |
| Age |
Blend of a 14 year and two 8 year ryed bourbons |
| Finish |
Sauternes casks, Bordeaux, France, applied to one 8 year component only |
| Release Size |
51,000 bottles, 1,400 held for a future Trilogy Pack |
| Label Colour |
Blue |
Tasting Notes
Color: Warm amber.
Nose: Caramel, oak and honey lead, with orange, apricot and bread pudding behind, plus cinnamon, gingerbread and a soft spice.
Palate: Fruit forward and rounded. Apricot, honey and peach carry into cinnamon and tropical fruit, with caramel and baking spice over toasted oak.
Finish: Warm and sweet, easygoing for the proof, closing on honeyed stone fruit and oak.
FAQ
Q: What is a Sauternes cask?
A: A cask that held Sauternes, a sweet white dessert wine from the Bordeaux region of France. It contributes stone fruit and honeyed sweetness rather than the tannin of a red wine cask.
Q: Is the whole blend finished in Sauternes?
A: No. Only one of the two eight year old components is finished in Sauternes casks. The fourteen year old and the second eight year old are unfinished.
Q: Will Pact No. 7 be made again?
A: No. Every Blood Oath Pact is a one time blend released once and never repeated. Only Rempe knows the full recipe.
Q: How many bottles were made?
A: 51,000, of which 1,400 were held back for a later Trilogy Pack release.
Q: Why 98.6 proof?
A: Every Blood Oath Pact is bottled at 98.6 proof, a reference to human body temperature.
Q: Where can I buy Blood Oath Pact No. 7 online?
A: Available here at Liquor On Broadway while stock lasts, with fast insured shipping nationwide.
