Bourbon is nothing if not ripe with stories. Part of the industry’s appeal is how certain individuals influenced it over the years, with the impacts spanning anywhere from years to centuries. Admittedly, some brands will find a good story and exploit the life out of it for the sake of marketing. This makes the more earnest attempts feel that much more endearing. In the case of Mary Dowling Whiskey Company, formed by clinical psychologist/psychoanalyst-turned-whiskey-maker Kaveh Zamanian (also the man behind Rabbit Hole), the backstory feels equally intriguing and unsung.

Much of the information I initially found on Mary Dowling comes from the brand’s website, as well as the historical novel Mother of Bourbon: The Greatest American Whiskey Story Never Told, written by Zamanian and Eric Goodman. The story goes that Dowling was born in the late 1850s to Irish immigrants who relocated to Kentucky, escaping the great potato famine from 1845-1852. Over time, she would inherit the Dowling Bros. Distillery, along with Waterfill & Frazier, which also did business under the name Pilgrimage Distilling Co.

During Prohibition, distilling production moved just outside of the United States to Juarez, Mexico, since Mexico didn’t have any prohibition in place. The primary markets for this “Dowling Mexican Distillery” were Mexico and Central and South America. Unfortunately, Mary wouldn’t get to see Repeal Day, but one of her sons built a new distillery in Fisherville at Ford’s Fork. He later sold the distillery, which ended up closing while the new owner preserved the Waterfill & Frazier brand name, moving distillation to Bardstown.

Fast-forward to today and we have the aforementioned Mary Dowling Whiskey Company, which has a small portfolio of bourbons, presumably sourced from Rabbit Hole. The whiskey begins with a mash bill of 65% corn, 25% wheat, and 10% malted barley, matures for at least four years in wood-fired, toasted and charred barrels (site mentions both #4 and #3 in separate sentences) before being transferred to a second new oak barrel with a #1 char and heavy toast. It’s then bottled at cask strength, with the sample I tried coming in at 53.7% ABV.

Nose: Oak, Toasted Vanilla, Light Brown Sugar, Nutmeg

Lightly Drying, Prototypical, Rounded

Palate: Barrel Char, Dark Chocolate, Burnt Corn, Black Currant

Musty, Tannic, Drying

Finish: Tobacco, Cocoa, Dark Brown Sugar, Vanilla

Long, Drying, Oaky

The story behind Mary Dowling and the bespoke whiskey brand invites no shortage of wonder. I love it when I feel newly educated by the mere existence of a whiskey brand, especially when the backstory presented feels sincere and not like a ploy merely for marketing’s sake. This is why it disheartens me to say that Mary Dowling Double Oak leaves so much to be desired.

First impressions are positive, albeit unceremonious, with some promising notes on the nose. However, as soon as I took a sip, something felt off. I can’t help but feel the secondary maturation was too heavily relied on, considering the dry and tannic nature of the whiskey evokes strongly burnt flavors. It’s a shame, because the composition of the whiskey is unlike most on the market, even though double oaked whiskey is a dime a dozen. Perhaps the team at Mary Dowling can dial in a more compelling version of this product in the future. Because as it stands, I’m less than enthused.