There’s never a shortage of buzz-worthy releases these days in the bourbon world. It feels like with each passing week another “limited” or “rare” offering is hitting the shelves – mostly virtually since few bottles make it out into the wild these days. Few releases in recent memory have stirred up as much buzz as Cathedral French Oak, one of the latest releases from Bardstown Bourbon Company which even found its way onto 60 minutes with Bill Whitaker. But what is Cathedral Oak, why is it generating so much noise, and is it really worth shelling out the cash to buy? In this post we’ll unpack the release, the hype, and take a closer look at how it’s performing on the secondary market – because lets face it, you’re not picking this up at your local liquor store.
Cathedral French Oak is a limited release from Bardstown Bourbon Company, which is a blend of five mature bourbons that range in age from nine to 18 years. The bourbon is named after the towering, centuries-old oak trees used in finishing the barrels, drawn from a lot that was used to make the replacement wood cathedral following the Notre Dame fire – hence the cathedral reference. Bardstown Bourbon Company was able to acquire enough oak from this particular lot to make six barrels in which the blend underwent a secondary maturation for 14 months.
According to Bardstown, the barrels derived from these old-growth trees create “a whiskey experience as grand and enduring as the cathedral oaks themselves.” Right.
As you can imagine with 6 barrels to go around, this is a very limited edition – of course, Bardstown attempted to squeak out as many bottles as possible by making this a 375ml bottling. The retail price was set at $100.00 but, of course, that’s not the price you and I will ever see for this bottling. As the hype train accompanying this bottling has picked up steam, the secondary market has been exploding. You can see below what’s happened in the past 20 days with this release based on the rich data from the Bourbon Blue Book®, being propelled into the stratosphere in terms of pricing driven solely, 100 percent by hype and not much more.
Reputation for Quality: Bardstown Bourbon despite being a young brand, has built a solid reputation amongst many in the whiskey world with their Collaborative Series, Fusion Series, and Discovery Series which all received high marks (for the most part) amongst critics and aficionados.
Innovative Barrel Finish: The centerpiece of the hype surrounding this offering is the story that accompanies the bottle. Centuries old oak, hewn for Notre Dame’s cathedral AND these barrels conjures a sense of mystique and ancient luxury that does a stellar job of nearly selling itself. Truth be told, you could chop down an oak tree anywhere in France and come up with nearly the same result – just without the sexiness of the story.
Limited Supply: Key to driving demand is to make sure there’s not much to go around, and that’s exactly the case for this release. Scarcity and buzz has played a major role in the price of this bottling taking off.
Sleek Packaging: A few of these out there have a custom looking stained glass box, but that aside, they are in a heavy bottom bottle with custom embossed gold detailing and really have an incredible visual appeal – despite whether the taste matches that or not.
Well, that answer is probably dependent on a number of factors, most importantly what kind of Bourboneur you are.
If you’re a collector, this is a smart addition to your shelf – especially if you were able to get it at retail.
If you’re a drinker, this is not your jam, especially given the premium price tag that it comes with at the moment. If you want something much more affordable, look for a Old Charter Oak French Oak – a third of the price, a unique add to your collection, and a solid drinker.
If you’re on the fence, I’d wait for the hype train to slow down – it always does – and then you might have a better shot at nabbing it for much less down the line.
If you’re active in the world of bourbon buying, selling, or trading—especially when it comes to rare or allocated bottles—accurate, up-to-date pricing is essential. The secondary bourbon market is constantly evolving and staying informed means knowing the true value of a bottle right now, not just its retail price.
That’s where the Bourbon Blue Book®, recently featured in Forbes, comes in.
Powered by the Bourboneur App (available on iOS and Android), the Blue Book offers verified secondary market pricing for more than 6,500 bottles. Whether you're evaluating a recent release or tracking trends across your collection, this tool helps ensure you never overpay—or undersell.
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A subscription gives you full access—and at just $3/month or $25/year, it can pay for itself with your first smart deal.
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