Review: Copper and Kings Revival Brandy and King’s Proof Bourbon (2026)

As the United States celebrates its 250th anniversary in 2026, consumers have been inundated with bourbon releases commemorating “America 250.” Bourbon is often described as “America’s native spirit,” yet the spirit we recognize today did not exist in 1776. American fruit brandy, however, already had a place in the country’s early distilling tradition.

Two and a half centuries later, American brandy occupies only a small corner of the domestic spirits market, especially when compared with bourbon. Age is another point of separation. Most American brandy distillers simply do not have inventories capable of matching the age statements commonly found on bourbon labels. Even so, a small group of distillers has released American brandy with significant maturity. While this may not be an absolutely exhaustive list, it comes very close: Laird & Company, Clear Creek, Germain-Robin, Charbay, and Louisville’s Copper & Kings American Brandy Company.

Founded in 2014, Copper & Kings has already experienced several ownership changes, most recently when Rob Bourdon acquired the company in August 2025. Long before that transition, the distillery had established a reputation for turning out excellent American brandy, including the high-proof Butchertown Reserve Casks Brandy, named for the Louisville neighborhood the distillery calls home. In 2023, Copper & Kings also paid tribute to Kentucky’s bourbon heritage with the release of a sourced bourbon blend, each component finished in the distillery’s own apple brandy barrels.

Both Butchertown Reserve Casks Brandy and the original bourbon release predated Bourdon’s ownership. Following the acquisition, the Butchertown name was retired as Bourdon set out to reshape Copper & Kings’ identity with new branding, updated imagery, and a different marketing direction. He also began working with older stocks of aged brandy and bourbon than had been available under Constellation Brands.

The first releases under Bourdon arrived in late 2025 with Copper & Kings VSOP Brandy 6 Years Old, bottled at 86 proof, alongside his version of Copper & Kings Bourbon. Like its predecessor, each bourbon component was finished in Copper & Kings’ apple brandy barrels before bottling at 93 proof.

During the summer of 2026, Bourdon followed those releases with Copper & Kings Revival Brandy, the successor to Butchertown Reserve Casks Brandy, and Copper & Kings King’s Proof Bourbon. Both were bottled at 114.8 proof, a substantial increase over the late-2025 releases. More importantly, these are entirely new blends built from older stocks rather than higher-proof editions of the previous releases.

Copper & Kings had already established a reputation for quality brandy and bourbon before Rob Bourdon took the helm. Now he is building on that foundation with new product development ideas, a different approach to blending, and a fresh direction for the distillery.

Are these two newest releases worthy of your attention? Is Copper & Kings worth watching going forward? Let’s find out.

Copper & Kings Revival American Brandy VSOP 8 Years Old (2026) Review

Batch #1 of Copper & Kings Revival American Brandy VSOP carries an 8-year age statement and marks Rob Bourdon’s first high-proof blending project. The back label states “produced by Copper & Kings,” wording that bourbon drinkers often associate with sourced whiskey. While Copper & Kings has bottled sourced brandy in the past and still has sourced stocks maturing in its warehouses, Revival is blended exclusively from brandy distilled by Copper & Kings in Louisville, Kentucky.

Revival is intended to remain a blend of just four to ten barrels, making every batch its own release rather than an attempt at exact replication. The brandy is distilled from Muscat, Colombard, and Chenin Blanc grapes, with 25% of the blend matured in new charred American oak and the remaining 75% matured in ex-bourbon barrels sourced from several Kentucky distilleries.

The age range spans eight to twelve years, with an average of roughly ten years. Brandy matured in new charred American oak generally falls between eight and ten years old, while the brandy matured in ex-bourbon barrels typically ranges from ten to twelve years, with the twelve-year component making up the smallest share of the blend.

Most of the barrels spent the majority of their maturation period at an off-site warehouse rather than in the Butchertown cellar. They typically began aging in the Butchertown cellar for anywhere from several months to a couple of years before moving to the off-site warehouse, then returned to the Butchertown cellar for several more years before harvest. There is no fixed harvesting season, although releases will generally follow a spring through autumn timetable.

After the selected barrels were blended, the brandy rested for several weeks before bottling. Revival is bottled at 114.8 proof following an undisclosed reduction from its natural harvest proof and contains no added sugar.

The nose opens with a powerful note of dark honeycomb, full of dark honey and beeswax. That opening aroma holds its place before giving way to toasted almonds and sultanas. After a minute in the glass, dusty dried tobacco joins the bouquet, though the honeycomb remains present throughout. There is very little to criticize here. For anyone who appreciates fine brandy, the aroma is exceptionally nice.

Curiously, the prominent honeycomb note from the nose never makes the trip to the palate. Instead, the first sip begins on a sweet note with candied pineapple, stewed apricots, and baked pears dusted with cinnamon, delivering plenty of juicy fruit. The midpoint then shifts dramatically. Dry leather arrives without warning, and the fruit never returns. Bitter orange peel steps forward before yielding to dusty limestone and dried mint leaf, while baked red apple peel closes everything out.

From beginning to end, this is an outstanding brandy. Revival surpasses every previous edition of Butchertown. Earlier releases offered plenty to enjoy, but they also possessed a certain roughness that is entirely absent here, making Revival a far more complete pour. It belongs in the conversation with the greatest American brandies released to date, regardless of distillery. Based purely on enjoyment, Revival may well be the greatest American grape brandy I’ve tasted. Oregon’s Clear Creek 15 Year Old Apple Brandy stands on the same level, though it comes from apples rather than grapes.

In early 2026, I traveled to Copper & Kings to select a single barrel, tasting ten exceptional cask strength brandies along the way. Every one of those barrels impressed at full proof, yet every one improved with a small addition of water while remaining at a high proof. None ultimately showed its best at true cask strength. Bottled below full cask strength while still maintaining plenty of proof, Revival follows that same pattern, showcasing brandy at what I believe is its peak rather than chasing maximum proof for its own sake. 114.8 proof. A / $65

Copper & Kings King’s Proof Bourbon Finished in Brandy Barrels (2026) Review

King’s Proof is built from a blend of four to eight barrels, each finished in Copper & Kings apple brandy barrels for periods ranging from one to three years. Before being used for secondary maturation, the casks had held apple brandy for roughly seven years.

The largest component, representing 65% of the blend, was distilled by Bardstown Bourbon Company and matured for five years before entering the apple brandy casks. Another 24% comes from an undisclosed Bardstown distillery and was distilled from a mashbill of 78% corn, 10% rye, and 12% malted barley. That whiskey spent ten years maturing before its apple brandy cask finish. The remaining 12% was distilled at another undisclosed Bardstown distillery from a mashbill of 74% corn, 18% rye, and 8% malted barley, then matured for fifteen years before secondary maturation.

Although Bourdon disclosed that the various blend components spent anywhere from one to three years in apple brandy casks, he did not specify which whiskeys received the longest finishing periods. In late 2025, Copper & Kings released a single barrel bourbon distilled in Bardstown from the same 74% corn, 18% rye, and 8% malted barley mashbill. That whiskey spent fifteen years maturing before receiving an apple brandy cask finish that extended beyond three years. While there is no confirmation, it is not unreasonable to assume that King’s Proof could also include fifteen-year-old Bardstown-distilled bourbon finished in apple brandy casks for three years.

One notable difference separates King’s Proof from Batch #1 of Copper & Kings Bourbon. Bourdon’s 2025 bourbon release included a ten-year-old component distilled by an undisclosed distillery in central Kentucky. In a move that hopefully won’t ruffle too many tail feathers, King’s Proof does not include any stock from that distillery, setting the two blends apart in ways that extend well beyond their respective proofs.

Like Revival, King’s Proof is bottled at 114.8 proof after an undisclosed reduction from the blend’s natural harvest proof, while remaining at a proof point likely to please experienced imbiber.

Bourdon also notes that nearly every finished bourbon barrel at Copper & Kings spent its entire maturation period in the Butchertown cellar, with only a small number aging at the off-site warehouse. As with the brandy, every bourbon barrel also underwent Copper & Kings’ sonic aging program, and each one spent time listening to the Grateful Dead.

The influence of the apple brandy casks stands out immediately, with baked apples leading the aroma from the first nosing. Cinnamon stick follows alongside it, offering an earthier profile than ground cinnamon. Toasted almonds and brown sugar add to the bouquet, and after the glass has had ample time to rest, old leather arrives. The apple brandy influence remains consistent throughout, and although these barrels account for the smaller portion of the blend, the well-aged whiskey makes a strong showing without becoming overly tannic. Even if roughly 65% of the blend only spent somewhere beyond six years in oak, the apple brandy finishing gives the bourbon an aroma that consistently suggests greater maturity than its youngest components would indicate.

The palate opens with oxidized apples and cardamom before the apple brandy casks continue to shape the whiskey through the arrival of chamomile and a touch of peppermint across the midpalate. Viscosity lands slightly above medium, though it stops short of becoming especially thick.

The finish changes direction in a surprising way. Dry-roasted, lightly salted peanuts combine with dried apple chips, creating an effect much like county fair caramel apples coated with chopped peanuts. Eucalyptus makes a brief appearance before pink peppercorn bursts forward for one final statement. That pink peppercorn note lasts an exceptionally long time and finishes with a lot of spice, steering the bourbon away from everything that came before it. The spice is just enough out of proportion to trim a little of the shine from what is otherwise a highly cohesive sipping experience.

Between the originality of the apple brandy finish, the proof, the price, and the age, this is an easy bottle to recommend and one that is unlikely to leave anyone disappointed. Rob Bourdon is off to an excellent start as a blender, and I look forward to seeing where future releases go. 114.8 proof. A- / $65

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