Latest Release in Sapsquatch Series Highlights Master Blender Clinton Dugan’s Unique Two-Stage Finishing Method
May 19, 2026 (Atlanta, GA) — Atlanta-based Shortbarrel, one of the fastest-growing, independently owned craft spirits brands in the Southeast, today announces the release of its limited-edition Sapsquatch Bourbon, a flavorful blend of fine Kentucky and Indiana whiskeys finished in Atlanta with sugar maple. This sister bottling to Shortbarrel’s popular Bee’s Knees honey-finished series is available online at www.shortbarrelbourbon.com and at select retailers for $89.99. Pairing perfectly with traditional Southern BBQ given its oaky and spicy profile with a touch of sweet, Shortbarrel’s Sapsquatch release is an ideal Father’s Day gift for the dad who’s big on flavor and short on his current whiskey collection.
Shortbarrel’s Sapsquatch first appeared in May of 2025 as very limited single barrel finishes. Bottled at 110 proof, this latest batch is the first to feature a broader selection of bourbons in the blend – from 20-to-30 barrels. And those barrels of six-to-eight-year-old bourbon hail from some of Kentucky and Indiana’s most respected distillers, including Jim Beam, Barton, Bardstown Bourbon Company, Green River and MGP. The mashbills vary by blend but are typically 70% corn/21% rye/9% malted barley and 75% corn/21% rye/4% malted barley – all primarily Kentucky-grown grains.
“Any great finished bourbon starts with great whiskeys,” said Co-Founder and Master Blender Clinton Dugan. “We chose barrels with a higher rye content to give us that spicy flavor that goes so well with the sweetness of the maple, making it reminiscent of the great southern cooking you can find here in our hometown of Atlanta.”
As mythical as its namesake, Dugan’s finishing technique for Sapsquatch is equally rare and intentionally engineered. Built to challenge what maple finishing can be, this process doesn’t chase sweetness. Rather, it uses maple to enhance mouthfeel, build mid-palate weight, and round out the whiskey without masking its core character. The two-stage approach begins by placing the blended, non-chill filtered whiskey into stainless steel tanks, where it conditions for six to eight weeks using sugar maple infusion spirals. This step establishes a controlled foundation of maple oak driven sweetness, caramelized sugar, and toasted depth, ensuring consistency before the whiskey ever sees a finishing barrel.
From there, the whiskey transfers into Kelvin-toasted barrels that previously aged maple syrup. This secondary maturation builds structure through oak influence, integrates the layered flavors developed during conditioning, and amplifies the maple character without pushing it into excess. The maple influence comes from both the wood itself and the carefully sourced syrup these barrels once held, including producers like Barred Woods Maple in Vermont and Seldom Seen Farm in Ohio. Each region contributes subtle variation: Vermont syrups tend toward richer, more robust profiles, while Ohio syrups offer brighter, more delicate notes.
“We found that simply finishing our bourbon in former maple syrup barrels wasn’t the right approach, it lacked consistency and missed the balance and depth we were looking for,” says Dugan. “Our goal was never sugary sweetness. Maple here is a structural component, contributing to mouthfeel, mid-palate density, and a perception of roundness without pushing the whiskey into dessert territory.”
The result is a bourbon that opens with caramelized maple and toasted sugar, transitions into a dense, rounded mid-palate, and finishes with drying oak and restrained sweetness. It’s designed for drinkers who want complexity, not confection.
Tasting Notes:
- Nose
Toasted oak up front, driven by maple wood and charred sugar, followed by dense caramel, vanilla bean and layered baking spice with a subtle edge of ethanol lift - Palate
Bold and structured with immediate oak presence, carrying into dark caramel, burnt sugar and seasoned wood. Maple shows as depth—not sweetness—supporting notes of clove, cinnamon and roasted nut with a firm, whiskey-forward backbone - Finish
Long, drying, and oak-driven with lingering toasted wood, caramelized sugar and persistent spice. Maple integrates into the structure, leaving a warm, slightly tannic close with lasting heat
Shortbarrel and Old Fourth Distillery products are available in 48 states through ecommerce at https://shortbarrelbourbon.com/ and https://o4d.com/, utilizing one of the most sophisticated DTC operations in the spirits industry. Products may be found on retail shelves in Georgia (Empire), Kentucky (Kentucky Eagle), Florida (Green Light), Tennessee (Advintage), and Texas (Green Light).
Follow Shortbarrel on Instagram. To learn more, visit https://shortbarrelbourbon.com/
ABOUT SHORTBARREL
Atlanta-based Shortbarrel is one of the fastest-growing independently owned craft spirits brands in the Southeast, founded in 2020 when friends Adam Dorfman, Clinton Dugan and Patrick Lemmond turned their love of whiskey into much more than a passion project. The company consists of two core businesses: Shortbarrel is an award-winning, nationally available American Whiskey brand; and Old Fourth Distillery, which was acquired in 2023, is a legendary, hyper-local brand featuring white spirits and specialty whiskeys with a true hometown flair. The company is built on a simple belief: the future of American Whiskey belongs to brands that blend authenticity, transparency and relentless innovation with real, measurable performance.
