Bardstown Mars Japanese Blend Review: Worth the Trip?

The Bardstown Bourbon Company Distillery Reserve Mars Single Malt Japanese Blend is worth a trip to Bardstown. Bardstown sent us a bottle before release, and we came away impressed by how well its Kentucky bourbons and Japanese single malts work together. This is an unusual experiment that delivers on flavor.

At a glance

• Proof: 109.8
• Bottle size: 375 ml
• Price: $99
• Availability: Bardstown’s gift shop and tasting room
• Ratings: Both of us gave it a solid red on our scale. One of us rated the whiskey alone a double black, with limited availability pulling the overall rating back.

What the four-whiskey blend brings to the glass

Bardstown brought in Japanese single malts from Mars Komagatake and Tsunuki, then combined them with two Kentucky bourbons. All four whiskeys spent another 12 months together in a barrel, aging through Kentucky’s summer heat.

That extra year together is what caught our attention. Bardstown blended mature whiskeys, then gave that blend more time to develop as one whiskey. We haven’t come across many releases made quite this way.

The four components bring some very different influences:

• Five-year Komagatake single malt: Made from 100% malted barley, with umeshu plum liqueur barrel influence. That brings rich fruit complexity into the blend.
• Five-year Tsunuki single malt: Also 100% malted barley, with rare sakura cherry wood barrel influence. We expected delicate spice, floral notes, and subtle wood from this component.
• 10-year Kentucky bourbon: This makes up 69% of the blend. Its mash bill is 74% corn, 18% rye, and 8% malted barley.
• 16-year Kentucky bourbon: The mash bill figures given were 70% corn, 13% rye, and 4% malted barley.

Suntory’s world whisky came to mind as we discussed it. Bringing Japanese whisky and bourbon together gives this a similar cross-country appeal, but the shared aging period adds another layer to the idea.

Bardstown’s fifth release in this series

This follows French oak, Mizunara oak, brandy barrel, and Garryana oak releases. We had already enjoyed the Garryana oak, so this bottle had something to live up to.

We’ve noticed Bardstown pushing its experiments further over the past year or two. It was named Global Brand Innovator of the Year in 2025, and this release makes that recognition easy to understand.

Bardstown belongs to Lofted Spirits alongside Green River, putting it within one of the largest American whiskey distillers. What interests us here is how willing it seems to try combinations with no guaranteed outcome. Two Japanese single malts, two bourbons, and another year in a barrel could have gone in several directions.

Nose: sweet cherry, plum, oak, and malt

The nose delivers right away. It’s sweet and fruit-forward, with cherry jumping out first.

We also picked up caramelized plum, oak, and malt. The oak gives it some structure without taking over the fruit. That balance made us eager to taste it.

Palate: roasted malt, baked cherry, and sweet corn

The first sip feels much lighter than we expected. Roasted malt quickly comes forward, giving it a clear single malt character without any peat flavor.

Baked cherry follows, along with a little baking spice. There’s caramel-like sweetness, too, and one of us picked up a little vanilla. Sweet corn keeps the bourbon side present throughout.

We both thought the proof was exactly where it needed to be. Neither of us wanted it higher or lower. It carries the flavors without making the whiskey feel heavy.

Malted barley is the backbone here. It doesn’t overpower everything, but it stays noticeable through the sip. If you don’t enjoy that malt character, this probably won’t be your bottle. For us, its mix with the sweet corn is a big part of what makes the blend work.

Finish: a light texture that still coats the palate

The mouthfeel starts a little thin, almost watery. Then it coats the palate better than that first impression suggests, and the flavor keeps hanging around.

The finish has layers without becoming overwhelming. It neither disappears immediately nor drags on too long. We found it easy and satisfying.

One of us noticed a light, easy-drinking Japanese whisky character up front that developed into a lightly spiced bourbon finish. The other picked up more sweet corn early, followed by lingering malted barley. Both impressions point to the same strength: the components stay recognizable while working together.

Value: a premium half bottle with limited access

At this size and price, you’re looking at roughly $200 for a full-size bottle’s worth. That sets a high bar. We like the 375 ml format, but a small bottle still has to justify a substantial price.

One of us didn’t love paying that much for a half bottle, even though the flavor earned the rating. The other was more comfortable with the price because of the complexity and balance. This tastes like both bourbon and Japanese whisky, with enough character from each to make the combination interesting.

For one of us, it was the best blend we’d tasted this year, even ahead of the Garryana oak release. The balance was the difference. That was also the tasting impression behind the double black rating for the liquid alone.

Access is the bigger frustration. We think Bardstown whiskey club members might also receive a bottle, but we couldn’t confirm that. We also don’t know the production count, which makes it harder to judge how much opportunity people will have to find one.

As for what we would personally pay on secondary, our limits differed. One of us would stop around $150. The other considered $160 to $180, settling on $180 after tasting it. Those are our personal spending limits, not quoted market prices.

A one-off experiment worth tasting

We’re not sure Bardstown will ever try to repeat this exact combination. That’s part of its appeal: it takes a real chance and gives us something we haven’t tasted before. This is the kind of bottle that makes us wish we lived closer to Bardstown.