Four Roses Single Barrel is built on the distillery’s well-documented recipe system — two mashbills and five proprietary yeast strains combining into ten distinct bourbon recipes — and this release is always the OBSV recipe: a higher-rye mashbill paired with the brand’s own “V” yeast, which Four Roses itself describes as contributing delicate fruit character. Like Baker’s 7 Year Single Barrel, every bottle here comes from one individually selected barrel rather than a blend (see Single Barrel vs Small Batch Bourbon for what that actually means) — which also means real bottle-to-bottle variation is part of the format, not a flaw in any one bottle.
Tasted neat, that OBSV recipe shows up clearly: this is a genuinely fruity, floral bourbon built around dried fruit and caramel sweetness rather than a dry, oak-forward style like Elijah Craig Small Batch. The 100-proof strength gives it real weight, but the alcohol stays well-integrated — it doesn’t drink hot — and the rye-driven spice adds real complexity without fighting the sweetness for attention. Oak is present but genuinely restrained for the category, which is part of why the fruit and florals get to lead.
Current US pricing runs roughly $40–$50 for a 750ml bottle, and at that price the quality here is hard to argue with — this is one of the more distinctive, well-regarded single-barrel bourbons on the market at any price. The only real caveat is structural rather than a flaw in this specific bottle: because every release is a single, un-blended barrel, the exact bottle on the shelf can vary somewhat from the one reviewed here.
