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Bourbon Club of Arkansas Enters the First-Ever Barrel King Bourbon Games
Bourbon Club of Arkansas takes the national stage at the first-ever Barrel King Bourbon Games, a multi-day whiskey competition featuring sales and blending challenges.
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Last Updated on April 27, 2026 by Justin Jones
Professional Blending Update: Day 4 – The Stagg “Knighted” Session
Date: April 26, 2026
Location: Barrel King HQ, Greenwood, AR
Featured Experts: Gary Penna (Founder, Bourbon Club of Arkansas) & Justin Mills (CABB Admin & Professional Blender)
Elevating the Competition: The BCA “Sir Knight” Stagg Finish
Building on the momentum of the Barrel King Bourbon Games, Day 4 shifted from competition to precision craftsmanship. As professional blenders representing the Bourbon Club of Arkansas (BCA), we reached a critical junction: determining if “Knighting” our high-rye bourbon base with a secondary finish in authentic Stagg barrels (Buffalo Trace Distillery) would provide the necessary complexity to set this release apart.
Watch: The “Sir Knight of Stagg” Decision
View Day 4 Technical Transcript (Stagg Finish)
Justin Mills: Okay, we’re at the pivotal point of our blend right now. So, what’s in the tank right now, it’s pretty fucking awesome. Gary did find another barrel today and we put a couple of drops in and it did change the flavor profile. We really don’t want to fuck up our, you know, our base right now. So right now we’ve got two different blends, one is the OG that’s in the tank right now and one is… not. And we’re going to see if what we have in this glass is something we should add to it.
Gary Penna: Right. So if it doesn’t change the profile, we’ll leave it how it is.
Justin Mills: But if it makes a difference, we’re going to go. So we’re going to go through…
(Sounds of liquid pouring and glasses clinking)
Justin Mills: Ooh. The nose on both of them are… they’re both fucking A.
Gary Penna: Fucking great, right?
Justin Mills: So the thing is, right now what we have is a straight, straight bourbon whiskey, that what’s in the tank right now. However, if we add what we added to it, this would actually be a… a knighted blend, which means it’s actually finished in Stag barrels. So one of these is finished in Stag barrels, one of these is our OG blend.
Gary Penna: Oh my god. The noses are amazing. I have one that’s kind of taking… this guy over here is… I’m picking up a little bit more cherry bomb, little cherry creamsicle in it, if you will.
Justin Mills: Oh my lord. I… I see one that’s creamier on the right side, it’s a little creamier.
Gary Penna: But to me, it’s all about finish.
Justin Mills: Yeah, that’s exactly right. All right, I’m going to try…
(Sounds of sipping and swallowing)
Justin Mills: How does that finish last?
Gary Penna: Oh my god. Water.
Justin Mills: Yeah. Number two.
Gary Penna: Cleanse the palette before I go to that back to it again.
Justin Mills: For right now, number two is winning.
Gary Penna: The one on the right, our right, yeah.
Justin Mills: And they’re both different, we don’t know which one’s which. I see this more as complex. It’s got stewed fruit…
Gary Penna: I do. Man, it’s just… it’s creamy, so creamy and cherry for me, too. Maybe that’s the stewed cherries even, maybe that’s what stewed cherries…
Gary Penna: Oh my god. All right, this guy on the right, I don’t know what you are, but… But here’s the thing, they’re so similar, the only real difference I’m taste- getting is the nose on this one’s a little bit more potent, a little more poppy to me, and then there’s a little bit creamier follow through on the palette, but this one coats just as well.
Gary Penna: Okay. I’m picking this one.
Justin Mills: Oh. Is it coming back now? See, they’re both a little bit, like I said, it’s so close.
Justin Mills: I’m kind of leaning towards one now. Hold on.
Gary Penna: Yeah.
Justin Mills: Either one of these would be a good BCA blend, would you agree?
Gary Penna: I agree. They’re going to be fucking amazing.
Gary Penna: I’m going to go- I’m going to go with this guy because it was my first one that I really- this one is phenomenal. This one just has a longer finish on it.
Gary Penna: Oh my god, it’s so good. It’s so good, dude. It’s really creamy.
Justin Mills: This one’s a little darker, the first one, I would say.
Gary Penna: Darker as far as flavor?
Justin Mills: Flavor, yeah, flavor. And on the finish.
Gary Penna: Now, granted, we did have a little bit more maybe in the glass because
Justin Mills: this one is- this one is the creamy one.
Gary Penna: It is.
Gary Penna: And we didn’t- we didn’t measure this one out. This one has- you know, like this one is not measured out, I don’t think, because it doesn’t look like- so I would guess I think I know what that one is. All right, I’m going to go with this one. I think this is the Stag.
Gary Penna: And it is.
Justin Mills: I’m going to go with that one too. And it’s the Stag.
Gary Penna: So we’re going with the Stag, boys and girls. Um… wow.
Justin Mills: So we’re going to add- we’re going to finish this in Stag barrels.
Gary Penna: We’re going to finish this in Stag barrels, so we’re going to come up with a fucking, you know, Sir Knight of Stag, I don’t know, we’ll figure out something really-
Justin Mills: It’s a knighted- it’s a knighted blend.
Gary Penna: Man, that was awesome. Okay. See you folks. Cheers.
Gary Penna: Cheers.
The “Knighted Blend” Sensory Evolution
The “Knighted” process is a specialized secondary maturation where a straight bourbon is “ennobled” by the residual flavors of a prestigious “donor” barrel. During our blind sensory evaluation, we compared our “OG” tank blend against this experimental finish to identify the specific flavor gain:
- Aromatic Profile: The Stagg finish introduced an immediate “cherry bomb” and “cherry creamsicle” bouquet, finishing with a sharp, “poppy” aromatic lift.
- Texture & Mouthfeel: We identified a significantly creamier palate compared to the base blend, layering in complex notes of stewed fruit and dark sugars.
- The Finish: This session confirmed a long, coating finish that successfully captures the bold, “dark fruit” DNA of Buffalo Trace’s most allocated spirits.
The Final Verdict: “Sir Knight of Stagg”
Based on the sensory data, Gary Penna and Justin Mills have formally selected the Stagg-finished profile for the final BCA blend. By merging our balanced base with the intensity of Stagg heritage barrels, we have created a “Knighted” expression that stands as a testament to Arkansas whiskey journalism and professional blending.
VIEW FULL TRANSCRIPT: BOURBON GAMES DAY 4
Introduction to Day 4
[0:00] All right, folks. Here we are on day number four at Barrel Kings for our Bourbon Games. Day number four. This is everybody… I’m sure some people have known about this place, but this is here in Bourbon, Missouri.
Distillery History and Competition Context
[0:12] They’ve been doing blends for a quite a while now, and this will be the last day. The final competition. We’ll check back here very shortly, and there’s our competition from Florida.
The Arkansas vs. Florida Rivalry
[0:24] Look at that, and this is for your blend. We have a lot of guns in Arkansas, boys, and as you saw yesterday, we know how to use them.
↑ Close & Return to TopSESSION TRANSCRIPT: STAGG BLEND [Click to Expand]
Strategic Strategy & Naming
Gary Penna: Florida!
Justin Mills: I know.
Gary Penna: Get out of my f****** shot, Florida! All right, so we’re at the final hour here. This is the Stagg barrel and we’re going to start adding it one Glenn at a time.
Gary Penna: Okay, that might be a good name for the barrel actually, “One Glenn at a Time.” And then we’re going to stir it and try it. We’ve discovered that we’re going to add at least… at least some of this, but not more than one whole bottle.
Pouring & Calibration
Gary Penna: So here we go. Justin’s going to start pouring.
Justin Mills: I’ll do two ounces.
Gary Penna: Go ahead, two ounces. And let’s see how much… I want to see how much the Glenn is. I think the Glenn is six ounces, so let’s find out. That’s a two-ounce pour right there.
Justin Mills: No, that’s a one-ounce.
Gary Penna: That’s a one-ounce? Okay, that’s one. Who’s counting?
Justin Mills: This is a two-ounce pour.
Gary Penna: Okay, keep going. Get to the top of the Glenn, because we’re going to do one Glenn… so two ounces.
Final Integration
Justin Mills: Do you want to do all of it?
Gary Penna: I want to do one whole Glenn. I think that’s what we need to do. Because that’s not going to do anything to that.
Justin Mills: You’d be surprised, drops…
Gary Penna: Yeah, but we said we added one bottle to that.
Justin Mills: All right, that’s three ounces. Let’s do three ounces. Three ounces.
Gary Penna: And then pour it and then sip it and see if we need more.
Justin Mills: Because there was very little in that Glenn.
UPDATE — April 25, 2026 (Article updated for ongoing coverage):
Bourbon Club of Arkansas has taken a commanding 5–1 lead in the 2026 Bourbon Games at Barrel King as the competition heads into its final blending round. New video update and details below.
Day 3 Update: Bourbon Club of Arkansas Takes 5–1 Lead Into Final Blend
📄 Full Transcript: Day 3 Bourbon Games Update ▼
Competition Status & Shooting Results
Gary Penna: Good morning, BCA. How’s everybody doing? We are on day number three here in Bourbon, Missouri, doing the Bourbon Games 2026 — the first edition. We’re competing against a team from Florida, Bourbon Drip. About six rounds of games and competitions at this point. Today is the final push before we do our final blend. Right now, we are winning five to one.
This morning we had a skeet shooting competition, but because we’re down one member, we were only allowed 12 shots and they were allowed 18. We wound up losing 10 to 11 — they hit 11, we hit 10. But it was a pretty impressive showing, and we almost beat them even with that disadvantage.
The Chemistry of the Blend: Hello Darkness Round 2
The next round today is going to involve barrel blending. At the moment, we have about 266 bottles worth in the tank. We let it marry overnight and we’re going to go in shortly and figure out what’s going to happen today. We have several barrels still available — a couple of 13-year-olds, another Green River, maybe an MGP if we find one. And then some finishing touches with some higher-aged whiskey, though we’re only allowed a gallon of that, so it may not even go in.
We’re looking to recreate the Hello Darkness blend as best we can and then improve on it. Once we get in there in the next few minutes, we’ll start doing some chemistry and we’ll do a little live stream from there too.
Sales Success & Wounded Warrior Project
Let’s cover what happened on day one. We showed up and right away they asked us to sell 100 bottles of something they had blended themselves. I’ll be honest — I had an issue with that because we didn’t blend it and I hadn’t had a chance to taste it. But we opened it up and tasted it. It’s excellent.
To be clear, it’s not our blend — but you guys came through and bought bottles. We wound up selling 40 to their 17. I want to really emphasize how incredible that is, considering we have only 350 members in our group and they have 6,000 members. We’re now up to around 60 bottles sold, and it’s still open. Every single dime goes to the Wounded Warrior Project, and bottles ship right to your door. You guys pulled through — we can’t thank you enough.
Mash & Drum Endorsement & Palate Precision
When we come down and do these things, transparency is everything to us. We pride ourselves on giving you the best product — otherwise, why be here? We’re working on something I think you’re going to absolutely love. This is essentially round two of Hello Darkness. Right now it’s almost on the same profile as before. It’s just a matter of tweaking — moving some barrels around, some small adjustments.
I also want to mention what I think was the biggest win for us: Jason Calori from Mash and Drum picked our single barrel as his favorite between the two. That really falls on Justin, because he knows Jason’s palate so well from past blending sessions. I just deferred and said, “Tell me what he likes,” and he nailed it — specifically the finish. You have a great team of people in this club, and things are only going to get better.
Volstead Vault & Archive Bottles
One more piece of news I’ve been waiting to share: I personally purchased 30 bottles of Hello Darkness that I had set aside. We’ll do a couple of giveaways, and the rest will be kept at the Volstead Vault Speakeasy — BCA’s headquarters — where members can enjoy them over the next several years at a very reasonable, consistent price. BCA members and Volstead Vault members will have first access. We’re also going to have a special bottle available — one of the char bottles pulled from the bottom of the barrel — so people can come in someday and try that experience as well.
Justin Mills: [Agreement and support throughout.]
Gary Penna: We’re going to go in here in a minute and start mixing until we lock in the profile. There will be a full YouTube episode covering everything — all the behind-the-scenes footage, edited by bourbon influencer Kanan. You’ll get to see it all, from day one through the final blend result. Either way, you’re going to get a great whiskey. If we sign off on it, it’s going to be delicious. Cheers, everyone.
Gary Penna and Justin Mills of Bourbon Club of Arkansas provide a Day 3 update from the 2026 Bourbon Games at Barrel King, where Team Arkansas currently leads Florida-based Bourbon Drip 5–1 heading into the final whiskey blending round.
The 2026 Bourbon Games have entered the final stretch, and Arkansas is in control.
According to a new update from Gary Penna and Justin Mills, Bourbon Club of Arkansas currently holds a 5–1 lead over Florida’s Bourbon Drip after six rounds of competition, with the final blend challenge now underway at Barrel King.
Saturday morning’s competition featured skeet shooting, where Arkansas narrowly fell 10–11 after competing with fewer attempts due to being down one team member. Even with the disadvantage, the close finish kept Arkansas firmly in the lead overall.
Now, the focus shifts back to what matters most: the whiskey.
Penna revealed the team currently has enough whiskey in the blending tank to produce approximately 266 bottles, with multiple barrels still available for final adjustments. Those include older-aged whiskey, additional Green River barrels, and potentially MGP components as the team fine-tunes the final profile.
The goal is familiar.
BCA is attempting to recreate the flavor profile of its previous blend, Hello Darkness, while improving on it with additional age, depth, and finishing touches.
That alone should have Arkansas whiskey fans paying attention.
One of the most impressive parts of this story remains the support behind it.
On Day 1, BCA members helped sell 40 charity bottles compared to Bourbon Drip’s 17, despite BCA having roughly 350 members compared to Florida’s 6,000-member club. Sales later climbed to around 60 bottles, with all proceeds benefiting the Wounded Warrior Project.
That kind of support says a lot about the strength of Arkansas’ bourbon community.
Penna also shared another major development: he personally secured 30 bottles of Hello Darkness to preserve for future pours at the upcoming Volstead Vault Speakeasy, giving BCA members and Vault members access long after bottles disappear from shelves.
And there may be even more.
The club also plans to make available some of the rare “char bottles” — whiskey pulled from the bottom of the barrel — for future tasting experiences.
For now, all eyes remain on the final blend.
If Arkansas closes out the Bourbon Games the way it started, the state’s bourbon scene may be looking at another major victory — and another bottle worth chasing.
What Gary Penna Said on Day 3
“Right now, we are winning five to one.”
“We have about 266 bottles worth in the tank.”
“We’re working on something I think you guys are going to absolutely freaking love.”
View Full Transcript [Click to Expand]
Initialization & Barrel Identification
[00:00] All right hold on. All right, you’re live.
[00:08] All right, this is barrel number four.
Aromatic Assessment
[00:10] God, it smells so good. Jesus, Mary, Mother of God.
Process Completion
[00:22] All right, finished.
View Full Transcript & Metadata
Date: April 25, 2026 | 14:18 PM CT
Location: Barrel King Headquarters, Bourbon, MO
The Blend Introduction
Gary Penna: Stephanie, Celebrity status!
Gary Penna: All right, here we go. This is… we’re dumping this into the barrel.
Technical Specs: 13-Year MGP
Gary Penna: This is a 13-year MGP.
Gary Penna: That’s how different one bottle will make.
Closing Acknowledgments
Gary Penna: Excellent. Thank you very much.
Gary Penna: I got it from Matthew.
Related Coverage
For readers following the evolution of BCA’s blending program, revisit ArkansasLiquor.com’s earlier coverage of BCA’s original Hello Darkness release and how that bottle helped shape the profile being rebuilt during this year’s Bourbon Games.
Editor’s Note: This article will continue to be updated as the 2026 Bourbon Games conclude.
View Full Audio Transcript: Pulling the Arkansas Barrel
0:00 – Introduction & The Pull
Gary Penna: I’m back. I’m back. Sorry.
Matt: Do you want me to run through the wall?
Gary Penna: Fuck you, Matt! You know those whiskey glasses are the best.
Matt: Those glasses are soft as a bastard.
Gary Penna: Oh, you goddamn beard-faced fuck. All right, so here we go. Arkansas, this is actually it. Um, we think we’re going to get about 110 bottles out of this barrel. So, this is— let me just show them what it looks like. We’re going to go in and pull a little bit right now so you can see the color on this.
Matt: 41-1.
Gary Penna: So we’re about the same spot they are, too.
Matt: Look at that color.
Gary Penna: Yeah, look at that color. Okay, so this whole guy is going in there, and I’m going to tell you what, I’m glad it is, because this barrel’s about to fall apart. Um, so this one’s going to go in and then we’ll be done for the night.
0:50 – The Blending Process
Gary Penna: We’re going to let them marry. Let them marry overnight. This is our competition from Florida. You guys are doing a great job. Yay! Um, there’s a couple Ozark Tylers that we were going to look at earlier; we decided not to do that one. All right, let me get out of the way so I don’t die. We’re about to dump the whole barrel. All right, everybody watch out. Here we go. Jason, that means you too, brother. Everybody get the fuck out the way!
Jason: I’m not safe back here!
Gary Penna: I did get the yeast note at the end. So, inside there right now, if we look over here, the judges for the evening are going to do a final judge tonight of where the blends are.
Justin Mills: Can you take these out? Do I have to dump—?
Gary Penna: No, no! Stop. This is the blend. This is the blend. Remember, I told you I blended these already. We’re good. Trust me. Okay, so these are our final blend that we’re doing for the night, okay? And this is ours with three barrels in it, two and a half barrels.
1:40 – Judging & The Final Barrel
Gary Penna: The other guys are about to dump theirs in there, and then after that, um, it’ll be day two. They’re going to judge where we’re currently at, I guess look at who’s going to win this round. Justin found this last barrel a little while ago, and it’s incredible. It was a great find and it happened to finish the flavor profile perfectly. Yeah, it’s perfect, man. It’s going to be awesome. It’s going to be awesome. Um, all right, let’s go in here and get our barrel. No, remember I told you what I did was—
Justin Mills: Your last barrel is in the middle row, right?
Gary Penna: Yes. I don’t care about the final product.
Justin Mills: Middle row. What do you mean middle— not right there obviously.
Gary Penna: It’s like three or four up.
Justin Mills: It’s, yeah, it’s over here. Behind, behind that one right there.
Gary Penna: All right, so that’s what we’re going to do. Pull it today. Yay. All right, so he’s going to pull that one here shortly. I’ll come back here in a minute right when we get the barrel.
Close & Return to TopView Full Audio Transcript ▼
Dumping the 7-Year 11-Month MGP Barrel
Justin Mills: All right, guys, Gary’s about to put the final barrel in for today. This is a 7-year, 11-month MGP. Gary’s going to go ahead and do this.
(Sound of rhythmic hammering on a barrel bung)
Justin Mills: Two-handed.
Gary Penna: I know, I’m trying to.
Matt: No, I know. Hold it here, but hold it back a little bit, otherwise you’re going to smash your fingers.
Gary Penna: I know.
Justin Mills: There you go. Smash it again.
Gary Penna: No, that’s good. I know.
The Final Barrel of the Day
Justin Mills: You got it?
Matt: There you go.
Justin Mills: This is the last barrel we’re going to put in for today. Oh, look at that!
Justin Mills: One pull—
Gary Penna: no, no, no.
Justin Mills: Oh, shit!
Assessing the Blend and Color
Gary Penna: I told you I wasn’t far enough in. It’s okay.
Justin Mills: He smashed the bung.
(Resumed sound of heavy hammering)
Gary Penna: This bung hasn’t been pulled in a while.
Justin Mills: This is some good juice—just wait until y’all see the color on this, guys. One more time. There you go!
Justin Mills: Woo!
Justin Mills: Oh, look at that color! See that? This is our third barrel that’s going into our blend. We’ve got to get up to 500. And here in a minute, we’re going to stir it all together and kind of give you a live update of what we got. All right, guys, I’ll get to them when we start stirring everything else, so I’ll see y’all in just a bit.
Close & Return to TopView Full Transcript & Session Metadata
0:00 – Initial Blend Preparation
Justin Mills: All right, here we go. We just dumped that last barrel. Gary stirring up our day one blend mixture. Gary, you got anything to say about what we’ve done so far?
Gary Penna: So, our process today is we want to show them where we’re currently at. Today’s the end of day two; we’re going to do one more final round of judging. So, we want to give them an idea of where we’re at before we add the deeper, darker, older 13-year-old O.Z. Tyler, which we’ll do tomorrow. Right, O.Z. Tyler?
0:18 – Blend Components and Aging
Justin Mills: Yeah. This is probably an average of an 8-year blend that we got going right now. Then we’re going to spike with 13 years as we go.
Gary Penna: That’s right. We provide a little more barrel of possibly Green River and a little bit of Wild Turkey in here as we did last time. And then one special bottle of something else, which will just explode. And this is where we’re at, so we’re going to let this sit now for about a day. Grab that lid. Although, I want to thief a little bit.
0:46 – Volume Measurement and Projections
Justin Mills: We’re going to thief a little bit, see where we’re at. Hold on. Six and a half. We’re about 6.5 inches, so what does that give us, Matt?
Matt: 6.5 times 41. Uh, 260.
Justin Mills: We’re about halfway there with what we got right now. So we got to get 500 bottles; we’re at 260 right now with what we got. And we’re going to let this marry and we’ll let you know how we go.
Close & Return to TopView Full Transcript & Session Metadata
Recorded: April 24, 2026 | 4:40 PM CT
Location: Barrel King Headquarters, Bourbon, MO
Participants: Gary Penna, Justin Mills
Segment 1: The Blending Strategy
Gary Penna: BCA, good afternoon update just before 5:00 PM. Most of you are probably getting home for the day, starting to settle down, so I thought I’d do a quick livestream. This will post to our site and then from there you guys can take a look at it later. So here with Justin, we are through day two; today is the beginning of the blending. We now have two full barrels and a half barrel into our mix—or actually, the third barrel is going to be posted in and dumped here very shortly. The other team has their stuff going on right now, they’re dumping theirs.
Segment 2: Component Breakdown
Gary Penna: So right now, we have an almost nine-year Green River in there, and then we have an
Justin Mills: eight-year OZ Tyler
Gary Penna: OZ Tyler in there, and then we’re about to dump an MGP in there as well—
Justin Mills: almost a nine-year
Gary Penna: almost a nine-year MGP. That’s going to be the first three of our barrels, or two and a half if you will.
Justin Mills: And we have two 13-years
Gary Penna: And we have two 13-years on reserve on the bench, and those are going to go in last. The plan is to dump a little more Wild Turkey; we’re pretty much going to repeat pretty much what we did last time for the most part—to the darkness, so “Darkness 2” if you will. It’s just too hard not to; we were just so happy with it, we want to continue that. We’re going to wind up with close to 500 bottles in this blend in the end; that’s what the number has to be for the competition, so we’re working on that right now. In a moment, they’re going to pull the last barrel. Do you need us in there for that or you know where it’s at?
Segment 3: Moving to the Warehouse
Voice in Background: I know where it’s at, but you guys want to be a part of it though!
Gary Penna: All right, we’ll be right there. All right, so we’re going to go out into the warehouse right now, go live, and show you what we’re doing. I’ll talk you through it as we go. If I… let me get us on Wi-Fi. (Sound of walking and warehouse noise) All right, why does it not let me roll around? Here we go. Okay. So, this is the group competing against us, they just dumped their last barrel—all your components dumped for today. All right, so we’re going to walk back to where we’re at and show you the barrel we’re going to dump here. It’s loud in here. Okay, where are you, my friend? I think you’re around the corner over there. Here we are.
Gary Penna: Okay, all right, so this is our barrel right here. As you can see, it says seven-year, 11 months, but actually, it’s been here for a while, so now it’s almost a nine-year MGP. No, that’s not it either. I disregard, I gotta go find it and then we’ll come back. Standby, I’ll go back here in a second—this is one we did for a competition earlier. Standby…
View Full Transcript ▾
00:00 – Safety & Initial Procedures
Matt: Okay, make sure that the valve is closed down by your feet so that we don’t accidentally leak anything out. All the way forward is closed. You’re good.
00:15 – The MGP Base Component
Gary Penna: All right BCA, welcome to the first livestream of the event. We picked our first barrel for our blend. It’s a base. It’s a MGP almost — just over eight years, almost nine years, excuse me, MGP bourbon straight bourbon whiskey about to be dumped by Justin. And we’ll probably about 110 to 120 bottles out of this one. We’re going to build a 500 plus bottle blend. So this is going to be the first base here. Go ahead. Do you remember the procedures? Drill this hole in and then you start banging it out. And then once you roll it, take your bung, slide it on the back side of the barrel, and that’ll keep the barrel from rolling backwards.
Justin Mills: You got to push in like — you know?
Matt: Here’s what you do. Do you see that? You see that little hexagon head?
Justin Mills: Like this?
Matt: You’re going to hold it, right? Like this. Okay?
Justin Mills: All right. Appreciate it.
Matt: Appreciate it, Matt.
Matt: Hey man, that’s what I do. Helpful. That’s like my middle name.
01:45 – Dumping & Sensory Notes
Gary Penna: And then I do this to get the bung out? Yeah, hard. One time, just snap it. One time. Go. Do it.
Justin Mills: No?
Gary Penna: Yeah, yeah, there you go. First time this time. Look at you. Keep this bung right here as what I’m looking for. Then we’re going to take that slowly forward. Look at the color on that, guys. I wish you could smell this. Oh my god. Oh my god, it smells like vanilla extract right out of the jar. Smells like cracker jacks. Oh my god. Smells on my fingers.
02:30 – Future Blending Strategy
Gary Penna: All right, so I know Paul Noni is watching because he’s done it 12 times. So he’s got obviously Wiley WiFi this week. So this is the first barrel going in. We’ll go around this side and take a look, see some deets on this. All right, so right here — oh, stupid Facebook. You’ll have to read upside down, folks. Seven years, ten months. But it’s older now because it’s been in the barrel for a while. That was actually eight years, seven months ago. It goes nine year in December. It goes nine year in December, so eight and a half years. J1715 or 17J15 and we’re going to eventually add this other barrel as well right up here. This is the other barrel we’re going to be adding. We’re going to start with half of this one and then let it blend overnight. When we come back tomorrow, we’re going to taste it and if we like it, we’re going to leave it. If we don’t and we want to add a little more flavor profile, we’ll dump the rest of the bottle — barrel into it because we got to have 500 bottles plus for this event. So that means we got some stuff to do. And then we have chosen two more barrels and let’s get excited, folks, because I know you will. These are 13 year MGPs. Okay, and these will get dumped last after we blend the bulk of it. These hold a combined around just under 300 total bottles. So we just got to basically hit about another 210 to 220 with these over here. So probably two of these to be honest, two of these, and then like we did last time another barrel of something and then a little bit of splash of something like Ozy Tyler or we’ll do a little bit of the one we did last time. So this is the one we did last time. We’re planning on splashing a little bit of that back in there again because we loved it. And then a little Wild Turkey of something in. So any questions, put them in the comments and we’ll talk to you later. Cheers.
PUBLISH DATE: April 24, 2026
Bourbon Club of Arkansas has officially entered the first-ever Barrel King Bourbon Games, a multi-day, filmed competition designed to test bourbon clubs across sales, blending, and whiskey expertise. Taking place at Barrel King, the event brings together competing clubs from across the country in a structured series of challenges that extend far beyond a traditional barrel pick.
View Full Video Transcript (BCA at Barrel King)
Arrival at Barrel King
Gary Penna: Okay, I don’t know if some of you folks are going to see this or not, but good morning. As you guys figured out yesterday, Justin and I are both at Barrel King. So, what are we doing here? Why didn’t we tell anyone about this? Well, we know about as much as you did before we left, and we know a little bit more than you do now, but not much more.
The Competition Challenge
So, about four months ago I got contacted by Jared Record who owns Barrel King, and they asked if we would be interested in doing a competition against another club in April. I said, “Yeah, that sounds awesome, what are we going to be doing?” He goes, “I can’t really talk about it, but it’s going to be a YouTube-recorded competition that’s going to last over four days, and you’re going to compete against another club for different events that we’re going to do, but I can’t tell you much more about it.”
So we showed up yesterday and were interviewed, each of us; Justin was, I was. And then the way it works is it’s supposed to be three-on-three, so three members from one club and three members from the other club. Unfortunately, one of our team members wasn’t able to attend, so we’re down a player for this competition. But, you know, we’re BCA, so we’re going to do what we can, right?
Justin Mills: Right.
Round 1 Results: BCA vs Florida
Gary Penna: Yeah, so we’re going to try to step up as best we can. So yesterday, the first round, what it was, was: How good is your club at selling bottles? Well, I think we’re pretty good at it. So, they picked out one of their honey barrels—it was actually a blend that they did, it wasn’t a single barrel, I think I might have called it a single barrel, but it wasn’t. So, it was a blended bourbon that their staff specifically blended for this competition, and there was only 100 of them. So, they were able to take that bottle and make it happen a few days before we got here and let it sit.
And then what happened then is they basically called us out into the middle of the distillery and said, “All right, here’s the plan: You guys have till 8:00 PM tonight to sell as many bottles as you can. There’s 100 available. The club that sells the most will win the first round, and we’ll explain what that reward is for winning that first round later tonight.”
So, as I probably told you in the post that I did, we won! We sold 40 bottles total by 8:00 PM, and the Florida group—
Justin Mills: They sold 17.
Gary Penna: 17. Now here’s the great part: So, we have 350 members in our club; they have 6,000. So, congratulations to BCA for stepping up.
Upcoming Rounds & Blending
So, this is their blend, like I said, limited release of 100 bottles, and whoever bought one was lucky enough to get one. We don’t know what’s happening here today in round two; we’re going to find out here shortly, I think. But today is Friday, we do it all day Saturday, and then the final round is Sunday. I believe that we’re probably going to be blending a barrel at some point—would you probably say that’s true?
Justin Mills: I’d agree.
Gary Penna: Don’t know how that’s going to work or how that’s going to play out, but like I said, they have three people that are going to be blending, we have two. I don’t necessarily think there’s a disadvantage or advantage on that side, because whether we had seven of our admins here or one of our admins here, I think they would pretty much blend the same bottle. However, there are probably going to be things that involve having three people, so we’ll see how that goes.
Judges and YouTubers
We’ll give you play-by-plays throughout the day. None of this is released yet, we really don’t have much information, but this is exciting! It’s the first-ever Barrel King Bourbon Games. So, Jason Callori from The Mash and Drum is here—you saw we did a video yesterday—he’s one of the judges. We don’t know if Matt Porter might show up this week from ADHD Whiskey; there’s a YouTuber—who’s the YouTuber?
Justin Mills: They’re both YouTubers. There might be another surprise guest that we don’t know about.
Gary Penna: Yeah, we don’t know about. So there’s a new YouTuber, he’s got quite a bit of followers, I don’t know the name, I’ve never seen him before, but he runs a YouTube channel for whiskey, and they’re going to be the ones that are actually doing the videoing, or they’re doing it now. They’ve been videoing since we showed up here, basically.
We’ll keep you guys posted and let you know. I know there’s not very many people logged on, but it’s also very early in the morning, so this live stream will go taped here shortly and people will be able to look at it later. All right man, wish us luck throughout the day! You know, we’ll check in and—you guys have any questions, let us know. Justin, anything?
Justin Mills: No, thanks. We beat Florida.
Gary Penna: We beat Florida!
In this video, Bourbon Club of Arkansas leaders discuss their experience at the Barrel King Bourbon Games, including the opening round results and what to expect in upcoming competition rounds.
What began as a limited charity barrel showdown quickly evolved into something much larger, placing the Bourbon Club of Arkansas on a national stage against a Florida-based whiskey group.
What Are the Barrel King Bourbon Games?
The Barrel King Bourbon Games are described as a four-day, YouTube-recorded competition featuring head-to-head matchups between bourbon clubs. According to Gary Penna, the event was kept largely under wraps until participants arrived on-site.
“We know about as much as you did before we left,” Penna said. “We showed up and were interviewed… and then they started explaining how this was all going to work.”
Each team is expected to compete in multiple rounds, with different challenges designed to test various aspects of bourbon knowledge and influence. The format is structured as a three-on-three competition, though Bourbon Club of Arkansas is currently competing with two members after one participant was unable to attend.
Round One: A Test of Sales and Community Strength
The first challenge of the Barrel King Bourbon Games focused on a skill rarely framed as a competition—the ability to sell bourbon.
Participants were given access to a limited release created specifically for the event. Rather than a single barrel, the bottle used in the competition was a custom blend produced by the Barrel King team, with only 100 bottles available.
Teams were given a strict deadline.
“You guys have till 8:00 PM tonight to sell as many bottles as you can,” Penna explained.
The results highlighted the reach and responsiveness of the Bourbon Club of Arkansas community.
- Bourbon Club of Arkansas: 40 bottles sold
- Florida-based club: 17 bottles sold
The outcome is particularly notable given the size difference. Bourbon Club of Arkansas has approximately 350 members, while the competing Florida group reportedly has around 6,000 members.
Despite that gap, Arkansas took the opening round.
Wounded Warrior Project Selection
Recorded at Barrel King Headquarters, Bourbon, MO.
[+] View Word-for-Word Transcript
Introduction and Charity Mission
[00:00] Gary Penna: All right, Jason, you ready?
[00:01] Jason Callori: Yeah, yeah. I’m getting behind.
[00:02] Gary Penna: All right, folks, I’d like to welcome Jason from Mash & Drum. You guys know who he is. Have you seen him plenty of times over the years. He’s going to tell a little bit about what we’re doing here.
[00:10] Jason Callori: Yeah, so today we… we selected a single barrel for you guys that is going to be obviously… all the proceeds go to charity, which is probably the best thing about this… whole endeavor. But, as we taste through these barrels and as we taste through this whiskey, it’s… the flavors in here, I personally love. I just love how spicy it is. It’s not like that deep rich cherry note you get from some of those older MGPs. This is a little bit more of an elevated classic MGP where you get the spice, the ginger, the orange, a little bit of maple syrup in there too.
Tasting Notes and Mouthfeel Profile
[00:41] Jason Callori: So there’s some really nice flavors here, but… as you taste through this, I do think the viscosity gets better. I think the finish lasts a… a very long time, which is my favorite part of it. But… yeah, it’s a killer single barrel. It’s got some even some gristle on the bottom of it, which everybody loves.
[00:58] Gary Penna: Does it. I’m picking up… I’m picking up a little bit of… like you just opened the wrapper in a bit of honey and it’s like sticking to the wrapper and you’re pulling it off. And like as you’re drinking it, you get those crispy outside bits of that hard candy as they start to melt.
[01:13] Jason Callori: Yeah, the honey factor in here is definitely… and that’s where I think that black tea comes in… on the back end. It’s like a black… it’s like black tea, honey, with a… like a big slice of orange in it. And then on top of that, there’s a very, very faint hint of like a bright maraschino cherry right in the mid-palate that hits. It’s very faint, but I think as this opens up, you could actually find it even more and more.
Technical Specs and High-Rye Profiles
[01:34] Gary Penna: I definitely get the orange peel note on it. And as it’s sitting here in the glass, it’s getting better. At first, I had this impression this was a rye, and I’m like, this doesn’t taste or… or smell like a rye, so I was totally confused by it. And then it’s like, no, it’s a 36% rye. So it’s a higher rye, which… as we know, 12% to 36% is considered high rye, which is insane. But… it’s just got a really, really nice mouthfeel to me and it finishes real well.
[01:58] Jason Callori: Yeah, the mouthfeel on it, the spice of it—that’s going to… what’s that’s what’s going to stand out about this barrel. So… yeah, guys, buy some bottles, raise some money for charity, help these guys win the first leg of the competition and… well, we’ll see how it goes.
Military Service and Wounded Warrior Support
[02:11] Gary Penna: So we’re doing… Wounded Warrior. That’s one of the ones true to my heart. So, both Justin Mills and myself are all… both former military. I’m retired Air Force, he’s… retired Army. Not technically retired, but he did his… six, eight years. What did you do total?
[02:27] Justin Mills: Six years. Two years in Afghanistan.
[02:29] Gary Penna: Six years, two years in Afghanistan. I did seven deployments as well. So… both in the Wounded Warrior program, we’re both disabled veterans. So… it’s a very near and dear to my heart. So 100% of the proceeds if we win will go to this charity, which I think is a very worthy one. So I want to thank Jason from Mash & Drum. Obviously, if you don’t follow him, you need to follow him and go to his… his site and like and subscribe to it. And… keep watching, this is going to be a long, arduous…
[02:55] Jason Callori: There’s a lot of stuff planned for them this weekend that even I don’t know about.
[02:58] Gary Penna: Arduous my f***ing ass for drinking whiskey for free! I mean, like oh, put me in jail, make me drink whiskey. Okay. So, I appreciate it guys. Cheers, peace.
[03:09] Jason Callori: Cheers. Thanks, man. I appreciate it.
A Multi-Day Competition With More to Come
The Barrel King Bourbon Games are scheduled to continue through the weekend, with additional rounds taking place Friday, Saturday, and concluding Sunday.
While full details of upcoming challenges have not been released, early indications suggest that barrel blending may play a role in later rounds.
“We’re probably going to be blending a barrel at some point,” Penna said. “We don’t know exactly how that’s going to work yet.”
The competition format introduces a mix of uncertainty and adaptability, with participants learning each challenge in real time.
Judges, Filming, and National Exposure
The event is being professionally recorded and is expected to be released on YouTube, bringing broader visibility to both the participants and the format itself.
Among those present is Jason Glory, who is serving as one of the judges. Additional whiskey content creators and YouTubers are also expected to appear, though not all participants have been publicly confirmed.
“They’ve been videoing since we showed up,” Penna said.
This level of production signals that the Barrel King Bourbon Games may extend beyond a one-time event, potentially establishing a new format for competitive whiskey content.
Why This Matters for Arkansas Whiskey
The Bourbon Club of Arkansas has already built a reputation through award-winning barrel picks and strong community engagement. Their participation in the Barrel King Bourbon Games represents a step into a broader national conversation.
Competing—and winning—against a significantly larger club in the opening round reinforces the influence of Arkansas whiskey enthusiasts beyond the state.
It also reflects a shift in how bourbon culture is evolving, where clubs are no longer just selecting barrels but actively competing in structured events that combine knowledge, taste, and community engagement.
As the Barrel King Bourbon Games continue, additional updates and results are expected to follow.
🔍 FAQ
What are the Barrel King Bourbon Games?
The Barrel King Bourbon Games are a multi-day, filmed bourbon competition featuring clubs competing in challenges such as sales performance and barrel blending.
Where are the Barrel King Bourbon Games held?
The event is taking place at Barrel King in Bourbon, Missouri.
Who is representing the Bourbon Club of Arkansas?
Gary Penna and Justin Mills are currently representing the Bourbon Club of Arkansas in the competition.
What was the result of Round 1?
Bourbon Club of Arkansas sold 40 bottles compared to 17 by a Florida-based club, winning the opening round.
Will the Barrel King Bourbon Games be released publicly?
Yes, the event is being recorded and is expected to be released on YouTube.
What is Hello Darkness?
Hello Darkness is a previous BCA blend that has become a benchmark profile for the club’s blending program and is now serving as inspiration for this new competition blend.
Justin Jones
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