Every so often, the hunt for extraordinary barrels leads us somewhere unexpected. This time, the trail took us straight to Purgatory Cellars Winery in Parker, Colorado — and what we found there felt like destiny in a cask.
To understand why this collaboration matters, you have to know a bit about the winery behind it. Purgatory Cellars was founded in 2014 by Croatian winemakers whose passion for high-quality wine runs deep. They arrived with a sincere love of Colorado’s land and fruit, determined to share the joy of European-style winemaking with their community. Today, roughly 90 percent of the grapes they use come from hand-selected Colorado growers, and every bottle is crafted with meticulous care from crushing and pressing to fermentation, aging, and bottling right in Parker.
They also stand apart through their use of Georgian Amphora (Qvevri) clay vessels — an ancient winemaking tradition dating back to the 6th century B.C. Only a handful of American wineries use this method in any meaningful way, and Purgatory Cellars is the first in Colorado to champion it. The result is wine with depth, tension, and history infused into every sip.
That deep respect for local ingredients and old-world craftsmanship resonated with us, because Branch & Barrel’s story is rooted in the same soil.
At B&B, we’re corn people. We work with a fantastic Colorado dairy co-op that grows the high-quality prairie corn at the heart of our bourbon. Our mashbill leans heavily into that golden grain, supported by a touch of barley for richness and flavor. That combination fuels our 17-time award-winning Flagship Bourbon — smooth, sweet, splendid, and proudly supportive of Colorado farmers. For the curious, the rest of our grains come from local farms we know by name, and our water is drawn from the Arapahoe Aquifer through wells on our owner’s property. If you’re drinking Branch & Barrel, you’re drinking Colorado through and through.
So when one of Purgatory Cellars’ Cherry Port casks crossed our path, the collaboration felt inevitable. Their passion for Colorado fruit. Our passion for Colorado grain. Two craft philosophies meeting in the middle, oak staves and all.
We filled the cask with our bourbon and let time do its work.
The result is Purgatory Port Finish, a release as decadent as it is expressive. Expect cherry pastry, dark chocolate, roasted almonds, and baking spices, all wrapped in a deep, velvety richness courtesy of the Cherry Port influence. The flavor unfurls with confidence, turning a familiar bourbon backbone into something luxurious and layered.
Aged 4.5 years and bottled at 106 proof, this whiskey shows up bold and unapologetic. It’s a union of Colorado craft at its finest — from prairie fields to vineyards, from aquifer to amphora, from still to cask.
If enjoying it feels a little sinful, don’t worry. You’re in good company.