1953, 17-Year Straight Bourbon Whiskey, Cognac Cask Finished

Seventeen years of Kentucky bourbon. Twelve months in XXO Cognac casks from the Champagne region. 1,953 bottles.

Named for the year Playboy was founded and the philosophy that pleasure deserves intentional pursuit, this Kentucky straight bourbon was finished in XXO Cognac casks hand-selected from the Naud family's five-generation reserve. Extra Extra Old, the pinnacle of Cognac aging. The result: caramelized nectarine meets dark chocolate, tobacco warmth meets refined spice. Kentucky's foundation with a layer of Old World complexity that doesn't overwhelm. It elevates.

Nose

Caramelized nectarine and dark chocolate, warm and inviting.

Palate

Tobacco, refined spice, and stone fruits create layered complexity. Kentucky boldness meeting Cognac elegance.

Finish

Long, warm, refined. A finish that honors both traditions while transcending both.

55.5% ABV | 111 Proof | 700ml | $589.99

"The juice is legit... a nice little mix of whiskey and brandy." — Christopher Null, Drinkhacker

"A softer whiskey despite the 111-proof point. It drinks like a cognac." — Bourbon and Banter

Only a few bottles remain. One for each year since the original manifesto.

GO DEEPER

The 1953 is the expression that started Rare Hare.

It's the bottle that established the brand's founding principle: that the most interesting whiskey in the world happens at the intersection of traditions that were never meant to meet. In this case, the intersection is between Kentucky straight bourbon (America's native spirit, defined by corn, charred new oak, and the limestone water of the Bluegrass State) and XXO Cognac (France's most prestigious aged spirit, defined by grape, patience, and centuries of refinement).

XXO stands for Extra Extra Old, a designation that requires a minimum of fourteen years of aging in French oak. In practice, most XXO Cognacs are far older: twenty, thirty, sometimes fifty years or more. The casks that held these Cognacs have absorbed decades of the spirit's character: the dried fruit, the delicate spice, the extraordinary depth that only extended grape-spirit aging produces. When a 17-year bourbon enters these casks, it encounters an entirely different history of flavor than anything in the American whiskey tradition.

The Naud family, whose reserve in the Champagne region of Cognac supplied these casks, has been producing spirits for five generations. Their cask selection for this project wasn't random. Each barrel was chosen based on the specific flavor profile it had developed over its years of Cognac service: the richness of the fruit notes, the depth of the oak influence, the balance between sweetness and spice. Not every cask qualified. The ones that did contributed something remarkable to the bourbon that spent twelve months inside them.

The name is deliberate. In 1953, Hugh Hefner launched Playboy with a worldview that sophistication and pleasure weren't guilty indulgences but pursuits worthy of intelligence and intention. Agree with it or not, that philosophy challenged the conservative assumption that enjoyment required justification. This bourbon carries a similar energy. It doesn't apologize for being indulgent. It doesn't downplay its own ambition. It's a whiskey that believes flavor is worth pursuing with the same seriousness that others reserve for restraint.

Only 1,953 bottles were produced, one for each year since that founding philosophy was published. This is the inaugural Rare Hare release, and when they're gone, the brand's origin story becomes something you can only hear about, not taste.